Grabbed the old school ultralight, some 4lbs test and my early smallmouth lures, the jig and grub. I stalked pre spawn white bass on a small creek. At one rocky riffle area I started getting bit on the 2.5" grub with 1/8 oz head. Crappies!
In about an hour, I got 29 crappies from that spot. None too fat. The one above the largest with most going 7-8". Also caught my first ever yellow bass (above), it wouldn't be the last.
I bankwalked and pitched into holes looking for larger white bass, the dog had a great time barking at deer. The stream had plentiful shad, yellow bass 5-7" everywhere, then finally some white bass. Then fun really began.
It took a while to get the casting down with the ultralight, as I did get better I began to get fish all over the place.
55 crappie (11", 7-9"), 25 yellow bass (5-7"), 20 white bass (9-12"), 8 largemouth bass (to 12") even saw a smallie at one point near a riffle.
108 fish in 5 hours. Quite different from chucking bigger baits for smallmouth, though I'd guess I could come close to that many if the dink smallmouth wanted a grub in summer.
The yellows and whites are a riot on the ultralight.
Sounds like a blast, even if the fish weren't big.
ReplyDeleteAwesome! 12" white bass can make for a good fish fry. :)
ReplyDeleteA couple whites took drag. They get released for that nobility. As far as I walked, a stringer just affects the fun fishing, mobility, and doubly ruins when wife complains about stink and scales in the sink.
ReplyDeleteI catch and release everything. Indiana's not 49th in the country in environmental issues for nothing.
Ben, if there were a fish I wouldn't feel bad about eating, it would be crappie. Their whole escape strategy is too rip the hook out of their light mouths by shaking their heads. Apparently, the rest of the fish's body forgets to swim while executing this plan.
Truthfully, cleaning small panfish just not worth adding to the cuts, scrapes and skin flayings my hands and wrist already take.
I've got exscema from dog spit and tube salt, peeling skin from bacteria in fish slime, paper cuts from braided line and gill covers, bass thumbs, hawthorne needle posion in my knuckle causing swelling, tick bites, sunbrun, poison ivy on my ankle, and odd lobster claw casting hand the size of a catchers mitt.
Cleaning a bunch of fish is so far down the to do list it's not funny.
Jumbo Perch or Walleyes. Yes.
I'm going to have to do more of this. Plenty of old tackle to lose.
You sound a bit messed up...
ReplyDeleteI gotta ask... What is the "odd lobster claw casting hand" from?
The perch should be coming in shallow up here in the next week or two. Wife complains about the stink of both raw and cooked fish. The perch are worth the cuts and complaining though.
Kev, the lobster claw is my right hand. The muscle in between thumb and index finger is the size of a nice frog.
ReplyDeleteYellow Perch is amazing. People who live too far south don't know what they are missing.
Crappie is the girl you bag over the head of when drunk for a stup. Perch is the girl you open the car door for.
God, that is tasty, tasty stuff.