tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19139616886682936612024-03-13T21:50:46.453-07:00I Caught You a Delicious BassGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.comBlogger78125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-22524679251297312592012-07-16T13:58:00.001-07:002012-07-16T13:58:45.543-07:00Frogger 6/14/12I managed to make it out for one more quick largemouth trip before leaving for Minnesota. I only had about 3 hours to fish, but it proved a fruitful little excursion. I was amazed to find calm conditions on my arrival. I worked my way toward a weedy bay, catching one on a spinnerbait as I traveled. I caught a couple on top from the bay on a Megabass Prop Darter 110, then I noticed a lot of fish going nuts in the rushes up against the bank. I got up into the weeds and started throwing a soft jerkbait. I caught several cookie cutters on that before switching over to a small hollow belly frog. After that it was non stop topwater action. Some would detonate on the frog, others would gently suck it under. I missed quite a few, but I landed the majority. Most were typicals, but a few were a little better quality.<br />
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Eventually the action slowed down and the wind kicked up. I moved to a steep bank with some flooded willows on the far shore. The water had come down a little, so a lot of the willows were now on dry land. I still caught quite a few on a soft jerkbait. I was catching quite a few small fish, and I was having a hard time setting the hook with the wind, so I tied a wacky rigged 4" Baby Tiki Stick on my light action spinning rod. That did the trick. Not only did I have a better hooking percentage, but I caught some better quality fish.<br />
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The stupid wind made waves which caused that last pic to be out of focus. Lame. The two better fish were in a tight strip of open water between the inside weedline and the willows. I hooked another good one, but she buried herself in a mass of vegetation before I could turn her with my flimsy rod. I caught a couple more little guys before having to take off for work. <br />
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Total for trip: 35 largemouth<br />
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Total for year: 749 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-1795060015617010692012-07-16T13:28:00.000-07:002012-07-16T13:28:20.700-07:00A Practice Round 6/12/12I had received a tip that the smallmouth were hitting on top. I had been focusing on largemouth as I was heading out to Minnesota the end of June, and I planned on catching lots of smallies there. Still, smallmouth on top sounded too good to pass up. When I arrived, it was sunny and glassy calm. I started fishing a River2sea Bubble Pop 65. I didn't get much luck, so I tried lipless cranks, spinnerbaits, squarebills, soft plastic craws, all with little to show for it. I finally caught a couple of fish on a nose hooked soft jerkbait. They were dinks, and I missed many more than I caught. I finally caught a decent one on the popper tight to the bank. <br />
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I caught a couple more dink smallies and a green sunfish on the jerkbait. I reached a point, and just then the wind kicked up. I worked my way up the bank, with more of the same. I hooked something large on a Lucky Craft LV100, but it pulled loose before I got a look at it. I snagged the crank on some discarded line in the water. All the racket I made trying to shake it loose attracted a nice sized trout of around 18". It had a look and then turned tail. I had never seen a trout there before, so that was a surprise. I decided to try a medium diving crank in a crayfish pattern. I cast it parallel to shore, and a decent fish smacked it off the surface before I even started the retrieve.<br />
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I continued on, and in a promising looking area, I decided to try my fly rod. I had it rigged up with a perch colored wiggle minnow. I had never fished this pattern before, but I was impressed with its wiggling, rolling action as I twitched it across the surface. Apparently the bass were too.<br />
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I had a flurry of action with fish crushing the fly. Some of them even went aerial on the strike. After ten or fifteen minutes of non stop action, it ended. I continued on, picking up fish here and there. I reached a submerged point that is usually really good when the wind blows, but apparently the fish didn't get the memo that day. I picked up one small bass on the lipless crank, and that was it. While I was in the shallows, I did notice an encouraging site.</div>
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There were thousands of smallmouth fry all over the area. Oddly enough, no angry dads were in the area. Just past the point I had a few more hits on the wiggle minnow. I tried a Yo Zuri Swisher on one of my spinning rods, and the fish liked it for a bit.</div>
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It was time to head back. I had a couple of good blowups on the Swisher, and a couple of smallbass and a sunfish took it as I worked my way back to the car. I stopped by the river on the way down the canyon. The water was high, murky and mossy, but I managed another bass or two on a pearl swimbait. I was quite disgusted by the trash strewn about, and the flattened foot long trout with a boot imprint across it. This place seems to attract the white trash for some reason. I think I'll take a break from it for a bit.</div>
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Total for trip: 31 smallmouth. 2 green sunfish</div>
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Total for year: 714 fish</div>
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<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-86996333811420304022012-07-16T13:02:00.000-07:002012-07-16T13:02:28.037-07:00Things Heat Up 6/4/12It's amazing how much things can change in a week when you live in the mountains. It had been hot since my last fishing trip. I almost didn't go out because it was stiflingly hot, and extraordinarily windy. When I arrived, there were whitecaps on the water. I seriously contemplated leaving, but thankfully I endured and gave it a try. I started off fishing a Damiki Gladiator spinnerbait. I quickly caught a small bass or two, and then oddly enough, another foot long rainbow took a spinnerbait, and this time right in the mouth. I tried to get a picture, but he spazzed out and just about destroyed my lure. I got him back in the water where he belonged and began working my way up the far shore, catching a fair number of cookie cutter bass. I finally caught a better one.<br />
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I was catching fair numbers of fish, but I really wanted some higher quality bass. I tried throwing a soft jerkbait, but the wind made it extremely difficult. I had an idea, and it paid off. I got up against the bank and began throwing parallel to the shore along the inside weedline. This cut down on slack line tremendously. I was now able to make long casts and still get solid hookups. <br />
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I began a system of fishing the spinnerbait, working my way up the shoreline, then I would paddle up to the shore and fish the jerkbait tight to the bank. It was fruitful.<br />
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The wind even died down for a bit and I scored the best fish of the day.<br />
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The wind got going again, but I caught several more skipping the bait across the surface. <br />
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I switched to a different spinnerbait, a Damiki MTS as I thought it would be better in the wind. I put a small swimbait on as a trailer and began to hammer the fish. Most were small, but it was still fun. I realized it was time to get home, so I reluctantly kicked back across the lake. I had about a quarter mile to go up this bank before reaching the car, so I cast the spinnerbait to the reeds as I went. It was a fish on almost every cast for a while. Most were typical 11-12" largemouth, but I caught a few that were a little better.<br />
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I had decided that I wouldn't look at my clicker until I got to my car. When I arrived I was impressed at the total, 84 fish for a four hour trip. Not too shabby. I was kind of bummed that I had to go as I would have easily topped 100 fish again, but that's just the way it is sometimes.<br />
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Total for trip: 83 largemouth, 1 rainbow<br />
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Total for year: 681 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-51839585779573314002012-07-05T00:31:00.003-07:002012-07-05T00:38:46.469-07:00The Downward Spiral 05/29/12I wasn't planning on fishing again so soon, but I couldn't find my camera and I feared I had left it at the lake, or worse still, on top of my car. I hurried back to Idaho, scanning the canyon for the wreckage of my camera, but to no avail. I brought my backup camera, but it didn't get much use. The water was still chilly and the fish just weren't aggressive. I caught a few on a Megabass Vision 110, but only one was decent sized. <br />
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I tried spinnerbaits, soft jerkbaits, cranks. I don't recall finding much of anything in the shallows, and the deeper fish were really inactive. The wind also kicked up, making subtle presentations more difficult. It was some dang slow fishing. I only managed 16 bass in the three hours before I had to head to work. I did spy this cute little guy as I was leaving.<br />
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It's always a treat to see amphibians in the arid west. This story does have a happy ending though as I was reunited with my camera. Apparently I set it on my wife's car the night before as I was unloading my gear and forgot to pick it up. It made the 12 mile ride to her work that morning and somehow stayed on the car. Even luckier still, someone noticed it there and contacted her. I'm definitely a lot more careful with it now.<br />
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Total for trip: 16 bass<br />
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Total for year: 597 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-5956338467872166732012-07-05T00:12:00.002-07:002012-07-05T00:24:51.114-07:00Post Frontal Blues 05/28/12After the previous week's success, I was anxious to return to my favorite little bass pond. Unfortunately, things had cooled way down. I was concerned when I saw that the water had dropped ten degrees down into the upper 50s. Nevertheless, I quickly caught a nice chunk of a bass on a spinnerbait fairly quickly.<br />
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I had several quick little taps at the bait, but no hookups. As I reached the far shore I picked up the best fish of the day along a drop in about ten feet of water on a little Lucky Craft Bevy Shad 60 DD.<br />
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I kept fishing the area and had more quick taps on the spinnerbait before finally hooking up with the culprit. I had hooked a rainbow planter on a 3/8oz spinnerbait, right through the back behind the head. Crazy bugger. I worked my way up the bank and scored a fish here or there. Most fish were out a little deeper away from the shoreline reeds. Still, I managed a few decent ones on spinnerbaits and soft jerkbaits. I also got some love on a Lucky Craft Slender Pointer 97. I remember losing a really nice one on that bait too.<br />
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Nothing too exciting happened really. I caught a fat perch on a small soft jerkbait, the first of the year. I ended up with 33 bass, trout and a perch in my four hours of fishing. Still a decent day, but not like the last.<br />
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Total for Trip: 33 largemouth, rainbows and a perch<br />
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Total for Year: 581 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-50870847856668007072012-07-04T23:31:00.000-07:002013-03-29T20:33:43.553-07:00How Are Things On the West Coast? 05/24/2012I decided to hit one of my favorite little bass reservoirs to see how it was fishing. It had been quite warm, but on this day it was sleeting on me while I rigged up my tube. The day was a mixture of sun, clouds, sleet and rain, wind and calm. I wasn't expecting much because of the inclement weather, but I was pleasantly surprised to nail a nice bass almost immediately on a spinnerbait. I was also surprised to find the water in the upper 60s already.<br />
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The day was steady, I caught many bass on spinnerbaits fished parallel to shore along the rushes, and when the wind would die I would clean up with a soft jerkbait.<br />
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I really wanted to fish the far bank, but two other tubers were working it. Once they left, I made a b-line for the far shore. I immediately caught a spunky little bass on a Jackall Squirrel 67.<br />
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I love fishing miniature hard baits on light tackle. The wind started blowing fairly hard again, so I went back to fishing the spinnerbait. I switched over to a more compact bait, a Lucky Craft Redemption spinnerbait. On the first cast I nailed this slot buster.<br />
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With the crystal clear water, I was able to watch her ambush the spinnerbait not far from the tube. This far bank was on fire. I was nailing fish after fish on the spinnerbait. There was a slight lull in the wind, so I went back to the soft jerkbait. I got to try out a new bait I just started shooting. The bass approved.<br />
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I was really impressed by this little bait's ability to walk the dog on the surface, and even jump and skip across the surface like a fleeing baitfish. The bass were also impressed with this. I switched back and forth between the jerkbait and the spinnerbait with consistent success.<br />
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I glanced at my watch and realized I needed to get home. I was sad to leave on such a productive day, but I was still on thin ice from staying too late on my 100 fish day a week prior. I fought the wind back across the lake, but it wasn't a complete loss. I broke out the fly rod and trolled a bugger as I went, picking up a couple of little chrome rockets along the way.<br />
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I love Kamloops, they're absolutely nuts. I made a couple more casts with the spinnerbait as I worked my way along the bank towards the takeout point and managed a few more small bass. I ended up with 51 bass and two trout in under four hours. That was definitely better than I expected with the weather and a great change from last spring's lackluster action there.<br />
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Total for Trip: 51 largemouth, 2 rainbows<br />
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Total for Year: 548 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-78680807504877580412012-06-06T10:35:00.001-07:002012-06-06T10:35:36.549-07:00Letdown 05/21/12With my previous week's success and reaching 100 fish in a day, I decided to return to the same lake for a rematch. When I arrived, I was greeted by a good 7 or 8 boats on the water and several people in pontoons. I made a few casts from the bank, just to try gauging the activity level of the fish. I had one follow, and that was it. I had a feeling already that things weren't going to be as hot this time. I fished out in my tube for a bit, and caught some fish, but they definitely weren't very aggressive. The water was glassy, the sun bright, and the fish spooky. I'm thinking they'd been hammered all weekend and were wary. I spotted one really nice 18-19" fatty, but she was skittish and wouldn't come after my bait. I caught a few decent ones, but most were smaller.<br />
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After about an hour, a boat load of loudmouth, club music bumping frat boys showed up in Daddy's boat, so I ditched the tube and waded. I could see quite a few decent fish swimming about, but they weren't aggressive. I also found tons of large bluegill that were more than happy to attack my bass baits, but my gill gear was back in the car. I continued on, and did manage to get some better fish here and there.<br />
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I tried fishing a 6" ribbed paddle tail worm that always seems to entice the bigger fish this time of year, and it did get me some action, just no monsters. <br />
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It was starting to get late, and I had planned on fish tacos for dinner, so I went back to the car and exchanged the bass stick for a 10' crappie pole. I tied a small jig with a 2" grub to my line and headed back to where the sunfish had been so thick. The wind had kicked up in the meantime, and it was now difficult to see anything under the surface. I dabbed my lure in the pockets in the brush, but I just kept catching small bass. I moved deeper into the trees where I remembered seeing some gills earlier. Finally, right between two trees, I found my first victim. <br />
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I pulled two more out of the area, and then it was just a small bass here or there. I went back to the first spot, but still wasn't getting any love from the round guys. I decided to put on a small tungsten head caddis emerger from my fly box. That did the trick.<br />
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I got a couple from that spot and decided that was enough for dinner for two. <br />
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I hadn't eaten bluegill for about 20 years, I have to say I was impressed. Those were some of the best fish tacos I'd eaten in a long time.<br />
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Total for trip: 37 largemouth, 5 bluegill<br />
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Total for year: 495 fish<br />
<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-45099425243911012222012-06-02T19:56:00.002-07:002012-06-02T19:56:26.091-07:00Trip of the Century 05/15/2012Well, 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. <br />
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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.<br />
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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,<br />
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and then it would die down. I would be ready to pack it up, and then I would have another rally.<br />
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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.<br />
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Total for trip: 100 largemouth<br />
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Total for year: 453 fish<br />
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<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-50508376709601862812012-05-22T10:33:00.000-07:002012-05-23T10:12:16.498-07:00The End of The Bronze Age 05/14/12After last week's fast smallie action, I was looking forward to another day of nailing the little buggers. I even brought a fly rod to see if some would come up for poppers. I drove to my new spot and put in on dead calm water. I started throwing a chartreuse Chatter Bait, but nothing happened. I tried a lipless crank and a the little Squirrel 76 I still had tied on from my last largemouth trip. Nothing much happened. I finally got a fish to roll on a little topwater, but he didn't hook up. Eventually I caught a couple of little guys on a craw worm on a shaky head. Then I caught on on the squirrel. I worked that bank for some time without much to show for my efforts. I caught one on a Cultiva Mira Vibe lipless crank, but he was on the smaller side as well. I was going to go around the bend and see what was down that stretch, but suddenly some wind arrived from nowhere and kept me from doing so. I eventually gave up on it and drifted down to where I'd been fishing. I ditched the shaky head for a regular old curly tail grub and caught a few more. I don't know if any of them broke a foot in length. I was feeling pretty sure that the fish had moved onto beds and that's why I wasn't finding them. I moved down to a gravel flat with weed beds and finally hooked up with a better fish. I love the markings on this bugger.<br />
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I fished around the weeds for a while. I pulled one good one out of a pocket in the vegetation, but he pulled free when I got him into open water though. I missed a couple, and caught a small guy on a Rapala Rippin' Rap in brown craw. <br />
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I needed to get home soon, so I ditched the reservoir for the river. The first spot I fished I caught a few on the Rapala and a couple on a 3" Keitech Little Spider. I then moved downstream to my favorite bass run. There were fish all over the beds here. The water was very low, and surprisingly clear. As a result, the fish were very spooky. I missed one on the spider and that was about it. I started making long casts with the Rippin' Rap, burning it over the weed tops. I picked up several this way, but they weren't super big. I made a cast parallel to the bank when I saw a nice bass shoot out from a clump of grass and swim a good 6-8' at top speed to intercept my lure. He leaped several times and put on quite the show. It was the highlight of the day until I netted him and discovered that my lure had completely vanished down his gullet. Blood was already streaming from the fish's gills. I decided to let him die with dignity and didn't try to retrieve my lure. I could get that back later while cleaning him. I also didn't take a pic as I didn't want a visual of his grisly demise. I deposited him in the car and tied on a Lucky Craft LVR mini in "brownie" as a replacement. I decided to move up the run, and when I got to the water I spotted a nice fish on a bed. There was a large tuft of grass between me and the bed, so I used it to hide behind while dragging a spider onto the nest. He immediately went nose down and sucked it in. That thick little bass put up a nice tussle. <br />
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He was about the same size as the one that would later become a taco. I continued up the pool catching smaller fish on both the spider and the LC. Nothing huge, but it was fun. I also caught a couple of these from a clump of weeds.<br />
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That was a first for me here. I've caught them further downstream in Cutler, but never up here. I don't mind, variety is the spice of life. I ended up salvaging the day with 25 bass.<br />
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Total for trip: 23 smallmouth, 2 largemouth<br />
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Total for year: 353 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-55364064728235688882012-05-22T09:49:00.001-07:002012-05-23T10:12:53.135-07:00The Wind is Still an Obscenity to Me 05/09/12Another trip to my favorite largemouth pond, another day of battling the elements. There was a little breeze when I arrived, but nothing too troublesome. I kicked over to a favorite stretch of water and quickly caught a little guy on a lipless crank, and another on a Jackall Squirrel 79 deep jerkbait. Then, while throwing a Lucky Craft Skeet Mini DR in baby bluegill, I hooked a good one. He rolled on the surface and came loose. I threw to the same spot and caught his buddy.<br />
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I caught another small one on the jerkbait and then it was quiet for a while. The wind really started to kick up and I couldn't stay on a spot very effectively. During a lull a moved up to a point that has been good to me, but not that day. I let the wind take me back down the shore. Finally, while fishing the Squirrel 79, a fish hit it on a long pause. This was a much better fish. After a nice fight I scooped her up to find my jerkbait was consumed in it's entirety. Thankfully the hooks missed her gills and she was good to go.<br />
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I picked up a couple around a foot long before moving across to a productive point. The wind had produced some current along the edge of the point. I lobbed a Lucky Craft CB Flat DR in Aurora Bass out into that current and picked up this little chunker.<br />
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I fished all over the point with cranks and jerkbaits, I even rigged up a dropshot, but all I caught was a dink on a Jackall Squirrel 76. I was nearly out of time, so I paddled across the bay. I actually had some protection from the wind here, so my final 15 minutes was spent fishing instead of flailing my legs in an attempt to stay in one spot. I quickly picked this guy up on the Squirrel.<br />
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I saw some flooded brush and threw a soft jerkbait into it. I managed to pick up a few little guys this way before I had to go.<br />
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Overall, not that exciting of a day, but the weather should be stabilizing soon and the fish will be moving shallow.<br />
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Total for trip: 13 largemouth<br />
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Total for year: 328 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-86866379168269805872012-05-19T10:50:00.001-07:002012-05-23T10:13:26.408-07:00The Bronze Age 05/08/12I went in search of some prespawn smallmouth. I was surprised at how clear the water was compared to usual. I put in at my usual spot right as a boat went over and plopped down where I normally fish. I was weighing my options when he left. I paddled over to a nice flat before my usual dropoff. As I arrived a shore fisherman waddled down the steep bank and parked himself at the end of this stretch. I still had a good buffer between the two of us, so I began fishing the flat. I immediately hooked and lost a good fish on a chartreuse spinnerbait. A few casts later I hooked this nice chunk. <br />
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These little rascals certainly fight like a much larger fish. <br />
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A moment later, I caught another.<br />
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I caught a couple of smaller ones on a jerkbait before moving down the bank. I caught a few more here, but the action was slower. I love the color on this wee devil though.<br />
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The shore fisherman was still hunkered down on the point and blocking off access to the next stretch. I went back over to the flat and scored a couple more on a Spro Aruku Shad Jr. in Magic Tiger. I also pestered some little guys in the shallows with a pink Twitchy Minnow.<br />
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The boat fisherman returned with a friend in a second boat, and they camped out between me and the shore fisherman. I was sick of all the crowding, so I kicked my tube out wide and went around everybody. I got to a promising stretch, and had a follow right away. Then I heard talking, and before I knew it, there was another boat full of people coming down the bank the other way. I had had enough and decided to get in my car and drive down the reservoir to a new area. It's kind of annoying when people have boats and can quickly and easily go anywhere they want, but they still choose to crowd me out. I'm not sure why there were so many people out on a Tuesday afternoon anyway.<br />
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I drove further than I had ever driving along the rocky, pothole riddled road before finding a likely spot. There was a flat adjacent to a steep rocky bank here, it looked prime. And it was. I didn't find much on the flat, but the steeper section was on. The fish were holding on the drop and baits worked tight to the bank would elicit violent strikes as they would shoot up from the depths to intercept it. I immediately got a nice fish on the spinnerbait. <br />
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I only had a couple of feet of line out when I watched him annihilate my bait. I worked down the bank and continued catching fish. I caught some more on the spinnerbait and on the lipless crank as well. I tried a little Rebel Crawfish crank and a good fish nabbed it on the first pass. He got down in the rocks and came loose, leaving my lure stranded in the depths. I was able to get it loose and caught a smaller fish. I liked it, but it was a bit too shallow of a runner for this place. I switched to a Koppers crayfish lipless crank and caught an obese little bugger off a point.<br />
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I went back over the area I had fished with a little Crazy Craw that I had made, and they ate it up.<br />
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After they had chewed up a few of those, I decided to try a Keitech Little Spider. They liked that too.<br />
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I realized it was time to go so I started heading back. I did manage a few more, including a pretty nice one on the spinnerbait. She was hooked kind of weird, so I released her without a pic.<br />
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Despite the annoyances with crowding early on, I discovered a new area that was very productive. I ended up with 26 smallmouth for the day. Not too shabby.<br />
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Total fish for trip: 26 Smallmouth<br />
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Total for year: 315 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-11003820832207296432012-05-11T10:35:00.001-07:002012-05-23T10:13:52.216-07:00Weathering the Storm 05/03/12I hadn't planned on going out. The forecast was abysmal with high winds and scattered showers and thunderstorms. Well, I awoke to find the forecast downplayed and partly cloudy, calm weather outside. <br />
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I headed out to my favorite largemouth pond hoping for some more big slobs on jerkbaits. Pretty much as soon as I got my tube blown up, a wall of clouds blew in. It was breezy, but not too bad. I started deeper, fishing a Lucky Craft Slim Shad 9 in a matte largemouth color in 10-13 feet of water. That did the trick as I quickly caught this little guy.<br />
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I worked the same spot, and got his slightly older sibling.<br />
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It seemed that each fish was just a little bit more of an upgrade. <br />
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That one looked ready to pop. There was a slight lull, but 15 minutes later I caught another.<br />
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After that, things died down with the fish, but the wind picked up. I was determined to catch them on jerkbaits, but I couldn't get them to touch them. I tried both shallow and deep divers, with a wide range of patterns and pauses, but nothing. The wind was making it tough anyway. I had been blown several hundred yards down the bank before I went back to the crank. I should have stuck with it.<br />
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Looks like she's done, her thermometer popped.<br />
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The weather continued to deteriorate, as did the fishing. I didn't get anything for a while. I finally gave in and nipped the little LC Pointer XD off of my light spinning rod and rigged up a dropshot. I tried pitching it around the deep side of some brush, and I pulled a little foot long out of it. I missed another, and then the wind whisked me away. I tossed a Texas rigged tube as well, but found no interest. I went back to the crank and hooked a decent one, but she pulled off tube side. I headed across the channel to a point that has been good to me this spring. The wind was really howling now, and I couldn't hold my position at all. I fished the crank across the end of the point in about 13 feet and picked up this portly customer.<br />
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I couldn't get any more action on the crank, so I lowered Slick Willy down to meet his maker. This was my first time using this bait, and I'm pretty happy with it. I will definitely be shooting some more of these. I picked up a few more, and missed a bunch because of wind induced slack.<br />
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That was the best fish, the rest were around 12". Things were getting nastier, and my wife was home from work at this point, so I called it a day.<br />
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Total for trip: 11 largemouth<br />
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Total for year: 289 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-80360441162504095352012-05-11T10:14:00.001-07:002012-05-23T10:14:15.520-07:00An Attempt at Redemption 4/30/12While the bruises were still fresh from kicking myself over the previous week's trip, I decided to head back to try again. In the meantime, the weather had gone from highs around 80, to highs in the lower 50s with rain and snow. The weather had rebounded slightly, but it was still a cloudy, cool, blustery day. I had the day off, so I tried it anyway. <br />
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When I arrived, I couldn't spot any fish from shore. I got out in my tube and wasn't surprised in the least to find the water temp had plummeted seven degrees down to 54. I tried looking for a drop off where I could fish a crank or jerkbait, but it was more of a gradual slope in this area, and I found no fish. I tried fishing the outside edge of the brush with plastics, but the wind was getting worse and it was an exercise in futility. I was getting cold and was sick of being battered by the waves, so I went in to shore. I was contemplating fishing The Bear for smallies, but I decided to toss a fluke against the inside edge of the brush while my tube deflated. I felt a little tick, but swung and missed. It happened a couple more times before I finally saw the culprits, a wolf pack of little 8" bass. Well, I hate getting skunked, so I switched over to a smaller 3.75" jerkbait. Of course once I did that, the little fellers were gone. Out of curiosity I decided to explore further. I packed up the car and switched over to a little 6' rod I got over the winter just for this sort of jungle warfare fishing. With a pocket full of jerks, I moved on. <br />
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The fish certainly weren't thick, but I did manage several. There were a couple of total dinks, but most looked like this.<br />
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Still pretty dinky, but better than being skunked, and they fought surprisingly well. I continued on and found more of the same.<br />
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The waves were getting large enough that they were rolling through the trees. I couldn't wade as deep as I would have liked because I ran the risk of them going over the top of my waders. The fish didn't seem to like it either and I hadn't had a strike in some time. I had switched to a more subtle bait in green pumpkin hoping that would entice a strike, but nothing. Just when I was about to switch back to my spring special color, the line twitched. I saw the fish turn sideways, it's green flank magnified by the crystal clear water. She looked bigger than she was under the water, but she was still a much better fish than what I'd been finding.<br />
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I was feeling optimistic, but that was all I found in the area. I decided to head back to my car and fish just down from where I had started. I found and area of really dense cover, and quickly caught a typical little guy. On the next cast, second best for the day absolutely hammered it. <br />
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I fished a while longer, but that was it for the day. It wasn't enough to make me feel much better about the previous week, but I'm glad I was able to salvage the day and get <i>some</i> action.<br />
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Total for trip: 12 largemouth<br />
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Total for year: 278 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-10408139322180931632012-05-03T22:17:00.000-07:002012-05-23T10:14:27.384-07:00Well That Was a Stupid Decision 4/25/12I'm really going to try keeping this one short. I went to a different lake for a change of pace. I almost stopped at a favorite spot on the way in, but instead I went straight for an area with deep water adjacent to the bank. The other area was more of a flat, and I didn't think the fish would be up in there yet. <br />
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Anyway, I found slightly turbid water, though it was 60 degrees. I tried some brush with plastics, but found nothing. Pretty early on a scored a decent fish hopping a Specialty Tackle one knocker lipless crank.<br />
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It put up a good fight for it's size. Clouds and wind arrived shortly after and blew me down the bank. I headed for some deeper water, but got nothing. Finally I caught a little 10 incher off some brush with the soft jerkbait. That was it for a while. I probed the whole area with deep cranks and long lipped jerkbaits. Finally I decided to get back in the car and move to a new area. I managed a brute of an 8" bass from the same tree on the same bait. <br />
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I drove all the way to the end of the lake. The conditions were the same, and the wind was getting worse. I worked my butt off for an hour and a half, and managed one fish on a Duo Hacker Slaver 90 suspending jerkbait.<br />
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I tried deep cranks and dropshots as well, but that was all. On the way out, I took a quick peek at that first spot. I was cursing my name vehemently. The water was crystal clear, and bass cruised the shallows. I scrambled to grab my soft jerkbait rod, but it was severely tangled with my other rods. I worked it free and missed a fish on the first cast. On the fourth cast, I set the hook with a little too much enthusiasm and broke on off. Somehow the line had become frayed and I failed to notice it. Oh well, I was running late for work now anyway. I jumped back in my car and drove to Logan, grumbling under my breath the whole way regarding my poor decisions of the day.<br />
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Total for trip: 4 largemouth bass<br />
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Total for year: 266 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-19468127161670322582012-05-03T22:04:00.001-07:002012-05-23T10:14:58.586-07:00Reprise 4/24/12Well, so much for keeping it short. I will try harder this time. The weather was still warm, and there was still too much fun to be had, so I returned to the pond the next day. I caught a decent but skinny bass on the 110 pretty quickly. <br />
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I was alone today, so I decided to work my way up into that bay where I was told all the fish were. I scored a few smaller to okay fish from the brush on the soft jerkbait.<br />
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I even managed to catch a decent foot long bass on an Evergreen Combat Popper. Kind of crazy to get topwater action in April in Idaho. I tried the 110, a chatterbait, a swimbait and a lipless crank out from shore, but I couldn't find anything. I pulled a few more from the shrubbery, I even managed this nice little fatty.<br />
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I got all the way into the back of the bay, but all I could find were fingerlings. A couple of shore fishermen showed up, so I decided to work my way up the far bank. I found more dinks and some bluegill, but nothing worth bothering with. There was a smaller bay off from the larger one that I had always been curious about. It was The Avian Kingdom apparently. There were several Canada geese honking, splashing and attacking each other while a pair of voyeuristic sandhill cranes and a great blue heron looked on at their shenanigans. <br />
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I only found dinks once again, so I decided to head back to the point where I had my first flurry of action the day before. I switched out the popper for a Jackall Squirrel 76 in perch. I got to some deeper water, and on my first cast with it I caught the best bass of the day so far.<br />
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I continued up the bank, missing one fish, but not much more. The wind was getting to be rather pesky making it difficult to sense a strike. I arrived at the point, but didn't have much action. I missed one fish, and was about to leave when my fortunes changed. I was jerking in the 110, when I thought I hit some moss near the end of the retrieve. I tried cranking it in as fast as I could so that I could clean it up, but I had a bass on. A good one, and she was completely hooked in the side. That was quite the fight on a medium light rod and 8lb test, but I eventually scooped this porker up.<br />
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I moment later I hooked another good fish on the Squirrel. I saw a huge head come to the surface and thrash. She jumped several times, which was surprising, because she looked decrepit and ancient. <br />
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Judging by the size of it's head, that fish would have been a toad had she been as fat as her peers. I lost another good fish, and then it quieted down.<br />
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I was nearly out of time, so I went back to the bank where I had ended the day before. I caught several 12" males on the Twitchy Minnow before finally getting this nice one on the Squirrel.<br />
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I caught a couple more decent ones on the 110 before losing a really good fish on the Squirrel. I had to leave for work at this point, but it was another productive day.<br />
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Total for trip: 14 largemouth bass<br />
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Total for year: 262 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-52316686481449598602012-05-03T21:35:00.001-07:002012-05-23T10:15:35.151-07:00And It Begins...at Least For a Short While 4/23/12So I'm way behind on my posting here. I guess getting out to actually fish is more exciting than writing about it. For the sake of brevity, I'm going to try keeping these next few posts short and to the point. <br />
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We had been experiencing several days of abnormally warm weather for April with highs in the upper 70s and low 80s. I had a feeling that this was going to get the bass going, so I took off for a few hours to one of my favorite bass ponds. <br />
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When I arrived there was a fisherman fishing a shallow bay from shore. While I was getting my gear set up, he came over to chat. He told me that he could see good sized fish cruising the shallows in massive numbers, but he couldn't get them to bite. I didn't want to crowd him, so I ended up fishing elsewhere, but I certainly took note of this. <br />
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I was excited to see that the water was around 60 degrees as I shoved out from shore. I had made a few casts with a lipless crank when I noticed a jerkbait had come unhooked from it's keeper on one of the rods next to me. It gently swayed to and fro and I planned on securing when I finished the current cast. Suddenly it swung wide and plopped down right on my back. I tried to pull if free, but it had managed to hook my shirt and the suspenders on my waders numerous times. One of my gloves soon followed. I cut the line and maneuvered to the shallows to remove the thing. I realized there was only one way to resolve this mess. I undid my suspenders and was removing my shirt, when I heard the sound of a vehicle approaching. I could just picture what that would look like. Some big, harry, guy standing in the water, topless, but decked out in a dorky hat and a sun scarf around his neck. Luckily they stopped to fish with the other guy and were spared the spectacle. <br />
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Anyway, I caught a small fish on a Megabass Vision 110 just around the bend along a dropoff.<br />
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A couple of casts later I hooked into something big. Unfortunately it pulled free after a short tussle. I got no more action in the area, and I didn't want to intrude on the other fishermen's area, so I kicked across the bay to a nice, steep, point. I stuck with the 110 and hooked a good fish almost immediately. She hit on the pause and knocked a good foot of slack into the line. I couldn't believe how strong these fish were. I eventually netted the fish and was pleased at how healthy she was.<br />
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I taped her at 18". This morning was starting out great. A minute later, I was into another fish on the jerkbait. <br />
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Another rod bending chunk was soon landed. I caught another smaller fish, and then decided to try a little Shimano Scorpion lipless crank in a ghost bluegill color. That did the trick.<br />
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Things quieted down after that. I had one violent take on a Skinny Carrot tossed to some wood, but somehow I swung and missed. I kept working the point, when I had a visitor. <br />
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He sat and watched me for about ten minutes. Disgusted that I couldn't catch a fish for him, he flew off in a huff and dive bombed a mallard for what seemed like the pure joy of it.<br />
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I didn't catch anything for some time. I switched to a 5" soft jerkbait, and eventually caught a smaller male bass from some shoreline vegetation. I missed a couple more and decided to move to a steep shoreline across from me. I quickly caught a smaller bass on the 110. I also had a hard thunk on a Chatterbait fished parallel to some brush. I swapped out my soft jerkbait for a smaller 3.75" jerkbait that I started making over the winter and hadn't had a chance to fish. Whelp, it worked.<br />
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I pulled a few more from the submerged brush, though nothing too large. I went back to fishing the 110 and hooked a couple more good fish before needing to head to work. <br />
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The two larger ones went 18". The 2nd one took the lure headfirst and had the entire four inch lure in it's mouth. Luckily the hooks missed it's gills. Right before I had to leave, I managed to nab this rotund little teenage bride.<br />
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I ended up with 15 bass in the three hours I had to fish. I was really impressed with the quality of the fish, and with how hard they fought. Most of the fish clobbered the jerkbait sideways and had a hook on either side of the mouth. <br />
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Total for trip: 15 largemouth bass<br />
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Total for year: 248 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-6334875499738493612012-04-27T23:24:00.000-07:002012-05-23T10:15:52.332-07:00Scouring The Narrows 4/20/12Last Friday was supposed to be sunny and warm, so I thought I would head up The Narrows. I had enjoyed hooking those nice trout on streamers on my last trip, so I wanted to try some more of that, but a little closer to home. Well, I awoke to find a cool, cloudy day. I went for it anyway, but I was greeted by a slick and muddy road. I was a little afraid I would get stuck, but I didn't want to drive all the way up there for nothing. I arrived at a favorite deep water spot where I thought I might find a big brown, walleye or smallie. Unfortunately, the water was quite high and full of nasty moss. I threw a jerkbait, lipless crank, grub and an articulated sculpin on the fly rod. While trying to burn the crank through some fast water to make another cast, a large trout shot up from the depths to have a look, but was soon disgusted by the glob of green sludge that soon enveloped my bait. I managed a little tick on the sculpin, but that was all. <br />
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The gloomy weather had brought out some bwos, so I ditched the deep hole and moved upstream to some faster water. I rigged up my 4wt and tied on my new favorite nymph in a pheasant tail motif. I was still getting a lot of moss, but finally I caught a little dink planter. That was a lot of work for so little, but I moved upstream. I finally reached a nice deep run and worked it hard. I missed a decent trout, and then to my surprise hooked this little guy.<br />
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It wasn't much, but it was my first smallie of the year. He actually put up a decent fight on that little rod. I caught a decent bow, maybe 14", with some nice color, but he refused to pose for a photo session. I worked the run some more and scored a few more 10-12" bows before moving upstream. I managed another trout here or there, all about the same in size, but they were scrappy little buggers. <br />
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I had just a little time now before I needed to head to work, so I decided to head back downstream to a favorite smallmouth spot. The sun was finally out, so I was hoping they would be getting more active now. I tried a lipless crank, jerkbait and grub from the bottom of the run, but nothing much happened. I thought I had a couple of hits on the grub, but it may have been the bottom. I moved upstream to a deeper part of the run and got a nice thump on the grub. I love the sound that braid makes when you set the hook on a fish. He fought very well for his size, and even jumped a time or two. After a short while I lipped a pretty little chunk of bronze.<br />
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I had one more good thunk on the end of my line, but I swung and missed. It was time to go, so I hurried off to work.<br />
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Total for trip: 7 rainbows, 2 smallmouth<br />
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Total for year: 233 fish<br />
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<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-89592025302310009762012-04-18T11:54:00.001-07:002012-05-23T10:16:47.189-07:00A Bowhunting Trip 4/16/12I really wanted to get back to my new favorite rainbow stream, but I knew that runoff would be here soon and I was running out of time. I found someone to cover my shift at work and was able to head up on Monday. <br />
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I met my friend at the parking lot at a little after 8. The weather was calm and sunny and the water had a bit of color. We hiked up to our favorite stretch and began to fish at a deep, slow run. I tried a rainbow scud where a shelf dropped into it, but came up with nothing. I broke out the 6wt and lobbed an olive cone head crystal bugger to the point where the current dissipated and dead drifted it down the run. As I started my retrieve there was a sizable fish on the end of the line. After a brief tussle it pulled loose. I continued fishing the bugger through the same water with a couple of taps before hooking a nice bow on the drift. After a short battle, I finally brought her to the net.<br />
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We got no more love, so we moved upstream to a small run that usually produces. My friend caught a small cutthroat on a spinner, and I eventually caught a chubby little jumper on the scud. <br />
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Oddly enough, the fish actually swallowed the fly, something I have never seen before. I could see the bead sticking out of it's gullet, but that was it. I cut the line and wished it the best. We continued up through a small braid where the river splits. This was more like fishing a creek, something I'm more experienced with, though the experience didn't pay off. My friend caught a nice one on a worm, and I eventually hooked a decent fish on a rainbow scud, but it dove beneath a rock and pulled free. We worked up the whole braid with no more action. Things were definitely slower this time. Last time there were clouds of midges and a decent number of bwos coming off with a few caddis in the mix. Not today. I had seen a loan bwo or midge, but that was it. We fished a usually choice run with not a hit. We worked up to a large run that is our honey hole. At the tail, we spotted a large, dead, stonefly nymph floating by. I had no idea they lived in this river. I took note of that for later. We worked up to a nice run that plunges into some slow water. Still not much going on. I decided to switch to a rubber legged brown stone nymph and immediately got results. <br />
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I fished the run some more, but had no more action. I hit the tail end of another smaller run as it came into the larger run, and immediately a nice bow savaged the stone. Unfortunately his spasticity coupled with the hook set snapped the tippet. I hadn't checked my line after the last couple of run ins with rocks, so I was kicking myself for that. I tried another stone, but immediately lost it to a rock. About the time we reached this stretch, clouds had moved in and so had some bwos. Finally. I put on my favorite little nymph in a pheasant tail ice dub color scheme and immediately hooked up. I could tell it was a nice one right away. This was definitely the best fish so far, and we battled for several minutes before it shot down into the calmer water. It was a slow fight. No searing runs, but a lot of give and take. I would reel the fish up to netting distance, and it would slowly pull off another 10-15' of line. Eventually it tired and I was able to guide it to my net.<br />
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A beautiful specimen that I taped at 19". Definitely spawned out, but some nice colors still. I caught another fish in the low teens from the run before relinquishing the run to my partner. I headed down the run to where a spring entered the river. There was a pod of fish rolling on the surface there. I missed one on the nymph and then they shut down. I decided to try something illogical and throw the bugger to where the water drops off. I was stripping it in, and at the last minute, this feisty buck hammered it. He put up a nice fight. He was nice and dark, with a kype that was beyond his age.<br />
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I tried the nymph again on the far side of the fast water, and immediately hooked a fish that ripped me onto my reel almost immediately. Oddly enough, this tackle crusher was on the small side, it was just insane.<br />
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There was another deep run upstream a little ways, so we decided to give it a shot. The river split here again and we fished some serious pocket water on the way up. I actually did quite well here catching several fish in the mid teens. It was tough landing them with so much fast water around, but somehow I didn't loose any.<br />
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This little jerk took me on quite the ride. <br />
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He got my line wrapped around a rock and then plunged down a fall into the next run. Somehow I clambered over the boulders and made it down there to land him.<br />
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We eventually got to the run, I took the left, my friend took the right. I started with some slower water at the tail. I quickly caught another teen bow. A short while later, I hooked something massive. My rod was doubled, but I thought I saw a dark brown shape down there in the murk before it took my line out across the river. My rod was a U for the next 10 minutes as my hand began to cramp. About half way through the fight I finally got a good look at my adversary. It was indeed a smelly old scum rooter, a carp. I was quite surprised that my little size 16 light wire hook and my 4x held as I finally netted the monster.<br />
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I rested my arm for a moment and retied. I quickly hooked a foot longer, then a mid-teener who wouldn't stop shaking his head like a dog. He eventually pulled loose and I had to retie because he had worn my line raw. My friend had come over to my side when I caught the carp and we were getting in each other's way. I caught another typical fish before moving to some pocket water upstream to open the area up. I caught some more teeners here. <br />
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My friend was lamenting the fact that he hadn't gotten a fish out of this stretch where he always can catch something on a worm. He went back downstream to the other run to see if it was more productive. I made my way to the middle of the river and was standing on a rock when I hooked a large fish that immediately ripped off a bunch of line. I looked frantically for a route to safer water where I could land this thing. Over the boulders and through waste deep water, I eventually made my way to the far bank and eventually landed this 19" bow. <br />
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I tried working that side but couldn't get a good drift. I missed a good fish from a riffle above the run and caught another foot long from the main pool as I made my way back across. I couldn't entice any more fish, so I decided to see how my friend was doing. As I walked downstream, he saw me coming and gestured for me to come down quickly. When I arrived I could see that he had found redemption in this 23" hen. Even though it was spawned out, it was definitely a monster of a fish, and his best for this river.<br />
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He also told me that he had caught the fish that had broken my off earlier. Unfortunately while trying to document this fluke with a photo, the fish flipped back into the river with my fly still in it's mouth. Darn it. I could see fish were still rolling at the spring, so I went back down there. I quickly hooked a nice fish on the nymph. It was very deflated from spawning, so the fight wasn't what it would have been otherwise, but the colors and spots were amazing on this 20" specimen.<br />
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I moved back to where I had caught the 19 incher and broken the other off and quickly hooked another dark buck. <br />
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The weather was getting nastier, and it was also getting late in the day. I decided to spend my time fishing streamers back down at the spring. I had switched to a black and purple crystal bugger, and was beginning to wonder if it was a bad choice, when something thumped it hard. My line immediately peeled off across the pool before the behemoth emerged from the murky depths, shaking it's head violently and sadly throwing my hook. This thing looked as big as my friends fish from earlier. I was pretty bummed, and was even more so when I lost the fly to a rock. I was even more frustrated when I lost a blood crystal bugger a few minutes later. I tried an olive articulated sculpin and eventually snapped it off on a rock too. I switched areas and put on a crayfish orange sculpin, and eventually one thumped it and stayed hooked. It wasn't a monster, but a good quality fish. <br />
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After that it was time to hurry down to the cars and get home. We made a few brief stops along the way. I missed one small fish on an olive Zonker, but that was it. <br />
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It was definitely a slower day, I fished all day and landed 24. Still the quality of the average fish was quite nice. I think I caught 2 or 3 around a foot, and the rest were larger. I'm not sure why it was so slow. My guesses would have to be the lack of hatches, fish redistributing after the spawn and also not being as active as they recover. Still, it was a good day, and 20" is the best trout of the year for me that I've landed.</div>
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Total for trip: 23 rainbows and hybrids, and 1 mirror carp</div>
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Total for year: 224 fish<br />
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<br /></div>Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-6552639179424977722012-04-13T12:47:00.001-07:002012-05-23T10:17:15.830-07:00In the Kingdom of the Flies 4/11/12The weather was supposed to be extremely windy with thunderstorms rolling in later in the day on Wednesday. Much to my surprise I awoke to find calm, warm, sunny conditions. I couldn't let the day slip away, especially with four straight days of cold and wet in the forecast, so I packed up my 3wt and headed to a favorite stream. <br />
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There were a couple of cars parked at the gate when I arrived, but I figured there was plenty of water to split up amongst us. I couldn't help fishing the runs right near the parking area, and they were pretty good to me. I quickly caught four small to average browns<br />
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and a chunky cutt that crushed my dry.<br />
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About this time another car full of teenagers arrived, and the flies were thick and pesky, so I decided to hike upstream a ways. I started at one of my favorite spots, but it was pretty dead. Several really nice looking runs didn't even bring a strike. I was beginning to wonder if I had put in behind one of the other fishermen. Finally, in a shallow run, I spotted a fish holding tight to the bank. As my fly drifted past, he did an about face, chasing it down to devour it. He went airborne several times and tail walked across the river before quieting down.<br />
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Up ahead was a really nice hole, but you really need to sneak around through downed trees and brush to get into position without spooking them. As I reached an area where I could present my fly, I could see a cutty feeding against the opposite bank. On the first pass he grabbed my dropper and I quickly landed him. I focused my efforts upstream and saw a nice brown moseying downstream towards me. He set up shop about 8 feet in front of me. I didn't think I had a chance, but I placed a cast to him. He slowly rose up and bumped my dry, and that was all I got from him, though he hung around feeding for some time. While I was fishing this run, the flies descended upon me once again. They weren't biting flies, just those big, shiny, blue annoying poo eating buggers. They would land on my arms and hands and seemed especially fond of my elbow and the back of my neck. Wherever was the most irritating I guess. Just as I placed a cast into an eddy, a pack of rabid bugs swarmed my arm. I shooed them away just as I saw a large fish grab my dropper. Of course I missed. I couldn't get the fish to come back, though the flies did. I kept working upstream and saw a large cutthroat working the head of a small pocket. I swear the flies are in cahoots with the trout. I crept into position, and just as I made my cast, a horde of buzzing anguish lit upon me again. I was getting pretty pissy by now. The next round of flies got smooshed by my wrathful hand, but they got the last laugh as their guts wreaked of dead flesh and excrement. Nasty little buggers.<br />
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I worked up to the next deep run and had a refusal on my dry at the tail. Luckily I was able to pull several browns and a cutt from the run. Up ahead was another favorite run where I always see a bunch of fish working. Nothing in sight. I was becoming quite certain that I was tailing behind someone. I fished it anyway and scored one lanky acrobat from the center of the run. <br />
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I placed a cast against the far bank, and as it passed some submerged roots, another brown chomped it.<br />
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I continued upstream through some pocket water and caught a few more small guys and had a nice cutt swipe at my fly a couple of times. I arrived at the logjam where I had lost a nice fish last time. The wind was finally starting to kick up now, but I got a good drift, and little nicer brown took my dropper. He put up a good fight on my wispy little rod, but I was able to keep him out of the roots and brush.<br />
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I was able to pull a cutthroat out of the same spot, and he fought surprisingly well for both his size and species.<br />
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I worked up to another good run where I had a nice trout chase my fly downstream, but then do a 180 when it saw me. I wasn't able to coax any more bites from this stretch. Up ahead I saw a cutty feeding in a small, shallow pocket. It was a difficult cast with brush all around and a persistent breeze. I flubbed it up and tangled my leader. After I retied I was able to get a cast to him, and he inhaled my dry. I set the hook, but he flipped me the tail and was gone. <br />
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The next run usually holds some fish, and it did. I quickly caught a brown, a cutt<br />
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and then a more colorful cutt. It almost looked like a hybrid, though I've never caught them or rainbows up there.<br />
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Notice the flies. They were still with me, pushing me towards a life in a padded room. <br />
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I scored a few more browns and then a nice cutthroat chased my dry down and smacked it. He put up quite the fight, but he didn't want to stay still for a pic. Unfortunately all the photos were a little blurry.<br />
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I was nearly out of time now, but there was one last run I wanted to fish. If I could catch one more trout, I would be at 200 fish for the year, and I wanted to make it happen. I got no love from the tail end of the run, but once again, as my fly landed at the head, an onslaught of entomological horror accosted me just as two huge cutts fought for my dropper. Well, I swung and missed, then swore a bit. One of the cutts continued to feed, but I couldn't entice him into eating my fly again. I tried for far too long and realized that I was going to be late for work if I didn't hurry back. I was pretty bugged that I was going to be left at 199 fish, so I was going to quickly fish the next run, but I popped an average brown in some pocket water on the way up.<br />
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I speed walked back, realizing as always that I way underestimated how far I had come. I got stuck behind some lumbering work trucks in the canyon, but eventually escaped from them. I didn't think I'd make it, but I managed to clock in right at 4, out of breath, but happy to have made it.<br />
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Despite the flies, it was a nice day on the stream. I will definitely be wearing a long sleeve shirt, gloves, and a UV Buff next time. Besides, I got a little bit burnt too.<br />
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Total for trip: 23 browns and cutthroat<br />
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Total for year: 200 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-11084194811205587492012-04-10T21:48:00.000-07:002014-04-05T14:52:28.988-07:00Jumping the Gun 4/9/12I love bass. I <i>really </i>love bass. I don't know what it is, but there's just something about them that does it for me like no other fish. So every year I find myself floating around in butt numbing water in my float tube thinking I should have probably waited a couple more weeks. Well, yesterday was better than the first couple of bass trips last year, but still pretty slow. <br />
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I mulled over my options for bass containing waters in the area, and settled on the one that has been ice free the longest. I arrived and saw a few trout dimples on the surface, so I thought I could always chase them if the bass didn't want to cooperate. I pulled up to a spot that seemed to be the right kind of water and in an area that should warm the earliest. I was a little disappointed to see the water was a bit murky. Not chocolaty, but only two to three feet of visibility. I got all my gear together and the batteries in my socks, and I was ready to go. <br />
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As I eased into the water I was pleased to find the temp at 50 degrees. Definitely warm enough for some largemouth to be active. I got a new rod over the winter that I really wanted to give a try, so I started with it. I really love throwing jerkbaits and small lipless crankbaits, and this is the perfect rod for it. It's a Fenwick HMG 7' medium light, medium fast action spinning rod. It has a nice parabolic bend so that the fish can engulf the lure, and once hooked they don't pull free as easily. I was delighted to find that it casts the lure a mile too. Within the first few casts I hooked a strong fish on the little Lucky Craft LV100. I was burning the bait in a couple feet of water parallel to the bank when it clobbered it. My rod flexed and arced right to the butt as the fish dove straight down under the tube. I finally caught a glimpse of it through the cloudy water and was thrilled to see it was indeed a bass. I scooped it up and was soon holding my prize.<br />
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Not a monster, but a good chunky little guy. The skunk was off, and I was happy to have caught a bass a month earlier than usual. I continued fishing the crank through the shallows but wasn't getting any more action. The wind was beginning to kick up and I drifted into a shallow cove with some flooded brush. I thought this might be the perfect place to find some foraging fish, but they just hadn't seemed to have moved in that far yet. I fan cast the cove with the Lucky Craft, but all I hooked were old lilly pad stems from last year. I was afraid I was going to lose my lure several times, but luckily I pulled it to safety every time. I also pitched a 5" Skinny Carrot around the brush, but I got no takers on that either. I decided to go back to where I started because the drop off was more abrupt and closer to shore there. I fished a deep diving crank and a Lucky Craft Staysee 90 along the drop, but nothing happened. I don't think the off color water was helping the jerkbait bite. It's usually my bread and butter when the water is this cold, but the water is usually gin clear then too. Finally, about 100 feet up from the first bass, I got another good whack. For a second I thought it was more dead weeds or brush, but then it started pulling back. I got it near the tube and it dove straight to the bottom like the first one. I had to dunk the rod tip in the water and pull of line so it didn't snap my 8lb test. Despite the cold temps, these fish were fighting very well. I netted the fish and admired my catch. <br />
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A bit longer than the first, but much skinnier. I continued to fish the LV100 up against the brush. It was in the Florida Bass color, a ghost largemouth pattern, and I thought perhaps a little more flash would produce better in the murk. I switched to a Spro Aruku Shad Jr in Magic Shad. No takers. I switched to an LVR Mini in Aurora Bass, bringing in the best of both the lures I had previously fished, but again, no dice. I ended up back on the LV100, but I had no more love on it. I also fished several different jerkbaits as well as a Crystal Bugger on a type II line, but again, nothing. With the wind churning up the water, the temp had actually dropped a degree. I thought about rigging up a dropshot and fishing the break, but I was nearly out of time, so I settled on a chunk and wind for the next little while.<br />
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As I was packing up my car, fish and game stopped by to check me. It's odd because I fished a lot last year and never got checked. This was only my second time out in Idaho this year, and I was already checked. Weird. Maybe it's a good omen as I had my license checked a lot in 2010, and that year was amazing for me. <br />
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Overall it was a pretty slow day and I probably should have stuck to fishing one of the trout streams in Cache Valley, but at the same time it was quite satisfying to have caught a couple of decent bass in early April. I also had the lake largely to myself, except for the hawk that was circling about much of the day, and the pair of curious loons that shared the lake with me. I'll take that kind of company to the power squadron that shows up later in the year.<br />
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Fish for trip: 2 largemouth<br />
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Fish for year: 177 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-92010258579937744842012-04-07T18:01:00.000-07:002012-05-23T10:17:45.019-07:00%#@*! 4/4/12I had one chance to get out this week. Not much of an excursion, but hopefully enough to get me through the week. Class got out at 1:20 and I had to be to work at 4. I planned on running up Logan Canyon a short way to maximize my time, and to avoid the higher water above the dams.<br />
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Well, fate had other plans. For some odd reason the entire contents of Old Main decided to slowly shuffle and mill about as I was trying to exit the building, and the sidewalks on the way to the bus stop weren't much better. I arrived just as the bus pulled away, but thankfully another was approaching as the other left. I took my seat, and waited. Fifteen minutes later, as the last of the passengers were squeezed into the stairwell of the bus, the bus in front of us decided to do the same thing while blocking my bus. Eventually both buses were bursting at the seams as they lumbered away from campus. Forty minutes after my class ended, I finally reached my car. I hurried up the canyon, only to find cars at every pull off. I continued to ascend, and eventually found a spot at my favorite area. I quickly re-rigged my rod and got layered up.<br />
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As I walked downstream to some interesting water I had spied from the road, I noticed that my rod looked a little shorter than usual. It's a fairly new rod though, so I figured it was just my imagination. I bushwhacked down to the stream, arriving on the water just as the wind hit. Before I could even attempt a cast, my line was whisked away into some willows where it was hopelessly tangled and damaged to where I had to retie again. <br />
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As I made my first cast, things didn't seem right, and it was then that I realized that in my haste I had put the top of my 3wt onto the bottom of my 4wt. I decided to go with it, though casting was a little awkward, especially with the wind pummeling me. I managed to hook into a feisty brown which rocketed down stream through the fast water. Eventually I led him back upstream to some calmer water where I could net him.<br />
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I carefully worked my way upstream through the torrent and placed a few casts into a nice pocket against the far bank. I immediately missed a carbon copy of my first brown and had another flash on my dropper. Up ahead the river narrowed to a churning chute and was flanked by an impenetrable wall of vegetation. I ended up going back to the car to fix my rod mix up.<br />
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I now had about 20 minutes left to fish. I had a decent trout suck down my dry at the tail end of a run, but for some reason the hook didn't penetrate and he was gone. I missed another on the dropper further up the run. The next couple of stretches I fished brought me no love. I crossed the stream and found a nice looking run where a cutthroat was actively sipping blue wing olives. I placed a couple of casts to him, without a single bit of interest. A couple of his cohorts flashed at my nymph but never hooked up. I switched to a longer dropper line and caught a whirling dervish on my first cast.<br />
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I could see a larger cutthroat up ahead rising periodically to intercept nymphs about a foot below the surface. I cast a couple of feet above him, and was delighted to see his big snout confidently break the surface and suck in my dry. I was even happier when the hook actually took hold. He tried to take off downstream into the faster water, but I was able to snatch him in the net as he passed by. This cutt had some serious shoulders with a slight hump on his back.<br />
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I could see several more good sized trout working the run, but I was pushing it with getting to work on time already, so I had to abandon the productive water just as I found it. <br />
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It was a pretty frustrating day, though watching that thick cutty come up and snarf my big attractor made things much better.<br />
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Total for trip: 1 brown, 2 cutthroat<br />
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Total for year: 175 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-85811826374535437742012-03-31T22:03:00.001-07:002012-05-23T10:18:14.565-07:00Wind is a Four Letter Word 3/30/12Friday was a frustrating day. I could have gone back to Idaho to chase big rainbows, but instead I tried to do the responsible thing and go to class like a good boy. My professor always has a pop quiz once a week. So far we hadn't had one so far, so I figured Friday was the day and I had better not miss any more of them. I suffered through class, crammed in next to a girl who wouldn't shut up about some pants she had sewn, and who wouldn't leave her tube of crackers alone, only to find the class over and no quiz. <br />
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At least it was a calm, warm day when I exited Old Main, and I didn't have work, so I went up Logan Canyon again. Since I had a little more time, I drove a little further. As I ascended, I noticed the trees were flailing about wildly, my calm, perfect for fly fishing day now shattered by the tempest. I found a nice looking area with some gorgeous pocket water and began to rig up. Even this was more difficult with the wind as bad as it was. My car doors were slammed shut violently, thankfully not on one of my rods. I repeatedly scrambled to collect bits of refuse that the wind whisked out of my car. I was finally ready and headed down to a nice looking pool behind a boulder. The spot looked fantastic, but I only managed an 8 inch cutthroat from it. I had to take a lot of wind breaks because trying to get a decent cast and drift while being mercilessly buffeted was pointless. I worked upstream and found a really nice deep run with nice holding places on both banks and down the center channel. I quickly hooked a nice brown out of the center on a brown and pink nymph. He tore off downstream, using the swift waters to his advantage. I stumbled after over the many large and oddly shaped boulders that littered the stream bed, leading my quarry to a quiet pocket where I could scoop him up.<br />
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I tried the pocket along the right bank and hooked a nice 16+" fish on the dropper who promptly rolled and came off. A few casts later, another fish took my fly from the same spot. Another pretty brown came to net shortly after.<br />
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The wind was quite obnoxious, but I was still feeling pretty good about the day as I was managing some nice fish between the gusts. I pulled about a ten inch brown from the same spot again before moving up to the next pocket. As I waded upstream, I realized that the water had gotten higher and was beginning to get a little color to it. I saw a large cutthroat sipping bugs in this pocket. On my first cast the fish turned and darted downstream to nab my dropper. I set the hook, but the cuttie shook it's head violently and was free. It went back to feeding a few moments later, but would only give my flies a passing glance now. I switched my dropper to a small green emerger that could pass for a bwo or caddis (I was seeing a few of each buzzing about), but the cutt would have nothing of them. A typical Logan brown gave my dropper the thumbs up though. On the left side I saw a smaller cutt working a seam and fooled him into munching my indicator fly on the first pass.<br />
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I placed my next cast further up in the pocket, beneath some overhanging brush, and a fish took my dropper, but I missed him. I was beginning to feel the curse returning. The wind was also getting a lot worse now too. There were very few lulls in it now. I high sticked my flies on the opposite bank and raised a pretty cutty, but it refused my dry and wouldn't come back for the dropper. I scooted around some rapids, but ultimately got fed up with the rising water and high winds. <br />
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I packed up and drove a couple of miles upstream to a spot I remember enjoying before. When I got here, the wind was nearly knocking me over and ripping the hat off my head. There was a long, deep shelf just downstream, and I decided to switch to my 6wt and fling an articulated sculpin. The water looked like chocolate milk here and I got no takers. Above the shelf was a lot of shallow, swift water, so I switched back to the dry/dropper. As I worked upstream, I noticed that the bank I was on had clear water, and the far bank's water was nearly opaque. Unfortunately, that bank had the majority of the pockets. I figured I had to be close to the milk factory if things were split that dramatically. I missed a few fish from some very small seams before finding the source of the muck. There wasn't really an inlet to speak of, just a crevice in the side of the steep, rocky cliff that was gushing brown froth. I reached a nice run above it and found the wind was subsiding as well. I quickly caught a couple of small browns from the tail of the run, followed by a cutthroat.<br />
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I couldn't coax any more bites from the run, but there was a deeper channel down the middle that I felt I just wasn't reaching, so I switched to a double nymph rig. A few passes later, I hooked into this gorgeous male cutthroat. <br />
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It looks like the spawn isn't too far off. Above this was some very quick water with little holding water. I reached a nice run where I managed a cutt, but missed a good brown and one other fish. I saw a large cutthroat role just upstream, but I was never able to coax a strike. The sun was now behind the canyon wall, and up ahead lay a long stretch of not so fishy looking water. I packed up the car and went downstream in search of a spot where the sun could still reach the river. I stopped briefly at a popular run, but found the water high and muddy with very little holding water. I figured I should look for access below third dam for the last 40 minutes before dark. <br />
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I found a road below the dam that took me to a campground. I should have known better, but the light was fading rapidly, so I gave it a try. I fished several nice looking runs, but never even spooked a fish. I finally hooked up with a river monster that nearly hit me as I set the hook. I released the five inch brown and continued upstream. Just as it was nearly too dark to see, I found a long, deep, run upstream of all the campsites. I missed a decent fish on the dropper, had another flash on it, and had a few refusals on the dry. I was really curious what species they were and really wanted to catch one, but I couldn't see my fly anymore. I had seen some caddis flitting about, so I tried skating my fly across the surface figuring I wouldn't need to see my fly to know if a fish had hit it. One did take a splashy swipe at it, but he didn't hook up.<br />
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Overall it was a pretty frustrating afternoon dealing with the wind and high, muddy water, especially knowing I could have been slaying big bows if I hadn't wasted time in class. Still, it was nice to be outside, and I still caught some lovely little trout. <br />
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Fish for trip: 13 browns and cutthroat<br />
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Fish for year: 172 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-8093120494254910392012-03-29T22:33:00.000-07:002012-05-23T10:18:34.880-07:00Trying Out the New 3wt 3/29/12Work was slow tonight, so I was able to take off and try out my new 7'6" 3wt that replaced my old broken Redington. It had been raining for much of the afternoon, and the canyons looked pretty ominous. As a result, I ended up trying that little stretch of water I had gotten permission to fish. The water was much higher than the last time I was there, and quite a bit dirtier as well. I decided it was still probably fishable, but I cut straight to my favorite run just to see if it was worth my time. It was much harder to cross the river to get into position, and the area likely to hold fish had gotten much smaller and harder to fish. The left side didn't produce anything, and once I waded into it, I could tell that more silt had been deposited there. I really had to stretch to get my fly into the slower water across from me, but I finally got a drift that someone approved of, and I hooked a pretty nice little brown. I could tell right off that the 3wt was much more willowy than the 4wt. Mr. Brown took off downstream and alternated between getting into the heavy current, and trying to wrap my tippet around all the scraggly branches that call this place home. At one point I had to slide under a tree to get downstream, easing the pressure on the fish for a moment. I was afraid I would lose him then, but the hook held and I eventually scooped him up. Kind of a pale specimen due to the chocolate water, but I'll take him.<br />
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I wasn't able to entice any more strikes out of that run. The sun had come back out, so I decided to check out another nearby stream, hoping to find it clearer and easier to wade. 20 minutes later I was pleased to find low, clear water. Maybe a bit too low and clear. I started downstream of my car, and on the first run I had four trout swipe at my dry, though only one took it. He was a fairly typical brown. I had high hopes with that much activity right off, but the next few runs brought me nothing. I arrived at a spot where there were two dozen nice fish eating bwos a few weeks ago, but I didn't spot a single fish. The next spot held some fish, but they were being very skittish and selective. The same with the next spot. There was a Jeep parked at the trailhead, and I was beginning to think I was following this guy. I decided that even with a little more than an hour of light left that it would be in my best interest to hike upstream a little way. The first good run I fished, I missed a good cutthroat and caught a couple of small browns. In the riffle ahead of the pool I caught this pretty little guy.<br />
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I worked my way upstream and arrived at a deep run with lots of woody cover. I made my cast from behind a log, and my indicator fly went down. I had a pretty tough little customer on the end of my line, and it looked like a bow, which I've never caught any out of this stream before. Unfortunately he dove into some brush while I was trying to climb over the log and popped off. It's definitely harder to turn a fish with the 3wt, though I have to say I really like the way the typical little ten inchers fight on it. I kept working up, but the fish were pretty spooky. I arrived at a spot with a nice run paralleling a fallen tree. As my fly drifted by, it darted under, and I set the hook into something big. I caught a quick glimpse of what seriously looked to be close to 18" of spotted rage before it darted into the tree. I tried to turn it and scoot around the tree to get it out, but it was too late. Darn my flimsy little rod. For a minute I wished I had brought the 4wt instead. I made it up to another favorite run and spotted several nice trout working it. I tried to knee walk into position, but I spooked the best trout. Still, on my first cast, this snaky fellow did a 180 and chomped my nymph.<br />
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Unfortunately, they were just so spooky with this clear water that I wasn't able to coax anymore to bite. It was getting dark, and the next stretch was fast and shallow. I found a couple of pockets, and between the low light and fast water, the fish weren't so terrified of my presence. I pulled two off the tail of the run, and got one further up to munch my dry. <br />
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I reeled up my slack and was about to call it a night, when I saw a shelf up ahead that always looked like a big fish spot. I made several casts with no love, but as I was about to pick up my last cast, I hooked into one last fish. He took off downstream and I stumbled through the dark after him. He wasn't a monster, but still better than most of what I had encountered thus far.<br />
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It was really getting dark now, and I still had a half a mile or so to get back to my car, so I hurried back. All in all not a fantastic evening, but I got to try out my new rod, and at least I wasn't missing the majority of my fish this time. If the weather holds, I just might go back again tomorrow and hike up further as I'll have more time.<br />
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Total for trip: 11 browns<br />
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Total for year: 159 fishGreghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-7410914165780969192012-03-26T22:59:00.001-07:002012-05-23T10:19:20.277-07:00You and Me and Rainbows 3/23/12<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">A new friend of mine had been trying to get me to go with him to his secret rainbow spot for several weeks now. I knew it was a decent drive to get there, and a whole day would be necessary to fish it properly. Between school, work and my wife, it was difficult to find a time to do this, but on Friday the planets aligned, and we finally found ourselves at our destination. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I'll admit, I was a bit skeptical. Things started off slowly, but as we worked our way upstream, I became a believer.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Things just continued to get better and better.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">There were swarms of midges coming off, but I felt it would be hard to entice them to take a midge imitation with all the naturals on the water. I noted that blue wing olives and some caddis were coming off as well, so decided to go with something that would imitate either of these. I used a generic little fly that I made up last November that takes attributes from the Prince Nymph, Copper John and Hare's Ear. I ended up catching most of the fish on this in various colors in a size 16. Darker colors definitely worked better. I also tried a size 18 bwo emerger, and had a lot of strikes on this, but fewer hookups. I caught a couple throwing a size 8 blood colored mohair leech on my 6wt as well, and one colorful little male on a Gummy Egg. I used my new 4wt for the most part, and I had quite the battles. Some of them were pushing ten minutes and full of spectacular leaps. It had been a while since I had to put a fish on the reel, and some of these guys got me to my backing. Sadly I lost a couple that were 20+ inches. On the first of these, the hook pulled free after a 10 minute battle. I had the net ready to land the fish several times, when it would take off again. The other was really large, and really colorful, but he just rolled on the surface on the hook set and came undone. Still, I can't complain. I caught many in the 17-19" range, they fought like mad, and had beautiful colors to boot. The scenery wasn't too shabby either. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Unfortunately, I have been sworn to secrecy so I cannot divulge the location of this river. However, it is extremely dangerous there. The place is swarming with sasquatch, grizzly bears, cougars, and ligers. Not only that, but the Mexican Drug Cartel and the Russian Mafia are known to frequent the area. I was lucky to escape with my life this time, but return ventures may be risky.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Total for trip: 39 rainbows and cuttbows</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Total for year: 148 fish</span><br />
<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1913961688668293661.post-1024408677014220532012-03-26T22:37:00.003-07:002012-03-26T22:37:50.401-07:00A Quick Trip to Brown Town 3/21/12I had a little time between class and work, so I decided to take a quick jaunt up Logan Canyon again. Because of my lack of time, I tried a spot lower in the canyon than I'd been fishing. I also had just read a great report where someone had caught some very respectable fish on sculpin imitations. Well, either I had the wrong spot, or wrong fly, because I flogged away for about 30 minutes before hightailing it to my favorite pocket water section with my 4wt. <br />
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I found a pull off and rigged up my favorite combo from last time. I scrobbled through the willows and ice shelves and finally plopped into the river. I spotted a good looking pocket behind a boulder and quickly scored a decent brown.<br />
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He put up a spirited little fight. I quickly spotted a good fish in a quiet little pocket up against the bank. He slowly sucked down my dry, I waited until he took it all the way under, I set the hook, and then nothing. Soon after I had another fish swipe at the dry. They were really looking up. It was about this time that I realized that I had actually started at the exact same spot as last time, I just parked at a different spot and entered just downstream of that nice little pocket instead of just upstream of it. I reached some runs that had looked awesome but not produce last time. This time I managed to pull the dropper out of the mouths of two large trout. This new rod is much faster than my old rod and I had to remind myself to be very gentle on the hook set. I realized I only had a short while before I needed to head into work. I fished in fast forward, moving upstream, flicking casts into pockets as I went. I managed several smaller browns and one tiny cutthroat. <br />
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Finally I arrived at my favorite cutthroat and whitefish hole from last trip. No one was home toward the tail of the run, but a cast alongside a large boulder brought a good sized snout out of the water to swipe at my dry. He didn't connect, but a couple of casts later, the fish took the dropper. He looked very dark and had a lot of red on him, so I was thinking cutthroat until he leaped two feet straight out of the water and then tail-walked across the pool. Finally I netted the little acrobat and discovered a very darkly colored brown.<br />
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I worked up to the whitefish pocket, but I found another brown instead. <br />
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He kept with the tradition of fighting harder than he should have. I was nearly out of time. I spotted a good fish sipping insects, but just as I was making my cast to him, another fish darted out from a rock and into the pool, spooking the riser. I hooked another good brown from behind a boulder, but he darted into the rapids and bent my hook before I could follow. Darn light wire hooks. After that it was time to go. As I was climbing up the bank, I saw a true sign of spring, the first empty case of Busch beer lying in the brush. I'm not sure what it is about people who enjoy this particular brand of swill, but they love to litter. When I got to the road I discovered a wide array of empties littering the pull off. People never cease to amaze me with their brilliance. I'm not sure what it is that makes people decide to drive to the curviest, most treacherous part of a canyon to get wasted, but it seems to be a common urge around here. <br />
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Kind of strange that last time I got into a ton of cutts, but this time it was almost all browns. How strange.<br />
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Total for trip: 7 browns, 2 cutthroat<br />
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Total for year: 109 fish<br />
<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14379232764421404961noreply@blogger.com0