Best Bad Day Of Fishing?

[Daniel Lin]

Checked out a place in the Homochitto National Forest called Clear Springs Recreation Area today. It's a 12-acre little lake, and I'd been told that it was natural spring-fed and the fishing pressure was minimal. Expecting to finally have an opportunity to run some clearwater finesse techniques, I was somewhat disappointed when I got there and the water was fairly clear, as in free of sediment/algae, but severely stained with this brown tinge, almost like fishing in tea, if you get my drift. 

 

Anyway, I decide to roll with my usual 3-rod shore assault setup, a MH baitcaster, a M baitcaster and a M spinning reel, and tie on a spinnerbait, a crankbait, and a weightless senko. 

 

Shortly thereafter, I destroyed a Strike King KVD 1.5 lip by somehow smashing it into a pier on a cast, which apparently caused some kind of jam on my spool. I tied on a Sexy Shad KVD 2.5, cast it, heard a pop, and watched it sail away into some brush. Swearing at myself, thinking a somehow botched my knot, tied on another one in Chartreuse Sexy Shad, and triple checked my knot. Well, my knot was good, but apparently not good enough, as I cast out and POP, it went sailing away, landing probably no more than 4 feet from its brother. Somehow, in the heat of the moment, I decided to abandon the crankbait approach (I didn't want to lose my entire box in one sitting), and I tied on a buzzbait, figuring maybe I'd buzz that brushline. POP. Lost that too. Only then did I realize that my line had dug pretty hard into the spool and was cutting off my cast just as it reached terminal velocity.

 

I throw some spinnerbaits out for a while, no bites, swirls, nothing. I switch to the senko and BAM, for a second, I'm convinced I've got a lake record fish on (I don't actually know if there's an official lake record). Instead of being a Personal Best, it turns out to be my Personal Worst. But during the somehow prolonged battle, in which it was the first fish on a new, more limber than I originally thought rod and my drag was set hella loose by accident, this 10-some year old kid I hadn't seen fishing behind me took notice that I had a fish on. He starts cheering and I turn my attention to him, noticing that he's statistically way too young to be throwing a Shimano Calcutta. I also deduce that he's part of what appears to be a family reunion in progress at the picnic shelter up the hill, although his parents, nowhere obvious to be seen, clearly are engrossed with that and cut him loose on his own.

 

I release the dink and kinda watch him for a little bit. It's hard to describe, but his casting motion was probably more suited for throwing a cast net than a fishing rod, and was about as effective as you might imagine. I can also see a massive backlash that he'd just been reeling over from about 40 feet away, and decide that I need to intervene before this kid ruins his dad's setup. I really didn't want to have to teach a kid that wasn't in a learning mood how to throw a baitcaster, but I remembered that a rod I bought for my girlfriend's brief foray into fishing, a good ol' Zebco 33 combo, was still living in the trunk of my car.

 

I make my way over to the kid, fix his world-record backlash somehow, and tell him I've got a rod that'll be much easier for him to use in my car, but we're going to give his dad his rod back (and also for me to check in with his dad so his parents don't think I'm kidnapping him). This story is getting long-winded, but over the next several hours, I helped the kid perfect his casting technique, helped him catch a couple of dinks on a curlytail under a bobber (who would have thought that would work?), and I caught another seven bass that all gave my Personal Worst a run for its money, all on the senko. I nearly just up and gave the rod to the kid, but his dad stepped in and told me that they've got one just like that at home, they just didn't bring it with them. Guess it'll keep living in my trunk to be a loaner rod for another day.

 

I believe there's a saying out there somewhere that goes like, "Take a kid fishing. If you don't have one of your own, borrow one." I'd say I accomplished that mission today, which hopefully will cancel out throwing about 20 dollars into the lake in the course of about 5 minutes. Might need it, as I'm pretty sure I'm fishing my first tournament (although as a co-angler/team partner) this weekend, and I don't even know where it is yet. I'll find out at my first local bass club meeting this Thursday.

[RSM789]

Is the kid your partner in the tournament this weekend?

 

Good story.

[pbrussell]

The "tea" colored water you experienced and tough bite lead me to believe you were fishing turnover conditions. Try the lake again in a week.

[Daniel Lin]

The "tea" colored water you experienced and tough bite lead me to believe you were fishing turnover conditions. Try the lake again in a week.

I just did some reading on the fall turnover, I think you're right. All of the weeds I pulled up smelled suspiciously like doodoo, and there were tons of bubbles coming up for no particular reason. I guess I should be thankful for my experience as a whole, given the conditions.

[lectricbassman]

Good for you man. Its sometimes hard to see the good through the bad. From an outside perspective this may have been the best fishing trip ever. I have 3 little ones with the oldest just now able to grasp the concept of fishing. I spend as much time as i can with her on the water. It makes me sad to hear that the boys father wouldnt take the time for his son. I would never want to look back on my life and regret the times i didnt spend with my kids. Mr lin, you may have been the one person in this boys life to show him the joys of fishing and maybe even made him a fisher for life. Thank you for taking the time.

[Fisher-O-men]

Enjoyable read.  Way to help the kid.  I remember my dad handed me an old Shakesphere baitcaster and said be careful to thumb the spool when you cast.  Everyone around me was catching nice Corvina (Salton Sea) and I spent all morning trying to untangle my line.  Horrible memory!