hengstthomas
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That time is upon us 
MY 1st Trip (March 14th)
A certain person was hounding me to go catch fish and swore he never met "anyone" that could "outfish" him . We make plans to fish from 9pm to sun up . We arrive and i saw more surface activity including feeding fish than I have to this day for this year . I made a total of about 10 casts and hooked up on the last only to have the lure fail . The fish made 2 hard fast runs digging in the whole time and then .. Nothing . I reeled in the front "O" Ring attached to a large staple looking thing a that pulled out of the lure . The guy with me had run to the car and just returned saying he wasnt feeling well and needed to go home because he forgot his heart medicine . I couldnt argue but I was heart broken knowing my trips were limited this year .
EVERYTHING WAS PERFECT
We had a few cold snaps which pevented me from returning on the few night I had means so I stayed local and played with Crappie . Jimmy and I took the canoe out at Williams Pond . We started out on the shore but Jimmy was having a time hooking up so we just hit the water . We hit a spot I got in the back where Crappie and LMB like to hold but these fish are just a bit smaller on average than the deeper hole near the road (both sides) . The fish are there but even fishing the same lure in the same spot didnt help Jimmy and I couldnt figure out why until a fish I had hooked up ran into his line and we got tangled . While untangling the line I noticed he had Crystal Fireline attached direct to the 1/32 jig
I feel bad that it took me so long to figure that out but on a good note his hookups increased and he started to get on the bite
I had 3 days of which I didnt get out at all .. I volunteered to do some work on a friends car and it took awhile . On day 3 I was ready ..
Northern Stripers 3-26
I met up with Esquired at about midnight and we fished together till about 4am and in that time we saw some activity . I hooked a Herring or Shad and got a few scales and had 2 bites in that time frame . Super Googan showed up sometime around 1 or 2 am and said he lost a fish and had one on that wrapped around a rock and popped off .
Not sure what time he left but it wasnt too long after we spoke .
David decided to call it quits and I took a coffee break and shot the breeze with David for a few then hit the truck for a quick blast of heat and was back fishing at 4:30am . David you now whats coming dontcha J/K
I got the first fish that was 40" on my third cast .
2 schoolies and a 36"
Dont Ask
David had asked what I was using and I had "Old Faithful" on and said I probably would not change but did end up throwing a Black Broken Back Bomber for awhile I took it off after my second cast and put "Old Faithful" back on and that was the 3rd cast . I should have known .. Its only been a hot bait every spring for 5 years now . Needless to say the other 3 fish also fell prey to "OF" as well .Landed 4 fish and had 2 more hookups with another hoss around 36"+ that popped off when I grabbed the leader .. She didnt have the lure in her mouth but under her chin .
The last fish was also almost a pop off but instead when I grabbed the leader I reached for the plug and grabbed it as soon as I could and lifted the fish from the rocks and when I turned she shook and jumped off and slammed into the rocks .. She twiched a few times after that but never regained enough strength to right herself as much as I tried .
The rain started at 4:30 as well and by 5:30am it was pouring so I retreated to under the bridge and didnt get anything there and did not feel like changing into dry cloths and rain gear so I just packed it in shortly after 5:30am .
So I killed that last fish and she measured 36" and was full of mid ripe roe and had an empty belly (I feel bad too as I marked this year ALL C&R)
Wish you could have stayed David .. Always a pleasure wetting a line with you .
3-27/28
Drew and I met up with esquired and his friend Mr Fish around 10pm . Drew and I hit the high tide spot and it wasnt long before Drew was hooked up but unfortunately he thought it was a rock until it swam upstream
The fish escapes int the night . David and Mike show up and havent done anything so Drew and I hit the highest point I fish . FYI the pool beflow the dam will hold fish as well as the next but I have found these unproductive at this time of year . So we hit the 4 pool which is as far as I go and the most unproductive of all the spots I fish at this time .
Supergoogan and wingsandwater show up and I even think Rob fished for awhile J/K Rob it was good to see ya again .. Wish you would have landed that fish
OK so fish 2 US ZERO .
Rob makes it an early night and Chris disappears after I tell him I am going in search of David and Mike .. Not to mention Drew who had stayed in the truck after a coffee break because his feet were wet from a leak .. Drew never recovered and slept through the wee hours . I left Chris and told him to stop by .. I was headed to the bridge .
I find no one there and hook up after a few casts but again the fish pops free . I had 2 more hook ups and lost a nice one at my feet . David and Mike show up about 25 minutes later from a coffee break .
Drew had hooked up earlier on a broken back Sil/Blk Bomber so I switched thinking a smaller profile might help land a fish tonight and I was right .. 2 casts and 2 bites and on the 3rd the fish slammed the lure and I land a 22 to 24 inch schoolie but the trebles were too close for comfort so I grabbed the leader and walked to the rocks .. the fish started to freak out and the line slipped so I layed the fish down . The fish flipped a few times and cut my leader on the rocks and in a blink had found a hole between rocks and made an escape with the only jointed lure I had with me ..
Mike hooks up a few casts later and after a short battle it was fish 4 US 1 .
The night had gotten away from us as it normally does and the sky started to get light .. I called David over in hopes he get a fish but the bite was over .
David and Mike split around 5:45am and I was right behind them .. Woke Drew up and headed South .
3-30 / 3-31
Met up with Jimmy around 8pm .. Kinda early which makes fishing real sketchy with the locals on the lose ..
While waiting for Jimmy I had got a few lures together that needed new hardware and while Jimmy got wadered up we changed the rusty hooks and "O"s for New .
We get down to the water and I immediately know I am late .. Lert on it wont matter but for now these fish like some water covering their back
We fish the whole bottom and leave at dead low to kill some time so we end up at an old friend of mine who lives near by and I have not seen or fished with in atleast 4 year . His name is Gary but goes by Mike and he was like me and a constant sidekick in my earlier years . It was a blast to catch up and I hope some day he returns to fish with me .
We made our way back at about 11pm .. Tide was as good as it gets even though we are on the wrong side of it
We get under the bridge and I see a bright light as Jimmy rounds the corner and say "What the heck is that?" . Jimmy syas he saw a cop and tried to duck but they must have saw him . I walk over to the corner just as the light dies and say WTF I pop out around the corner and the cop blasted me in the face with his light and started yelling .. I yelled back LOUDER as he starled me pretty good . Things calm down and he trys to tellme we cant be here and we arent allowed in the "Park" at night . I tell him I have been doing this for 25 years and never had an issue . The 2nd cop finally makes it down the rocky hill and proceed to look under the bridge where he see's 2 more guys and I though he was gonna have a baby .. he takes off while I try to convince Cop#1 that we are doing no wrong and how I drove from the beach and Jimmy from PA . Cop#2 returns and says that there are 2 more .. both from PA and fishing .
Cop#1 asks for ID and fishing license but never asks to see either while Cop#2 says "This is Tidal right?" I say yes so he says " Well you dont need a Fishing License for Tidal" so Jimmy and I set him straight and he says the guys from PA dont have FL but have ID . Cop#1 must have gotten something over the radio and left with a "Be careful guys" . Mark my word I would not have left without a serious fight (not physical) .
So after some waiting around we find those 2 guys had moved up into the hole while we were trying to avoid other issues so we hit the backside of spot #2 .
About 20 minutes later I finally get hammered but after a short bust the fish is dead weight . I get her close and see its a 35"+ fish thats upside down . I leader the fish in a circle around me and bring her head up and she is is some kind of shock . I began to slide my thumb into her mouth but she had gotten turned by the tide and I saw those big trebles . I just barely touched the lure and she open her mouth wide and like someone hit her with a defibrillator .. She went nuts and threw the lure .
The guy next to us landed a short that went into a trash bag with another fish they were hiding up in the rocks .
The tide came up and the bite died so we took a coffee break and moment later those 2 guys came up and took off.
The weather this year has finally taken a toll on me as it was hard to shake the 34 degree temps . I find my UA gloves after coffee and we head to the upper spots .
We just started won the path when 2 more cop cars stop and hit us with the spotlight . We walked over to them in that beam of light and it was a ROYAL PITA . They tried to say we werent allowed ECT ect and Jimmy tells them we had been stopped once earlier and after a call we were good to go so anyhow something must have happened that was more important because the car in the back sped past us and turned on the lights .. In a flash the cops with us said "Be careful" and took off in pursuit of the other car .
So anyhow total for the upper was I had 3 bites and 1 hookup but landed no more . We fished the whole top and some of the out going and at 5am I tell Jimmy we should spent what little time left near the bridge.
We get there and IMO there is still 1.5 hours of water too much . I broke 2 "OF" on the underside of the bridge and had 1 good bite . The sun starts to get brighter and I notice its already after 6am so I am on "borrowed time" but tell Jimmy I got 15 more minutes . 10 minutes later I am about to call it when I look over and see Jimmy rod tip go up and I swear I hear "Its about time" He fights the fish and at one point I tell him to walk backwards and look for a spot to land the fish but the fish headed straight for me and got pretty close to my waders with that plug .. She says "HI" to me and then promptly drops Jimmy's lure .
We call it quits a few casts later .
MY 1st Trip (March 14th)
A certain person was hounding me to go catch fish and swore he never met "anyone" that could "outfish" him . We make plans to fish from 9pm to sun up . We arrive and i saw more surface activity including feeding fish than I have to this day for this year . I made a total of about 10 casts and hooked up on the last only to have the lure fail . The fish made 2 hard fast runs digging in the whole time and then .. Nothing . I reeled in the front "O" Ring attached to a large staple looking thing a that pulled out of the lure . The guy with me had run to the car and just returned saying he wasnt feeling well and needed to go home because he forgot his heart medicine . I couldnt argue but I was heart broken knowing my trips were limited this year .
EVERYTHING WAS PERFECT
We had a few cold snaps which pevented me from returning on the few night I had means so I stayed local and played with Crappie . Jimmy and I took the canoe out at Williams Pond . We started out on the shore but Jimmy was having a time hooking up so we just hit the water . We hit a spot I got in the back where Crappie and LMB like to hold but these fish are just a bit smaller on average than the deeper hole near the road (both sides) . The fish are there but even fishing the same lure in the same spot didnt help Jimmy and I couldnt figure out why until a fish I had hooked up ran into his line and we got tangled . While untangling the line I noticed he had Crystal Fireline attached direct to the 1/32 jig
I feel bad that it took me so long to figure that out but on a good note his hookups increased and he started to get on the bite
I had 3 days of which I didnt get out at all .. I volunteered to do some work on a friends car and it took awhile . On day 3 I was ready ..
Northern Stripers 3-26
I met up with Esquired at about midnight and we fished together till about 4am and in that time we saw some activity . I hooked a Herring or Shad and got a few scales and had 2 bites in that time frame . Super Googan showed up sometime around 1 or 2 am and said he lost a fish and had one on that wrapped around a rock and popped off .
Not sure what time he left but it wasnt too long after we spoke .
David decided to call it quits and I took a coffee break and shot the breeze with David for a few then hit the truck for a quick blast of heat and was back fishing at 4:30am . David you now whats coming dontcha J/K
I got the first fish that was 40" on my third cast .
2 schoolies and a 36"
Dont Ask
David had asked what I was using and I had "Old Faithful" on and said I probably would not change but did end up throwing a Black Broken Back Bomber for awhile I took it off after my second cast and put "Old Faithful" back on and that was the 3rd cast . I should have known .. Its only been a hot bait every spring for 5 years now . Needless to say the other 3 fish also fell prey to "OF" as well .Landed 4 fish and had 2 more hookups with another hoss around 36"+ that popped off when I grabbed the leader .. She didnt have the lure in her mouth but under her chin .
The last fish was also almost a pop off but instead when I grabbed the leader I reached for the plug and grabbed it as soon as I could and lifted the fish from the rocks and when I turned she shook and jumped off and slammed into the rocks .. She twiched a few times after that but never regained enough strength to right herself as much as I tried .
The rain started at 4:30 as well and by 5:30am it was pouring so I retreated to under the bridge and didnt get anything there and did not feel like changing into dry cloths and rain gear so I just packed it in shortly after 5:30am .
So I killed that last fish and she measured 36" and was full of mid ripe roe and had an empty belly (I feel bad too as I marked this year ALL C&R)
Wish you could have stayed David .. Always a pleasure wetting a line with you .
3-27/28
Drew and I met up with esquired and his friend Mr Fish around 10pm . Drew and I hit the high tide spot and it wasnt long before Drew was hooked up but unfortunately he thought it was a rock until it swam upstream
The fish escapes int the night . David and Mike show up and havent done anything so Drew and I hit the highest point I fish . FYI the pool beflow the dam will hold fish as well as the next but I have found these unproductive at this time of year . So we hit the 4 pool which is as far as I go and the most unproductive of all the spots I fish at this time .
Supergoogan and wingsandwater show up and I even think Rob fished for awhile J/K Rob it was good to see ya again .. Wish you would have landed that fish
OK so fish 2 US ZERO .
Rob makes it an early night and Chris disappears after I tell him I am going in search of David and Mike .. Not to mention Drew who had stayed in the truck after a coffee break because his feet were wet from a leak .. Drew never recovered and slept through the wee hours . I left Chris and told him to stop by .. I was headed to the bridge .
I find no one there and hook up after a few casts but again the fish pops free . I had 2 more hook ups and lost a nice one at my feet . David and Mike show up about 25 minutes later from a coffee break .
Drew had hooked up earlier on a broken back Sil/Blk Bomber so I switched thinking a smaller profile might help land a fish tonight and I was right .. 2 casts and 2 bites and on the 3rd the fish slammed the lure and I land a 22 to 24 inch schoolie but the trebles were too close for comfort so I grabbed the leader and walked to the rocks .. the fish started to freak out and the line slipped so I layed the fish down . The fish flipped a few times and cut my leader on the rocks and in a blink had found a hole between rocks and made an escape with the only jointed lure I had with me ..
Mike hooks up a few casts later and after a short battle it was fish 4 US 1 .
The night had gotten away from us as it normally does and the sky started to get light .. I called David over in hopes he get a fish but the bite was over .
David and Mike split around 5:45am and I was right behind them .. Woke Drew up and headed South .
3-30 / 3-31
Met up with Jimmy around 8pm .. Kinda early which makes fishing real sketchy with the locals on the lose ..
While waiting for Jimmy I had got a few lures together that needed new hardware and while Jimmy got wadered up we changed the rusty hooks and "O"s for New .
We get down to the water and I immediately know I am late .. Lert on it wont matter but for now these fish like some water covering their back
We fish the whole bottom and leave at dead low to kill some time so we end up at an old friend of mine who lives near by and I have not seen or fished with in atleast 4 year . His name is Gary but goes by Mike and he was like me and a constant sidekick in my earlier years . It was a blast to catch up and I hope some day he returns to fish with me .
We made our way back at about 11pm .. Tide was as good as it gets even though we are on the wrong side of it
We get under the bridge and I see a bright light as Jimmy rounds the corner and say "What the heck is that?" . Jimmy syas he saw a cop and tried to duck but they must have saw him . I walk over to the corner just as the light dies and say WTF I pop out around the corner and the cop blasted me in the face with his light and started yelling .. I yelled back LOUDER as he starled me pretty good . Things calm down and he trys to tellme we cant be here and we arent allowed in the "Park" at night . I tell him I have been doing this for 25 years and never had an issue . The 2nd cop finally makes it down the rocky hill and proceed to look under the bridge where he see's 2 more guys and I though he was gonna have a baby .. he takes off while I try to convince Cop#1 that we are doing no wrong and how I drove from the beach and Jimmy from PA . Cop#2 returns and says that there are 2 more .. both from PA and fishing .
Cop#1 asks for ID and fishing license but never asks to see either while Cop#2 says "This is Tidal right?" I say yes so he says " Well you dont need a Fishing License for Tidal" so Jimmy and I set him straight and he says the guys from PA dont have FL but have ID . Cop#1 must have gotten something over the radio and left with a "Be careful guys" . Mark my word I would not have left without a serious fight (not physical) .
So after some waiting around we find those 2 guys had moved up into the hole while we were trying to avoid other issues so we hit the backside of spot #2 .
About 20 minutes later I finally get hammered but after a short bust the fish is dead weight . I get her close and see its a 35"+ fish thats upside down . I leader the fish in a circle around me and bring her head up and she is is some kind of shock . I began to slide my thumb into her mouth but she had gotten turned by the tide and I saw those big trebles . I just barely touched the lure and she open her mouth wide and like someone hit her with a defibrillator .. She went nuts and threw the lure .
The guy next to us landed a short that went into a trash bag with another fish they were hiding up in the rocks .
The tide came up and the bite died so we took a coffee break and moment later those 2 guys came up and took off.
The weather this year has finally taken a toll on me as it was hard to shake the 34 degree temps . I find my UA gloves after coffee and we head to the upper spots .
We just started won the path when 2 more cop cars stop and hit us with the spotlight . We walked over to them in that beam of light and it was a ROYAL PITA . They tried to say we werent allowed ECT ect and Jimmy tells them we had been stopped once earlier and after a call we were good to go so anyhow something must have happened that was more important because the car in the back sped past us and turned on the lights .. In a flash the cops with us said "Be careful" and took off in pursuit of the other car .
So anyhow total for the upper was I had 3 bites and 1 hookup but landed no more . We fished the whole top and some of the out going and at 5am I tell Jimmy we should spent what little time left near the bridge.
We get there and IMO there is still 1.5 hours of water too much . I broke 2 "OF" on the underside of the bridge and had 1 good bite . The sun starts to get brighter and I notice its already after 6am so I am on "borrowed time" but tell Jimmy I got 15 more minutes . 10 minutes later I am about to call it when I look over and see Jimmy rod tip go up and I swear I hear "Its about time" He fights the fish and at one point I tell him to walk backwards and look for a spot to land the fish but the fish headed straight for me and got pretty close to my waders with that plug .. She says "HI" to me and then promptly drops Jimmy's lure .
We call it quits a few casts later .
