1 1/2 hours @ the pond

Weather was super today for January. It was 60 degrees when I left the house and got to the town pond around 3:30.
I took my old model 5’ St Croix Panfish ULM , paired with a Shimano Sienna 500fd , spooled with some 4# Original P-Line .
Today’s agenda was to see if the 5’ UL moderate action St Croix was sensitive enough to fish a micro drop shot rig . And to try soft plastic baits again , but this time , with a size 8 Sickle bait holder hook instead of a light jig .
Everything worked great the 45 minutes or so the fish were biting . About a quarter til five , they just quit . I gave it until around 5:10 and packed it in and headed home .
Two small bass , one medium gill and one nice one . I didn’t bother with the measuring board today , since I could tell none were close to 10” .

Any day with fish caught is a good day.

First fish is a nice one, good catch.

Thanks for the ride alone. Good catch and a nice day!
Bob

Nice catch.

Regards

Glad ya got out. Conditions were wonderful down here and all I saw was windshield. The second bass looked like a fun sized one.

Great day!

Thanks guys , the little 5’ St Croix UL rod was a joy to fish with today .
As I said before , I wanted to see if it was sensitive enough to feel the thump , and it was great .
They’ll probably be a new model five footer in the arsenal in the near future .
I enjoy longer rods , but a short rod with a 500 size reel is what UL is all about IMO .

Looks like a nice day. I have the same exact rod and model, it's a great rod. I got the new 2022 version in the 6'4" light and I like it better. It's a bit of an apples to oranges comparison since they're two different lengths, powers, and actions, but I enjoy the feel of the rod. I think this is mainly due to the reel seat and handle. Very smooth and comfortable.

Gillchaser, great catch! I see the spring color on the bluegills hasn't quite come back just yet, usually darker, but good size! I'm also a bank gill chaser and you would think we could both benefit from long rod for distance casting but man, these 5' and under rods beginning to be my go to rods these day.