Weird x2

[Koz]

As some of you know, my father passed away from COVID last week. I’m sure that many of you, like me, use solo fishing as a way to think, clear your mind, and in my case, grieve.

 

Fishing here in the Lowcountry is usually great most of the year. Almost every bass you catch is two pounds and up. But this week the fishing has been lousy. The weather is still warm and water temps are not cool, and with the shorter days the bass are usually out of reach from the banks in the morning and move to shallower waters in the afternoon, but not this week. I’ve found the bait fish but not the bass.

 

I’ve caught a ton of crappie but only a handful of bass over the last four days. What’s really odd for this area is all have been under a pound. It’s been this way in the half dozen or so lagoons I have fished.

 

But here’s the weird stuff. Yesterday I hooked into a good one on a chatterbait. On the baitcaster setup I was using it pulled drag and I could not horse it in - I had to really work it to gain ground. Typically that means it’s 5 pounds or more. But just as I got it within 15 feet the line stopped cold but the rod was still loaded. I couldn’t reel in any more. Dead stop. So now I’m sitting there with a loaded line that won’t budge wondering what to do. After about 20 seconds I let out some line and everything went slack. It’s then that I realized the bass must have swam into the stormwater inlet pipe in front of me. Or as I learned later it might have been a spider block that I did not know was put there. Anyway, the bass was gone.

 

Then today I was fishing another lagoon and got a decent knock on a crankbait. Then the line went slack so I started reeling in. I was casting into a corner and what I didn’t realize was the bass ran out of room trying to escape and instead came right at me. I picked up enough slack and the bass breached and looked to be 2-3 pounds. But when it hit the water it ran right to the nearby stormwater pipe! Are you kidding me? 
 

Once again the line was going nowhere. But when I tried to get a better angle I could see the line was hung up on a protrusion on the pipe. Unfortunately I could not get the line free and it broke off. Hopefully the bass managed to break free as well.

 

I fish around these stormwater pipes all the time and I’ve never had this happen so having it happen two days in a row was just as weird as the poor fishing. Let’s hope it’s better out there tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

[Darth-Baiter]

Condolences. I’m new here on the forum.  I didn’t know.  
 

the bass?  What line are you running?  I would go full power and hork  them in  next time .  Sounds exciting nevertheless. 

[TnRiver46]

37 minutes ago, Backlass Blackbelt said:

Condolences. I’m new here on the forum.  I didn’t know.  
 

the bass?  What line are you running?  I would go full power and hork  them in  next time .  Sounds exciting nevertheless. 

Hork them in!!! I love that. I will forever think of that when dragging in a fish haha

 

@Koz, that happened to me Sunday on a canoe trip. Fish was hung up in deep branches. Still fighting but I couldn’t get it out. Tried slack line, tried paddling around, nada 

[Paul Roberts]

First, so sorry to hear about the loss of your father. I'm glad you have something healthy to help clear your mind. Not everyone does.

 

I've had hooked bass do this too: rock crevices, wood, vegetation, and even a muskrat hole once. Bass, LM's esp, are known to dive for bottom cover when spooked, which has given them the reputation for being difficult to sample by seine netting, they ducking under the leadline. Researchers often use fishing to catch them.

 

Most often I suppose, hooked bass try to go for deeper water. I don't see them diving purposely into holes very often, but they do go for dense weed cover when it's handy, and almost always try to duck under my float tube, esp on bright days. Maybe those pipes are exposed more than they usually are, from weeds dying back? The water is clearer, or... just luck?

[Koz]

I finally found a pattern the past few days. I had been thinking an umbrella rig might do the trick, but when I left town I did not bring one nor did I bring a heavy rod. I brought only a MH baitcaster and a medium spinning setup.

 

So instead I tossed a big, double willow spinnerbait with a Keitech paddle tail out as far into the widest part of the lagoons as I could. That did the trick. While it wasn’t big numbers, I found the 3 and 4 pounders.

 

So then I thought, why not go and pick up one of those smaller Yumbrella rigs and see if I can find the bigger bass? I’m not keen on loading my the MH rod I brought too much so I kept the jig heads and swimbaits small. And guess what? Not one bite. But that’s probably because I didn’t want to load the rod that much and that sacrificed casting distance. 
 

But I’ll give it another go tomorrow. And the good news is that the big spinnerbait and trailer fired on all the different lagoons I fished. For a few hours I felt close to normal today. Baby steps for now, but our virtual funeral service is on Saturday.

[NoShoes]

Where at in the low country?

[Koz]

2 minutes ago, NoShoes said:

Where at in the low country?

I’m visiting in Bluffton for a while. I used to live here for about 15 years.

[NoShoes]

21 minutes ago, Koz said:

I’m visiting in Bluffton for a while. I used to live here for about 15 years.

Cool, I’m in the Savannah area. Cool to see other members near by. 

[Bird]

Yes heard about your father, an emotional blow for sure and hope you can recover.

 

Fishing is hit or miss sometimes, great months and BAM !

 

I had a very frustrating week with a new Lews MH spinnerbait rod in late spring. 

Had 5 respectable bass tail dance and spit the hook.....it was 5 in a row.

 

Was ready to give up on the pricey rod but gave it another chance and low and behold, haven't lost a fish since. 

 

Maybe a rod needs broken in. Lol

 

Good to see you posting, keep fishing. 

 

 

[Koz]

1 hour ago, NoShoes said:

Cool, I’m in the Savannah area. Cool to see other members near by. 

Where do you fish in the Savannah area? Bank or boat?

 

We have thousands of lagoons here but I mainly fish Sun City Hilton Head.

[NoShoes]

13 hours ago, Koz said:

Where do you fish in the Savannah area? Bank or boat?

 

We have thousands of lagoons here but I mainly fish Sun City Hilton Head.

 

Most cypress swamps / ponds  a little further in land and on fort Stewart. We fish the Savannah river sometimes but not often. About once a month we run up to Clark’s hill. Usually by boat, but fish on the bank as well.