Cam and I

[skeetbum]

As promised, I took Camryn to the river for a long overdue trip to catch up on her lessons. I've been trying to get her education well rounded with exposure to different techniques. Keeping in mind that at 12 yrs old there are certain things that just aren't going to find a home in her just yet. Trolling has been our mainstay for a few years and she learns things very quick. So today all the trolling gear stayed home and it was a one pole at a time day. I carried a couple of 10' rods for dipping, a couple of 6' with popping plugs in case we needed to aggravate a LMB that showed himself, and several short rods with a jig and cork setup. I had my 4wt fly rod out for a short while but it wasn't the day for that. The alarm going off at 5sharp got us rolling with plenty of time to make the ramp just about sunrise.

58* as we parked the truck at the ramp at SR44 and pulled out f the harbor, no sun but plenty of light. A short run a couple of miles and we were back at the coordinates from a previous trip. Took a few minutes to familiarize Cam with the different tackle and how we would be going about this day. We hadn't gone very far than her cork went nuts and a textbook big bluegill struggle was underway. The fish decided he wanted to go whichever way she didn't want him to go, wrapping pads and grass, but he came to the boat and after a pic, got to visit the live well. High fives and back after it. Not long after that I dipped one of the long rods and got an almost immediate strike from a good crappie, sealing the lesson on that in fine style.

We worked the river main channel without going into the oxbows and cuts that we saw others go into. There must not have been much going on in the back as we saw most of those folks again in just a little while as they went hunting for better grounds. Boat traffic was low until after 10 or so and even then it was nothing like a couple of months back. The wildlife was mostly birds of many species with the Deer and Raccoons and even Turkeys not saying hello today. Come to think of it, no Eagles either. What we did see a lot of were Manatees. None were close but we heard them blowing and saw them rolling often.

No live bait came along today. Camryn had a rubber Cricket on her little Tiny Lite rod when she came today, and it showed us what was going to be the ticket today. My rods had BGBS and a beetle spin and something else, but all brighter colors. They only brought a fish or two to the boat. The darker colors were what kept us busy once the light came on in my crowded little mind. I have to give credit to the guy who made the plastics that brought all the rest of the fish to the boat. H2OHammer made some Hellgramite bugs that he was gracious enough to send me some of. They looked to be about 5/8" for the small ones and just over an inch for the larger ones, which we used today. They were black with a hint of silver glitter and did a fine job for us. Everything that swims paid attention to them. I don't know if he is a sponsor and sells them or not but you need to put some of these in your bag of tricks. Thanks for letting me try them out, I'll be in touch for some more real soon.

Now for the visitors. We caught a mixed bag today. 8 Crappie came for a showing with 4 of good size of about a pound or a tad more. At least 3 different varieties of bluegill were caught, and a few largemouth got the early release but 1 good one that hit the scales right at 2lbs was a bunch of fun on the little rig. The one Crappie had a lump on his nose like I have never seen before. Soft to the touch and like a dime in diameter, you can see it in the one pic. All total we had between 20 and 25 fish that kept us busy. Camryn's skills of picking the little pockets that held the fish improved a lot.The weather improved as the sun rose in a wonderful way, and had us getting out of our sweatshirts before 9am. Another first was that after starting at sunrise, she was still ready to fish at 12:30. The attention span has officially lengthened, and that makes me smile real big. Now we can plan those longer trips. She is also paying attention to what the electronics are saying and why the fish are where they are. I realized today just how blessed I am to have a Granddaughter to pass this on to.

About 1pm we put the boat on the trailer and headed for some needed lunch at the BBQ joint a few miles off to put the finishing touches on a super day. The 4 Crappie and 1 stud bluegill that Cam caught went to a retired couple that we met at the ramp. Seems they had a slow day at Beresford and had just a few to show for it, and these made it that much better. So no fish to clean, put the boat up and a good part of the day to just visit. It just doesn't get much better. Attached are some pics from the day and I leave you with a wish that you have a day as good as this one was for me. And as always, thanks for taking the time to read this and visit with Cam and I......Skeet