First Day Out This Year And Lost Basszilla

[Jon G]

Ice has been off for about a week now and I decided to go to a small lake where I can fish basically the entire thing from the bank. Today was the coldest day this week (around 35-40) and I was struggling to get a bite i had tried jigs, jerkbaits, plastics, spinners, etc when i decided to put on a white chatterbait with a white skinny dipper trailer. I went to a rip rap next to a bridge to see if i could get one who was trying to warm up on the rocks. I was reeling as slow as the blade on the chatterbait could "chatter" when I thought i was snagged on the rocks. I was tring to unsnag my bait when all of a sudden the "rock" began to shake. Baffled i began to crank down (never truley giving a good hookset which may have partly screwed me over) the fish came up and i thought i snagged a carp. When it came closer my jaw dropped it was the biggest bass i Have seen since i moved from California in June. The mouth on it was around the size of a medium bowling ball and was at least 10lbs no greater than 12lbs. She was right at the bank and since I was excited I made a huge mistake i cranked the drag down WWAAYY to tight. I got on my knees and stuck my hand in that cold water and just stroked her belly when all of a sudden my chatterbait shot out and hit me in the head and she slowly started to swim away. I dont think I have ever screamed the word NO so loud in my life...... On a side note i noticed on my outing about every single carp is dead there was at least 250 dead carp around the bank which makes me wonder if fishing there will improve because there was WAY to many carp there really overpopulating the lake.

If any body wants to see i got a couple pictures from my outing in this link: https://www.flickr.com/photos/106702598@N08/sets/72157642974061354/

[msk]

Sorry to hear about losing that fish! I am shooting for some small mouth in lake michigan this weekend. We have a warm front coming through so hoping to get lucky. I have a white chatterbait tied on one of my rods with zman minnowz trailer. Hoping for the same bite!

[lmbfisherman]

Ice has been off for about a week now and I decided to go to a small lake where I can fish basically the entire thing from the bank. Today was the coldest day this week (around 35-40) and I was struggling to get a bite i had tried jigs, jerkbaits, plastics, spinners, etc when i decided to put on a white chatterbait with a white skinny dipper trailer. I went to a rip rap next to a bridge to see if i could get one who was trying to warm up on the rocks. I was reeling as slow as the blade on the chatterbait could "chatter" when I thought i was snagged on the rocks. I was tring to unsnag my bait when all of a sudden the "rock" began to shake. Baffled i began to crank down (never truley giving a good hookset which may have partly screwed me over) the fish came up and i thought i snagged a carp. When it came closer my jaw dropped it was the biggest bass i Have seen since i moved from California in June. The mouth on it was around the size of a medium bowling ball and was at least 10lbs no greater than 12lbs. She was right at the bank and since I was excited I made a huge mistake i cranked the drag down WWAAYY to tight. I got on my knees and stuck my hand in that cold water and just stroked her belly when all of a sudden my chatterbait shot out and hit me in the head and she slowly started to swim away. I dont think I have ever screamed the word NO so loud in my life...... On a side note i noticed on my outing about every single carp is dead there was at least 250 dead carp around the bank which makes me wonder if fishing there will improve because there was WAY to many carp there really overpopulating the lake.

If any body wants to see i got a couple pictures from my outing in this link: https://www.flickr.com/photos/106702598@N08/sets/72157642974061354/

Man sorry to hear about your loss. 

 

Not to sound cruel, but glad mother nature helped out on the carp population.  That is one thing I recall reading why this extra cold winter was good for the great lakes and other lakes with invasive species.  They said this extra cool winter, they were hoping it would help stem/kill off some of the invasive species.

[Jon G]

Man sorry to hear about your loss. 

 

Not to sound cruel, but glad mother nature helped out on the carp population.  That is one thing I recall reading why this extra cold winter was good for the great lakes and other lakes with invasive species.  They said this extra cool winter, they were hoping it would help stem/kill off some of the invasive species.

Yeah i was pretty happy to the only part i didnt like from it was the smell of all those dead fish

[Bankbeater]

Man, that stinks!