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i went out tues night/weds morning w/ some friends. They wanted to drink and i wanted to fish so it worked out well. packed up my stuff and hopped in my truck. picked up a $1.48 and headed down to the lake to meet up w/ them. As they drink i set up my rods and get everything set up... rods are varying, reels are 2 abu's 6500s and a shakespeare skp2000. line 12-15 lb berkley big game. 1 1/2 oz on each rod w/ a 4/0 circle or 3/0 gama baitholder. rod holders 2 horizontals from Cat Con. and well an exposed root. set out the rods in a spread next to a fallen tree on the left and a fair slope of exposed shore due to lack of good rain recently. one going to the right, one going in the middle somewhat straight. and the last is to the left but more straight, by the tree.
about 1/2 hr after setting everything out my right rod starts going off a bit and i hop down off the log up in the treed area and walk down to where it is... lift the rod and.......its stuck on the bottom or something... walk down the bank and am able to free the hook or weight from what it was caught in... unfortunately no fish or not one that was willing to pull back any... so i put more bait on and toss it back out. took less then 10 min but had a yellow bullhead of around a pound and half on.
re bait that one and toss it back out in hopes of another strike...
That strike came about 45 min-an hr later... the left rod closest to the tree and only out about 20 feet in 4 ft of water starts PEELING off line. The reel i had bought off Ebay about 3 weeks ago and didn't always pick up the spool when you started to reel in (known before i bought it).The Rod was a walmart clearance $23 marked down to $5. anyway this was one of the few times it actually did that... thumbing the reel (still going like a bat out of hell) i managed to get it to engage. nope... still taking out drag and pulling hard... i know your really not supposed to tighten the drag but i did. as far as i could safely manage. it worked sort of... the fish was still taking drag and now im feeling more pull on the rod... i walk my self back up the bank to get my net (which i stupidly didn't bring w/ me when the clicker went off). 1 min goes by in a give and take, running from one side to the other across the middle line. 2 min, 3, 4, 5, 6... 10 min later im still arguing with this fish when i see it in the water... well i saw a white flash (LONG) in the water... im thinking, great i caught a big striper when going for cats... that got me excited, so i got the net ready, held between my legs ready to scoop up the fish... Finally i get the fish w/ in 5 feet of the bank... 4 feet, 3 feet, and it takes off again before i can net it... 20 yard run and when i got it back in the net went under it and it barely fit in my net... as i lift the fish up in the net (by the rim w/ one hand and the handle (vertical) in the other) i pull it up to where my friends are... I notice my nets rim has broken and isn't completley holding so i put the fish down and get my pliers and scale... another stupid move on my part... only one i rememebered to bring to the fishing site is my 12lb scale
... but it has a tape measure... the fish had outgrown the 24" one on my net's handle. 31" long... almost 7 across the back of his head. girth of about 22" if i didn't squeeze his belly... i go to weigh him (knowing fully well he was more then 12 lbs) and as i predicted he instantly bottomed out the scale. my guess was 15-18 just from feel, don't care its my personal best for Channel cats and well all fish in general... no camera either... oh well... The one Really smart thing i did that night was to release him. spent 10 min reviving him and trying not to fall down the steep slope into the water but did and after he was strong enough i watched him swim off into the water very fast in the moon light.
I rebaited that line and tossed it out there... over the course of the next 3 hrs i caught a few more (5 i think) 2 more bullheads and 3 white cats (i think because they didn't look like channels or bullheads, i haven't been able to find my book to properly id them). 7 total in 5 hrs and a $1.48 tub of chicken livers makes for a good night, esp since i just got my new personal best
about 1/2 hr after setting everything out my right rod starts going off a bit and i hop down off the log up in the treed area and walk down to where it is... lift the rod and.......its stuck on the bottom or something... walk down the bank and am able to free the hook or weight from what it was caught in... unfortunately no fish or not one that was willing to pull back any... so i put more bait on and toss it back out. took less then 10 min but had a yellow bullhead of around a pound and half on.
re bait that one and toss it back out in hopes of another strike...
That strike came about 45 min-an hr later... the left rod closest to the tree and only out about 20 feet in 4 ft of water starts PEELING off line. The reel i had bought off Ebay about 3 weeks ago and didn't always pick up the spool when you started to reel in (known before i bought it).The Rod was a walmart clearance $23 marked down to $5. anyway this was one of the few times it actually did that... thumbing the reel (still going like a bat out of hell) i managed to get it to engage. nope... still taking out drag and pulling hard... i know your really not supposed to tighten the drag but i did. as far as i could safely manage. it worked sort of... the fish was still taking drag and now im feeling more pull on the rod... i walk my self back up the bank to get my net (which i stupidly didn't bring w/ me when the clicker went off). 1 min goes by in a give and take, running from one side to the other across the middle line. 2 min, 3, 4, 5, 6... 10 min later im still arguing with this fish when i see it in the water... well i saw a white flash (LONG) in the water... im thinking, great i caught a big striper when going for cats... that got me excited, so i got the net ready, held between my legs ready to scoop up the fish... Finally i get the fish w/ in 5 feet of the bank... 4 feet, 3 feet, and it takes off again before i can net it... 20 yard run and when i got it back in the net went under it and it barely fit in my net... as i lift the fish up in the net (by the rim w/ one hand and the handle (vertical) in the other) i pull it up to where my friends are... I notice my nets rim has broken and isn't completley holding so i put the fish down and get my pliers and scale... another stupid move on my part... only one i rememebered to bring to the fishing site is my 12lb scale
... but it has a tape measure... the fish had outgrown the 24" one on my net's handle. 31" long... almost 7 across the back of his head. girth of about 22" if i didn't squeeze his belly... i go to weigh him (knowing fully well he was more then 12 lbs) and as i predicted he instantly bottomed out the scale. my guess was 15-18 just from feel, don't care its my personal best for Channel cats and well all fish in general... no camera either... oh well... The one Really smart thing i did that night was to release him. spent 10 min reviving him and trying not to fall down the steep slope into the water but did and after he was strong enough i watched him swim off into the water very fast in the moon light. I rebaited that line and tossed it out there... over the course of the next 3 hrs i caught a few more (5 i think) 2 more bullheads and 3 white cats (i think because they didn't look like channels or bullheads, i haven't been able to find my book to properly id them). 7 total in 5 hrs and a $1.48 tub of chicken livers makes for a good night, esp since i just got my new personal best
