Went to Harveston on Friday.
My time at Harveston today can be summed up as:
00000000 00000000 00000000
(3 bites* and nothing to show for it)
*yes, i know it's misspelled
><)))>
So I was asleep a couple nights ago and I started dreaming that I was in my backyard. I looked down and saw something I had never noticed before.
A trout stream. [ -- grins at camera knowingly -- ]
That's right, a trout stream in my own backyard! (Oh! Happy day!)
And right there near to where I was standing were about 6 little trout. So I did what any self respecting fishing enthusiast would do ... I re-prioritized my TODO list and put "Go fishing" right at the top.
I grabbed my rod and noticed that there was one trout that was a bit in front of the rest. I figured I'd try for him first.
Now, this being a dream 'n all, I figured that little 10 inch trout would probably go for a nice big Bass bait. So I T-rigged a great big plastic worm on some 12 pound test (which should be just enough for a 1/4 pound trout), and dropped that sucker right in front of his face.
!!! WHAM !!!!
He struck that worm with all the ferocity of an enraged butterfly and I hauled him out of 12 inches of water like a seasoned pro. [ -- you gotta love dreams -- ]
I was stoked. But much to my suprise as I lifted him out of the water he became larger and larger the further away from the water he got (like most fish stories, I guess), until I was holding a real trophy trout.
Immediately I went to work cleaning him. "We're going to feast tonight!" I thought to myself. I had that bad boy gutted and cleaned in no time and thought, "Hey, I should weigh him." [*note: you usually want to weigh them before you clean them] So I hung him on the scale, which I just happened to have right there with me, which is strange since I had only found out about the stream in my backyard about 5 minutes ago.
13.8 lbs!!! AWSOME!!! (wonder what he would've weighed prior to cleaning)
So I call to everyone in the house to come check out this trophy I just caught, except it's not my family in the house. It's all the employees from a Veterinary distribution company I used to work for. (What the....?)
The ladies come running out saying, "Ooooh, he's so cute!! I just want to hug him, and play with him, and..." blah blah blah....
That's a weird response to a trout!
Then I see one of the veterinarians there, and he says, "Well, it's a very nice specimen. However, I think that long incision all the way down it's belly is going to be a problem. It may lead to infection in the internal organs."
Huh? That's even more strange.
So I turn around to look at my new trophy, and there it is, hanging from the scale ... a fat, plump, happy, playful baby hippo.
????????
A hippo? I thought it was a trout!
Apparently, in my great enthusiasm I had failed to notice my error.
And not only that, but the hippo was cut wide open right down the belly and all of it's intestines were still inside (didn't I just take those out?).... and he was awake and playing with them!!!
Now I understand what the vet was talking about it!
Wait a minute. How am I going to skin a hippo!?!? I guess I could start by cutting of those little ears and make "hippo cracklin's" or something.
[ -- weird enough for you yet? --]
The last thing I remember was grabbing my fish-cleaning knife and walking towards the hippo thinking, "I wonder if it's skin is like a catfish." Then, "In about 30 seconds these ladies are going to get real unhappy with me."
><)))>
Fishing really is a great sport / hobby / past-time. Whether you're going to take the fish home and eat them, or just out there to catch and release, it's a good, clean, outdoor activity that anyone can get into. Many fishermen are very conscientious about how to properly handle a fish if they intend to release it so that it goes on to grow even bigger and provide others with a chance to catch a great fish. They are also concerned with the health of the waters they fish, as well as staying informed on policies and laws that may adversely affect either the sport, the fish, or both.
However .....
There are some out there who behave in a way that gives fishermen a bad name, and can very possibly lead to the rest of us losing the privilege to fish in these areas.
Let's see an example, shall we?
So we took the family to Skinner Lake after church today. I took Jared and Jacob out in a boat for a couple hours to fish. Jared got a bite on his first cast but didn't hook it. He reeled his line in and we got watch a large mouth bass follow his bait all the way to the boat. I got a bite a little later but wasn't able to close the deal either.
I'm starting to wonder if there are any fish in this little pond at all. I know other people have caught fish here at other times of the year, but I think the fish all hitch rides with the ducks and head South for the winter. I haven't even gotten a bite yet at this place. But it's close by, so I keep going.
Yesterday (Friday) I headed over to RSM during lunch. I was going to fish, but the clouds rolled in just as I got there, so I figured I'd just take a walk in the rain.
You know, usually when it starts to rain we get out our umbrellas, or put up the hoods on our rain coats, or break out the poncho to cover ourselves up. As it started to rain on the lake I didn't bother to cover my head right away and I noticed something I hadn't heard before. Rain drops hitting the lake. When our hoods are up or we have our umbrellas, the rain hitting it covers up the sounds of the rain hitting anything else. But without it, you can hear the rain hitting the water in the lake. It was almost like it was singing.
Went over to the pond this morning to get some practice with my buzz bait. Wasn't expecting to catch anything because of the cold, rainy weather, but I thought it would be a good time to figure out how to use that bait and I also needed to make sure the new line I put on my reel was ok.
3 storms are hitting our area back to back right now. The first one came through yesterday and dropped a lot of water. The little wash that runs past the pond, which is usually bone dry, had plenty of water this morning.
So I've been thinking lately that those LMBs must think we're superheros. I mean, think about it from the fish's point of view. He's cruising along minding his own business when he happens upon a scrumptious morsel.
It wiggles! It shimmers! It bobs! It's colorful! It must be tasty!
He grabs that fish/worm/craw in his mouth when all of a sudden ...
*** WHAM! ***
"Holy cow!", he thinks to himself. "That thing bites hard!"
Then, all of a sudden, it's not only biting him but it's starting to pull him where he doesn't want to go.
"Wow! You're strong for such a little fella! Good swimmer! Ever apply to be a lifeguard?"
The LMB tries to swim the other way ... ANY other way! But that little worm continues to drag him off where he doesn't want to go.
"Persistent little bugger!"
All of sudden, there you are. And the LMB sees you standing out there where he can't breathe and he realizes this powerful little worm is dragging him towards you.
He looks at you with those big black eyes ...
"Tell me more about my eyes!!!"
... as you reach down and grab him up out of the water.
"This is it. This is the end. I always knew it would end like this. Goodbye cruel world."
To his surprise, you begin to remove that stinging, powerful little worm. You hold him and insist he let you take his picture. And finally, against all odds, you gently place him back in the water. No stinging worm. No horrible death.
He swims off and thinks, "He just saved my life from that little worm! He's my HERO!!!!"
And there you have it. You are now a superhero to every LMB when you catch and release. You've battled the mighty worm and prevailed to save the day.
WIN!
><)))>
Went to Harveston for a couple of hours this evening. Fished East of the playground. Didn't get any bites, but had a good time with the kids. I got them their own little rods (Dora and Spiderman). They fished for a little while with a worm and a bobber, but decided it was more fun to use the little plastic toy fish that came with the rod.
So I was on the phone with my dad last week talking about fishing and how I've really started to enjoy it (didn't like it much when I was a kid ... no patience).
He says, "I should send you your reel."
"My reel?!"
"Yeah, I bought you a rod and reel when you were young. I still have them. I'll send you the reel in the mail, then the next time you're up for a visit I can give you the rod."
"Ok." (tries to remember the reel)
About a week goes by ....
Package arrives. I open it.
WHOA! Check this out. Turns out to be a Vintage Penn Ultra Sport Spinning Reel #714Z.
Headed over to RSM during lunch today. I'm sure the guys at the local bait and tackle laugh at me for fishing such little ponds like RSM, Harveston, and Pond Park when there are good Bass lakes around (Skinner, DVL, Perris, etc...). Yeah, they're small, but it allows me to get some fishing in almost every day. I can head over to any one of those places during my lunch break or before starting work in the morning and get my line wet without having to carve 1/2 a day out of my schedule, or dump a pocket full of money for entrance fees and boat rentals.
So here's the little guy that I hooked today. (3pm, Pumpkin worm, T-rigged no weight)
Tried my luck again at Pond Park today. Clouds came rolling in not long after I got there.
Then Julie showed up with some of the kids, so my little boy got to fish a little bit.
Neither of us caught anything, so on our way out we stopped at another spot to see if we could catch some Crappy (or is it Crappie?)
Seems that nothing's biting today in this neck of the woods.
1/6/10
Harveston SW side during lunch (plastic worm). No bites
1/7/10
Harveston NE side up to gazebo during late lunch. Hooked something big. Snapped my line and ran off with new crankbait
1/8/10
RSM North bend (left of ampitheater) during morning. No bites (crankbait).
RSM mid-lake towards North bend, East side during afternoon. No bites (crankbait).
1/9/10
Harveston North side during afternoon. Landed 2 LMB just East of the gazebo (crankbait).
