Mixed Blessings

Not having been much in the last few months and having the new Soare to enjoy in hand, today was the day. The conditions were all nice except the wind. 10 to 15 in a Jon boat means I was hiding behind anything I could find on the river. The fish still aren’t active like I know they will be soon but I had fun anyway. First fish was a nice gill about 7”+ that had me remembering what his bigger cousins are like, but I never found any. Next I pitched at a bridge piling and did a slow retrieve and 6’ from the boat I got a smack from what I didn’t see, then he turned around and burned off 25’ of line. I got him on the Phenix UL and the Presso and I was in open water so I never touched the drag and let him do his best. And he did, several times before I could lift enough to find out it was a nice sized hybrid. Couple of more short spurts and I finally got the net under him.
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I picked around getting one here and one there. The river is still flowing pretty quick so some of my spots are vacant. I pitched a drop off in the current that the fish sometimes sit behind and wait for the buffet and got rewarded. Twice even.
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And not to be left behind, the best gill of the day came to say hello too.
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And of course, no day on the river is complete without the pretty boys that were late to the party but were still welcome.
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I always try to remember my friends and their favorites. This one’s for you chaser. A little Warmouth that just had to come say hello. He and all the others went back, none the worse for wear.
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A good day overall and no idiots to sour the day. In about 7:30 and out just after 12, and the boat traffic was building. Lots of center consoles were sporting around with everyone enjoying the day. 73* when I launched and supposed to get into the 80’s later on. Hope that y’all enjoyed and that you get a chance to get out and get a few. Maybe I’ll see you out, hope so. Til then……Skeet

Awesome trip, sounds very enjoyable. Good pics. Thanks for sharing

Some good looking catches and nice combos to catch them on .
Pretty fish in tough conditions.
That hybrid had to be a blast !
I just checked the lake level where I meet my fishing buddy and after the rain we had last night , it’s at full pool . That’s about five feet in 24 hours .
Should still be high and muddy by Tuesday when we plan on going this week .

Those are some fine fish, right there. I love it when one runs for open water and then it is just you and them.

Nice catch.


Regards


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Nice mixed bag

Great post Tim! Some beautiful colors on those fish! Thanks for sharing

Great to see you out and sticking some nice fish. Seems you were changing baits frequently, different bait for each fish. That hybrid sure looks like a pure bred striper to me, no broken lines that I could see. I'm no expert, only caught one striper my whole life. Lot's of fun on ultralight tackle.

colored up in their very best formal attire , seems they want to go to the dance and maybe get lucky ...
mighty fine looking fisheez bro , congrats :cheers2

Nice looking catches !

I thought the same thing Jim. There’s a few very small imperfections but mostly straight lines. Not the football shape they usually sport either. Never know. I said a little prayer of thanks and set him free. Best fish in a long time it seems like. I didn’t retie much but I do carry 5 rods with something different on each one.

Hey Skeet, I know what your favorite pastime is but you should write a book sir. Let me know and i'll buy copies for all my fishing buddies. Awesome story telling with pics to boot!!

Thank You Specklocker. If I ever do my second family here will be the first to know.

Looked like a great outing for sure, with a variety of guests making appearances. Congrats my friend, and thank you for the ride along.

Fun trip!