And don't forget the pine straw on the water, if it's floating horizontal the fish ain't biting,if it's floating vertically, well, better check your drag. I believe I'm remembering that right. I could be wrong,ask my wife.?A few thousand over my life I guess. Sometimes I have dirt left over and sometimes not enough to fill it back up... post, dead carcass, or nothing at all. I can attest to fish bite the best when wind comes from the west and least from the east. Also, if cows are standing up grazing, fish are biting... that I know. Don't know about this moon phase and digging a hole thing?