Here are some tips to get you prepared for the upcoming fishing season. I do this every year about this time to get everything organized so that I won't forget anything.

Here are some tips to get you prepared for the upcoming fishing season. I do this every year about this time to get everything organized so that I won't forget anything. I spend countless hours cleaning, sharpening, and yes, even washing my lures in the kitchen sink. Make sure you purchase a quality pair of fishing or safety glasses, they've saved my eyes several times!

The Tackle Box...

First of all, clean all of the candy bar wrappers out of the bottom! Once you can see all of your tackle, start sorting your lures out into catagories. I have a different box for just about everything, which is kind of a drag because I have to haul so much around ( I have a friend who asks me where the camera crew is every time we go out ). I tried cramming it all into one box, but broke the handle off the Plano Phantom Pro, darn near loosing it while hoisting it out of the boat. It was just too heavy.

I still use the Phantom, but also carry a Gym bag filled with Plano organizers. These are the next best thing to sliced bread because you can sort everything out and have a different box for each. For instance one box is labeled jellies, another is labeled tails, another jigs, another spinners, and so forth. The jellies box has all of my rubber worms, different colours, sizes, and shapes. The tails box has all of my grub tails, trailers and weird stuff, and so on and so on.

I must have five or six of these boxes that go wherever I do. The big Phantom carries all of my crankbaits, spoons, pork, and the rest of the bulky tackle.

Sort your crankbaits out to the species of fish. The first drawer is all bass baits, such as Rattl'n Shads, Rattle Spots, Poes, Rebel crawfish (man I love those things !) The next drawer is all Walleye cranks: Rapala Deep down Rattl'n Raps, Hot N'Tots, and Wally Divers to name a few.