hey RichZ ....

heading up there next week, if everything goes according to plans on my buddy's side of life, so I have a few last questions, if you don't mind?

first, it was pretty amazing seeing you up there last week. I mean, I've never been up there, its a huge lake, this was our day to do a quick exploratory excursion without the boat and get a feel for the area, find some lodging, and after riding around to many different places we happen to be sitting by the lake at TC waiting for the ferry and there you come pulling into the ramp 5 minute after we arrive. I really couldn't believe it. I'm sitting there and I say to my buddy, "that profile looks like RichZ!" he agrees from the couple of pictures I've shown him from 'gorilla in the nut' to get him initially interested in this venture along with reading all your reports to him for years. wasn't quite sure that was you at first but your son in the back looked familiar as well, and then when you got in a car from Conn. and with a T-shirt with Conn. on it, well, talk about happenstance. good to see you .... but I wish I could have talked to you longer and bought you a beer and picked your knowledge base for awhile; but, we all had places to go.

my question concerns the lower part of the lake, the area from Whitehall up, starting at the canal. how is it? I don't recall much of your reports on this section except South Lake which we will not bother with (maybe the area at the ramp above the bridge) because we will have Vermont licenses so can't go into NY and will play around in the 10 mile stretch above Whitehall. plus, the lake is smaller and less intimidating to a couple of guys who have cut their teeth on the Conn. River and never really fished bigger water. should feel more like home to us.

is the bass fishing good bass fishing down there, mostly largemouth I would presume? are there pike down there or do you need to be more in the area of TC you were in last week to find the pike. we'd like to have a little of that occasional excitement. we can only get a room around TC for 2 nights and will need to move down to Whitehall for the next night or so so have decided just to fish that especially after sitting at the dock of the pier12 marina and liking the idea of docking the boat for 2 nights and fish out of there with less boat hassles. so, that's what we will probably do unless its just amazing further north and too much to resist or you point out this section is a waste of time, comparably speaking.

as for what you would fish and where you might go if you were there next week, I'm sure your tired of saying these types of things to guys like me so I won't really bug you there and as I have saved every report you've given for the last 3-4 years, here and elsewhere, I figure most of it is in there already. but like I said, I can't recall much reporting on the narrow souther stretch so I hope you don't mind a little advice here.