tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10613392104004265752024-03-14T02:50:33.314-07:00Opportunistic FishermanMy life, my addiction and my passion shared with you through past and current fishing adventures.Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-65121407032066175532018-08-15T07:06:00.002-07:002018-08-15T07:06:46.497-07:00Canada August 2018 Musky or Bust
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Canada August 2018</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Musky fishing…. Basically a sport where you say you are fishing
for a specific fish that’s as elusive and rare as a unicorn that requires
countless hours where success is measured by how many encounters or musky
sightings you have during the day or week fishing trip, not even actually fish
landings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These brief, heart stopping,
throat swelling encounters are just enough to push the insanity over the edge
to almost convince you that you can turn a non interested lazy follow into an
eater.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But on rare occasions these fish
of 1million casts come flying out of their ambush spot with reckless abandon
and absolutely annihilate their intended prey with less than a millisecond of
preparation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How rude they can be
catching you off guard like that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well,
this year I made my annual, sometimes biannual trip to the north country to
fish for a fish I have in much higher concentrations back home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But for some reason fishing for them in their
native habitat is that much more alluring and feels almost as if it should be
easier.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Forget that everyone else has
the same expectations and has educated these fish from the time before
man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just about every body of water in
Canada had musky at one point in time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But once the advent of gas engines, almost all were fished out except
for the largest bodies of water such as the Great Lakes or massive glacier
depressions known as Lake of the Woods for example.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These bodies of water were too large for even
the most cunning and persistent fishermen to ever pry every last musky from
their waters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The vast area of Canada is
littered with thousands of lakes where at one time were all connected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The glaciers scoured the landscape creating
millions of pockets now known as lakes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over
the course of history the fish that survived in these larger bodies of water
and rivers managed to spread out and recolonize areas that were connected by
rivers or wetland seeps also known as flowages. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I first started my efforts in the vast area at the start of
the St. Lawrence river in Lake Ontario where placing a lure into this ocean
like “lake” is almost like shooting from the hip with a snub nose .38 special
at a squirrel at the top of a red wood two miles away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of these shoals in this region attract
musky, some even consider them migratory musky that migrate from the abyss of
lake Ontario to the rivers and shoals to feed but this occurrence is more
common in the fall, not the dead middle of summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Any educated half experienced guide wouldn’t
even dare bother targeting musky in this area until the leaves are gone, the lake
has turned over and winter is slamming at the door.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But with that one in a billion chance of
encountering one of these fish, these leviathan size top predator was reason
enough to look for that needle in a hay field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The fish of these waters are massive, salmon eating beasts and more 55
plush inch fish come from this region every year than anywhere else in the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I full heartedly accepted the challenge
because that feeling that it “could” happen is really the feeling we all seek
while pursuing our query.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not the
actual accomplishment of landing the fish that we just immediately let go back
to the water, sure that’s a good feeling but it’s the pursuit or the hunt us psychotic
musky nuts seek.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s almost masochistic
as it’s so unlikely and requires 100 hours of effort per musky according the
Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
fished 8 hours straight after driving for 10 with two restless 11 year-olds in
the car.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was 8% there.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So later in the week
I opted for a much smaller body of water, an area once featured in Musky Hunter
series as having a “good” population of large musky.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They likely just filmed the show there to
boost the near poverty economy and convince the novice musky angler such as
myself that there’s a half hearted shot in the dark chance at actually hooking
up with one of these alligator shaped unicorns.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was fishing the area known as
10000 lakes region of the Ontario wilderness but far from what Canadians would
consider wilderness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you can drive an
ATV there, it’s not wilderness but in this instance it was a popular lake and
town but just barely reaching the requirement of a lake, more like a large pool
in the middle of a river.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did some
investigation, downloaded some charts and thought I had a pretty good chance…
despite being told by lodge owners and tackle shops that the fish basically don’t
bite this time of year in the heat of the summer and wasn’t even worth their
time targeting the fish until the cool nights of October bring the water
temperature back to that optimum 50 degree range.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I was still somewhat optimistic with 76
degree water as back home would consider that near the lethal threshold but
also near the peak metabolism range and therefore the fish have to eat to
survive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I was two or three hours into my fishing trip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mid morning time frame, nearing that 12
ocolock high sun period where just about everything is cooked and
lethargic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But my one musky guide I used
12 years ago with my x wife when she was pregnant with my son had his opinion
on what time of day is best.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I almost
though it was a joke.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me it’s dusk
or dawn back home and every other hour of the day in-between you might as well
be fishing for atlantic salmon in Georgia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But I asked this famous St. Lawrence guide what was his favorite time of
day to get into musky and he replied with a short but precise time of 1130 in
the morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hu???? But I’ll never
forget that comment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, it’s nearly
1130, I’ve spent about 3 hours of fishless, sightingless hours on the water and
haven’t put my double 10 blades down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
forearm on my left arm is developing this knot about half way up my arm from the
muscle tightening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s shooting this
sharp throbbing pain up into my elbow every other cast that doesn’t feel quite
right or normal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my earlier years I’d
have gone and seen a specialist immediately and performed surgery 12 times when
I felt a pain like that but now just know these pains are just a part of
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it’s not too colored up or
bleeding too bad, I’ll just deal with the pain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s only been three hours, it’s like I just started.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was still optimistic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I work my way around this island that has a
perfect weed bed, I switch from 3 oz number 10 blade bucktails that feel more
like reeling in a trash bag hooked onto a wet wool scarf than an actual
lure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve purchased the largest,
baddest musky reel known to man because I just had to have it, the Shimano
tranx 500 was built for this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(got
nearly 70% off as part of a trade in with shimano because I kept breaking their
other more inferior reels). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could
have gotten away with just about any abu Garcia but just had to be that $500
reel that was more than 5 times what I’ve spent on any other reel in my
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But with these number 10 blades, I’ve
broken those 100$ reals hours after removing them from the packages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you try and burn these saucer size blades,
gears and parts will give way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve done
it dozens of times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So back to the
island, I’ve circled the entire island now, I’m back on the deep side where it
immediately hits 8 feet off the boulders and drops into the deepest area of the
lake shortly there after.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s
standing cabbage weed, I make my first figure 8 at this spot with nothing in
site behind my lure and BANG.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s on
and cartwheeling across the surface.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Perfect hook up, pandemonium pursues as I try and grab the 40” diameter
net that’s tangled on everything in the boat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I somehow drop the hatchery pen size net in the water under the fish,
with two lures hanging off the webbing of the net and somehow get it under the
fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Success!! I think my kids might
have heard me yell and they were 50 miles away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Awesome…. Quick look at the clock and it’s 1129am.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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My Camera man sucks</div>
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That's actually a near 40"musky. That net is big enough to catch deer, lots of them. </div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I should just leave now I thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I troll around some, work another point with
a steep drop off, find more cabbage weed but decide to head to the ramp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only to pass a mouth of the river entering
the lake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A prime spot back home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone knows creek/river mouths hold the
bait and the predators.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I work my way
well inside the river to a point where it goes from a large open flooded
wetland to a rocky, shallow smallmouth looking river.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve gone too far now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I run into an old timer who’s quietly
having a smoke on a rock with a fishing rod leaning up against the bushes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I start conversation and ask about the
fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He says he’s done well on bass
today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sure I had enough bass tackle
with me to outfit a boy scout troop but wasn’t interested.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I did throw out the question fully
expecting a negative response… have you seen any musky?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He replied with more information than I
expected and said just down the bend at the mouth of the creek was a good spot
to get musky feeding on the small bait fish that enter the lake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was right about there being a lot of
baitfish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Like two inch long or one inch
long baby bass by the millions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That and
a variety of minnow species.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this
was a mouth opening I had not fished, that I had not seen as I came in another
finger of the mouth of the river on the opposite side of the island.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The old timer even said he got a nice 10
pound musky there the day before on a small spinner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought sure, elephants eat peanuts, maybe
I’ll try that…. But then again…. Maybe I’ll just stick to pounders and 14” long
jerk baits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just as I started to leave the
shallows the river dropped off considerably and created a large circular deep
pool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The rocks and boulders of the
river disappeared into the depths.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
just on that drop off were over a dozen sparkling red hue suckers vacuuming the
moss and detritus off of the rocks and mud.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I thought to myself…. Eating small stuff hu?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yea right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>These suckers were averaging 20 inches with a couple near 30 maybe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s the kind of meal these muskies are
after, not those young of the year bass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I drift about 30 yards into the deepest part of the pool and continue to
work my double ten cowgirl with chartreuse blades and black flashabou
skirt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I turn my shoulder to look at the
fishermen and then the suckers, then start my figure 8 only expecting to give
it a single turn and this deadhead rises from the depths right on its
tail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I almost lifted the lure out of the
water but instinct kicks in and I properly continue a full figure 8.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The musky that dreams are made of was hot on
its tail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It could easily just open its
mouth and the skirt of the lure was touching her nose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Keep it moving Jon, don’t fucking stop moving
the lure jon!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I’m into the third
turn of the second figure 8 and she’s still there, picking up speed on the straightaway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Any second now!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another turn and she’s right on it…. Right
until she’s not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She just sinks out of
sight and my heart’s almost plugging my throat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She’s still there Jon!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t
fucking stop moving.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I dip the rod
deeper and pull faster to elect that fight flee response.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everything is so text book, I don’t miss a
beat, it’s the perfect scenario and I’m doing everything right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But she’s gone from my life, the good ones
always leave you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or I leave them in
fear of changing the future and cutting into my fishing time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I switch lures a dozen times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I pry every cranny of that pool looking for
her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I even try catching a sucker to rig
up… ok well tried snagging one anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Bounced chatter baits off the bottom, threw pounders, medussas, crank
baits, top waters, swimming dogs, spinner baits, bucktails in 5 different blade
colors, everything other than electricity to raise her again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She wasn’t having it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll get her later in the week I
thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I need to be here at first
light or dusk or maybe at midnight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Navigating back here under the cover of darkness will almost certainly
mean I’ll run aground but so what.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That
fish will haunt me if I don’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’s
still haunting me now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m back home
now, never did go back after her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Decided to leave on that note to spend time with the kids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Took them after perch near the marina and
drop shotted smallmouth bass in 50 feet of water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was easy to show them how to do it and
hook a bass and pass a rod to a waiting 11 year old but was next to impossible
to teach them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Back to swimming, tubing,
king of the hill dock fighting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That
musky will have to wait. I’ll be back, that moment will keep me coming back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The hunt, the pursuit is what keeps us
going.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it were consistently
successful and easy, we’d or I’d probably lose interest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Signing out, Jon, the inflicted, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>masochistic obsessive compulsive swollen
forearm, opportunistic fisherman will return once again to Stucco lake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know where you live and I’ll see you again
my dear. </span></div>
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-31098560792479516512017-03-15T07:55:00.002-07:002017-03-16T06:51:54.998-07:00The cows came home! <br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-outline-level: 3;">
<b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.5pt;"><a href="http://opportunisticfisherman.blogspot.com/2017/03/just-like-that-light-switch-turns-on.html"><span style="color: #cc6611; text-decoration: none;">Just like that,
the light switch turns on. The cows came home!</span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.5pt;">March 7, 2017<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">So the cold front past leaving behind the
worst conditions imaginable and things just changed. I think everything
came back to life all at once. Women, girlfriends, wives, even dogs and
friends will come and go but the beautiful thick ladies of spring will always
return around the same time. The cows have come home. <br />
<br />
Monday March 6th after work I ran down to chain bridge in DC to see what
was going on. Nothing for the first hour and then a guy shows up next to
me. He's rigged with a 4 inch Kalins chartreuse speckled grub and I think
the first cast hooks up. Guess what, it's a striper?! Decent size
schoolie of about 6 pounds. Literally the next cast he's hooked up, good
size walleye! Then finally he took a few casts without a fish.
Remember I hadn't caught a thing. Finally though I put it together and
get a walleye and a decent schoolie striper. Not bad. Heard of
several other reports of an excellent walleye bite from Great Falls down
through DC. Water temp made it to 46 on USGS and air temps were in the
50's, plus some wind. Too much wind to use the boat. Although I
thought about it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Tuesday... Still don't have Ryan. Feeling bummed out a little from women
issues. Might as well go try for a woman that always aims to
please. Although she can be a little unpredictable about when she
decides to show. Headed up to the susky. First tried for shad but
the river was blown brown poo. Local fishing for shad said it just came
up. Well, that didn't help things. Tore my waders somehow on the
first spot and flooded them with 40 degree water. It was like having
needles stabbing your leg every second. I couldn't stand it anymore after
about an hour. Packed it up. Found a wader patch, drank a few beers
in the car with the heater on. Changed into an old pair of jeans, no
socks, no underwear... Then checked the Conowingo report for water level
conditions. Must have listened to it 12 times. The report was
already on tomorrow's report but it should be similar to today. They
estimated the river to drop from 59K CFS to 21k cfs at 2100 hours. Well,
it's an estimate. I've never seen the spot I was in with so much water
before and I've fished there over 100k CFS with spill conditions.
Not sure what was up but maybe they had more water pushing over the eastern
side. Disclaimer... you cannot target striped bass above the line
between lapidum and Port Deposit. But there are fish on that
line. Patched my waders, drove and got some coffee... I'm ready
now. Checked the river again and sure enough it dropped.
Nothing at the first spot. Water conditions had significantly
improved. 11pm and water dropped even more. Finally a
tug. Not just a tug, more like a gut wrenching violent blind sided
collision with Troy Palomano in his prime. That wasn't a rock... Drag
singing, fish trying to tail walk like a steelhead but it's immense belly
preventing the entire body from clearing the surface... That's what I'm
looking for. Three more fish followed suit. This is the best of the
best and it's not even past the first week of March. Not another soul on
the river either. No boats trolling where they would certainly
succeed. We'll see how popular this blog is. I shouldn't post it
for a while really. But the cold will return this weekend and I'm
sure it will shut it down again for a while. It was near midnight now and
I actually left biting fish after releasing my fourth spring giant. All
fish were near 40" except the first... it was huge. Terrible photos,
better phone was dead. Leave your wives, quit your jobs and head down to
the river people. The time is now! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">March 9, 2017<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I took a day off of fishing to play baseball and basketball
with Ryan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The warm weather had returned
and of course my mind was on the water so a day was long enough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On Thursday I just couldn’t take it and
decided to pick Ryan up from school early… with the boat in tow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Check
out his reason for leaving?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Someone said,
“the truth will set you free.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I usually
tell the truth, no matter how much it will piss someone off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s kind of a fault of mine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">We ran down to DC and launched at my favorite boat ramp at
the airport.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We first checked on the
channel and sure enough there were decent marks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Almost certainly striped bass and big ones at
that but I couldn’t get them to play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Tried trolling and jigging…. I’d suspect bait would do it but we didn’t
have any.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The bait should be fresh like
bloody slimy bleeding fresh.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kicking is
best but fresh dead like a few hours earlier is good too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Water temps were 52.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With an hour of light left I ran down to the poop
plant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This place stinks but always
holds fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I mean always.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The water coming from the discharge is always
clear too, like the 2000 flushes add.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
think it’s the same chemical as it comes out blue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even if the rest of the river is brown poo,
chocolate milk, there will be clear water at the discharge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First maybe second cast and ryan is hooked up
to a decent schoolie striped bass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
loved it too as it rocked the lucky craft pointer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They love those things… so does everything
else too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I get nervous fishing them as
they are so expensive but wow do the fish eat them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When striper fishing it’s best to replace the
hardware too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lots of schoolie striped
bass entertained us for the 20 minutes of light we had left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The tide went slack as we were there and just
as the sun was setting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sure it
would have been an excellent bite of good size schoolie striped bass if we had
a decent tide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ran back to mess with the
trailer and then drove the boat and trailer to College Park to watch Quince
Orchard High School win the semi finals in basketball against Wise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Awesome game!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Took Friday and Saturday off but hit the water again on
Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another cold front moved
in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But just before it did people were catching
double digit walleye in the lower river on jerk baits and after dark under the
near full moon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t get in on that
unfortunately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But on Sunday in cold
windy conditions I took Ryan and his friend down to Fletchers to mess
around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The water was as low as I’ve
ever seen it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The strong winds blew all
the water out I think.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No fish, nothing
at all, not even a bite.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then went to
great falls in search of that awesome walleye bite…. Nothing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Total skunk and I was in all the right
spots.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kids enjoyed rock climbing and
maybe took three casts each.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">March 15, 2017<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Update on March 15, 2017.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We just received a “Nor-easter”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was scheduled to dump 12 to 20” of snow but we barely got two inches of snow
and sleet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The county closed, the
schools closed and MD was in a state of emergency?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I read that the fishing around the area
waters was excellent just before the storm hit on Monday, March 13, 2017.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John and I thought about running out but then
there were all these warnings and I imagined being stuck on 95 for the night. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No thanks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We chickened out but we both phoned each other at about 9pm saying this
isn’t shit?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We could have put a few fish
on the bank by now?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We even thought
about heading out then too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Full moon
and all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we didn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then the snow came and now the wind and
bitter mid winter cold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They say that
90% of the cherry blossoms will die now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I wonder about the fish? I could careless about the cherry blossoms but
what about the river herring, the shad the showed up early?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The perch?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And of course the stripers?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
looks like the weather will break again on Friday, March 17 and I plan to see
who will wake up with the warmth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Saturday also is looking decent but I also saw a long range forecast for
next week and more snow?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>WTF is mother
nature smoking?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This really messes with the
fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Get with the program! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-87688159849658588942017-03-06T04:30:00.001-08:002017-03-06T04:32:46.743-08:00Cold fronts suckSo the recent drop in temperature really hurt the fishing. Or at least it did for me this weekend. I knew it would be tough but wasn't sure how tough. The water temps in the Potomac last week were in the mid 50's. That's usually April temps. But then we get hit with snow, and cold, mid winter conditions and the water temps have slowly dropped to 44 now according to USGS. That kind of change isn't good. If it were a steady 44, sure no problem. We were on the upper Potomac yesterday looking for musky and walleye. Even had live bait and completely skunked. Here's another scenic picture that usually only gets shared when there are no fish. I mean zero fish. We took it on the chin yesterday. Fished for nearly 10 hours with nothing to show for it. Put in a lot of driving trying to find better water conditions as the river was slightly murky from rains up river earlier in the week. But the water clarity significantly improved as we were there. That wasn't the reason, the cold was. But why no walleye? I think partially because I kept switching from musky to walleye and didn't concentrate well enough on one species but also because of the sudden drop in temperature. I thought a few days of steady cold would be considered "stable" in the fish's minds but that didn't happen. <br />
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John did catch a steering wheel from an old boat or possibly even a bus. When he hooked it I even grabbed the net as it was kind of "swimming". Well, when you try and drag a 20" steering wheel up to the surface it's going to spin some. That got us both excited for sure. No picture of the steering wheel but John did keep it for some reason and I was tripping over it all day. <br />
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I also got out on Saturday afternoon but only for about 20 minutes. It was mostly a recon trip to see if the herring were still around and they were not. I mean no where. Not in the big holes in the tributaries, not the riffles, nothing. They must have dropped back into the river and taken up refuge in the deeper water. But if they try and hide there, so will the predators. It has me thinking there could be some decent fishing if you look deep enough. <br />
<br />
Anyway, I hit up a warm water discharge for about 20 minutes with the fly rod. I caught one of the largest crappie I've ever seen. 14 inches of true giant deformed looking crappie, on a 3wt fly rod even. Good fun. Might have to do that again. <br />
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<br />Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-24879808964311142222017-03-03T07:55:00.001-08:002017-03-03T07:57:44.765-08:00Mother nature is on crack<br />
We've had 70 degree days for a few weeks and then finally today we get hit
with a little snow and 30 degree temps. Daffodils, forsythia, pear trees,
maple's budding, herring in the creeks, striped bass in the rivers!!!
it's on! Or should be. I got skunked three days now down on
the Potomac. Not sure what's up. I think I just suck. I
heard better reports from other people. Even the susky has fish,
both some shad, herring and convict bass. The time is near for
everything to explode. I have never seen herring in the creeks in
the numbers there were in February. I could have caught a big striper in
DC in February!!! But didn't try the right spots, no boat and day old
bait. Thought I had a good thump on a jig but no go. The
crappie bite is still hot. Heard the walleye bite was good but I got
skunked last Friday with Ryan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve
been fishing like a maniac like always.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><br />
<br />
Two weeks ago John and I put 4 musky in the boat in a half day's effort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ve never had a 4 fish day before and three
of them came within 10 minutes of each other!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That tells me they are on the spawn or warming up to it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The one fish I caught looked spawned out!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then there were two tiny skinny musky caught immediately
afterwards and then John finally stuck a good fish on a glider just as he
paused it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So that made him happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not sure what I’m doing this weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m kid free, no sports but there’s a cold
front sitting on us with a decent amount of wind coming with it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s no fun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sunday will get better and of course next
week will be perfect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mid spring like
conditions coming again next week, just in time for the work week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I have almost two weeks leave and a month
or more sick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I plan on using all of it
in the next two months.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Minus the
sick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just saying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span><br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/jonathan.griffiths.750/videos/10212069441993582/">https://www.facebook.com/jonathan.griffiths.750/videos/10212069441993582/</a></span><br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span><br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">Alewife river herring spawning in Washington DC on February 25, 2017. </span><br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span><br />
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Forsythia, aka Shadbush blooming along GW </div>
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Garter snakes out crawling around on Feb 20th! Great crappie bite too. </div>
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Here's a decent musky from Feb 19th. Caught 4 that day. This guy almost looks spawned out! </div>
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John with a good one from the 19th right at sunset. </div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span><br />Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-84490492802638849792017-02-13T12:24:00.001-08:002017-02-14T07:57:05.737-08:00Crap pie, it's what's for dinner Crappie, <br />
<br />
it's what's for dinner. I usually don't keep many fish but every now and then enough for a fish fry is warranted. Far from even a one person limit but enough to feed a few of us for an evening. I have been on a hot crappie bite lately. Similar pattern from a few years ago when they show up at the mouth of the larger tributaries to the Potomac. You will know they are there when you see flipping or small splashes on the surface. Sometimes this is crappie, other times it's the bait fish they are eating. Other times I think it's some other fish but for whatever reason, this is when there are decent numbers of crappie around. The rig is rather standard. use a small, weighted float about 2 inches long and slender, with about 4 feet of line to a 1/32oz or 1/16oz jig head and then either a 2 inch twister tail, tube or for best results a one inch gulp minnow in green. Gulp is basically crappie crack. I'm sure you could do very well on minnows too as there are decent numbers of one inch minnows swimming around the shore. Last week we saw mid spring like conditions with a few days near 60 degrees, actually mid 60's. I went mid week to check on it just to see if there were fish and sure enough guys were bailing them. Well, one guy was anyway. I caught a few in 20 minutes but had to get back to work. Plus I only had a decent size bass rod with me, not your best crappie rod but it did the trick. The next day a major cold front hit and temps dropped 30 degrees, with some snow and blinding winds to 30 mph gusts at times. But this was the day that Ryan didn't have basketball, it was too cold to go to the park, so we went fishing. Somehow we sort of hid out of the wind and I figured once the fish showed up, they should still be there. Sure enough it was as easy as taking candy from a baby. One after another of decent crappie and even a largemouth. I thought about eating a few but let them all go. <br />
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Later the next day after work we invited some friends. The fish were not where they were on Thursday or Wednesday. The water was little lower and there was some boat traffic from the rescue guys that may have spooked the fish. We got into a few largemouth, bluegill and finally right at dark found some crappie. But only two. Wasn't sure what was wrong but I think they were holding near the structure this time. Usually they don't which I know defies everything about crappie fishing. For some odd reason these fish hold out in the middle of the hole at the mouth of the creek, like near where the creek current enters the river current. There's depth there but I wouldn't call this the deepest spot around. Anyway, here's some pictures. The fishing is good. I just pulled up to the spot again so I'm going to give it another go. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7s492EM_btFSbqTGpnYMpYJmGGawuYrUPEJrA0m7Vf2Hn89npeRegwjo6t6fxnWgqn4ShnJQU00z4lVIRztFIN9tlmvdmiJVeh5n5UzesFCw2z9-P-IBAHXjXUq39fAxMj7kjuFC6t6A/s1600/IMG_0306.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7s492EM_btFSbqTGpnYMpYJmGGawuYrUPEJrA0m7Vf2Hn89npeRegwjo6t6fxnWgqn4ShnJQU00z4lVIRztFIN9tlmvdmiJVeh5n5UzesFCw2z9-P-IBAHXjXUq39fAxMj7kjuFC6t6A/s320/IMG_0306.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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There's a decent number of bass here too. Not big but odd to see largemouth bass actively feeding when it was that cold. This was Feb 9th with a crazy weather shift from 60's on the 8th to 30's and 30 MPH wind gusts at the time. </div>
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Feb 9th bass</div>
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Crappie from Feb 9th</div>
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Another bass from the 10th</div>
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Beautiful sunset on the 9th or 10th. Usually you only take pics of sunsets when you don't catch anything but on this day we had both, a nice sunset and plenty of fish. </div>
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Here's a nice stringer from the 12th. We caught many others too that were released plus a few bluegill too. Had two reports from friends of very slow fishing but they were using different techniques. Try the float and suspend the bait, keep it small. </div>
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So quick update. I fished yesterday from about 4pm to 5pm and it was red hot. A fish almost every cast. There was a strong east wind coming form the land but wasn't bad hiding behind the bridge. I was even experimenting with no floats, two inch scentless twister tails, jigging, it all worked. But again the gulp got eaten far quicker. I'd venture to say I caught about 30 crappie in the time frame. Many of them were small, likely males but there were a few jumbos too. I released everything, hopefully educated them a little. I doubt I'll keep anymore crappie. The last batch didn't taste very good for some reason. I ate it two nights ago and today I'm not feeling so well. Been to the bathroom a few times but that could have been the draft beer from Witlows and the Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders "beer tie" in Rosslyn, Va. Who knows. But crappie fishing is about as good as it gets close to home. Gotta love it. </div>
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<br />Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-31622930965325397292017-02-07T06:57:00.000-08:002017-02-07T21:10:12.814-08:00Skunked but valuable So I guess I don't report too many skunks. Sure there are thousands. They're usually that half hour walk along the river during lunch or at the local lake on the way home. But yesterday I only mobilized at about 310pm and decided to drive to the upper river just as rush hour was forming. I figured it would take me an hour drive and I might get two hours of daylight to fish. The best two hours of the day I might add. Musky were the target species. Jigs and gliders were deployed to no avail. However, it wasn't a complete skunk. A complete skunk is not seeing or feeling anything all day. I did hook up in the first 30 minutes on a large skirted jig and swim shad trailer. This was a solid fish but the hook pulled. I screamed about as loud as can be and scared the crap out of a few dog walkers on the canal. So basically the jig is just a typical Stanley jig but with a paddle tail swim shad as the trailer. The skinnier ones have better action. Just last week John and I did another half day trip and I hooked up three times while jigging the same rig. The first one I had it next to the net but lost it, decent size high 30 inch or low 40 inch fish. WE were continuously getting hung up on the bottom and damaging our hooks. It's imperative to have good sharp hooks. If it were a treble hook I'd just replace it with another but the jig hook is the whole lure. I tried running a file over it but it didn't seem to do much. The best hook sharpener I've seen has a groove in it specifically designed for the hook. It's sharpens to a nice point but still not perfect. Best for smaller hooks. <br />
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I'll also tell you it wasn't easy finding the right jig. I bought a handful of typical bucktail jigs for striped bass in the 3/4 to 1.5 oz. The hooks were not that great either. Not big enough. Most bass style skirted jigs are way too small. The hooks are too small for the larger swim baits I like to add to them. Sure I could go with a parachute used for trolling for striped bass. That might actually work. I'll look into that more. I've always thought that the typical Chesapeake Bay trolling spread of parachutes and umbrellas would work wonders on musky up north in Canada on Lake Ontario, St. Lawrence and other large bodies of water. But I'm casting and jigging here, making contact with the bottom just like striped bass fishing except we are fishing 6 to 15 feet of water with a decent current and the bottom is strewn with boulders and logs. 65 and 80 pond power pro usually brings in most of the logs but doesn't do your hooks any good. Hence why I missed the fish yesterday and three last week?!! Makes me want to swear. Because that is avoidable. If I had enough patience and time I'd have taken better care of my hooks and I may have put four musky in the boat in the last two trips. Not really sure how to properly sharpen hooks I guess. It's easier to just buy a new lure but these larger skirted jigs are hard to come by. and not cheap either. Money is tough right now. I've eaten all my frozen striped bass from my freezer and I don't even like fish. I'm also well on my way from eating all my deer meat, the deer meat I was supposed to give away. Sorry people. Don't really like deer meat either but it's sustenance. <br />
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This weather is insane. 60 degrees today by 9am?! It was near that yesterday too. Stoneflies blanketing the surface of the water but nothing popping on them. We need warm water for that to happen but the bugs know the fish are cold too. Too bad the musky don't eat size 12 bugs off the surface. I talked to an experienced musky angler yesterday and they were also skunked. But he said his last fish came in mid December on a Whopper Plopper... that's right, a top water lure! I've always thought they would hit on top in the cold by the fish's attitude when it smashes a glider just a couple feet under the surface. Heck sometimes it's about 6 inches under the surface with 32 degree water?! <br />
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I might try for walleye downtown today. Or great falls.... we'll see. I'd like to hook up the boat again and take off up north again. But John is busy and I just drove 120 miles yesterday. same the day before.... I went to a friends place near Annapolis this weekend then fished the Magothy with his daughter out of a canoe. We were hoping for perch and pickerel but didn't catch anything. Another skunk. Then I drove another 40 miles across the bridge to fish the Tuckahoe hoping for an early showing of big yellow perch and pickerel but only managed one tiny pickerel. Like 8 inches tiny. But guys were catching freshly stocked trout well near the dam. Just not me. Can't catch them every time. <br />
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Update: <br />
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February 7, 2017<br />
<br />
Just got back from the National Capital Chapter of Trout unlimited shad night. It was good to see and hear the DC fisheries crew talk shad. I got to ask them all types of questions. Like Why can't we keep hickory shad in DC waters but can in Virginia? and Deleware for that matter. They didn't have a good answer other than it's the Atlantic state's marine fisheries who decides that. Heck 5 fish a day would be plenty. IT's not like there are any shortages of hickory shad. For 5 weeks they blanket the river from Georgetown to well above Chan bridge. But they do not make it over little Falls. There was some discussion on that. Anyway, they claim the first shad was caught on March 11th last year. I think I also fished there that time and didn't find any shad near the bottom of the cove but did find some nice largemouth. This warm weather has got everyone thinking shad. The glory days will be here before you know it. "shad.... did somebody say shad?" <br />
<br />
I also fished a little today down below great falls, MD side. Threw swim jigs and swim shads and hooked up on a solid fish near the first few casts on a large swim shad rigged on a swiveling weight attached to a worm hook. This thing is completely snag proof. But for some reason I think I snagged whatever fish that was on as it came tight after I jigged the lure. Who knows, maybe it bit. It felt solid and part of me things it was a musky. Or just a big walleye. Very possible and more believable. There are musky down river and they sure would take up residence in the type of eddy I was fishing. Everything that swims should be in that kind of eddy. One of these days I'll do well there. Even in the glory walleye days of early march I only managed a few fish a day there, with about two to three hours effort. But I had seen other people do fairly well. Like four fish and one of them was pushing double digits. They were there at first light so either first or last light might be the key. Usually is anyway. Lots of opportunity out there. Everyone should be thinking power plant striped bass fishing, walleye eddy fishing, musky jigging, striped bass slaughter time on power plants....Oh I already said that. But the weather is not that cold, actually almost spring like. I even heard they were doing well at the mouth of the Potomac fishing over birds the other day. one of the fish I saw caught was 46 inches and that was on a jig in the open bay in February?@ When have you heard of that happening? Go gettem.... get off the couch, get away from the fishing seminars and fishing shows that are just to sell things and go fishing. Now might be one of the best times of the year to catch a true giant record striped bass and more than a few of his friends too. Not to mention musky, walleye....... take your pic<br />
Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-75166674947903215622017-01-18T08:16:00.003-08:002017-01-18T08:24:36.023-08:00Fish are already wetWent out yesterday in the rain. The stars aligned where John and I could get out for a few hours together. I saw the radar and the forecast and it said the rain would end around noon. That's about the time I was hoping to get off work. Well, it didn't stop raining all day. Sometimes drizzle, sometimes full on rain. Oh well. The fish are already wet. With John's new 18' G3 Jet we can get to the best spots in seconds where with a kayak or a prop boat these same spots take a day trip and a float trip usually, plus two cars and or an expensive taxi. Believe me, I've done it. The river is up, perfect flow and color. Actually thought it might be a little dirty but had that "big fish green" color to it and didn't disappoint. The first drift John is still rigging his rod when I yell to him to get the net. It's a decent fish, smashed the glider near the surface on about the 8th cast of the day. Hi fives. Who said musky were the 10000 cast fish? This is easy. about an hour later John is throwing a huge bondy swim bait, shallow version with a long tail, they don't make it anymore. These things are enormous and have hooks everywhere so if they even smell the bottom, you're already hung. Sure enough he gets hung up. I use the trolling motor to move upstream to the lure. Then it starts moving. He thinks a stick... nope. Nice big musky. He couldn't pick up line quickly enough and the fish shook the bait. Darn! Did the fish hit it after he pulled it off the snag? I've seen that before. Or was he never snagged? Did it take it right off the bottom? He had a line twist on his guide that took a few seconds to fix and then got stuck on the bottom. Who knows. <br />
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Notice the tag? This fish was first tagged in December 2014 and was 34.5" male. He didn't grow much and has basically maxed out his size for a male fish. The females can get considerably larger. Phoned DNR today and had a decent chat and email exchanges. </div>
<br />
<br />
Later we do another drift on the apposite side. Nothing in the best looking spot. Tough to keep the boat still. I fished the glider most of the time. We set up on a second drift over the same spot, this time with different baits to give a different presentation. I fished a 3/4oz skirted jig with a 6 inch swim shad and bounced it on the bottom near some timber off a steep bank. Second bounce and thump. No mistaking this for a fish. It hit just like a striped bass sucking in a 10" BKD. Solid hook set and awesome fight. This was a good size fish and pretty much maxed out the net. But John did an excellent job and we got the fish. Number two, almost number three. Not bad for three hours! Even made the run a couple miles downstream to a productive spot in the past and blanked. Didn't leave for this spot till 5pm. Talk about being able to bounce around. A jet opens up so many possibilities it isn't even funny. Full speed over ledges we used to cringe going over. Gotta love it. Finished the evening saying hi to kids, sharing a few adult beverages, drooling over AR15's, 16's 22's, and about a dozen other guns. Perfect evening. When I got home I sat and finished a beer on my own and recapped the day over and over again while looking at the pictures. Then today I just had to write about it. Who cares if it's January. Temps are in the 40's, water temps are high 30's or low 40's and the fish are on the feed. Guess how many other people were out? Zero. Thanks everyone. <br />
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-76601209596045372862016-12-20T10:57:00.001-08:002016-12-25T10:26:50.663-08:002016 was a decent year for trophy fish<br />
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<span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "tahoma" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">2016 kind
of sucked emotionally, financially and personally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lost my last Grandparent, 95 years young and
a heck of a strong woman, lost my dog, best friend and best fishing buddy of 14
years, lost my wife, my house and a lot of money.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With being separated from my wife (but not my
son), I've fished about as much in the last year as ever before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it wasn’t for fishing and hunting and the love
for my son, I’d be in an institution, a bottle or dead or all three by now.
Here's how it went down in pics. Stories still to be told;<br />
<br />
Last winter was a brutal one, but 4x4 and some determination got things done; <br />
<br />
January-Feb 2016 is peak musky time on a few major tribs to the
Chesapeake. Got stuck bad at the boat ramp shortly after snow megeddon
but it was after we landed two nice fish, including my friends first which was
a giant so the two hour wait at the boat ramp for the tow truck was no big
deal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kind of thought this might happen
so made sure I had cell service and a known tow truck business in the back of
my mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It worked, just took a
while.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Made it home about the time I
would have been home if it were a summer evening fishing trip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "tahoma" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Later in
February we did almost the exact same thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It snowed again, we drove down the hill to the boat ramp, we fished, and
got into multiple fish in 32 degree water, literally casting under ice bergs
and I broke off a fish that dwarfed the one above my friend is holding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fish even went air born…. In 32 degree
water?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think they like the winter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Turns out I had a small knick on one of my
guides.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A quick visit or two to Back
Yard Custom rods got me back in business.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Plus a dozen other rods that have been collecting dust over the years
were brought back to life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cool business
and even nicer guy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That fish still
haunts me though. I had no idea the knick in the guide was there and I just
respooled with 80 pound power pro.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh,
we made it up the hill no problem during the snow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Getting chains and a winch for this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not scared.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "tahoma" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> The trout will bite okay in dead of winter too, especially on spring creeks that have a constant or close to constant temperature. Stuck a few decent browns on Fishing Creek near Lamar Pa on a day trip. </o:p></span><br />
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<span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "tahoma" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">As soon as
it gets warm and March is on the Calendar you have to try and hit the perch
run.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a nice weekend day, made the
1.5 hour drive to the eastern shore to a spot that has produced and managed to
fish with some old friends and legends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>All the light tackle “force” gurus were in attendance, Phil, Shawn,
Rich, … to name a few and it was a day of perch catching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Football size perch, the biggest I’ve ever
seen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kept just under a limit for my son
and I but could have and did catch well over a limit and gave them a hot oil
bath.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh… each fillet had worms in the
meat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ate them anyway, cut most of them
out, ate the rest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I Will not waste a
good fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had a blast with ultra
light rods, bobbers or just jigs, rigged in tandem or alone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even got into some pickerel with little
effort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Awesome stream, great Maryland
tradition that I plan on keeping. Free dietary supplements too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "tahoma" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Early March
brought some insanely nice weather and kicked every fishery into high
gear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The walleye bite downtown turned
on strong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was hitting it before work
most days well inside the gorge with a mile plus hike in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even met a few other die hards that were a
lot better at the technique than I was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>With these kind of temps would the shad show up early?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I tried the tidal waters early in March for shad but no luck, even with 50 degree water. The largemouth were on the prowl though. Spinner baits, cranks, jigs, all seemed to work well. </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjvCOQjLTcWiwZlsjRcQ-fwqz35DXeTitD5FcidKga0jqqeSrgGaZtoAR21bkepBIWF6iz9NEz60vB5IdIoihJWndhIwtBKk214aCVqAGBIKPK4QUb_ZDJCessmrLh_YdvqaArmundv18/s1600/march+bass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjvCOQjLTcWiwZlsjRcQ-fwqz35DXeTitD5FcidKga0jqqeSrgGaZtoAR21bkepBIWF6iz9NEz60vB5IdIoihJWndhIwtBKk214aCVqAGBIKPK4QUb_ZDJCessmrLh_YdvqaArmundv18/s320/march+bass.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "tahoma" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">The
bluegill bite in the ponds was fantastic in early March.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bluegill, aka, the gateway drug. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFDRIMh92iiF6lSm1Gf_3Mz5Q1FtAct-MhOfiCp4yDOcW1ul4czHpmITLLtBZPxzbcasXsCVpDts29F1kulSte2DKfo6MwzPVNL4ahSADSe34RM0zI_ouFVO_blrqx_LEirqrlfT5Dx0k/s1600/pic+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFDRIMh92iiF6lSm1Gf_3Mz5Q1FtAct-MhOfiCp4yDOcW1ul4czHpmITLLtBZPxzbcasXsCVpDts29F1kulSte2DKfo6MwzPVNL4ahSADSe34RM0zI_ouFVO_blrqx_LEirqrlfT5Dx0k/s320/pic+7.jpg" width="179" /></a></div>
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</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">No the shad didn’t show up in early March with the magic 50 degree
number.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The shad showed up on queue like
they always do, March 25<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup>, high tide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was also “Rocking” that day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even White shad joined the party.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On march 25<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup>?!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And not just on the Potomac.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The susky had a decent showing of white shad
in March!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t believe me?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See the pic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For the last week of March and first week of April offered some of the best
of the best . Just in time for Ryans spring break.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catfish to 60 pounds, stripers to 40, and a
few well bigger on my own…. It blew up everywhere from the susky, to the
plants, to the open catch and release areas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was clock work awesome fishing and we didn’t get rained out
once.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I say it every year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even if I lived in the keys or Timbucktu or
Kamchatka, I’d still come back to Maryland for April.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqwQeFepPKIYVQ_mH1dXtFyfxsko0JuJNYE86hw9x-a1k41hKUifhZyDdGo3qts37uf3oJRT6meK0CWfgTCVn2JfMKP4M6T1LH6OgvU4jQ4GAK_mpVU0hqPLfV31iLORtBeGKBJN7QleA/s1600/pic+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqwQeFepPKIYVQ_mH1dXtFyfxsko0JuJNYE86hw9x-a1k41hKUifhZyDdGo3qts37uf3oJRT6meK0CWfgTCVn2JfMKP4M6T1LH6OgvU4jQ4GAK_mpVU0hqPLfV31iLORtBeGKBJN7QleA/s320/pic+8.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Ryan stuck the first shad on March 25<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was so proud of him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But still tough to keep him interested.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He got spoiled quick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it wasn’t a fish every cast, he got
discouraged.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was that good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh, and he also got the first of these
giants?! </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6LM5VZsUqJwUOJPsot5ChqmKHdMuu2LjrdhfgxqHUoS5bu5-JsrGYYZ1l4rwRyEUKWoeYijLbjgxMsIRlE06oT-HNr5JdyqHIbvJgaUmtzTn2cHnl8UmEh4MMxJmRCzU_MWn4uSHUO_w/s1600/pic+9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6LM5VZsUqJwUOJPsot5ChqmKHdMuu2LjrdhfgxqHUoS5bu5-JsrGYYZ1l4rwRyEUKWoeYijLbjgxMsIRlE06oT-HNr5JdyqHIbvJgaUmtzTn2cHnl8UmEh4MMxJmRCzU_MWn4uSHUO_w/s320/pic+9.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpVsjSk7tosvp1gVJEmcWREcmaJ0_qsw2Ude4HTVwCzPcbqmKMmXCCwbfF-e1Hl5dq9jIEEhv4BVSPyJp9sKa_gx2RAatEo0W0Zaf6PTNYl3ESDWq8-b6E9zBo8qb0Mh6zqS3tSNMs3LU/s1600/pic+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpVsjSk7tosvp1gVJEmcWREcmaJ0_qsw2Ude4HTVwCzPcbqmKMmXCCwbfF-e1Hl5dq9jIEEhv4BVSPyJp9sKa_gx2RAatEo0W0Zaf6PTNYl3ESDWq8-b6E9zBo8qb0Mh6zqS3tSNMs3LU/s320/pic+10.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="color: #1d2129; mso-no-proof: yes;"><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape
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</v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]--></span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Two at a time fly rod style on March 26<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the getting is good, you leave work and school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Period.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Spring break time</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">White shad slammin in March! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqkT-y-Y3Y-fJmZ0_UEgRnbz_rTKqQiIJTUNadxPzX7ugQvWVlXVK2nIyhS7gbTknZA1RevNJoqJMXigrOCeoxQkMpcTHQoVyXP02gfezggURwu5WR5bb4LmLIaZeA4oRZ5-RESTKr1rM/s1600/pic+12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqkT-y-Y3Y-fJmZ0_UEgRnbz_rTKqQiIJTUNadxPzX7ugQvWVlXVK2nIyhS7gbTknZA1RevNJoqJMXigrOCeoxQkMpcTHQoVyXP02gfezggURwu5WR5bb4LmLIaZeA4oRZ5-RESTKr1rM/s320/pic+12.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">How about some catfish? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">60 plus and Ryan did all the work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Except when it got near shore.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then I did all the work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Got stuck in the mud, slipped on the
rocks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cut my leg pretty bad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But who cares, kids loved it and this thing
was a giant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Spring break continued, more of these.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Had a school near a mile long for three
days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jigs, cranks, bait, it didn’t
matter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltoIgGyRYqWmr21inpiRQCLKxU-N-ZqWCMVE1Rxwk_w-uk0eynwgF3Hk6A54f3lcDD4UdXzJRUnUvu3cfVGpseqcif2-hbjCz2g1N28DqyOHX3lDaZzz3CyIrC2o79jKM-02h9yYFEK8/s1600/pic+14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltoIgGyRYqWmr21inpiRQCLKxU-N-ZqWCMVE1Rxwk_w-uk0eynwgF3Hk6A54f3lcDD4UdXzJRUnUvu3cfVGpseqcif2-hbjCz2g1N28DqyOHX3lDaZzz3CyIrC2o79jKM-02h9yYFEK8/s320/pic+14.jpg" width="289" /></a></div>
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id="Picture_x0020_14" o:spid="_x0000_i1059" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="Image may contain: 1 person, water and outdoor"
style='width:468pt;height:517.5pt;visibility:visible;mso-wrap-style:square'>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">More of the same….. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I got out on my own a night or two on some other areas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Never seen the flats banging with big fish
like this in March!?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I told you how
many I got over 40 you wouldn’t believe me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was on for about a week, actually a little less depending upon where
you went.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguZQjMXUI_abcFzAiVIgfEj39vIp-UX_0v6aFjug21EujDWGAInPXgjBRiJivkJS6d5duCPObV3qJchUqSaT_Aii5X-KtDi8OWVE_g_qoJqCZgb0k_NGydu0FIfF6mpvlgZzUXqh7soTU/s1600/pic+15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguZQjMXUI_abcFzAiVIgfEj39vIp-UX_0v6aFjug21EujDWGAInPXgjBRiJivkJS6d5duCPObV3qJchUqSaT_Aii5X-KtDi8OWVE_g_qoJqCZgb0k_NGydu0FIfF6mpvlgZzUXqh7soTU/s320/pic+15.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #1d2129; mso-no-proof: yes;"><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape
id="Picture_x0020_15" o:spid="_x0000_i1058" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="Image may contain: 1 person, night"
style='width:468pt;height:351pt;visibility:visible;mso-wrap-style:square'>
<v:imagedata src="file:///C:/Users/griffj01/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image027.jpg"
o:title=" 1 person, night"/>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Didn’t have a camera man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Had to release fish quickly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Fresh spool of 150 yards of 80 pound braid, bran new reel…. A few wraps
of line left on the spool I finally turned her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They don’t get much bigger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>36”
girth and well…. long too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Then we had a little slow down during second week of
April.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not sure why.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Smaller stripers mostly and more blue catfish
than you could possibly imagine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jig and
crank bait eating fools they be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Countless fish to 30 pounds on artificial.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was begging for reprieve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hands cut to shreds, tackle getting low.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Time for some trout fishing, some fineness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>6x tippet please, had to get away from the
tackle testing giant turd rolling invasive catfish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Had schools of catfish crashing on herring
like ocean migrant stripers off cape henry just a short while ago?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5nnDUGBW-Q6VM0GRRFR59PHubiYwjYGCjeykWiNKSFwPS6SHUGGfnCcPijYFmT8rKofkaiKp5psQ3-M32wlWM5EAlQiKWIEmKJjjpX8YPkisY45uwHJAvgIwtwGE5TaptH-85eq9_P2s/s1600/pic+16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5nnDUGBW-Q6VM0GRRFR59PHubiYwjYGCjeykWiNKSFwPS6SHUGGfnCcPijYFmT8rKofkaiKp5psQ3-M32wlWM5EAlQiKWIEmKJjjpX8YPkisY45uwHJAvgIwtwGE5TaptH-85eq9_P2s/s320/pic+16.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVqRE3Qc7t74kk_MayDDg-fOQFG7gKLlUcMu3NQ49IKuREVBjfraMtRHwTLN3Amu70qjM2L93fMR2HM96Ap5AtP1AdBt7Aga-uVYwIW9v99HbSzhlf1vMCKeHPdPUPpPh4Yfc0mQXaH1A/s1600/pic+17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVqRE3Qc7t74kk_MayDDg-fOQFG7gKLlUcMu3NQ49IKuREVBjfraMtRHwTLN3Amu70qjM2L93fMR2HM96Ap5AtP1AdBt7Aga-uVYwIW9v99HbSzhlf1vMCKeHPdPUPpPh4Yfc0mQXaH1A/s320/pic+17.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #1d2129; mso-no-proof: yes;"><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape
id="Picture_x0020_16" o:spid="_x0000_i1057" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="Image may contain: outdoor"
style='width:468pt;height:351pt;visibility:visible;mso-wrap-style:square'>
<v:imagedata src="file:///C:/Users/griffj01/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image029.jpg"
o:title=" outdoor"/>
</v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]--></span><o:p></o:p><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Trout fished some, nothing special.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Missed the best hatches already.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Back to the flats for the last 10 days of
april.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another date in the spring run
that you could set your clock to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hit
them on the way in, hit them on the way out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Stella, insane, top water glory days of the early 2000’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s a small sampling and a 50 on a top
water plug!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhffiaRdS7-vmWh1r06rzmy6ldJvN5op2unQqCYkq57zlw0OteMm3oh7WPnainKjJKmjK6jhjsFQFziQkw8R4WL3-G-lbO95zNGORjw5tHezOW7pVjdLRzM_gsk0ij4q80pSe505B2im0s/s1600/pic+18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhffiaRdS7-vmWh1r06rzmy6ldJvN5op2unQqCYkq57zlw0OteMm3oh7WPnainKjJKmjK6jhjsFQFziQkw8R4WL3-G-lbO95zNGORjw5tHezOW7pVjdLRzM_gsk0ij4q80pSe505B2im0s/s320/pic+18.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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id="Picture_x0020_18" o:spid="_x0000_i1055" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="Image may contain: sky, outdoor and water"
style='width:468pt;height:624pt;visibility:visible;mso-wrap-style:square'>
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o:title=" sky, outdoor and water"/>
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO_1zGO0SqQaNnk0S8SEBJSh2aHdkPkyuT_aqSbaOfn8rmZmGd-GGQ6kNvm2qKQS7Hrgvnl5ZM3x9Ck1xeeUykRLcEA4l0wuiyHPBYm8WSLMvQOuzrHcgsEvIM7XAUWHOyM9frvTFkYWU/s1600/pic+19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO_1zGO0SqQaNnk0S8SEBJSh2aHdkPkyuT_aqSbaOfn8rmZmGd-GGQ6kNvm2qKQS7Hrgvnl5ZM3x9Ck1xeeUykRLcEA4l0wuiyHPBYm8WSLMvQOuzrHcgsEvIM7XAUWHOyM9frvTFkYWU/s320/pic+19.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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id="Picture_x0020_19" o:spid="_x0000_i1054" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="Image may contain: 1 person, cloud, sky and outdoor"
style='width:468pt;height:351pt;visibility:visible;mso-wrap-style:square'>
<v:imagedata src="file:///C:/Users/griffj01/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image035.jpg"
o:title=" 1 person, cloud, sky and outdoor"/>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYYA3q83HSdf7hA73Wl6-XGpwlFg8rXVNBNcDZdYgwk9ujkoUVauQnWH4i30WLxuX_7dhg8HGOhOV55s_NUItOcEr1lpHKH55H2gPpd5l8iP56nC0YLGmIC4a7x1O_lWuNEGg9q0AuRJM/s1600/pic+20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYYA3q83HSdf7hA73Wl6-XGpwlFg8rXVNBNcDZdYgwk9ujkoUVauQnWH4i30WLxuX_7dhg8HGOhOV55s_NUItOcEr1lpHKH55H2gPpd5l8iP56nC0YLGmIC4a7x1O_lWuNEGg9q0AuRJM/s320/pic+20.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #1d2129; mso-no-proof: yes;"><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape
id="Picture_x0020_20" o:spid="_x0000_i1053" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="Image may contain: sky and outdoor"
style='width:468pt;height:624pt;visibility:visible;mso-wrap-style:square'>
<v:imagedata src="file:///C:/Users/griffj01/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image037.jpg"
o:title=" sky and outdoor"/>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">May…. Time for the surf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sure why not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like the
ocean.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of the big fish are gone
except those playing in the MSSA tournament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Don’t like to troll, would rather pull a 5 gallon jug around a bathtub
on a brook stick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ran down to hit the
last of the run leaving the bay and hitting the flats around the barrier
islands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh, there’s also giant bull
reds there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wind was a major factor
though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there were fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Saw a popular sight casting guide come and
check on me from time to time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>25mph
winds and I’m in a 16’ boat, 30 HP yami, 6 gallons of gas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m in protected waters, inside the barrier
islands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or beach bound.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Need to watch the tide though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3v0gZ5QCiEPHb7hrTMFmHQs1P4BSNFgH0Pjz1omvTzDXDBvMg4fI2CGK-zioUQURLLzPeqmfoAlaZ_8MjxGQdPi3qze0gwPnUI4BdHSOXuHFR_06aHIbO4t4SHcgQ1rlcIm4DV1Qo040/s1600/pic+21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3v0gZ5QCiEPHb7hrTMFmHQs1P4BSNFgH0Pjz1omvTzDXDBvMg4fI2CGK-zioUQURLLzPeqmfoAlaZ_8MjxGQdPi3qze0gwPnUI4BdHSOXuHFR_06aHIbO4t4SHcgQ1rlcIm4DV1Qo040/s320/pic+21.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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id="Picture_x0020_21" o:spid="_x0000_i1052" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="Image may contain: boat, beach, ocean, outdoor and water"
style='width:468pt;height:263.25pt;visibility:visible;mso-wrap-style:square'>
<v:imagedata src="file:///C:/Users/griffj01/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image039.jpg"
o:title=" boat, beach, ocean, outdoor and water"/>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJzyCB6L9RnrJg-D4sHhkK_HjHWCuawf93J4RIBFcN_8sYvVZGzdHaLTQWTRA3tZH_mMRAoihm17Q6cAPWWkDQtQcSdgfxHM9LtMHfpbtfuBo6CjUxEA0Cd90uFovUyFh6yXn2ZFB4_0M/s1600/pic+22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJzyCB6L9RnrJg-D4sHhkK_HjHWCuawf93J4RIBFcN_8sYvVZGzdHaLTQWTRA3tZH_mMRAoihm17Q6cAPWWkDQtQcSdgfxHM9LtMHfpbtfuBo6CjUxEA0Cd90uFovUyFh6yXn2ZFB4_0M/s320/pic+22.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsTzPioKg6X6TSb2j7e-YnKrptnkjKfNRaNnyDvpSKFtmWDfWWuC12vAfXgSyXb38SglV7s1HG9FlRiCyNEJsNJaXBWtB09ho3tCl3mgvgm_GxcClzWHZmY0MEtdCy9rGeeZ_g1rMz3G8/s1600/pic+24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsTzPioKg6X6TSb2j7e-YnKrptnkjKfNRaNnyDvpSKFtmWDfWWuC12vAfXgSyXb38SglV7s1HG9FlRiCyNEJsNJaXBWtB09ho3tCl3mgvgm_GxcClzWHZmY0MEtdCy9rGeeZ_g1rMz3G8/s320/pic+24.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #1d2129; mso-no-proof: yes;"><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape
id="Picture_x0020_24" o:spid="_x0000_i1050" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="Image may contain: sky, cloud, twilight, outdoor and water"
style='width:468pt;height:351pt;visibility:visible;mso-wrap-style:square'>
<v:imagedata src="file:///C:/Users/griffj01/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image043.jpg"
o:title=" sky, cloud, twilight, outdoor and water"/>
</v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]--></span><o:p></o:p><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">This is a “small” red.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some bigger ones made it boat side.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Too difficult in that current to get a decent pic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think I saw 4 other fishermen the whole
time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Burned 4 gallons of gas, got a few
big stripers and reds, countless skates, all in 24 hours. Slept in truck and
made it to my sons basketball game the next day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjutHARc83vgeczRiZwbJ3CtZ0VFPDeY4W4rIRSmix7I7j5aJ337nUsgmEHAFKyw28i5qN5XbtZPv55zrWQcNKOzPMTqTzm_GWfywagWPWn7loHSLlBAgOSK4Jxa6r6CJQ-aFwpSgSIs-I/s1600/pic+23.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjutHARc83vgeczRiZwbJ3CtZ0VFPDeY4W4rIRSmix7I7j5aJ337nUsgmEHAFKyw28i5qN5XbtZPv55zrWQcNKOzPMTqTzm_GWfywagWPWn7loHSLlBAgOSK4Jxa6r6CJQ-aFwpSgSIs-I/s320/pic+23.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">June<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Well, back to musky now that the spawn is over.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stuck my first on a fly rod, 9wt, 80 pound
shock leader, 9” articulated streamer, first cast in this one spot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fish released well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8pmj3SKDoklj4VJGHk6pcb_6VSvh_IsloY4r5ONxpsuhDXooO4RxaQJi490UQ_C8YeQYptxkZRi9Inm3t8gM-tk_MynvllbCXFQzzvr3wyPxweHuk6w0WoQQvrYldDnO7_lke7ndkKd8/s1600/pic+25.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8pmj3SKDoklj4VJGHk6pcb_6VSvh_IsloY4r5ONxpsuhDXooO4RxaQJi490UQ_C8YeQYptxkZRi9Inm3t8gM-tk_MynvllbCXFQzzvr3wyPxweHuk6w0WoQQvrYldDnO7_lke7ndkKd8/s320/pic+25.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Stuck a few more little musky in June but it got too warm
too quick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t want to target them
with water temps over 80 degrees, it could be lethal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are all natural fish so this is all we
have. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Then Goshen summer camp with my son for his first long
camping trip as a cub scout.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaWWtnxaCpVV7vssL-3R8AxpUCC0ks_FhLtyYG3HxYeGRW5glLiUgme1bS0tGe6cf2Q3nBQDzk5mzobxmTlxkp604pROeaVDoptwBavGzNsJg31JQw3fZhW6GULATwMzit4xJ05u8BNnQ/s1600/pic+26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaWWtnxaCpVV7vssL-3R8AxpUCC0ks_FhLtyYG3HxYeGRW5glLiUgme1bS0tGe6cf2Q3nBQDzk5mzobxmTlxkp604pROeaVDoptwBavGzNsJg31JQw3fZhW6GULATwMzit4xJ05u8BNnQ/s320/pic+26.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Yes of course we did some fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That lake is LOADED with giant carp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I mean loaded.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Corn, corn and more corn is needed next year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lost a rod because we weren’t paying
attention and the boys were goofing off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But did some awesome hiking, swimming and sight seeing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Beautiful place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Decent smallmouth water too near by.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP-_oHTOvDUD22gsEwmWHOF9MuSLioq7mXxNbMyY0BJZNeG3Zi-ezhmyi_SLhtyc3XGnbgttkS7YwpRn_z3IgpON5BsRS_MNaNpM6rKRf8kdGg-DIypnbDAUmLH4wt7rR7GUby5MvTW8U/s1600/pic+27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP-_oHTOvDUD22gsEwmWHOF9MuSLioq7mXxNbMyY0BJZNeG3Zi-ezhmyi_SLhtyc3XGnbgttkS7YwpRn_z3IgpON5BsRS_MNaNpM6rKRf8kdGg-DIypnbDAUmLH4wt7rR7GUby5MvTW8U/s320/pic+27.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaoyZA_PpcXfyOzZ355ST7y-iiHlNUX_dz6NhRlVLAdYhOrdc3ElO9CzFy7KtDOE9BExxHknTCKbruKCqGkKuXL431fMZiGXqS77AZ3D4xJX0av2fbWHYk_eRgkr6UmnWUqsDrr23W4BE/s1600/pic+28.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaoyZA_PpcXfyOzZ355ST7y-iiHlNUX_dz6NhRlVLAdYhOrdc3ElO9CzFy7KtDOE9BExxHknTCKbruKCqGkKuXL431fMZiGXqS77AZ3D4xJX0av2fbWHYk_eRgkr6UmnWUqsDrr23W4BE/s320/pic+28.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Left Goshen and drove straight to Canada for a few
days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was early July now and the bass
would be just coming off the spawn on Lake Ontario.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Incredible smallmouth fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yea yea Lake Erie is where it’s at
right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, I assure you there’s nothing
wrong with Lake Ontario either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Giant
smallies near shore, easy to get to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Later in the summer, not so much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbBPRY2MVmVL1y4WUXS3DS_RaMo9Ad1mkJ7CoL5loN3INqv9ItVSne8hSpzvgaRnUyXzrQ0Kn0qzrlgHBrCRwX1-RfQOgB1n1_c26Zdl3XM8bvA-L3NwqZSmtXo-KI3Wyb9KgIZNaPNck/s1600/pic+29.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbBPRY2MVmVL1y4WUXS3DS_RaMo9Ad1mkJ7CoL5loN3INqv9ItVSne8hSpzvgaRnUyXzrQ0Kn0qzrlgHBrCRwX1-RfQOgB1n1_c26Zdl3XM8bvA-L3NwqZSmtXo-KI3Wyb9KgIZNaPNck/s320/pic+29.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Literally the first two casts off the dock.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">A few days later…… <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikcLmh3MlN-w2W6YbMOQAWrktE8oGXEPHKR9988saKnOwtcNaQRrrVE2BC4Nv2tvid9gcMWkdg4Pl8YoyPL3isgIqKqefzTdVGExch9sGOB-JiRp9mH8wUX7GdeiiIqgg8cukLoO8gfVU/s1600/pic+30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikcLmh3MlN-w2W6YbMOQAWrktE8oGXEPHKR9988saKnOwtcNaQRrrVE2BC4Nv2tvid9gcMWkdg4Pl8YoyPL3isgIqKqefzTdVGExch9sGOB-JiRp9mH8wUX7GdeiiIqgg8cukLoO8gfVU/s320/pic+30.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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id="Picture_x0020_30" o:spid="_x0000_i1043" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="Image may contain: 1 person, tree, grass, house, plant, outdoor and nature"
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">A 22” behemoth smallmouth. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t think I’ve ever seen one this
big.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can imagine the girth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My son is 4’11 at 9 years old at the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He never lets me real in my fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6QCznsjmDC9en6B6p9IPqgGIM8CXqNseRXQakD6ybo5BzZcOpaqFnYGfQhhsjUL2cyuxBqpneezgMTImqTbfO6BSjemv2RMdV9db8LjU2QuYZXWGp_zUSJK7A_lKUqt14mavwevmpuz0/s1600/pic+31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6QCznsjmDC9en6B6p9IPqgGIM8CXqNseRXQakD6ybo5BzZcOpaqFnYGfQhhsjUL2cyuxBqpneezgMTImqTbfO6BSjemv2RMdV9db8LjU2QuYZXWGp_zUSJK7A_lKUqt14mavwevmpuz0/s320/pic+31.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Action shot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Got
lucky.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s lake Ontario, while wading
with the boat on the trailer behind the camera man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s
Amerherst Island in the back ground, near the mouth of the famous Bay of
Quinte.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">July was back to dink stripers on the bay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Joined the fleet near the Magothy with our
tiny tin boats and didn’t do very well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But put some kids on fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj9qiDg5_sYDixWOInHIwF6kUMkWlA_N8tGF0FIczpi6AOtHMUhrX5A9dLhF7ssOF9gLXXdtn1q4ZQmptzL6SQ5c3xpLFLbfdFLtCI9ZqomNPNFVq7bDXZWKdSzvUNVBax4FilWXpU-5Q/s1600/pic+32.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj9qiDg5_sYDixWOInHIwF6kUMkWlA_N8tGF0FIczpi6AOtHMUhrX5A9dLhF7ssOF9gLXXdtn1q4ZQmptzL6SQ5c3xpLFLbfdFLtCI9ZqomNPNFVq7bDXZWKdSzvUNVBax4FilWXpU-5Q/s320/pic+32.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Tried some crabbing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Hottest day of the year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First
time with a trot line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>DISASTER.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Got three crabs in 6 hours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Went and supported the local water men.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdOZqLjWJV-xku88EqKSz0yuLMsnHJlDaqLzE1IFauQJagEJC97zdBATWHCmYZManxQUWKFqh_JdljnSWmBvp0Sm14kS0_pH5mT4q-Ugcvnlg3r6LC0qG2U4Qxmv5YglfJ8WkD-0NxVDg/s1600/pic+33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdOZqLjWJV-xku88EqKSz0yuLMsnHJlDaqLzE1IFauQJagEJC97zdBATWHCmYZManxQUWKFqh_JdljnSWmBvp0Sm14kS0_pH5mT4q-Ugcvnlg3r6LC0qG2U4Qxmv5YglfJ8WkD-0NxVDg/s320/pic+33.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Got injured while fishing… twice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First was an ingrown toe nail while wading.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Took a month to heal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then I’ve had this on going pain in my wrist
from jigging for years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Turns out carpal
tunnel and a torn tendon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>F surgery.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Will deal with it later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cortisone shot and I’m 80%.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Slowed me down… kind of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> In the dead heat of the summer there's a myth about the silver king making an appearance at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. It's more than a myth. More than a few people I know have jumped and even landed them. The temperature has to be unbearable, the flies are so bad they can bite through clothing, even denim... and the place is infested with sharks. Scary infested. There's miles upon miles of salt marsh islands with a labyrinth of mazes and cut channels snaking their way through the islands. Over some trial and error, you can explore and often times get lucky with a tarpon or two encounter. I did it several times just before my son was born. But then gave it up for 10 years. This trip I was hindered by the wind which makes the back bays muddy or at the very least significantly impacts visibility. This area can and often does look like the everglades or the keys at times with the right conditions. About as beautiful and untouched as you can get and it's only 3 hours from DC?! I managed a few sea trout, aka weakfish some shark and even hooked up with a decent cobia but pulled the hook. No tarpon for me again. One of these years...... </span></o:p><br />
<o:p><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></o:p><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4I2mDbb6URpSur4pSHKWqBPaIJ8qBK7JfqWPXfo-LEIamwKXqnJZOP8rycb0fM6RQqRnZDyRz3vT35qXag9hoW3oN-GiC9otVTXvh-vUuArEv3QzXzazKf-wp481lHvq29OHvicBwz1E/s1600/tarpon+hunting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4I2mDbb6URpSur4pSHKWqBPaIJ8qBK7JfqWPXfo-LEIamwKXqnJZOP8rycb0fM6RQqRnZDyRz3vT35qXag9hoW3oN-GiC9otVTXvh-vUuArEv3QzXzazKf-wp481lHvq29OHvicBwz1E/s320/tarpon+hunting.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I'm miles inside one of these maze channels. At low tide the mud flats get exposed and there are oysters for as far as the eye can see. </div>
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Here's a little guy. About the only thing that can feed well when the water gets turbid. There are much, much larger buddies lurking everywhere back here. They provide plenty of sport and fight if the tarpon don't show. </div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Back to Canada in August in search of the world record
musky.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fished the st lawerence and the famous
Ottawa river.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Word to the wise, get a
guide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve done this on my own for ten
years and only just finally broke my Canadian musky cherry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve caught way bigger back home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Had other encounters, lost fish, close calls
like always. Probably what keeps me coming back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kids had fun messing with perch at the dock. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">September is a busy time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Ryan’s first true love is football.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Multiple practices and games every week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s
starting QB and can out throw most adults I know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He has a rather impressive arm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Look out for
him because if he doesn’t make it a fishing pro, that’s because he’s gone on
with football.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">But we got out some in September, just after a different
kind of quarry. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0bmF-Ol6KgentJWgspcJqpOsJaelgR9iB5CiBb0nCRARk3-QJDCKfrh83WMapQo_fr47IIPdHbxu-oWwwPI64pakEFxIYlfwmX-f96-zEeeToQ20zJwKcYFNqHOzszPpqUO-Unb62muA/s1600/pic+36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0bmF-Ol6KgentJWgspcJqpOsJaelgR9iB5CiBb0nCRARk3-QJDCKfrh83WMapQo_fr47IIPdHbxu-oWwwPI64pakEFxIYlfwmX-f96-zEeeToQ20zJwKcYFNqHOzszPpqUO-Unb62muA/s320/pic+36.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">A friend of mine and I decided to take my 16’ lund down to
CBBT one weekend in September/early October for the red drum run.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>None of this bait and wait or trolling jazz. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wanted to jig em up and they were there like
clock work on the pilings on the shoals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Landing them… well, that wasn’t easy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Same drill as we used to do in the fall winter, 1.5oz heads, 10 inch BKD
or similar, smelly jelly, 30 pound leader, 30 pound braid and when you hook up,
you will need 30 pounds of drag too to keep them out of the pilings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Haven’t figured that part out too well yet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sleigh rides are fun. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Early October went pond hopping with perfect spring like
conditions for GIANT bass putting on the fall feed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Got some kids their first and likely their
biggest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">We caught 4 fish like this in less than an hour!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Skinny fish for some reason.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But they sure were hungry. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Sometimes you just need to go trout fishing for a fish that's as large as some of the lures I throw. There's just something right about it. Something pure. The pursuit is everything. Very self gratifying. Picture yourself on a narrow spring creek with gin clear low October water levels. Stealth is key and crawling and knee walking as if you are putting a stalk on a mature buck. Watching a 10" stream born brown come up from the depths to inspect your fly, behaving as if he is reading the manufacture's autograph and flipping the fin to you as he turns away like someone flipping you the bird, is an experience that never gets old. Connecting, albeit only small, or even not connecting with a fish, still makes it worth it. The simplicity of it or the technicality of it is so enticing and luring, that it keeps you coming back for more. </div>
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Here's an early October brown from a local spring creek. This day I fished a couple hours and managed to put 5 fish in the next from 6 to 12 inches including an encounter with something in the 20 inch category. Can't beat that for an autumn afternoon after work adventure. </div>
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<o:p>There are so many choices in October it's not even funny. Duck hunting, deer hunting, steelhead, salmon, smallmouth, musky... but striped bass top water fishing in the shallows is always a necessity in early October.... October is also known as "Rocktober." I took off an hour early from work one afternoon and towed the skiff to Kent Island. There are several perfect points, rips and ideal shoreline structure within a few hundred yards of the bridge that hide some impressive striped bass this time of year. It's not uncommon to get into a dozen fish up to 12 or even 15 pounds on 7wt fly rods with surface flies in that last hour of light in October?! or spinning rods and a spook or surface popper. The surface explosion from a 20 inch three pound striped bass will always entertain. But when that 30 inch ten pound or 40 inch 25 pound fish comes calling, it's an eye opening experience to say the least. In deeper water rockfish will bull dog fight you and try and stay deep. But in the shallows, they have no where to go but up.... then out. So they often go air born. On this day however, the shallows weren't quite on yet. I thought I could just spend an hour in the open bay areas of Eastern Bay or the Chester and return to the points and rips at sun down. I'd look for birds and follow the channel contours looking for bait. As soon as I crossed the channel I saw surface activity. There's a large swirl, then another. The fish finder was blacked out at this point. The bait fish extended from the surface to the bottom and rockfish were crashing the party. However, the pods of predators were on the move. At first I was on them but lost them. It took 20 to 30 minutes to locate a decent size school again and when I did, it was on just about every cast for the next two hours with fish up 13 pounds and 33 inches. Top water got it done, swim shads, jigs and skinny plastics, fly rod, it didn't matter. Most of the fish were high in the water column or suspended and feeding on peanut bunker. The birds on the bait and fish were not the little "Liar" birds or terns. These were the larger gulls. When you see this pattern, it's almost always big fish on big bait. It would be tough to beat that kind of fishing action anywhere in the country at that moment. Absolutely incredible action for a solid two hours until the sun set below the horizon. The fish kept working shallower too all the way to 12 feet with a school several acres in size. It stayed that way for the next two weeks too but I wasn't able to get back over there for a variety of reasons. Truly epic fishing. Rocktober at its finest and only 1.2 hours from home. Kept my first limit of the year, a nice 33" and a 26" plump October rockfish, aka striped bass. </o:p><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">November had me all over the planet. November 1 I took the morning off from work to climb a tree. First time this year on this one site on my own. I'm rattling hard at first light to some chasing off in the distance. A few minutes later I glance over my shoulder and a nice 8 pt buck is making a scrape not but 30 yards behind me. He proceeds to walk right under me with every hair on his body standing up. I pierced his heart from 15 yards and had a 30 yard tracking job. Incredibly exiting and you just can't bottle that kind of adrenaline.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">My grandmother passed away in England a few days later. We knew she was not doing well but this isn't something you plan for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Off on a plane.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Saw some family and mostly had a good time at a sad time. I packed a suit, One or two changes of underwear, jeans, waders, boots, fly rod, fly boxes and a bunch of pike stuff. Pike are very prevalent there and they show up in the strangest of places. A 20 pound pike could be in a 4 foot wide spring creek covered with water cress and shallow 3 inch riffles. This is their home native water and they are the top predator. They are mostly seen as a nuisance species there, rarely fished for. People would rather "sport" fish with long rods, spider threat thin fishing line, floats rated to .0005 grams that can detect a fish breathing on the line. They even use electronic bite detectors. We mostly fished the river Itchen with my cousin's husband and son who's the same age as my son. This kid is a fishing machine too. All that I've done has rubbed off on him. We spent a few nights tying flies together and he's good, darn good. He's the British spitting image of my son except he plays Rugby instead of "American" </span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">football and his first love is fishing. This kid thoroughly enjoys it where as my son I kind of force it on him sometimes and that's a mistake. The river Itchen has been fished by people for thousands of years. The romans reconstructed channels here and were the first people to design flood control. The<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brown trout in the river are pure as they get
from their historic place of birth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Never been stocked and have more than a PHD in avoiding fishermen. But I tricked a few and even managed my first grayling ever, on a dry fly no
less.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But maggots under floats worked
well too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My cousin even got his first
Atlantic salmon!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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English proper carp fishing, notice the electronic bite detector on the line. </div>
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An atlantic salmon, spawned out, miles and miles from the ocean in a stream about as wide as a pick up truck. <br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The trip to England was short lived.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had work to get back to and fishing of
course.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Had my annual steelhead trip
booked with my best friend up in Michigan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It didn’t disappoint. Insanely huge steelhead on the hard to get to
spots. This kind of trip takes a great deal of planning and trial and
error.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When done right, you can
score.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A little luck helps too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We stumbled upon a pod of record size
steelhead on the last day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first day
we floated with a guide, a 20 year old who had a 20 year old canoe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We found him, he was dirt cheap, hadn’t made
it big yet, XXL Chrome Chasing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We crushed
the fish the first day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Skunked the
second.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And found gold, I mean silver on
the third on our own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Double digit fish
numbers and double digit heavy weights.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We fished the Pere Marquette (sucked) and the Manistee (dead) but found
a few out of the way no name rivers that paid dividends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My all time favorite fish is a steelhead,
then musky, then striped bass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can’t you
tell?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Happy holidays and happy new year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-82924988437949010842016-10-18T07:36:00.001-07:002016-10-18T07:47:06.283-07:00Planning in the time of plentyFall, fall is fabulous. I feel metro staying that word but it's amazing. Don't have time to write much right now but I'm in sportsman's heaven. The rut for deer is about to kick off. Lots of rubs and scrapes in the woods right now. Some chasing and road side collisions sky rocketing. As soon as this full moon subsides it will be game on for day time fights, chases, rubs and hopefully dirt naps. <br />
<br />
But there's also fishing. I'm trying to plan a weekend trip. Yes, this weekend, you know in three days. I'm torn all over the place. The salmon river is stupid loaded with king salmon. People too but there are plenty of fish to go around. We usually like to go this time of year or later in October because of early steelhead and less crowds. Most people are up river chasing and fighting over spawned out white flag salmon when there's usually good numbers of steelhead down low with very few fishermen. Well, this year very few steelhead have entered the river. Something is happening to these fish. Two years ago saw insane numbers and then this massive die off in early fall. They blamed it on this thiamine (vitamin B) deficiency from eating too much alewife (baitfish) that is affecting the fish. But that makes no sense because they are obviously healthy when the enter the river. It's happening in the river where these fish experienced a major die off two Fall's ago. last year saw poor numbers and it's looking the same this year. Okay before I research the topic too much, lets just talk fishing. <br />
<br />
There are tons of king salmon in the salmon river this year. Insane amounts and they keep coming in too so these are still fresh fish. Yes they bite rarely, usually are "lined" or "flossed" accidentally or purposely, even by the best equipped, best dressed orvis or Simms guides and models. But they are still fun. They fight like a freight train, backing sightings are regular and it's on like donkey kong. The river is dead low, but not too low. Still plenty of flow when compared to other rivers. It makes it easier for the snaggers to clear out the river but there are thousands of fish. Now is the time. A sick day tomorrow would be awesome. but for a king you ask? If only the river would fill like that with high flying steelhead?! It was almost like that two years ago. A run of steelhead similar to a salmon run in Mid October. It can happen but if it were going to happen we would have noticed more steelhead in with the salmon. The whole safety in numbers theory. Sure there were some but not many. 95% kings it seems over the last few days/weeks when typically steelhead make up a decent percentage. Yes, I'm only an internet expert fishermen and don't have first hand knowledge but if you knew how much time I spend looking and reading different reports from guides, residents and hardcore fishermen, you'd understand. <br />
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So, there's the salmon thing out of the way. <br />
Then there's Lake Erie steelhead. The Cattaraugus, arguably the "Crown jewel" of steelhead alley is at historic lows almost. 100cfs as I type this but that's still fishable that's for sure. Other erie tribs are piss trickles at best but guess what?!!! Rain is on the way. The streams will rise and "run silver" once again. The chrome is a coming. THe last few years Erie area has sucked later in the year. Most fish are fall runners. So now might be the time to rock it. Hit it right after a high water event in late October and it will blow your mind the number of steel that will run those normally piss trickle streams. The slate bottom streams will flash flood,l fill with water, blow out and look like milky coffee for the first 24 hours and then majically clear to that "big fish green" color and offer up some of the most fantastic steelhead/rainbow fishing found anywhere on the plannet for about 24 hours. Then it will be low and gin clear again. Back to the bathtub unnatural BS fishing the place is used to. But plan that 24 hour window and you''ll be studying Mayan calendars every day of your life from this point forward trying to repeat that day again. Steelhead bliss is ... well... awesome. Nothing like it. <br />
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Sure the surf fishing in Lake Erie an Michigan is pretty good right now for steelhead too. You need a Leeward wind coming from your back as you cast into the lake. Anything else there will be big waves and muddy water near shore. With a south wind, clear calm water and steelhead will be so thinck they will bump into your legs as often as the sea of leaves will. Pretty cool expirence and you can't get any fresher than hooking them in the lake. <br />
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Oh... then there's the Chesapeake Bay this weekend. It's off the hook, "RockTober" is here in full effect. I went yesterday afternoon and mangled them. Found fish in their typical fall pattern of near the mouth of a major river feeding on bait near the surface. most of the time the bait is small, like bay anchovies about one inch log. That's when the birds chasing the bait and the fish are tiny. But find those peanut punker who should be about 4 inches long now and you'll find the "regular grade" fish hunting them. I stumbled upon really good numbers of fish yesterday in a 3 hour trip north of Kent Narrows. I went down for the usual early fall asesome top water explosions I'm used to getting in the shallows this time of year. Many a big fish over 30" as summersaulted over a popper this time of year hiding on shoreline structure. But figured I had some time before sunset and looked in deeper water first before hunting the shallows at sunset. I found a few birds in 50 feet and some bait and sure enough a huge school of stripers. They eventually seemed to work shallower and shallower and the afternoon turned into evening and fish were everywhere over a 1/2 mile area feeding on bunker on the channel edge 26 foot contour. Every now and then they'd surface and the splashes like kids doing cannon balls off the diving board that would pave the way to quality surface and sub surface action of fish from 22" to 33". Awesome fishing. I needed that bad. I had a very slow summer on the bay this year. I Don't like chumming for dink summer fish (will do it for spring and winter giants though) and didn't connect on much on the few times I tried mid to upper bay this summer. but I sure made up for it yesterday. it's on in a big way. The weather shows no signs of changing this warm global warming craziness, water temps are perfect in mid to upper 60's and the fish are chowing down. Go gettem... <br />
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Just where will I end up this weekend? Probably in a tree then on a bleacher watching my son's football and hopefully connected to a fish on Sunday/Monday. Just what species....I couldn't tell you. Heck I could do musky close, or musky far? The st. Lawerence is known for producing world records in the fall and I could make it there even. Just got a new Transmission in the SUV, time to break her in. 400k miles here I come. Just got the pass from the boss, my actual boss. The woman boss and I are done for now. Too much fishing maybe, I made true trout bum status. Who knows but I can tell you I could write for days of all the fishing trips I've done this year. Insane. One of my best years yet. Spring was insane. Numerous giants on top water. Ryan scored multiple fish too. I fished more this past year while separated than I have since college days. Incredible year. more to come on that later.... <br />
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<br />Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-4794588562805566152015-07-20T21:47:00.001-07:002015-07-20T22:14:25.201-07:00Latley as in July 2015<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Lately as in July 2015<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">This summer has offered up some incredible fishing for my
neck of the woods.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m going to try and
keep this short but there’s so much to tell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The fishing in the upper bay has been red hot since early June.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course I didn’t get on the bite till about
mid June and stuck with it for over a month.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Mid bay, bay bridge area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First I
found them suspended over deep water like down 20 feet over 50 feet on the
channel edge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then I’d found them even shallower
on the ledge in 25 feet. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then I just
couldn’t go wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was incredible on
a few evenings in July with a good outgoing tide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I must say for some reason I always
seemed to hit it at the end of the outgoing and still struck pay dirt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The basic rig was to jig long skinny plastics
like 7 inch zoom super flukes on 3/4oz jig heads on light braided line like 14#
with a 25 pound tippet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With light line
like that the jig sinks about 2 feet per second or maybe more like 1.8 feet if
you wanted to get really technical.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d
basically mark fish suspended near bait fish schools, cast out and give it a
long 4 count and start jigging.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At 4
seconds my jig should be roughly 10 feet down but continues to sink as I
retrieve it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This way I didn’t go
through the fish or below the fish I was marking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like an erratic retrieve with a sharp, fast
jigging action, picking up slack every time after the jig.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hits almost always happen on the fall and you
have to be ready with a swift hook set.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The fly rod also got some play with sinking line that’s supposed to sink
8 inches per second, 9wt full sinker.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For suspended fish, when there are a lot of fish I might add, the fly
rod is not a bad tool for the job.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
nothing can compare to the efficiency a jig will get down to those fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you want numbers, stick with the light
spinning or bait casting rod.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But to
change things up, a fly rod will do wonders too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Two Friday’s ago I went out with my old
college roommate in his vintage 1980’s aluminum 16’ boat with an old 65 horse
merc on the back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The motor won’t run
well at low speeds but does quite well at ¾ throttle. Of course boat wake and
typical bay chop beat us up pretty well but wow did we find the fish holding on
well-known structure just north of the bay bridge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had plenty of company and most people were
catching well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hankey was blown away how
well the jigging rod worked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Forget the
chum he even said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went out again on July 18<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> with
a 10-15mph South wind, combined with hundreds of other pleasure boaters and
every charter boat in the fleet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What
was I thinking?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I crossed the bay in
that crap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But got on the fish again.
This time they were hugging the pilings pretty tight and the jig had to be
close to the bottom near the top of the pilings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or the up current side of the pilings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There will be a current break down stream of
the piling but also just upstream of them, just like a boulder on a trout
stream.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The hydraulics of the water
pushing around the structure, boulder, bridge piling creates a nice little
pocket just up current of said structure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Well, they were there and sunset with a good incoming tide was the
ticket again. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, I’ve got a enough
striped bass in my freezer to give me mercury poison ten fold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve eaten striped bass two or three times a
week in the last month.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Probably because
I also just bought my first deep fryer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Healthy? Probably not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even though
I had all this fresh fish I still thawed out a packet of frozen fish dated July
2013?! Cut the freezer burn off, dipped it in egg white, flour and some Cajun seasoning
and it was a hit for all my neighbors the other day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t tell them it was the 2 year old
fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had some and it was probably my
best batch yet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve been pretty good
about releasing the larger fish and keeping the smaller fish… to some
degree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course on July 4<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup>
we were staying at a friends on Kent Island and I needed a lot of meat for a
lot of people so elected to keep the biggest fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This fish would rival anything April on the
Potomac could offer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s going
on?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of these fish still had sperm
sacks, large sperm sacks inside of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>All males and big ones at that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But for some reason the rest of the bay is void of these fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why are they all above the bridge?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s wrong with the water elsewhere?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why is every charter boat running miles upon
miles to the same area to put their clients on fish?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well because there are fish there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or were.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This past weekend’s results were a fraction of what it was two weeks
ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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July 10th 2015, Two bigguns to hand at once. Both fish were 35 inches. Is this April on the flats or July in the upper bay? I'm confused? </div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span><o:p></o:p></span> July 10th again. Here's a 33 inch fish that broke through a 50 year old net just as we lifted it out of the water. I knew that net was useless but after losing our first nice fish when I tried to lip it, Hankey wasn't having it. <br />
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Same night. <br />
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July 4th 2015 biggun. <br />
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Fly rod light line July 4th fish under the fireworks. Fish released. <br />
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Loaded up for a quick trip to the bay for a night. I pack light. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">June 22, 2015 limit. Insane fishing. Probably at its peak, before the word got out too much. Many more 30 inch fish came to hand that night. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some nice fish on the fly rod too from June 22, 2015. <br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Because of the hot striper bite I’ve done very little musky fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were plagued with crazy amounts of rain in
June.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The full moon in June fell around
June 2 and it was cloudy the entire time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>John C and I floated 8 miles in complete darkness on the hottest musky
moon of the year and were skunked?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was jet black out with no moon from the cloud cover.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But of course we hooked up at the take out..
twice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once when we dropped the car off
early in the evening and again at 3am when we got back to the car.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Same fish?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Who knows but he got off both times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But I did score a musky in mid June on a quick trip on my own just prior
to one of the strongest thunderstorms I’ve ever seen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The radar showed pink, purple, green blue,
red, all at once about to unleash hell on me and this fish hit Mr. Whiggley
just feet from the boat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even with that
single treble hook in the head of the bait, the fish was hooked well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It blasted the bait in plain sight just as I
started the figure 8.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Awesome take, and
a darn good fight for a “small” fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
was happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it was my only musky in
june.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My third musky of the year out of
about 40 hours effort in total.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve had
a few complete skunks this winter and spring/summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The river is pretty much off limits until it
cools down for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But my Canada trip is
coming up with the full moon in August.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Hopefully I can kill a 9 year skunk on the mighty st. Lawrence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No that was not a typo, I’ve been skunked 9
years in a row.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yea, I’ve hooked and
seen fish every year but just can’t seal the deal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Get a guide young man, get a guide damn
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I just won’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Save some money.. yea right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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June 20th musky on Mr. Whiggley</div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">What else…. It’s hot, damn hot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The hottest day of the year with temps in the
high 90’s fell the last two days, July 20, 2015 and 19<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The humidity put the “feel” temps well above
100.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sweat pours down your back as soon
as you get out of the truck and it almost feels like a dog tick crawling down
your crack.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So what do you do?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You go trout fishing just outside the beltway
on a tailwater fishery no one knows about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Water temps 5 miles downstream of the dam are still below 70
degrees?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had 65 degrees at my one
favorite pool today in an area that hasn’t been stocked with trout in
decades.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The cool water acts like an air
conditioner and it’s quite pleasant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
water is at or near low summer flows and gin clear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At first I tried fishing an ant from far
downstream to try and not spook the pool. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But you inevitably end up walking up on the pool
to fish the head of it, knowing full well that the best part of the pool is the
root wad in the tail end of the pool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But no one wanted my dry there so I found myself right on top of the
fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I caught a glimpse out of the
corner of my eye of a perfect red stripe just hovering motionless within a rods
length of my feet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the nicest
trout I’ve seen in this stream was sitting right next to me!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do a half hearted roll cast and plop the beetle
on its head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fish just floats back
downstream as my size 16 terrestrial passes over its head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tried that about a dozen times till I
pushed the fish almost out of the pool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Darn!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I take a far cast to
the head of the pool but the whole time I’m watching this fish behind me, not
paying any attention to my fly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know
it’s now started to slowly sink but figured I’d still see a tiny dimple on the surface
when a fish took.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, I didn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I go for another cast and I’m hooked up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This fish is no joke either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are incredibly strong in this tiny
stream.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fish takes line, goes instinctively
for the undercut and I try to put the brakes on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That doesn’t work with 6x tippet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did I ever say how much I hate 6x
tippet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There goes that fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt pissed off for losing the fish but I
also felt kind of bad leaving a fly in its mouth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are my pet fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is my go to spot, maybe 5 miles below
the dam.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could almost name each of
these fish. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, maybe not because
today I saw probably 8 individual fish that us trout fishermen would consider
adults in the 10 to 12 inch size, not including the behemoth 15 incher that
eluded me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I later fished a small
brassie off a dropper behind a large beetle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The black beetle vanished in the water, even if it was a size 14.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It didn’t work well as a strike indicator but
I saw the trout move towards where I thought the nymph was drifting and just
pause.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It made this move towards
something so I just set the hook thinking just maybe it took the fly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Fish on!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few cartwheels later
the fish runs near the bottom and wraps the tippet on the only stick stuck in
the bottom and the beetle snags the f…ing stick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yep, two fish broken off. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Time for redemption now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Backed off to 5x, put on the old faithful
cone head woolly bugger and hooked up on the second cast and finally got one to
hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nice one hour lunch break I’d
say.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Later I checked the water temps a
few miles further downstream and it only rose a couple degrees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Still in that comfortable range for trout
survival of 69 or 70 degrees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>80 is lethal,
70’s isn’t great but doable. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It sure
would be nice to make that whole stretch a catch and release stream again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or just keep it to myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of these days I’m going to get that 15
incher and I’d expect there are even larger fish in there somewhere.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Forget the gunpowder or the north
branch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why drive that far for similar
size fish when I have that in my back yard?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My own little St. Vrain in the middle of suburbia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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What else…. Oh.. the bass ponds are fishing well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even in muddy water after one of the
strongest rainstorms we’ve seen in 5 years the fish cooperated for Ryan and me
a few weeks ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dark colored stick
worms did the trick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-48389105382674943972015-05-29T04:57:00.000-07:002015-05-29T04:58:18.804-07:00Memorial Day Stripes<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Memorial Day Weekend Stripers<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">May 25, 2015<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Usually Memorial Day is a little late to intercept the migratory
run of striped bass in our area. Our area is the Delmarva, or Delaware,
Maryland or Virginia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, this Memorial
Day fell a week before the last weekend in May and there were a few fish around
to play with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did a family trip to the
beach for the weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We made a 24 hour
pit stop on Kent Island where I merely only caught a few dink stripers and
white perch from shore under a dock light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But with the white perch already in their summer pattern of holding to
shoreline structure, that was good to see.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some really nice white perch will hug the rip rap along the western
shore of Kent Island and an ultra-light or fly rod will get the job done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Okay, so back to the beach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My first evening fishing was Sunday
evening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We first stopped to pick up
fresh bait in Cambridge and a sea food distributer named Kool Ice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fresh bait is key.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s probably the most important part of bait
fishing whether surf or chunking from a boat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If it’s been previously frozen or sitting on ice for a few days, it’s
basically worthless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How can you
tell?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, does the bait bleed?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is it mush?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Does it fall off the hook on the first cast?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Does it smell foul?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are all bad signs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The bait I bought was fresh bunker or
menhaden or alewife…. Lots of different names for the same thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So the first evening I’m set up with beautify fresh bunker
on Ocean City surf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Usually OC surf is
kind of lifeless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have a lot of beach
replenishment and basically suffocate the life near shore because of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if there are sand fleas in the surf, then
there is life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And sure enough I’ve
caught a good number of sand fleas in the surf over the years and a few decent
stripers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sand fleas work well for
stripers and black drum also BTW.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But do
not stay on the hook for very long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I
start fishing at 515pm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I ask one life guard
and he says I’m okay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then walk to a
better looking spot that was actually a GPS point from last fall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Basically you just want some sort of anomaly in
the surf, something to break up the monotony.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Ideally you find a rip current or a break in the sand bar where water is
sucked out past the breaking waves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Find
one of those and you will find a feeding frenzy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve only found a few in my day but wow was
it fun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are often not very obvious unfortunately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if it gives you confidence, then have at
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The first life guard said fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Then the second comes down and tells me to leave.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At this point I’m frustrated and told the guy
I’m fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, two minutes later 3
more come down and tell me to leave.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
told them to show me the code.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then a
fourth more senior guy comes on a 4 wheeler.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>At this point I just had to wait 10 more minutes till 530 but I wanted
to fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Slack low tide was at 745 or
so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I reeled in the line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then at 526pm I threw back out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hahah.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>At 529 my rod bed over to the ground. I was casting out my second rod at
the time when my big heaver, 10’ tica with a diawa conventional saltiest is
spewing drag.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is no skate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I put the other rod down and start the
fight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This fish fought well, head
shaking the whole time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I planned the
breaking wave’s right and surfed it in to shore.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My first keeper from the beach this year!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the ocean in MD now it is a one fish per
person per day limit of a fish 28” or greater.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This fish was over 30” but under 36”, figured I’d keep it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Success.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No more hits, 745 and
dead low came by and I packed it in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Met
my wife, sister and brother in law for dinner 30 minutes later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The next night I got the pass to fishing again except this
time I hit Indian River inlet in DE.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was the end of the outgoing tide and I chose the jetty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wear spiked corkers on my feet for added
traction on the slippery rocks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Almost a
necessity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were two other guys at
the end of the jetty fishing for the elusive sea trout or weak fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We used to catch them all the time on small
jigs back around 2004 but not much since.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I hear they are making a comeback but it’s hardly worth the effort for a
12 inch weak fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A striper the same
size would tow a weak fish back to NC in a second.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, not but five minutes in I get slammed
and my drag is screaming with the outgoing tide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am way under gunned hear using a 6’6”
medium heavy st croix too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I seal
the deal and land a respectable albeit skinny 39” striper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I released the fish but later found out I had
to because DE has a slot of two fish from 28-36” and over 44” so anything from
37”-43.9” must be released.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s a lot
of released fish right there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I later
moved a few feet down the jetty to try and reach the hole at the end of the rocks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another gentlemen moved into my spot and
started putting on a clinic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was
using a 6 inch storm shad, clear color.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was using a 10” BDK with a one ounce head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The wind was ripping from the south so we
were throwing right into the wind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
caught one really nice fish and must have measured it a dozen times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Right at 40”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was out of the water a while too and when released floated up at
first.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But then took off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who knows if it survived?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was not happy he had to release it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He caught several more shorts and good size
keepers or slot fish too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes that
exact rock is the ticket.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The tide was
near slack and I think it was the swim shad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I didn’t have any, stupid me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
baits were going too deep?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or not deep
enough? Anyway, I only fished an hour or so the first night and a few hours the
second and got two good fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Missed a
couple more too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Things are still going
strong down there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I read about multiple
fish caught over the weekend from as far south as VA Assateugue Island.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also heard that the Cape Cod Canal was
rocking with huge fish smashing lures for the shore fishermen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Crazy Jim is on big blue fish and stripers up
on the Cape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are still some big
blues around IRI in DE but not nearly as many as there were earlier in
May.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was an epic two week blitz of
giant blues for IRI.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Too bad I missed
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Time to change gears now and chase Muskie
I think.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Water temps are already approaching
80 degrees on the USGS.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over 80 up river
and it’s too warm..!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ll see what the
full moon brings this weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-71510008229617178492015-05-20T05:12:00.002-07:002015-05-20T05:17:17.906-07:00Low light moving tide<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Schoolies<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">May 19, 2015<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">With the tides just about right and a free afternoon, I
quickly threw some things together to fish the bay bridge yesterday
evening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I got home at 330 and was out
the door by 350.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Traffic was a nightmare,
even with the ICC and it took me a full 2 hours to get to Sandy Point but oh
well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Current tables showed max flood
current at 730 pm, meaning it should be going strong that last hour of
light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Exactly what you want.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Doesn’t really matter if it’s in coming
(Flood) or outgoing (Ebb), just as long as you have strong current combined
with low light… a match made in heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The bridge pilings almost always have fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Actually, they always do, but we just can’t
always get to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Winds were light and
my 16’ skiff was up for the journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>First checked out some birds mid channel that looked like they were on a
slick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No dice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nothing at eastern shore rock pile.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Didn’t even mark anything with a strong incoming
current there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Off to the shallower
pilings on the ledge to the channel and I think third cast hook up with quality
fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I lose a few and land a few 20-24
inch fish. I was planning on keeping a fish or two but didn’t have a tape on
board.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The new regs are fish must be
over 20” and these guys were cutting it close.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Then I finally caught a really nice fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had to muscle him out from between the 6
legged pilings but got the job done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
had on 20 pound shock leader and didn’t want to risk leadering the fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was pushing 30 inches, probably more like
26 though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I grab the jig head like
I often do to lift in the boat and it thrashed and was gone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So be it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was using the same old medium heavy 6’6” Avid, spinning rod, 14 pound
braid, 20 pound mono leader and 1oz jig heads with 7 inch gulp or 7 inch white
zoom super flukes dipped in chartreuse die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Most of the fish were on the bottom in 15-22 feet but I saw quite a few
suspended and some really nice marks well away, down current from the pilings
but couldn’t get them to hit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Almost
certainly stripers but likely cruising on their own back behind the
piling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trolling might hit those fish
but I’d rather cast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">After I lost the big one I had drifted well back from the
bridge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I decided to look around, south
side pilings, then north, then the sewer pipe. I never should have left those
fish. It seemed like only dinks were elsewhere when I was on a decent bite of decent
size fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Finally went back to the starting
point but couldn’t buy a fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The tide
was still going well, not sure what happened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But once or twice I banged the aluminum boat up against the 6 legged
piling while inside of the span and that might have spooked those fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Any noise is a killer in that situation. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now the sun had just about set and I figured
I would like to try and get a fish on a popper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There should be something in shallow with a decent tide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All I have to do now is find the sewer pipe
in shallow like 4 to 8 feet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The rip
over the sewer pipe is not all that pronounced on an incoming.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s much easier seen on an ebb tide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not sure why.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But my GPS points got me close.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sure enough there were all sorts of good marks in shallow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I should have been jigging but I already
re-rigged.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I threw the 10 inch BKD for a
while but no luck.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the top water got
hit, quite a few times even in the waning tide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Can’t beat that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stuck a good
fish that I thought was dink at first, even over 9 feet of water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That one came home for dinner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My limit is one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Easy to say when you only decided to keep
one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes success is that sweeter
when you actually accomplish what you set out to do with respect to fishing or
how you wanted to catch that fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Should be pretty good there for most of the summer, just try and plan it
around the strong current at low light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">Quick update. It was late at night yesterday when I was cleaning the fish. I decided to fillet it with the skin on. I almost always cut the skin off but thought I'd do something different. This is the first fish I've killed all year. Anyway, I was in a hurry and was scaling the fish. Man those things flew everywhere in my kitchen. I tried cleaning up but this morning I found one on top of the coffee maker. I'm sure there are others. Oh well. </span></span></div>
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-50472283886592623952015-05-18T10:53:00.003-07:002015-05-18T10:53:35.604-07:00Close by trout trip
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Quick Trout trip close to home<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">May 16 ,2015<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">A friend was in town visiting one of his many brothers over
the weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He hit me up with a few
questions about what and where to go fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I said Chain Bridge schoolie stripers, top water, jigs, crank baits,
maybe fly rod…. He wanted trout.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was
thinking of heading to western MD to the Casselmen where 100 fish days are a
possibility this time of year but I said I didn’t have that kind of time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had a soccer game at 1030 for my son and
then a football practice followed by a game where Ryan’s the QB.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So a typical busy Saturday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We settled on the Patuxent River special
regulation area, lures and flies only, year round catch and release. This area
was stocked back in early April with 2500 brown trout that were well spread out
via float stocking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I looked back at one
email from the Potomac Patuxent Chapter of Trout unlimited and picked the most
remote area that got the most trout, downstream from Hipsley Mill Road.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I picked the most remote mostly because now
we are well into the season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Poachers
and law abiding fishermen have been out hard for a month or two and the trout
will be well educated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The trick is to
find fish that have not been fished over too much or not all caught.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not just by fishermen either, there are some
river otters around these parts too and they will clean out a stream in short
order.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Great Blue Herons take a toll as
well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So does natural causes,
temperature starts to play a huge roll this time of year too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heck even other trout, like that two foot
long swimming log of a trout that as held over a year or two might eat a few
fresh stockers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve seen a whole family
of river otters once on Morgan Run before, another good peadmont year round
catch and release trout water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thought
about going there but didn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">SO we set out on a tributary nearby that connects with the Patuxent
close to a mile from the road.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
tributary is also stocked and is about half the size.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Walking the trails this time of year is
difficult to say the least, the best way is to go straight down the middle of
the stream hitting the pools on the way down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This one trib scores excellent on the habitat scale with numerous pools
to riffle ratio. But when walking downstream you disturb the water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I like to fish fast and as soon as my mud
line catches up to me, I just keep on trucking downstream.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Caleb met me with his brother whose birthday
was recently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Caleb was visiting from NC
and wanted to take his brother fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Caleb is a well-seasoned fly fisherman, every year he does a do it your
self trip to Alaska where they go as far as to put an add on Craigslist to rent
a car.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, going to a rental company is
just too easy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These guys literally rent
some families SUV and put about 1000 miles on it in a week, cross rivers and
streams with it and camp creek side on some secluded trout honey holes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They know what they are doing and are about
as fit and keen as a fishermen can get.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Caleb is in his mid 30’s like me but his brother just turned 50.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And guess what, has never cast a fly rod
before?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Okay, this might take some
doing but I’m up for the challenge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Caleb wanted another rod so I brought a couple, a 9’ 5wt and a 7’ 3wt
that Fred used.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It didn’t take long to
find the trophy fallfish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were as
aggressive as freshly stocked trout and about the same size too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We finally stumbled upon a good pool that was
just loaded with fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But much of the
rest of the stream was void of fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
guess that’s how it goes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Caleb hooked a few trout and let his brother
real them in and it wasn’t long before Fred stayed out of the trees and banked
a couple also.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These browns were looking
up too and often hitting the surface.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Wooly buggers, nymphs and san juan worms all had action.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I even got a few fish myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s not every day that you turn 50 and do something for the first
time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fred even held on to my rod.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not so sure he wants to give it
back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, there’s plenty of fish if you
are willing to put in the effort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At
10am I had to hightail it out of there and bush wacked my way to the car in
record time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My legs were cut to pieces
from thorns and grass as I was only wearing shorts but I made it to Rockville
for my son’s soccer game by only ten minutes late.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not bad for a short morning trip close to
home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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A couple of Depps, a fly rod and a trout.</div>
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Trophy Fall Fish</div>
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Here's Fred and I as I try to show him how to flick a bugger into a likely looking honey hole. Not the easiest place in the world to learn to fly fish but is probably the kind of place where most people started. Tight quarters, lure eating trees all around but a few fish to make it worth while. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Carnage Riverside. This is what is left over from a Great Blue Heron. The carcass was up on the bank. Not sure what killed it but I'm not too upset about it either. I'm sure he's eaten a few trout in his day. <br />
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-12545293586053366512015-05-14T07:09:00.001-07:002015-05-18T11:08:43.904-07:00The End of An Era<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">May 14, 2015<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The End of an Era<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">My fishing partner and I have a theory that when we break
something while fishing or lose something valuable, we often have a pretty good
day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are or I am very hard on my
fishing equipment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have friends that
say it’s Griffithsized, or basically just destroyed by the time I touch
something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like to think I just use my
equipment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I fish something like 5 days
a week in the spring.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Spring for me is
March 1<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">st</span></sup> through May 15<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> give or take.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But really the best fishing for the true
giants is winter until opening day of the striped bass season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, I’m about to tell a story of the last
day of the catch and release Susquehanna Flats Fishery on May 3, 2015.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is an area that the DNR made an
exception to allow fishing in a spawning area because many businesses,
fishermen and fishing guides rallied together to allow fishing to continue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The MD DNR made an exception to allow catch
and release fishing for striped bass in an area known as a spawning ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Money talks, screw the fish it’s for the
money.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But hey, I’ll play.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These fish sometimes gather in incredible numbers
in the spring on the flats.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, the
last few years the fishing has been less than stellar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many guides have given up and headed
home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The “fleet” of aluminum and
fiberglass boats has vanished.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most people
now a days are largemouth bass or perch fishing out on the area
known to Chesapeake Bay fisherman as the “flats.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But one has to believe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If they show up there historically, then they
will show up there again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was my
friend John and my thought anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So, what broke or what did we lose do you ask?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, I’ve had an SUV since a year after I
graduated college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I bought my first new
car in July of 2002.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wanted 4 wheel
drive, something that could tow, something manly and tough to help me feed my
fishing addiction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I bought a
trailblazer that has fit the bill well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It has gone through 3 boats.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Towed much of its life, driven all over Assateguge island on the days I
did not own a boat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Still has sand under
the skid plates to this day…. It’s basically been slimed by every fish species
in the North America and has served me well, over 218k miles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lately however the Transmission has been
slipping.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lately like the last 4 months.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just keep driving it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The differential is just about toast
also.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it was April, hands down the
best month of the year to fish for everything that swims.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I need to get out there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just figured if it died I’d catch a cab to
a dealer or enterprise for the day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
when you are towing a boat everywhere every other day, that could get
complicated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, on Sunday afternoon,
May 3, 2015 I was set to meet John at a park and ride along I-70 with boat in
tow to head 80 miles north to fish the top of the bay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To find the last of the spring run.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Susquehanna usually runs about a week or
two behind the Potomac, my home river.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Even though it was near the end of the run, it should be about prime on the
flats.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Except all the reports were dismal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every report I read was that the fish are not
there, the water is too muddy, too cold…. But there was still hope.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can check live NOAA bouy data and get
accurate turbidity (water clarity) and temperature readings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sure we could fish the Potomac.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It served me well this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Two fish over 50 pounds on my beloved river
this spring, a day in mid April that only lives in your dreams when your best
friend visits and we stumble across a giant school of lure eating spring
spawners.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there were a few skunks
too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just a few days before this trip I
was skunked when it came to fish with stripes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sure I caught dozens of American shad on the fly rod and a few 30 pound
catfish on artificial lures.. anyone anywhere would call that an epic day but
for me at the beginning of May on the Potomac, I should have had double digit
striped bass all day long as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not
sure what happened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So John and I
gambled on the Flats.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m driving my car
down the road to meet john at the rendezvous spot and my tranny just goes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My RPMS hit the roof and I’m barely
moving!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With boat in tow!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have a line of a dozen cars behind me now
and I’m just creeping along. NOOO! Not now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was literally a mile from John.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I tell him he’s got to drive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
limp to meet him, switch the trailer to his truck and we are off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have no idea how I’m getting home but I can
worry about that later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It’s mid Afternoon on the last day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The flats close to targeting striped bass at
midnight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a full moon, we plan to
fish late but I’ve got an appointment for work at 8am. Oh well… it’s the last
day on the best time of the year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Drink
a red bull or ten.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fishing at night on
the flats was a good way historically to avoid the flotilla of boats that used
to be out there when the fishing was good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Striped bass feed well at night all up and down the coast and it holds
well for our area also.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And guess what…
no body around here does it… well, except for John and I.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think in 15 years fishing the flats I’ve
seen about 2 boats out there well after sunset and I think those two boats were
kayaks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sure people fish the river after
dark but not the skinny water up on the flat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I bet you could even run planner boars and troll the shipping channel after dark
and do well but trolling is about as much fun as petting a cactus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With night fishing you get an awesome bite in
the evening or at last light and then things just die out for some reason.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, at first dark, the fish need time to
acclimate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So give it a little while and
fish after true dark, say an hour or two after sunset.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By now the fish know what’s up and figured out
how to use their senses again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
almost like the change in the tide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Give
the fish time to figure out where the bait will set up and how the current
flows.. they’ll go back to their same haunts time and time again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John and I fish hard up on the flat with an
incoming tide and a fading sun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John
found his old school hand held GPS that is pushing 12 years or more old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s got dozens of marks of trenches and
honey holes from the years of the haydays.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But back then, say 2004 time frame I think you could fish in Tidings
parking lot and hammer the fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was
so easy a rookie could do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh, we
were rookies back then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, it’s near
the finest hour now and John and I are skunked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Not a darn fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m cursing the
place like I did a week or two before when john and I slept in our trucks to
allow us to fish as long as possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
took a skunk then too but the river was much higher and muddier, so was the
flats.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We head down south to the old
faithful, never fail spot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The spot that
used to be littered in fiberglass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
spot where guides used to anchor next to each other in unison and block the
regulars from fishing just so their clients could hog all the fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many, many a 50 ponder have come from here in
5 feet of water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have a good incoming
tide and I think it was the second cast I hook up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fish hit inches from the boat and is now airborne.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nice 28 inch football.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Exactly what we were looking for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now let’s just hope for some numbers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sure enough, he and all his friends and fat
girlfriends were there, ready to party.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There wasn’t another boat for as far as the eye could see.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Could this be real we thought?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sun was just setting below the trees, we
were rasing against time but the fish had arrived!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were in the middle of acres of bass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our shallow diving stick baits were bouncing
off the backs of stripers on every cast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We were getting slammed about every 5<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> cast from all sizes
of fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The smaller guys like mid 20
inch size were a lot easier to hook and land but even they threw the hook
often.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know what it was but we
just couldn’t land a biggun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The two
treble hooks were working against each other it seemed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When a large striped bass hit the lure in 4
feet of water, they have nowhere to go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They can’t dive deep like they usually do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So they go up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I kid you not, a 40 inch 25 pound striper
will go air born under these conditions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Or at least try.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They kick and
roll on the line at first.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well that’s
after an arm jolting strike where they literally try and steal your rod.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During this rolling process, they often
dislodge the lure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We should have
removed a treble hook or used good quality J hooks on the slip rings instead of
trebles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sure we tried top water but the
fish would hit top water very rarely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Like
one out of 20 casts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We wanted
action.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John had not caught a striper
almost all spring!? So action we got on floating crystal minnows and Diawa SP
minnows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At one point john hooked about
a 15 pound low 30 inch striper and it rolled at first and literally jumped,
completely airborne like a smallmouth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When it landed it spooked the sea of fish that were in the area and the whole
place just exploded.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Earlier we had seen
many swirls as our boat drifted over the fish. We knew there were good numbers
of fish around but nowhere near that many?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>From all around the boat to near 50 yards away this enormous school took
off all at once with thousands of swirls and splashes happening simultaneously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was insane.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All we could do was watch in aww.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or take another cast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had to move… like 20 yards to hook up
again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A trolling motor is essential out
there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wish I had a power pole too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stealth is key.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We used to have to start our engine, just
like the flotilla of guides that were all Parkers without trolling motors used
to have to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But back then it didn’t
matter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were so many fish that if
you spooked that school, you’d just move a 100 yards and be on them again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, that’s how it was for us on the last
day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I broke a car and hammered the
fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We found gold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh how sweet it is when a plan comes together
like that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It almost makes up for all
those skunks and poor days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But again,
every day I keep thinking of that line, “It’s not always the fish we are after.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes just taking in the wild is pleasure
enough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that night it was truly wild.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We didn’t land nearly as many fish as we
should have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were probably
thousands of fish stacked in layers all around us and often times we call a
blank on our casts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It didn’t seem
possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or these big giant fish would
just have their way with us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>WE didn’t break
any fish off, our hooks were sharp but they just knew how to get away from us stupid
fishermen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These fish had done this a
time or two before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So we each landed a
few fish in that flurry of action before sunset and were quite happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By now the sun was long gone and the first
dark hit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sure enough it slowed to a
crawl.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then to top it off the tide
slowed to nothing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What most people
would do at this point is run home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>F
that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The moon was looking marvelous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even just staying out there to watch the stunning bright moon rise over the bay from the east would have been worth it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But when we had the majority of the upper bay’s
spawning stock around the boat… we weren’t going anywhere.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will turn on again, just be patient
grasshopper..<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, it worked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Waiting till true dark, like dark 30 or let’s
say 10pm was the ticket.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now for some
reason we were able to hook and land these bastards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Like the fish hit the lure with more
accuracy or something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The same
pattern happened again. Swirls happening here there and everywhere around
us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I mean giant swirls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These were legendary fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The kind that only shows up this time of year
and vanishes just days later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are
the repeat spawners, the biggest fish of the entire stock.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who knows, there could have been 100 pound
striped bass around us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We caught a few
of the bigguns and it was just awesome.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My big fish of the night went 44 inches and probably met with 40 pounds
as she was just as girthy as they come.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This fish hit almost when I was taking my lure out of the water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was not the first fish to do that either
that night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When this happens the chaos
that proceeds is just stupid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I should have
been doing more figure 8’s musky style.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I did a few that came up empty. A good musky fishermen knows that a
figure 8 is essential every time, after every cast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We did some minor lure modifications that I’ll
hold to myself for now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were John’s
idea that he read somewhere.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just a little
add on to the rear slip ring of the stick bait but sure enough does this
work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every time I see it I’m like ahhhh,
that’s BS.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t need it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, after watching John do the dosy doe around
the boat a few times on his 4<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> fish to my zero… you’ll change.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m no dummy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He hooks me up with this little add on and it’s off to the races.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m hooked up like the 4<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> cast to
the giant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After releasing the fish I
had to do the two step on the deck of the boat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My own little happy dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I set out for a giant in shallow
water and succeeded.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everything is gravy
now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My car problems just vanished.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everything was right in the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t need to take another cast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I just sat back and took in the scenery…
in the middle of the night, full moon over head, swirls and splashes like little kids playing
in a pool from all around us from one side of the bay to the other it
seemed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is just cool I
thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We fished some more of course
but then we looked at the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was
1216am.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s closed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Time to go home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had to make an 8 mile run in a 16’ aluminum
boat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were still floating mines of
logs all over the flats.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hopefully the
moon will be my guide and sure enough it didn’t let me down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>So how did I get home?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, I lost my two high gears of my
transmission.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John drove me to the
meeting spot and I had another 20 miles to do and my top speed was about 25mph
up the hills and about 40 down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who
cares.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just got on a lifetime striped
bass bite in shallow water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My truck
could catch on fire right now and I’d could care less. She lived an honorable life. She died an honorable death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I made it home about 330am still
grinning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The next day I read the “Flats
reports” on my fishing websites.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every
one saying they threw the kitchen sink and didn’t touch a fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn’t say anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I knew those fish were still there and even
though off limits my report online would attract unwanted attention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People would still go and beat up on those fish
and say they were largemouth fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They do need a break to do their thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Water temps
were as high as 64 degrees when we were on the fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>DNR was nowhere to be found.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why patrol and area that has no fish or
fishermen?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, that’s what they
thought anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Till next year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">As I type this the fish are hitting the Delmarva Beaches
hard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Assateauge Virginia just closed its
ORV zone because of nesting birds, just in time for the mass of fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For some reason the Va portion of Assateague
Island gets covered up with giant stripers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The MD portion however is considerably slower.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Giant blue fish have invaded much of Delaware.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is very rare.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Usually it’s a NJ thing to have huge blues
around. They are littered in Indian River inlet, even the smaller inlets are
producing double digit blue fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
flats at the mouth of the chesapeake bay are filled with giant bull red drum
and sight casting in gin clear water to spawned out cows is happening right now
on the flats at the mouth of the bay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This phenomenon does not last long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Early to mid may that’s it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
bull reds will be there well through May but the stripers in the skinny are
probably already fading. The bull reds will later move out of the white water
and head to the deeper shoals off the bridge at the mouth of the bay for much
of the summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But right now they are in
the white water, In the skinny.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the
fun zone as I like to call it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Shallow
water fishing at its finest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve burned
about every last vacation day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve
tested the patience of my wife to the limit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My fishing needs to take a chill pill for a little while.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My house and yard has weeds growing out of
weeds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Things are falling apart and
require my attention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did catch two
snakehead yesterday in about an hour’s effort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Quick easy drive up spot in Downtown where they tend to stack up this
time of year. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good fun but they just
aren’t striped bass in 4 feet of water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I don’t know what compares to that that is accessible in a 16’ john
boat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyway, tight lines. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I saw freshly hatched ducklings and goslings
the other day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the finest top
water strikes of the year await us. It’s just about musky time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who’s ready? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-82270964068550881412014-08-28T13:47:00.001-07:002017-02-24T09:41:37.807-08:00Temperature Drop equals prime time... I've been fishing river smallmouth lately. What river you ask? The Potomac of course. But the size is way down but it sure beats a stick in the eye. The Susquehanna river is producing big fish on a regular basis from what I'm seeing on the fishing boards and the social media everything fishing board known as facebook. I've gotten out lately with my son and on my lonesome a few times with the light 5wt fly rod. I think that fly rod has been collecting dust. I broke the tip on it before last spring, maybe the spring before. It's nothing special just a 5wt GL2 Loomis but it was my first decent rod I got back in College and it's caught just about everything. It was my go to steelhead rod for a while too. <br />
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Anyway, the river temp is down into the mid to even low 70's. Or was at least. First this weekend I set up for Musky with the big stuff but blanked on Sunday morning at first light. Water temps were 73 degrees. I then decided to wet wade the river in the fast water above Harper's Ferry. Arguably the best smallmouth water on the Potomac. The first few casts with a CK Hellgramite I hooked and landed a nice channel cat! A few smallies later another one jumped on the same fly. <br />
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This is my recent order tied by William Heresniak of Eastern Trophies. </div>
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Here's the channel cat with the hellgrimite in its mouth. My boat in the back ground but I'm on foot.</div>
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Then the tubing hatch started about 1130 and pretty much shut down the bite. The smallmouth were committing suicide well but most were about the same size, ~8. At least the tubing hatch was accompanied by a bikini hatch. So all was not lost. </div>
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On the walk back to the car I encountered plenty of carp mudding in the shallows and had multiple shots at car. Some refusals too. So I got close. But wanted to be be home to spend the afternoon with my son. </div>
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Later in the week Ryan and I hit the river closer to home. The section of river below Violets lock is very similar in character to the section around Harper's Ferry. Excellent habitat with decent numbers of fish. My son did well using a 1/16oz jig head and a 2" white power grub. He wasn't casting that far but still outfished me with the 5wt and fly rod with CK Hellgramite and flash fly clousers. Excellent afternoon. </div>
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On the Monday, Alex and I hit the river around Edwards Ferry and I'd venture to say the fish were on average a little larger there. Find the large boulders and you'll find the fish. </div>
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Prime time for perfect weather, perfect temperature and some hungry smallmouth bass. </div>
Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-84075139074659169342014-08-18T05:29:00.000-07:002014-08-18T05:29:27.317-07:00Yellow Breeches White Fly hatch
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Or lack there of. I fished the fly only water last night and did not see
many bugs at all. The calendar says it should be prime time. The weather this
weekend and yesterday were perfect. I think things are just a little behind
maybe? The hexes showed up at 730 or with some fish responding. I don't think I
saw the first white fly till well past sunset like 830 or so and there were
probably more caddis then anything else. The fish were rising and popping till
after 9 in complete darkness but just no gang busters and not many bugs at all.
It will probably happen in greater concentrations here in a few days. Will I
try again? Who knows. I don't know why I do it every year. You miss something
like 90 out of 100 takes, 90% of the fish are small like less than 12 inches
and numbers are not that good. But each year I get very excited. The
anticipation that you are going to hammer the fish keeps me coming back I
think. That moment when there are hundreds to thousands of bugs within eye site
with fish rising everywhere but on your fly sends this feeling of total
determination and earning for revenge that I think it just keeps me coming
back. I keep telling myself that I'll fish elsewhere outside of the fly only
water. Last night I came close and stopped at Williams Grove. There's a feeder
stream there larger than Boiling Spring and the water felt cooler. Plus I think
there are more and better riffles equating to better habitat. But it's not the
C&R water and many of the fish are probably cleared out. Or maybe that's
just what everyone thinks. So yesterday I made the 1.5 hour drive in the
evening, when many other waters much closer to home were fishing far better,
and got skunked. I could have just as easily gotten skunked at Williams Grove
in the open water or who knows, stumbled upon a gold mine without two fly
fishermen within talking distance. The crowds were not bad yet but still a lot
more than ideal. I did not get the spot I wanted last night in the riffle and
had to settle for the pool/run water. Sure enough that guy did very well but he
also admitted to catching more fish before the hatch. He was using a
"tangerine shrimp, size 20" before the hatch and was doing rather
well. He would almost just let it sit in the riffle and twitch it every now and
then and they hit it as it swung or swam in the swift water. <o:p></o:p><br />
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I never did throw something big last night after dark. I went as far as
grabbing an articulated mouse fly tied like a large gurgler from my SUV and
placing it in the pocket of my waste pack but never bothered tying it on. Oh
well. Till next time. <o:p></o:p><br />
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-70505168310633179252014-08-12T06:09:00.001-07:002014-08-12T06:16:18.453-07:00Gearing up, Archery Season It's that time of year again.... Maryland Archery Season opens in a few weeks. Time to start pulling those cameras. I've let my one camera sit over a salt block for nearly a month now. I pulled the card yesterday with only 300 something photos. If I had corn down I'd get 300 photos in a day. Out of the three hundred photos, on the second to last day these guys show up. Both studs. Both 3.5 to 4.5 years old probably. Both mature trophy's and both are on the hit list for sure. I also just picked up a large farm in Poolesville which ordinarily would be a gold mine. Something guys would pay as much as $10k a season to hunt. Which is absolutely insane to me but I'll take my little 3 acre suburban spot when deer like this are there. Of course the photo is terrible. Maybe someone can enhance it for me. Either way, I know there are two shooters and I know where I'll be on opening day. <br />
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Next years quarry</div>
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The studs. That guy on the right is no joke. 200 pounds, ten pointer? 130+ inch? To be honest I have no idea what 130+" would be but that deer is nice. </div>
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Here they are again. The guy on the left is the beast but the deer on the block isn't half bad either. I know I have competition too. </div>
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-41652965626791132872014-08-11T15:30:00.001-07:002014-08-12T05:46:34.478-07:00Annual summer Canada Trip August 2014<br />
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I made a tip back to <st1:country-region w:st="on">Canada</st1:country-region>
to hit the mouth of the St. Lawrence and the <st1:place w:st="on">Ottawa River</st1:place>
again. Both could easily produce the next world record musky. Just casting a
lure into waters like that sends a chill down my spine. I blanked at my parents
who live in <st1:city w:st="on">Kingston</st1:city> <st1:country-region w:st="on">Canada</st1:country-region>,
near the Mouth of the St. Lawrence on <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Lake</st1:placetype> <st1:placename w:st="on">Ontario</st1:placename></st1:place>.
I had three kids with me and basically could only get out for a couple hours
each morning while they were still sleeping. Even still, I was in the right
place, just maybe not the right time of year? <br />
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Then on to the <st1:place w:st="on">Ottawa River</st1:place> in a section of
the River referred to by Jim Saric from the Muksy Hunter as 'the last bastion of pure musky fishing
left in the world'! The Ottawa River Musky Factory has been filling my facebook
pages the last few weeks of countless 50 inch fish. In July they scored over 50
fish in a single month! With multiple big fish outings usually occurring around
the major moon phases. I was hitting the river for three days in-between a
major moon phase. But how could I lose? I put my cousin on his first two musky
last year. <br />
<br />
As soon as we got to the lodge I unpacked the car, had to drop the boat in
the water and park the car and trailer outside of the island. I ran out on my
own for literally ten minutes hoping for action. But I had three kids on their
own, Jake at 17 years old, Gabe at 15 now 16 and Ryan at 7 years. We decided to
fish off the dock and literally on the first cast with a spinner bait I hook up
with a good fish. It had a dark color to it with a good girth and some length.
Could it be? First cast! Ryan instantly wanted the rod but I was reluctant to
give it up when it could be my first Canadian Musky! It fought well and was in
the weeds. I worked it through and it jumped a few times revealing a trophy
smallmouth. I let Ryan reel in the rest. Nice bass. Just not quite what I
thought it was. This was on the 1/2oz double <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Colorado</st1:place></st1:state> blade black spinner bait with the
elongated skirt. The same lure that score the two musky on last year. Is
usually my best bass lure here in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">Canada</st1:country-region></st1:place> too. Ryan even missed a
bowfin on it at my parents earlier in the week. I saw the fish track down the
lure, hit it and hang around the boat for a while. Anyway, here's the
smallmouth. Not bad. But where are all the little fish that usually hang around
the dock? Was this guy eating them all? The place is usually polluted with
small yellow perch and sunfish. <br />
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With no little fish at the dock we hit the water. Just as a strong storm was
brewing. The barometer must have been dropping and the skies were turning ugly.
After a perfect blue bird day. The weather recently had been outstanding. I
take Ryan and Jake fishing just around the corner in a known musky hot spot
where I've had action before but inevitably lost the fish. A big fish too near
50" maybe. We get out there and I'm kind of psyching up the whole outing.
I was talking about how happy I was to finally be throwing huge lures in the
land of giants. There's just something about that feeling. I think all the
drama was getting to Ryan. He doesn't like it when I start to get excited
because of a large predatory fish. He gets a little spooked. Well, he was so
spooked that during the heavy wind and angry looking skies, a fly lands on his
hand. This scared him so much he threw his rod in the water! I kid you not. I
had to lunge forward and grab the bobber slowly sinking out of sight. I can't
believe I caught it. But I also yelled at Ryan which totally turned him off.
Too bad too because he was throwing that spinner bait like a pro. <br />
<br />
We later drop Ryan off and Jake and I hit the water at sunset. This is the
first evening. Not shortly after we see a massive surface explosion over deep
water right smack in the middle of the river. This kind of surface explosion
was no question a fish feeding on another fish. There were multiple blow ups
occurring repetitively as if a fish was jumping away trying to escape and a
much larger fish was on the chase. So we leave the weed edge in 15 feet of
water to try the deep stuff where the fish had just surfaced. It was now near
80 feet deep but the sonar was lit up with fish from top to bottom but mostly
near the bottom. Probably a school of mooneye getting hammered by musky. But
musky are not supposed to school? It didn't take long and Jake yells, stops
reeling and just points at the water, "There he is, THERE HE IS!" I
tried to tell him to do a figure 8. Just keep the lure moving. Even if you
don't see a fish but especially when you see one. Well, that was his first
legit follow and first encounter. Missed opportunity. But wow was that
exciting. We head back in to get ready for bed. I had been up since 5 and was
exhausted. <br />
<br />
The next morning I'm up well before sunrise without an alarm. Musky will do
that to you. Or maybe it's just me. I hit the spot with the blow up with zero
action. Then make it to a mouth of a large bay an hour or so after sunrise. I'm
working a spook and not really paying attention. Then it happens. The fish went
completely air born like they often do attacking a top water lure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was in about 6 feet of water on a weed edge
but for some reason decided to cast to deeper water and that is when the fish
hit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This fish was the type of fish this
place was famous for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Easily pushing
that legendary 50” mark.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A true giant,
probably older than I am with more than a few musky fishermen’s hearts on its
wall of fame.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Would you believe it, in
bright sun, the fish completely missed the f…ing lure! This was a walk the dog
spook magnum, same lure that caught my last large musky on the last super moon
in early July back home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The same lure
that several fish have missed also.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Something about that walk the dog retrieve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The side to side motion, although almost
irresistible to musky, must also be difficult to calculate the exact
position.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the fish came completely
out of the water, showing off all its glory within spitting distance of the
boat, it then landed horizontally in a huge splash.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It then proceeded to just lay motionless at
the surface for a few seconds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Enough
time for me to start jerking my lure again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But with zero interest and the fish just sunk slowly out of sight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Vanishing from my dreams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As you can imagine, I tried about a dozen
other lures in the general vicinity to no avail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn’t believe it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Time to tuck my tail between my legs and head
on home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was time to make my son
breakfast like I did every morning this week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>After a full musky effort skunk fest each morning of course.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<br />
We all played in the pool and returned after some poutine (cheese fries smothered in gravy, aka Canadian Crack) from <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Montebello</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This time we had a full boat with Gabe, Ryan,
Jake and I.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn’t tell Gabe or Ryan
that we were going fishing for this musky or else they wouldn’t have liked to
come.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Gabe was cool with giving us a
few minutes effort and Ryan had on a worm for some panfish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As soon as we arrived we see a huge essox
surface not far from where I had the morning encounter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jake soon starts screaming and pointing
again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He got another follow!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And did the exact same thing except this time
I think he got in half a figure 8.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If he
would have just kept his mouth shut, not pointed or gotten overly excited and kept moving his rod, he
might have hooked that fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But landing
it with the rod he had is another story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Was it a pike?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or was it Mr. Big
from earlier? He did say it was much larger than the fish from the night before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who knows, I never saw
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not soon after did we get hit with a
scary looking storm and had to leave with rain pelting us the entire run
home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The remainder of the week pretty
much saw me beating that spot to death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jake and I got out together every evening after dinner just at sunset. Prime time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On that first evening we encountered another
boat both specifically working this area, both using huge lures and
following through EVERY cast with a thorough figure 8 or three.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These guys knew what they were doing. I later found out this was the Ottawa River Musky Factory, with a GLoomis pro on board. I also came to find out they boated 10 muskies those three days, the same three days I was on the water and we ran into each other three or 4 times too. Unbelievable.<br />
<br />
On the last evening Jake and I hit the water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was still muskyless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jake had not even caught a perch off the dock
although he hadn’t tried too much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ryan
had beat those fish to death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He even
helped teach three other kids from the lodge how to fish, unhook a fish and how
to set the hook. That made me proud.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
Jake was fishless. We hit near where we first saw a nice fish and Jake hooks up
on the figure 8!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a nice musky, not
huge but a musky no less and as soon as I grab the net the hook pulls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This time Jake saw the fish, dropped the rod
into a figure 8 and sure enough the fish struck on the first turn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We both saw the whole thing. Now that's exciting musky fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cool!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
still no fish in the boat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The musky hit
the spinner bait.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<br />
With the final minutes of our trip nearing an end we returned to the giant’s
lair.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I beat that spot to death the last
few days and never did have another encounter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jake is casting a musky prop bait right into the weeds fowling in from
time to time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then a huge surface strike
and fish on!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a nice pike near 6
pounds maybe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not soon afterwards he
gets another pike on the spinner bait but still no musky. I once heard from a very experienced musky angler that where there's pike, there won't be musky and where there are musky, there won't be any pike. Maybe there's some truth to that. Maybe the Ottawa River Musky Factory Guys landed my fish and she's since left the area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We finished off the evening with a glorious
sunset but an ominous storm threatening to cut our trip short.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Jake had a follow from a gar. </span>That was it, the last evening but at least I
saw one of the most beautiful sunsets that was that much more special with that
ever present feeling that at any given second the largest predatory freshwater
fish in North America could come knocking. <br />
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One more morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The night before I
could barely sleep. I kept thinking that I only had one more morning and that I
should get good nights sleep because I was the only driver the following day. The kids had to be back for some band practice on a Friday! Plus it was Gabe's BDay. But why come home to go to work on a Friday when I've taken the rest of the week off???<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had
played monopoly till past midnight the night before with Ryan taking top
honors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Later that night t</span>he dang bat returned and was
flying around my room at 3am.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think it
woke me as it crawled on the ceiling making these menacing sounds as its claws
scratched the old log columns. What was I going to do?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If Ryan woke up he’d be frightened and I’ve
have to due something about for sure then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I hid
under the covers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only peaking from time
to time to wait for my chance to lock it out of the room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, that worked but not till 4
something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At this point I might as well
go fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was on the water well,
well before sunrise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hit some of my
favorite spots where I previously had a follow from some essox and a couple other locations and of course beat the same spot as before and struck out, big time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m Canadian Musky cursed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span> At least looking at the pictures from the trip of everyone Else's smiles sooths me to some degree. But I have the musky bug bad. And there is only one cure. Only one thing left to do now…. Start planning redemption.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
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My mother with a bass on Lake Ontario. The small little bay in front of the their house is always a hot spot. In the spring it fills with giant smallies and provides excellent wade/fly fishing for trophy smallmouth. </div>
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The kids at the bar having breakfast. </div>
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Ryan beating up on some smallmouth right next to the pool. We even live lined a few fish on quick strike rigs while I sunbathed. It's 70 feet of water within a cast from shore here. </div>
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Jake Jones with a nice top water pike. </div>
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Smaller fish but nice all the same. </div>
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Toofs</div>
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<br />Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-62964682171701247572014-07-28T05:28:00.001-07:002014-07-28T05:38:37.212-07:00Invasive action Diego and I got out for a couple hours this weekend. We first wanted to float the upper river a lot closer to home but thunderstorms changed that idea to a quick tidal pool on the Potomac in downtown DC. The canoe was still on the roof from the day before so why not. The trick to fishing the tidal areas and creeks is to concentrate at low tide. Why? Because it pulls and forces the fish and water out of the floodplain. Out of the forest, out of sea of spatter dock and concentrates the fish to the channels that always hold water. These said channels are usually not very wide. Any other time I'd fish DC or the tidal Potomac like in the spring for the big cows, I'd concentrate around high tide and the strong current after high tide. The currents are often canceled out with an incoming tide combined with the natural outflowing current of the river. No current almost always equals poor fishing. So... what tide was it when Diego and I finally hit the water at 10am? It was high tide. Oh well. A wise man once said, "Fish when you can." We work our way into the the most difficult corner only accessible in kayak or canoe. There's a tributary here that I've seen choker block full of 3 pound bass and lure crazed catfish. Not to leave out the target species... the top water loving Snakehead. I couldn't believe it when I came up empty in the creek. It was perfect. Plenty of water, a confined channel but no fish??? I think it needed more of a current and less water elsewhere. The spatter dock fields were completely flooded. The new moon tide had pushed water way back into the trees. Casting even a weedless live target frog back into there is futile. We had one blow up and that's it. Then we decided to paddle through the middle. I stood up in the canoe while Diego sat in the front. We spooked something to our right. Then I saw it, a good size snakehead cruising out in the open. The water was a couple feet deep then who knows how many feet of grass. At least a coupe because we'd often see holes in the grass just begging to have a big worm dropped in them. I then proceeded to try a Live Target Bluegill wake bait. This thing is so life like you'd expect it to breath. The attention to detail in this lure is outstanding. It didnt' take long to hook up with the first quality bass. A few jumps later and we have a 2.5 pounder in the boat. Time was running out as Diego basically has his 2 year old nap time free. His wife might crucify him if he's 5 minutes late now a days with two kids. I must admit, I do not know what it's like watching two youngins at once. <br />
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The wind is pushing us a good clip parallel to shore with a good drop off from the spatter dock. I had just said, "This is where we're going to stick a nice fish. Any minute now." Sometimes I make these sound affects when I make a good cast day dreaming of an explosion on the surface from a fish. Well just after I made one of those said sound affects, I got the real thing. Good swirl, and a good fight. I could tell however that it was not a bass. It would have jumped by now. The fight was more like a catfish. It was something long and skinny spinning on the line or rolling on it. I got the fish very near the boat and it charged under it. Still don't know what it was. Then all of a sudden it surfaces and all hell breaks loose practically in Diego's lap. He got a good soaking. Finally it chills out and the target species is in the boat. A nice 5 pound 24 inch snakehead. They reportedly make pretty good eating. Virgina and MD say you must kill it. Isn't it funny how they have consumption advisory warnings on just about all other fish in the river except snakehead? Sure, go ahead. They are fine. They are a delicacy. Yea Chef Juan Claude could prepare a stick and it would taste good. Killing one snakehead is like pissing on a forest fire. There are millions of them. I don't kill any of the blue catfish I catch either and there are ten thousand times more blues than Snakehead. A blue catfish can get 100 pounds. A snakehead might get 20. Oh... there was an article recently that states Maryland will now recognize state record catches of snakehead and rewards are given for breaking that record. Well, this was not a record. Right now it's around 17.5 pounds. I have however seen world record potential snakehead in a tiny tributary right smack in the middle of downtown DC. You might have heard of this creek. It has an enormous and popular regional park. It practically splits DC in half. Anyway, there's isn't much tidal water where there are not snakeheads right now. Even the eastern shore has them. The pristine freshwater swamp known as Black Water Wildlife Refuge has snakeheads.<br />
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The MD portions of the tidal Potomac where snakeheads are common and reportedly originated from seem like the numbers are stabilizing or even dropping. Night time bow fishing for them is incredibly popular and affective thus drastically cutting back their numbers. But in Washington DC, you're not allowed to bow fish. Sure, go ahead and try it right next to National Airport. You'd probably get double tapped in the forehead from a sniper in the bushes. So, therefore there are a few more snakehead in our nations capital than the rest of the river. So go fish it. <br />
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Tight lines. <br />
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-82616391457598867492014-07-20T17:56:00.001-07:002014-07-21T12:08:26.969-07:00The best bait of all.... I remember when I was a kid I had a Field and Stream article with the same title. "The Best Bait of All." I'll get into what that bait was in a minute. Well, Ryan and I took a couple hours this afternoon to visit a local pond. A new pond to me starting this year but no more than a few miles away. I had done very well there this year both with Ryan and without. One trip without him I scored numerous quality bass, including one pushing 3 pounds in the middle of the day on a spinner bait. That same day I had an encounter with two or three other fish that were well into that trophy size class. But they were hesitant as you might imagine a large well educated lunker fish would be. These big fish came in hot, which is usually the kiss of death but never did commit. I remember thinking..... I know what will get them. It's not always the most glorious of tactics. But it's a sure fire way of sealing the deal. What you ask? Bluegill. In a farm pond there isn't much else but bluegill and bass. Maybe some frogs and dragon flies.. which there were plenty of those today and bass 12 inches and under were launching their aerial pursuit attacks at the damsel flies over the pond all day today. But if you want that giant, you've got to throw what's there. Of course there's a turtle in this pond that would scare even the Turtle Man. Absolutely gigantic. A few other turtles were harassing our baits too. But the first bluegill we caught on a fly rod went out. It got hit just seconds after splashing down. The bass bull dogged into the weeds and was near impossible to pull through. Ryan was reeling the rod and I tried to help by pulling on the braid to pull the fish out of the dense hydrilla matts. No go. Broke the line. So I decided to tie straight braid to the hook. The hook was a 3/0 VMC worm hook. Nothing fancy. Nice and big. The bluegill were rather large, bigger than I'd want to cast normally but oh well. It was either kind of large or very very small. The next fish hit shortly after the bait touched down. The bobber was set with maybe two feet of line below it. The bluegill often freaks out the second you cast it but then just chills. Usually laying motionless for a while. But when a predator gets near they start freaking out. They could only just barely pull the bobber under on their own and only for a second or so. I could actually see the bluegill swimming in circles to try and avoid the bass. It's amazing that they can swim so fast with a hook and line attached to them. Ryan ran to the rod and did all the work. How he was able to pull it through the weeds I have no idea. Somehow this fish just wanted to be caught. Another fish almost the exact same size followed it the entire way in too! Unbelievable one fish this size was in there but two? Success and high fives. Ryan was thrilled. We managed a couple more on the bluegill rig before calling it quits. We lost a few more too and the one I never did get to see that Ryan said was much much stronger and bigger. <br />
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But there was this one fish. I threw out the largest bluegill. The kind that could be a filleted. Why I don't know but didn't feel like getting something more suitable. The bigger ones are easier to hook on a size #18 pheasant tail dropped under a bluegill popper on a 3wt fly rod. Sometimes the bait fishing is too much fun. I first saw the bobber dip down for a second. Then dart in a few different directions. That's when I saw the silhouette. An absolute giant fish. 28 inches maybe? A bass that long you say? 24". I'd venture to say the fish we caught was 23 inches with a girth to match. A 6 pound fish in all likelihood. But the fish I saw out there tonight that came for only a single visit and decided something wasn't right and never returned.... now that fish will keep me coming back. <br />
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-89598620755774932912014-07-19T11:45:00.001-07:002014-07-19T11:49:06.256-07:00Dark night, tough bite So John and I just had to go again. We couldn't resist. I purchased a few different kinds of wake baits hoping to really get into the walleye again. The bite we had on the full moon could be considered excellent... what will a moonless night produce? It was about a half moon which did not come out till around 1130 or. We fished on Thursday, July 17, 2014 from about 830 to 1200am. We arrive just at twilight, well past sunset. The river looked beautiful. Not a breath of wind, a sheet of glass interrupted by a few rings from rising fish. There was a heavy mayfly and midge hatch at the time. What should we start off with... well, we both wanted to try for walleye. My wake live Target blue gill, 3" lure gets the first try. John and I cast simultaneously. I hook up on the very first cast or maybe second. Nice fish, our lines are crossed, I lose pressure and it gets off. Likely a walley, maybe smallmouth, not a musky. The musky usually like a current break and we didn't really have one here. But then we tried around the bend where we did have the current break. Walleye or musky hold in this type of water. They could be in the riffle, like the 2 foot deep riffle or out in the eddy or the main current. No telling where and we've hooked them from all habitat areas. But this one ledge I knew was there was a long bomb of a cast out... maybe 60 yards from the rock. It can be done with the right lure. I use a spook a few times and nothing. Then I try a good old Smack It Still Water.. my number one striper top water bait... tarpon too. I'm jerking it the Pop Pop....... Pop retrieve that worked so well on Monomoy flats several years ago. It's completely dark. Near zero visibility. Then we hear it. The most jaw dropping of surface explosions. We literally heard the fish somersault, tailwalk and crash back into the water. This fish came completely out of the water for the lure and must have landed tail first long ways as we heard the whole thing as if we could see it broad daylight. I may have only felt a tick in the line, or a brief pause. The fish completely missed the lure??? That happens... unfortunately. Sometimes these fish just whiff big time. Whether on purpose or not but one can't argue this fish wasn't hot. I try a few more lures and nothing. We switch back to walleye for an hour or so to rest the fish. It's getting late and John and I decide to try again. We both get to the water about the same time. I let him go first thinking he'd take the rock tip to walk out on. But instead he walks along the bank more, getting much closer to the offshore ledge where this fish was hiding. I've missed a few from that ledge several times over the years and always figured you had to cast from this rock point to reach it. But John just walked 20 yards down the muddy bank and got 20 yards closer. Dumb dumb me. Oh well. I cast first and sure enough I get a good swirl. No idea how big the fish is. Same one maybe? Walleye maybe but doubtful. <br />
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John throws a huge wooden walk the dog and he gets another jaw dropping out of the water strike. Then nothing next cast or two. Then another surface explosion. This time much, much closer to shore. The fish must have followed it. Or do we have multiple fish here? All reasonable possibilities. He then throws a jointed traditional musky wake bait. Something that has a steady retrieve. Something that would be a lot easier for a musky to track and attack. Sometimes you just got to keep it simple. If the fish is hot a steady retrieve should do the job. We both thought it would just make sense. I cast a huge jointed wake bait that was just gigantic with the same thought. Another strike! This time John's hooked up. I soon remembered the reason why I didn't like walking down the muddy bank. There's a down tree parallel to shore there. Who knows how much of it is under water. If his fish goes in there, it's over. I drop my rod and run over. But I'm not much help. The fish jumps a few times but is looking near done. Then again he has this look that he's going to give one more jump. One more right next to shore with 2 trebles in his mouth just begging to dig into my leg. I crab the leader and John's worried it's going to come off. We beach it on the mud. But the fish is still ticked off. Twice we almost ended up with jewelry. Get the fish off. The opposite side of the mouth has a distinct hook mark. Very recent too. Other than that a very healthy, slender fish. Once released it didn't go far. It kind of turned back around and hung near shore. When I tried to revive it more it would take off with a huge splash but then just sit there. We ended up taking it into the current more in direct cold flow. Most of the area we were fishing is still below 80 degrees for a variety of reasons from springs and seepage. It mixes quickly with the warmer river. This time it was obvious the catch took a toll on this fish. But not likely too much of a toll. The fish should be fine. It was not deep hooked and we kept it in the water most of the time for hook removal and pictures. But this very well may be the last time for a while. Concentrate on bass and walleye. Weird how we didn't score one walleye. The moonless night was just too dark? Or was it because that musky was around? Who knows. I'm sure that same fish and others were around the other night too but for some reason didn't want to play. I don't think I worked that ledge well the other night. Who knows. Here's John's Muksy. Nice fish, just shy of 40 inches. <br />
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<img alt="Displaying photo.JPG" aria-hidden="true" class="aLF-aPX-J1-J3" height="526" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=7c7133124b&view=fimg&th=1474fcf2476a9b58&attid=0.1&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ9RMY_dCv6xuYozvH9TGqUWR0oXOFexNyONBHKsF0l7DkPEp1Q2zZZz0L-1lv7pPlZP0uWBvYWXjcuAESJHgoMSia7nSAwxn4zhMh3tQser48ZLbXcKN5TrKls&ats=1405795298467&rm=1474fcf2476a9b58&zw&sz=w1334-h526" width="701" /><br />
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I'm off to Canada next weekend. Hopefully booking Musky Rush Charters for a day. Only going for a three day weekend trip. Really not enough time to book a charter but oh well. We'll see. Then in three weeks I'm going back again, this time to Ottawa on the Ottawa River.. land of giants. Hopefully this year I can connect. Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-38445752843356480032014-07-15T17:32:00.004-07:002014-07-15T17:32:49.022-07:00My faith in the Full Moon is back!!John C and I had an incredible full moon outing recently. This will be our last musky outing for a while because of the heat and the danger of over exhausting or killing the fish in warm water. But that's why we chose night time under a full moon. We started with fly rods hoping to break our musky fly rod cherry but came up empty... Except for one big largemouth. But a properly presented top water walk the dog retrieve almost always works some of time. This is one of my better fish. The strike was as vicious as they get. The tail walk, followed by complete chaos has played in my mind all week. The ballistic nature of these fish is tough to put into words after the initial strike coupled with shallow water. Complete awesomeness. The walleye bite was excellent too. These big walleye also wanted top water!? Or baits just under the surface. Fun stuff, one of our best Shanendoha outings. All fish released strong. Oh.. The carp came at the end of the night like 4am. We had beat the water to a froth with everything under the sun. We had not caught a target species, something with teeth, in an hour or more. Then I hook into something absolutely gigantic. This thing takes over 100 yards of line!! But it never jumped? John was working a mulberry tree catching decent channel cats a little ways up river and I screamed loud enough for him to hear me back home. Even with a medium heavy outfit I was powerless to stop this fish. State record lunge for sure!. The shock and disappointment when I found out it was a carp I accidentally snagged in the belly was devastating. But they sure do command respect when they get that big. I'd say that carp was 30 pounds!! Anyway.... Crazy good fishing and we didn't drive more than 2 hours from DC. We had a citation size carp, musky and walleye and narrowly missed a channel cat and largemouth citation in one night! We Are really lucky to have such good fisheries so close to home. <br />
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-46724408011203125002014-06-18T11:34:00.000-07:002014-06-18T16:00:39.329-07:00<br />
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Been busy but managed to get out on the water quite a
bit lately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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First, </div>
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Friday, June 13, 2014 John C and I hit the <st1:place w:st="on">Potomac</st1:place>
in DC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We received an insane amount of
rain over the last few days basically decimating the <st1:place w:st="on">Potomac
river</st1:place> watershed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I had
a plan and an idea that parts of DC would still be fishable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was a wall of mud mid channel but
gravelly point at the boat ramp looked great.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The Main river had zero visibility.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Looked for mulberry trees but the ones I thought would be good were not
ripe yet?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When others are almost
done?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No carp but found clear water in
the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Anacostia</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">River</st1:placetype></st1:place> and one other place and bailed
striped bass almost every cast up to 22 inches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Most about 18".<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good fun in
the final hour.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There's still fishable
water when the main river is brown poo!</div>
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Took a break from fishing on Saturday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think… Gabe, my oldest left for boy scout
summer camp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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Sunday was father’s day and I convinced my wife and son to go on a float trip
with me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Except the local waters were
too high and muddy but I thought Antietam Creek might be fishable with the USGS
graph reading in the neighborhood of 350 cfs I think it was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was an exploratory trip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We put in at Devils Back Bone and floated
down to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Burns</st1:placename><st1:placename w:st="on">ide</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Bridge</st1:placetype></st1:place>
take out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The bridge where over 600 men
died on in a single day during the civil war.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The picture shows the bridge in the back
ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One would think there would be a
better way to flank the Confederate solders at the top of the ridge than run
everyone through the pinch point to certain death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> The history was worth the trip even.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The float was over 8 miles and we didn’t
start till mid day afternoon time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The water
was a little turbid but somewhat fishable still.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ryan caught two fish at the put in at Devils
Back bone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The same area that is heavily
stocked with trout in season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He caught
a rock bass and a fall fish in short order.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I thought the rest of the trip would be excellent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The creek is full of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mayfly nymphs and stone fly nymphs paint
every rock in the riffles. Water temps were in the low 60's. Perfect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rather
prolific stream.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It should be dynamite right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well we didn’t catch too many fish but with 8
miles to cover on a canoe and a wife who wanted to get home asap and only
wanted to read her book in the front of the canoe meant I had to do most of the
maneuvering.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was still a good
time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was remote as could be with
very few people on the river.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought
I heard banjos a few times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mayflies
hatched most of the day, some fish responded too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We caught a few small bass and even a small
brown trout.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stream bred maybe, miles from the stocked section.</div>
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The next day my wife took Ryan to the beach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That meant I had a few days alone to work and
fish of course. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On Monday after work I
wanted to hit the bay bridge pilings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fought
the worse traffic imaginable getting over <st1:place w:st="on">Severn river</st1:place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Finally hit the water at 6pm. No current!!
Thought tide chart showed strong incoming at 730?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well at 730. It turned on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bailed mostly 17" fish on the pilings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Found better grade of fish suspended on
deeper pilings. Probably caught ten over 20", best 24".<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jigging 7 inch white zoom flukes on 3/4oz
head did the trick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The bite really came
on at sunset.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Decent close by fishing…
close as when there isn’t any traffic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
didn’t see my bed till after 11pm because I washed the boat afterwards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First time this spring.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was growing things inside it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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Tuesday… June 17, 2014 I hit the <st1:place w:st="on">Potomac</st1:place>
again with John C.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This time we opted
for somewhere closer to home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
temperatures broke heat records all over the place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sweat just poured out of us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The kind of miserable Washingtonian summer
heat with air thick enough to cut with a knife was upon us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Probably my least favorite time of year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Possibly the worse time of year to go fishing
too except this is when most people want to go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So be it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s better than
sitting on the couch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What we found was
one of the thickest, most numerous sulphur mayfly hatch I have probably ever
seen!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tens of thousands of bugs filled
the air. We literally had hundreds laying on us while we drove the boat. It was
almost dark and we still had to wear sunglasses or else we'd go blind! There
were so many bugs on the water Id say there were 5 bugs per square foot from <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Virginia</st1:place></st1:state> to MD! Pretty
spectacular. We were after carp under mulberry trees and had a tough time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We located three trees in close proximity to
each other hanging over the water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Probably the same tree where last year John had an excellent day on
giant carp munching on berries and willingly taking dry flies. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The water is still very off color and more
swift than we'd like. Didn't see any carp and only a few rises. I'd suspect the
fishing might be better once the water comes down a hair and clears a little.
We did have one giant blow up from a musky in an area where I’ve scored
before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This tiny scheduled spot is
under the radar, tucked away where no one would notice it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it’s also a mine field of woody
debris.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The last few years a log had
completely cut off access unless you were in a kayak or a very low gunnel boat
in low water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this tree has since
washed away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there are other trees
just as large littering the deep slow water making it nearly impossible to
cast, yet alone pull a fish out of the area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>To make maters worse, the down trees back up a lot of other floating
debris such as leaves, sticks, and other lure fouling crap. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
are not nearly the numbers down here as there are up river so any encounter
with the top predator is always a welcome surprise. The lure I was using mimics
a wood duck chick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has a prop on the rear
like an out board and sounds almost similar. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I saw one female wood duck the other day with
14 chicks!!! Yes 14. Big bass and musky will cut that to less than half in a
week or two. Throwing big top water to heart stopping surface explosions is
about as good as it gets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We each took
turns casting, respectively allowing the other to get a cast in the same
sequence as each other. But this one time maybe John pushed me just right into
position.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The top raider was turning
through the mine field between two enormous down trees when the fish hit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was like an alligator with gold and bronze
sides smashing the lure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No question it
was what we were after.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had a rod
capable of throwing a cinder block so I stood a good chance of heaving the
musky over the tree that was just a foot under the surface.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or so I thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fish thrashed once and turned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just then the top treble hook of the lure
gets caught in the darn tree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fish
rolled and was gone. Just like that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>John was next up to bat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was
working a surface walk the dog type lure and another surface strike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then almost simultaneously another surface swirl
happened three feet or more from his lure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was the same fish except that was its tail!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fish was that big that it made the two
swirls at the same time as it turned around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This fish is no joke.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was the
only fish we encountered all evening but wow was it well worth it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Till
next time. <br />
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Tight lines, <br />
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Jon Griffiths<br />
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Here's John covered with mayflies. The white stuff on his shirt is dried sweat. haha<br />
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The floor of the boat <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx1EgqNheR3xZP9hyphenhyphen9OgveGdnkUVtMDIf5Z_URsdI2iPPgMCOQ1iU2uqJbQrZhRHJM-43nYavpFEi1n5DcsenZM4_UBQaVeT5Tf0Itb-2jizZ5cDaq8mTQU9Q9Ms73j5XjBqssm0SOwzk/s1600/P6170486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx1EgqNheR3xZP9hyphenhyphen9OgveGdnkUVtMDIf5Z_URsdI2iPPgMCOQ1iU2uqJbQrZhRHJM-43nYavpFEi1n5DcsenZM4_UBQaVeT5Tf0Itb-2jizZ5cDaq8mTQU9Q9Ms73j5XjBqssm0SOwzk/s1600/P6170486.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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My lap<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1_su98YCqcBINBmFD-db6vxnSoYJfhAdUyeR5DEwqd1lYlXH9LnVieI9Y0_rZ_EhmDabUb6jbPWNa5bVuLe0vqvuefE1KTeaoPYeQvl1Y9FN4aiw5n1Xq4KZEpmri9IkaVsVsBM20Yzs/s1600/P6170491.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1_su98YCqcBINBmFD-db6vxnSoYJfhAdUyeR5DEwqd1lYlXH9LnVieI9Y0_rZ_EhmDabUb6jbPWNa5bVuLe0vqvuefE1KTeaoPYeQvl1Y9FN4aiw5n1Xq4KZEpmri9IkaVsVsBM20Yzs/s1600/P6170491.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a>The floor of the boat again</div>
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My lap again. This was while flying down river on plane getting constantly pelted with bugs. </div>
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Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-44833459386115075222014-06-10T05:37:00.000-07:002014-06-10T11:33:24.739-07:00A little more local trout stream scoutingSome people may know what this stream is and I'll give more than enough information without actually supplying the name. It's a tailwater stream in suburban Maryland, less than 5 miles from my house. Year round cool water, supports trout well, is stocked by trout in the class room with a few hundred fingerling rainbows every year and sometimes the state has an extra load of fingerling fish. It was once a catch and release stream in the 90's but was "de-listed" because it did not amount to the quality of the other "famous" trout streams in the state. Well, that's because it was never stocked with adult trout when it was a catch and release stream. In the 80's it was a put and take stream and was stocked well. The fish thrived year long, even after bait chunkers cleared the place out. Anyway... it's often been said it does not have the habitat. Which is true under low summer flows but there is a base flow of water to this stream and the trout know how to move to survive. I've personally seen trout in the last few years to 18 inches, shocked up over 50 trout in a 75 meter stretch with MNCPPC and the DNR a few years ago including a 16.5" brown. No one has stocked browns in years. Last year, in the warmest part of the summer the state stocked browns and rainbows but they said the temperature in the stocking truck compared to the creek was near 30 degrees different and the trout didn't make it. Yes, 30 degrees. The water in the summer is often near 50 degrees even a mile from the dam. <br />
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Anyway, here's some pictures of this poor habitat. and yes, there are trout there. This area hasn't been stocked in 20 plus years. The trout have found a way. Yesterday I caught a beautiful, hook jaw male rainbow that was as round as a k2 football and near 12 inches long underneath one of these boulders. I was prepping the fish for a picture and it flopped out of my hands. I even saw what I think was a March brown dancing over a riffle. It was a large mayfly, with long anal antennae but unfortunately I only saw one. If you look back a few reports you'll see the results of a fine afternoon of fishing in less than two hours effort I managed 5 trout what the DNR would consider adults. And adult trout have not been stocked in 20 years! Awesome fishery but it gets no respect or protection. It's considered a natural trout stream with the standard two trout a day limit. If someone planning on keeping trout fished this stream in a little over a week keeping two trout a day... it would ruin it. The few fish that avoid the predators and each other could not take any harvest. <br />
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Anyway, here's some "poor" habitat for a Piedmont stream. Enjoy. <br />
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Here's a shot from earlier this winter. </div>
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<br />Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061339210400426575.post-2286892620927124192014-06-09T08:46:00.002-07:002014-06-09T08:51:42.499-07:00June is coming along wellSo I stuck with the plan and hit the Potomac again this weekend in search of musky. And it paid off. First we fished most of the day on Saturday with little to show for it except for a few bass and one decent walleye on a tube while fishing the skinny riffles. The walleye was a welcome surprise. It's not like they can just vanish because it's summer. These fish probably set up just like a smallmouth in the well oxygenated water of the riffles and rapids and ambush prey just like a bass. Not only did we catch the walleye but we also saw a Lynx or Bob cat (lynx rufus rufus) come down to the waters edge for a drink in the mid day sun. It was on the WV side of the river in steep topography at a near impassible riffle or series of ledges on the river. We figured the spot where we saw the bobcat was as good as any to stop the boat and fish for bass in the fast water. We were hitting ledges and rocks every few seconds in this area too. This was also the spot the walleye turned up. Go figure. A lynx and a walleye... truly "Wild and Wonderful". One would think we were in the deep north of Canada. But we were merely an hour north of Washington DC. <br />
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Anyway... on Saturday the sun was high, clear skies, temps pushing 80 plus degrees. Water temps started off at 71 but climbed to above 75 by mid day. We didn't even get a sighting of a musky. No idea why. Too nice a day probably. We fished from approx 930am to 930pm. We thought we'd have the energy to fish after sun down once we ate dinner but that didn't happen. We were both exhausted and crashed harder than toddler after a play date. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFMG1FjAxoF6E-dFThIjma78nWmOmaKNNuQXDrXUKO6UWW2CBVfA1EowXQQ2xQ64zTiVdqWHqbJnMEGx7Cdilte-wz_m-KIi6_WrYCPBMey_w3OSmy-RdTalgDMCAPAjSrYSQUByIVwG8/s1600/IMG_1634%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFMG1FjAxoF6E-dFThIjma78nWmOmaKNNuQXDrXUKO6UWW2CBVfA1EowXQQ2xQ64zTiVdqWHqbJnMEGx7Cdilte-wz_m-KIi6_WrYCPBMey_w3OSmy-RdTalgDMCAPAjSrYSQUByIVwG8/s1600/IMG_1634%5B1%5D.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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The next morning I was up before sunrise. The barred owls in the area were causing a ruckus but I just can't sleep in when I'm sleeping river side knowing that the best time of the day to have a line in the water is wasting away while I lay in a tent. We set up the tents on a known musky hot spot on the inside of a sharp meander in one of the deepest pools around. This spot once awarded me a fine musky of 42 inches one mid February a couple years ago. It was possibly the ideal winter spot for a musky with deep water, current break but maybe not the best June or summer spot. These fish will take up all habitat types this time of year. The water temps are not too high where they must seek cool water. Oxygen levels are probably optimal and therefore they can basically roam free. One float last year about this time of year we even spotted a large musky in a shallow run just above a riffle that was less than 2 feet deep. The fish spooked so it must have been hunting that area. So in other words, anywhere and everywhere could hold a fish right now. and they should be feeding well. Now is the time. I know I've said that before. <br />
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So... we worked a few decent looking areas along the shore. Casting to likely current breaks. Diego was using a lure similar to a "tornado" where the lure doubles as a spinner bait sub surface or a surface buzz bait depending upon how quickly you reeled it in. It made more noise than your average buzz bait and it was rigged with a skirt and stinger hook, as well as with a tieable wire trace. We had just fished a good looking eddy when we came to a large wood pile. Behind it was another good looking eddy. My lure fell a few feet short of it mark when Diego's was already in mid cast. It was a dead calm, clear morning with fog coming off the river. The silence was broken with the river just opened up and this large musky just annihilated the lure. It was the kind of strike you dream about. There was absolutely zero hesitation on this take. The fish then proceeded to cartwheel and tail walk just like a steelhead or tarpon. Gills fared, teeth showing... The most pissed off fish that swims but on an awesome show. Diego did well fighting the fish and I immediately got the net ready. Success. Diego's first. They say a musky is a fish of 10000 casts.... This fish was took a lot more than that. But success is so sweet. I was equally happy if not more that he caught one. Finally. this might be Diego's last extended fishing trip in quite a while. Baby number two is on the way and knocking at the door. It was a good farewell. For now. Couldn't have worked out better. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Fb5F7v3TberptTvMLFAvUr6TGYsQ_9X2IJg17DrQr_wP_5W526oQ_Tysa-cHTqmd-4TVtpC8FB03queP3HqZ2gCrzj8uOL41lpFULL_1KqzosrnOqk8jUA6MzwAZN9glFimyhTNg15E/s1600/IMG_1637%255B1%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Fb5F7v3TberptTvMLFAvUr6TGYsQ_9X2IJg17DrQr_wP_5W526oQ_Tysa-cHTqmd-4TVtpC8FB03queP3HqZ2gCrzj8uOL41lpFULL_1KqzosrnOqk8jUA6MzwAZN9glFimyhTNg15E/s1600/IMG_1637%255B1%255D.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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The fish hit around 730am but we continued to fish till after 9. By now Diego was getting nervous and insisted we leave. We talked about hitting one last spot near the ramp on the way in. We did and came up empty. Diego took control of the trolling motor and started heading to the ramp. Just then my line went tight and the storm giant flat stick got smashed. This was another decent musky, maybe not as big, 32 inches or so but had plenty of attitude. I caught this fish on the extra heavy musky mojo rod and beat him pretty quick but not before several jumps. Doesn't get much better when two good friends score a nice fish each. <br />
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Till next time. Jon Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03912415811567184644noreply@blogger.com0