Only had one bite today, but it was a good one.

I haven't caught a Smallmouth Bass in 19 years. And the last one was off of a rocky flat on a Southern Wisconsin lake.

This 17-inch was sitting on a sandy beach-like island shore. No rocks anywhere to be seen in the one or two-foot shallow water. The "magic time" was between 10 and 12 today, and it hit at 10:15. Strangely, it sucked in a Wacky Rigged Senko, just like the largemouth bass have been doing.

It pulled enough to make me believe that I had either the largest LM bass that I had ever caught, (It pulled far more than the 21 inch LM bass from a week or so ago), or it was a big catfish. Neither was true. Loved the fight.

Let's do it again! rich

Awesome Fish! The fight blows away a largemouth bass fight.

Nice smallie Rich, yea they sure can put up a battle compared to those green carp you've been catching, (AKA LM bass)! :lol:

Never thought I'd say this, but it pulled almost as hard as a redfish of similar size.

Luv smallies

smallies are probably what I spend the most time chasing species wise, enough so my boat is pretty well dedicated with a jet on it now for smallie rivers.

richg99 said:

Never thought I'd say this, but it pulled almost as hard as a redfish of similar size.

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Do you have lotsa redfish places near you in Houston? I have done Rockport a couple of times, and what a hoot.

Yep. I am 80 Miles from some great flats. Cery few fish, pound for pound, can out-pull a redfish.

richg99 said:

Yep. I am 80 Miles from some great flats. Cery few fish, pound for pound, can out-pull a redfish.

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I would say a bluefish and a ladyfish would pull harder pound for pound. Ladyfish gives the best aerial show I have seen. Caught a snook in the Ft.Pierce inlet with out going tide. Wow! Double wow! But the current probably had a lot to do with it.

Ladyfish....Nahhhhhhhh! Great aerial display, no power.

I've caught a 7 lb. Bonefish....THAT one, probably, pound for pound, beats a redfish.

A decent sized Jack Crevalle will beat a redfish, pound for pound.

A big Striper will pull hard, but a 40 lb striper can't be compared to a 10 lb redfish.

A big tarpon is a mighty beast, but no way a 10 lb. tarpon will OUTPULL a 10 lb. red.

Aerial displays are different than PULL, IMHO.

I've never caught a 10 lb. Blue, but I wouldn't be surprised if it could win a contest between it and a red. Biggest I ever caught was maybe one lb. or two.

Muskies, at least the three 35 inchers (or so) and the one 51 incher that I caught have a fight life of about two minutes, at best.
rich

In this discussion, we have left out any discussion of catfish. They can pull really, really hard. I caught a 24-inch cat this week. It gave me a good fight.

rich

Needlenose/Longnose Gar will pull hard and give you an aerial display. They will bring witnesses to your boat to find out how you are catching them.

I haven't caught a gar of any size for 40 years or so. I'll bet you are right.

Another fish that will pull your heart out is the Grinnel/Bowfin/Mudfish. They say they go back to prehistoric times. I caught one some 50 years ago and didn't know what I had. What a fight, and it was only 14/15 inches long!

I don't know what a redfish is. I googled it and all I could find is lots of fish are called redfish.

Do you happen to know another name for what you call a redfish? Just curious.

LDUBS said:

I don't know what a redfish is. I googled it and all I could find is lots of fish are called redfish.

Do you happen to know another name for what you call a redfish? Just curious.

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Red Drum aka Spot Tail Bass

Thanks. I remember seeing those as one of the common ones called redfish.

I guess my fishing horizon is kind of narrow. We don't have redfish, gar, bonefish, or tarpon that I know of. Also don't have pike or muskies out here in my neck of the woods.

I just landed a 17-18" smallmouth yesterday on the Delaware. It might have been the biggest smallmouth I've caught out there in 40 years of fishing it. I wasn't even going to go out with showers popping up all day long but I hadn't checked on the boat in 5 days so I grabbed my hat, my rod and a beer and went up to the boat. I figured I could get in an hour of fishing so I went up a mile and floated down. I don't have a cell phone so I couldn't get a picture of it and I always forget to take my camera. I caught an 8", 11", 13" and the 17-18" on a Mann's crankbait so it was much better results than I expected.

Great job. Fun catching them when you don't expect to. Rich

I've caught my share of cats blues, channels, and flats combined more blues and channels thans flatties. Of the catfish flatties pull the hardest pound for pound. When I have fished below kentucky dam and the mcalpine lock and dam at louisville I never know what may decide to bite when I drifting and bumping cut bait or live bait. On good days when everything seems to be biting I have caught freshwater drum, wipers (hybrid white bass/stripe bass), channel cat, flat head, blue cat, gar, and even those god for saken big head asian carp. I have caught some redfish not tons but enough of them from 14" up to over 40", and I love fishing for smallies biggest one being a 21" smallmouth I got in michigan. For me I would honestly say I think redfish (red drum) and freshwater drum fight the hardest if smallmouth got as big as them maybe they'd give them a run for the money idk. For me I love getting a 15" plus smallie on light tackle. Cats fight, but drum just pull, and never seem to give it be it red drum aka redfish, black drum, or freshwater drum I've heard people call freshwater drum two other things white perch and sheep head. Gar can put up a good fight and give a good aerial show, but just don't have the pull like drum. Hybrids aka wipers (stripe bass white bass hybrid) put up a heck of a fight especially in some current.

But when I have fished the falls at mcalpine near louisville or below kentucky dam when I have been catching multiple species I can always tell when I have a drum cause of how hard it pulls. Now the few really big cats I have gotten fight really well, the few blue cats I have gotten pushing or 40" didn't compare to drag peeling freight trains that bull reds are that I've caught out at oil rigs in Louisiana. Only thing that has pulled harder than a big bull red that I've had experience with are sharks. I'm like rich for as fierce as musky seem the three I have caught granted weren't big only between 35-40" kind of just gave up after a rather short hard fight.

What I love about smallies is often when I get a good one and get it close to the boat it's like they get pissed seeing it and will a lot of times make a last run. Never have gotten a tarpon or schnook would love to though I'm gonna have to change that hopefully with my dad as he just got a place in florida to retire to so hopefully will be making trips down there to fish with him. Can't find a picture of when I was musky fishing in michigan and don't have any good ones of any bigger catfish. People say steelhead fight great I don't know that's something I need to change as well haven't gotten one of those yet either.

Good fish stories. Nothing like those memories, other than creating a new one.
rich