Two Trips To Quabbin, May 26 & 29, 2014

[Will Wetline]

May 26

 

Weather Underground had predicted a 25% chance of rain in the morning. This is what Quabbin looked like shortly after 7:00:

 

 

Well, since I was in the middle of it I might as well try to catch a fish.

 

A Super Spook Jr. brought up a bass for a look then the little Spin Bait 80 got another about half way back to the boat. I was increasingly frustrated as this wet, windy day wore on by bass - five in all - that grabbed the Spin Bait, were on for a while and then vamoosed. Why could I get only one to the net?

 

Anyway, by 8:00 I was really, really ready for a good fish to distract me from the general miserableness of the morning. Near the top of my go-to selection is a Senko, either 4" or 5", wacky rigged.

 

 

Thank you, Mr. Yamamoto.

 

Took another smallie about the same size in the afternoon as well as a couple of smaller bass. 

 

May 29

 

 

Here's my first of this fine morning. It grabbed a Reaction Innovation's Smallie Beaver in watermelon red. I like a little red flake in a bait when the sun shines.

 

Today I had with me my long time friend, Don Muller, Steelhead Slayer. You've seen him before in last year's report about our steelhead trip to central New York's Salmon River. Don's great strengths as a fisherman are concentration and perseverance. Around home he occasionally lays out a fly for trout but more often goes golfing.

 

He thought he might like to do a Q trip with me and I said , "Sure." Once on the big water we cruised flats and saw scads of buck bass guarding nests. Not what we were after. My game plan for the day was working 15' - 20' depths off spawning areas for transitioning females.

 

I set Don up with my 7' medium power rod with 8 lb. Silver Thread AN40. On the business end was a 5" Yamamoto Hula Grub T-rigged with a standard wire Gamakatsu 2/0 EWG hook. A 1/8 oz. tungsten bullet got it to the bottom.

 

At first Don was working it too fast. I suggested he draaag . . . pause . . . and what's he do? This:

 

 

As far as I know, the last time he went bass fishing was with me about 15 years ago. Of course I wanted him to catch fish as long as the quantity was one fewer than mine and the heaviest was one ounce lighter than mine.

 

The next fish to come up from approximately 20' was this laker. (Yes, on the Hula Grub.):

 

 

If you believe me when I tell you that my finger is purposely in this photo saying, "Hey, a laker!" please PM me. I have a bridge for sale.

 

 

I would say that Don has got the hang of it now.

 

I was fishing too although I opted for a 5" Senko, wacky. I'd let it hit bottom then twitch it back to the boat, pausing occasionally.

 

 

Late afternoon we headed back Inside. The Bass Magnet, a small rocky stretch surrounded by deep water on one side and acres of muck bottom on the other, was hot. We were fishing the same baits except that I remembered that I had a few circle hooks and decided to try one. My first bass took off fast and when the line came taut, it was off. Huh. These hooks, as I understand them, are meant to catch a fish in the corner of the mouth. You get the slack out of the line and simply start to reel. I did this with the next two pick ups and netted both. Here's one:

 

 

It's hard to leave 'em biting, but at 6:00 I said, "We gotta go." Mistress Quabbin had been generous, giving us a total of 16 smallies with an estimated average weight of a few ounces shy of 3 lbs. And Mother Nature smiled.

 

 

 

I think I see a steelhead fly with a multicolored tail in the clouds . . . 

 

Later,

 

WW