Pea****s, pound for pound, are the strongest fighting fish in the world. When you get into a good section of river, you can easily catch 30, 40, 100 in a day. The bites are EXPLOSIVE! Did I mention that the majority are taken on topwater?
As far as tackle I use bass gear. Heavy bass gear, braided line and primarily topwater baits. I'm partial to Evergreen and Megabass rods, for reels you need stout reels with decent line capacity. Steez 100H's and Chronarchs work well. Lures I have found that Hi Roller topwaters work the best.