Here are 10 tips that'll make your next fishing (or hunting) trip go smoother:
1. Don't wait to purchase fishing gear, hunting gear, or licenses because they may not be available at the last moment;
2. If your guide or companion takes you to one of his secret hot spots, don't tell everyone about it. He just may have other special areas in mind for you on future safaris;
3. If others around you are experiencing poor fishing (or hunting) and you're doing great, be modest. "We had a good day," is sufficient;
4. One of man's great inventions is Benadryl's anti-itch, antihistamine spray. If you are bitten by insects, just spray a light coat of Benadryl over the bites and, within minutes, the itching disappears and you can go back to fishing, hunting, drinking, sleeping, or whatever else you were doing in comfort;
5. Speaking of insects, Avon's Skin-So-Soft is a wonderful repellent for many biting insects including mosquitoes, chiggers, no-see-ums, etc. If you don't object to the odor, you can increase the effectiveness of Skin-So-Soft by mixing it with Vicks VapoRub (three parts Avon, one part Vicks);
6. Totes (boot version) come in handy on a boat. These lightweight galoshes can slip over your shoes in case the boat leaks or there is a lot of rain. Furthermore, you can tape the tops tightly, which is a deterrent for those nasty mosquitoes or pesky horse flies that seem to love ankles. However, if you use waterproof boots, forget the Totes;
7. Plastic garbage bags are quite useful items to take on a fishing or hunting trip. Use them to store dirty laundry, protect a camera, dump garbage until it can be properly disposed of, or any one of a dozen other things. If you cut three holes in a plastic bag (for your head and arms), you can fashion an emergency rain jacket for those unexpected downpours;
8. If you're taking booze along in your luggage, pour it into an empty plastic soft drink bottle and you won't have to worry about broken glass;
9. Even if you have 20/20 vision, wear eyeglasses (prescription or plain sunglasses) when fishing for protection. We cringe every time we see fishermen without glasses standing close to one another (in dim light, blinding sun, or in shadows) and casting or fighting a fish because the wind can take a fly or lure off course, or a leaping fish can toss your offering back at you. Also, don't forget sloppy back casts;
10. While on the subject of eyeglasses, be sure and attach a lariat to them. If you lean over in a boat, your glasses could fall into the water. These lariats...or those self-adjusting coils...or some just plain monofilament fishing line, work well and cost peanuts;
11. If you are flying to your fishing or hunting location, get to the airport at least 1-1/2 hours ahead of the scheduled departure time because you could always encounter unusually heavy traffic, a fender bender, or a flat tire...and probably will.
Yeah, I know, that's 11 tips. Consider the last one a bonus.
Copyright (c) 1996 Herb Allen. All rights reserved.
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