Latest Catch Pics Thread

[Team9nine]

2 hours ago, Woody B said:

The 3rd picture is a 13 inch...... something perhaps a Spot/LM hybrid.(I wanted it to be 14 so I measured it)  No tooth patch on it's tongue,(LM trait)  Same size scales all over. (LM trait, Spots have smaller scales on their cheeks)  Connected dorsal.(Spot trait) But it's color simply isn't "right".  I wonder if it's a Meanmouth but I've never seen or heard of a Small Mouth is Wylie.   

 

Did some digging and came up with this info from a NC forum: "There are smallmouth in the South Fork Catawba which feeds Wylie. So no surprise there are smallies in there. There are also smallies in the Jacobs Fork which feeds into the South Fork. Above lincolnton but others have caught smalls and even trout around the old mill and hydro dams on the south fork as there are several."

 

Just based off the picture, and another a guy posted in that above mentioned thread, I'd guess smallie, too. We would occasionally catch them in IN in reservoirs where you'd never expect to see one because every once in a great while, one would end up either coming down from out of a feeder creek/river or got caught above the lake and transported down for some reason. Cool catch from the sound of it for there.

[Woody B]

20 minutes ago, Team9nine said:

There are smallmouth in the South Fork Catawba which feeds Wylie.

 

I've caught Smallies decades ago in the Jacob Fork.  The South Fork, especially South of Lowell NC is MUDDY,  pretty much all of the time.  I think this is due to construction.  I'm surprised Smallies would thrive there, but I suppose if they're there they're there.  Maybe all the recent rains brought some down from the Jacob Fork into the South Fork, and they came into Wylie looking for clearer/cleaner water.      There's a decent Mean Mouth (Smallie/Spot hybrid) population in Lake Hickory (4 lakes up the Catawba from Wylie) but I haven't heard of any Meanmouth or Smallmouth  South/downstream of there.  I need to look at some pictures to see if a Smallmouth has a connected dorsal like the fish pictured.  My first thought was Smallmouth but then I decided I was too far South.   Sometimes fish turn up in areas where they aren't common.  The SC state record Musky was caught in the Broad River not far from my house.   

[LrgmouthShad]

Today I set out with the goal to catch at least 15lbs of bass throwing only spinnerbaits. BLUF: mission accomplished with 19.2lbs, best five weighing 15.6lbs. I threw 7 different spinnerbaits and 3 of them produced. I launched the kayak twice and dodged a thunderstorm, beaching the kayak and waiting it out. 
 

My strategy was to try and pinpoint where on the lake I thought a fish on a spinnerbait was darn near guaranteed. In order to go to all of these places, I had to launch twice. Strategy worked pretty good. 
 

I’ve refrained from showing the spinnerbaits in the fish’s mouth because  some of them I very much want to keep private. 
 

Here’s best 5:

(last one loading)

[Team9nine]

23 minutes ago, Woody B said:

 

I've caught Smallies decades ago in the Jacob Fork.  The South Fork, especially South of Lowell NC is MUDDY,  pretty much all of the time.  I think this is due to construction.  I'm surprised Smallies would thrive there, but I suppose if they're there they're there.  Maybe all the recent rains brought some down from the Jacob Fork into the South Fork, and they came into Wylie looking for clearer/cleaner water.      There's a decent Mean Mouth (Smallie/Spot hybrid) population in Lake Hickory (4 lakes up the Catawba from Wylie) but I haven't heard of any Meanmouth or Smallmouth  South/downstream of there.  I need to look at some pictures to see if a Smallmouth has a connected dorsal like the fish pictured.  My first thought was Smallmouth but then I decided I was too far South.   Sometimes fish turn up in areas where they aren't common.  The SC state record Musky was caught in the Broad River not far from my house.   

 

 

I believe spots also don't have that more pronounced break in their dorsal, similar to the smallies.

[Swamp Girl]

@LrgmouthShad: Way. to. fish!

[MIbassyaker]

5 hours ago, Woody B said:

 

 

That does look like a smallmouth to me.

[FishTank]

Went out yesterday on my kayak and it was 40 degrees with 20+ mph winds.  I don't know what I was thinking but the kayak itself did fine. Battling the wind and the cold was something else. I did catch a few but only one nice one. Oddly there were more bird watchers out than fisherman.  They were there to see the weird duck below.

 

 

 

[Swamp Girl]

It's a bufflehead! What a name, huh?

 

@FishTank, that's some impressive paddling, given that wind speed and temp. I once paddled from the top of Minnesota to the Gulf, through the fall and into the winter. Big winds and frosty mornings were much of my life for three months. 

 

 

[FishTank]

4 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

It's a bufflehead! What a name, huh?

 

@FishTank, that's some impressive paddling, given that wind speed and temp. I once paddled from the top of Minnesota to the Gulf, through the fall and into the winter. Big winds and frosty mornings were much of my life for three months. 

 

 

 

Nothing too impressive with my paddling if you look at the fuzzy black thing at the end of my kayak. 😀

 

I would have been toast without the trolling motor and its spot lock feature which is a work in progress for me. It's kind of all of the place sometimes. 

[Swamp Girl]

8 minutes ago, FishTank said:

Nothing too impressive with my paddling if you look at the fuzzy black thing at the end of my kayak. 😀

 

I saw the black fuzzy thing, but its meaning didn't register with me. I would LOVE SpotLock.

[gim]

1 hour ago, ol'crickety said:

It's a bufflehead! What a name, huh?

 

Definitely a buffle bomber.

 

Used to bag one on rare occasion when I duck hunted on bigger water.  They are a pretty duck but they aren't fit to eat.  Trust me.

[Pat Brown]

No giants but a respectable pile of decent ones from yesterday:

 

 

Big fish are all over the beds at the small public ponds and the lakes are just a little behind.  Hopefully this cold front this week makes things.... interesting 😎

[TnRiver46]

17 hours ago, Woody B said:

 

 

 

 

 

@Woody B, I’d have to guess spot on that one. My favorite distinguishing character for spots is the rows of stippling below the lateral line and that one has some. Don’t think I’ve ever seen it on SMB 

[gim]

Uh oh.  Fashion Police detects a hole in jeans of the left knee on Jake Brown.  @Pat Brown, being the legal guardian of this minor, I would expect you to address this and hold him accountable.

 

[Swamp Girl]

@gimruis, every boy worth his salt should have a hole in his jeans. Otherwise, he's wasting his boyhood.

[MN Fisher]

@ol'crickety - Katie, I use to wear jeans with holes...then I grew up

[Pat Brown]

Truth be told mom won't let him out on the boat with his nice britches on. Sorry guys.  Too many opportunities for treble hooks to ruin perfectly good pants!

[gim]

1 minute ago, Pat Brown said:

Truth be told mom won't let him out on the boat with his nice britches on. Sorry guys.  Too many opportunities for treble hooks to ruin perfectly good pants!

 

Well if that's the case, at least make a concerted effort to keep them out of the photos.  Out of sight, out of mind.

 

A new pair of jeans has been proven to increase your catch rate by at least 17%.  Kind of a like getting a haircut.

[Pat Brown]

2 minutes ago, gimruis said:

 

Well if that's the case, at least make a concerted effort to keep them out of the photos.  Out of sight, out of mind.

 

A new pair of jeans has been proven to increase your catch rate by at least 17%.  Kind of a like getting a haircut.

 

 

Well that explains the lack of action around here lately.  I'll keep this in mind next time we head out!  😎👆🏼

[T-Billy]

14 minutes ago, Pat Brown said:

Truth be told mom won't let him out on the boat with his nice britches on.

Perhaps the fashion police would like to do a little community outreach and buy Jake a new pair of fishing britches? 

[LrgmouthShad]

1 hour ago, gimruis said:

Uh oh.  Fashion Police detects a hole in jeans of the left knee on Jake Brown.  @Pat Brown, being the legal guardian of this minor, I would expect you to address this and hold him accountable.

 

I thought you lost funding, officer. Or was that the haircut police? 

[MIbassyaker]

It has been scientifically proven that waving around a cereal box badge increases your ridiculousness by 168%.

[GreenPig]

30 minutes ago, gimruis said:

 

Well if that's the case, at least make a concerted effort to keep them out of the photos.  Out of sight, out of mind.

 

A new pair of jeans has been proven to increase your catch rate by at least 17%.  Kind of a like getting a haircut.

17%!!! That's my problem, my newest jeans are 9 or 10 years old.

[hokiehunter373]

1 hour ago, Pat Brown said:

 

 

Well that explains the lack of action around here lately.  I'll keep this in mind next time we head out!  😎👆🏼

Buddy, I'd pay for your "lack of action" days 🤣

[gim]

50 minutes ago, LrgmouthShad said:

I thought you lost funding, officer. Or was that the haircut police? 

 

That was the photo police.

 

Haircut and Fashion are still operating on a balanced budget.  For now.

 

Haven't had to issue a haircut citation since January when @Woody B needed one.  And until this recent issue with the Jake Brown jeans, the previous regular violator of the holey jeans was @Team9nine.  His wife made him buy new jeans.  lol

 

"Community outreach" 

 

Lmao that's a good one