Trip of the Century 05/15/2012

Well, it finally happened this year.  I reached 100 fish in a day.  With last year's hectic schedule and wretched weather, it never happened for me in 2011.  I arrived at the lake around 10 am and couldn't help but make a few casts from the bank, just to gauge the bass activity.  Within a few minutes I had caught two bass on a soft plastic jerkbait, and one on a small swimbait.  They weren't large, maybe 11-12", but it seemed like a good indicator for a great day.  And it was.  I launched out into the crystalline  waters and was scoring fish from the get go on the jerkbaits.  Most were cookie cutter imitations of the first three, but I got into a few better ones. 

I had some fast action on a swim Fluke as well as my little Twitchy Minnow in various colors.  The wind kicked up, and a ski boat arrived, so I kicked in for some lunch.  I decided to ditch the tube and wade in among the trees.  That proved to be a wise choice.  I switched to just my 6' Shimano Clarus and a vest full of jerkbaits and worked my way along the shore.  I caught a ton of smaller fish, but every once in a while I would get something nicer.

There ski boat had been hanging out nearby, bludgeoning me and the fish with a ceaseless stream of top 40 crappage.  The fishing slowed down until they moved on.  Once they did, I began to see more good fish showing up.  Most were skittish or at least uninterested.  Some were already beginning to couple up.  At one point I spotted a fat sow of about 18".  I worked her for some time, jiggling a 5.5" trick worm on the bottom, when she finally came over and slurped it up.  I set the hook hard, the drag giving just a bit, the rod doubling, but for some reason we didn't hook up.  I switched back to the jerkbait and continued on.  I was beginning to see a ton of large gills and some decent crappie, but I wasn't rigged up for them.  I kept at the bass, and it was beginning to seem likely that I would reach 100 fish.  I would have a flurry of action,

and then it would die down.  I would be ready to pack it up, and then I would have another rally.

My camera began to fog up from all the deep wading I was doing.  I slowly climber upward in my numbers until it was getting dark and I was stuck at 99.  I missed a couple and was wondering if I wouldn't make it.  It was time to go, so for the heck of it I grabbed a rod rigged with a spinnerbait out of the car.  I missed one almost immediately, and then nothing.  I fished another ten minutes and had resigned myself to only catching 99 fish.  As I was walking back to the car, I threw a cast and began reeling as I walked.  Wouldn't you know it, fish number 100 finally arrived.  He was a dink, but I did nonetheless.

Total for trip:  100 largemouth

Total for year: 453 fish