The fish you lost in 2022

[NittyGrittyBoy]

Fishing a backwater slough off of the Altamaha River system in South GA. It had been a really great day, fish were active catching them on T-rigs and topwater all day. It was mid June, around 12pm, one of those hot days but had a steady cool breeze blowing. My dad was in the back of the boat fishing a T-rig I was upfront fishing a modified devilshorse.

 

That's when it happened, made a average cast to a shaded spot with a large log that ran out into 10ft of muddy water. Let it sit, twitch, another 10secs, twitch, BOOM! Water exploded, solid Hookset, game on. She immediately ran straight under the boat stripping drag, 15lb big game provided me with plenty of stretch and forgiveness with those trebles firmly planted in her jaw. Seriously a long fight at least 2mins of just slowly easing her to the boat, steady head shakes and hard pulls. About a minute in we seen her boatside, well over 10lb, beautiful fish,I'll leave the estimates there. 

 

Well she finally tires and gives up, my dad leans over the boat to lip her, when she comes up, the devilshorse was on the side towards him and instead of reaching over the hooks he backs off to wait for another opportunity to grab her. We'll when she came up, she tailwalked, shook her head, and said bye. 

 

Devastated was not the word. It's one of those times you just sit down in the boat and replay it over and over. I've never owned a landing net, always thought it was for sissys..well ordered one on the way home from that trip and never leave the house without it.

[TheBasslayer]

Luckily I haven't actually lost a PB Bass this year, but one day this summer I was fishing a spot on the Kalamazoo River. There was a pretty large laydown in the river, and I threw my spinnerbait in the pool right behind it. Suddenly, I hooked a pretty big Smallmouth Bass. It was only around 2 pounds, but I have only caught a couple of Smallmouth around that weight, and when he came off, I was pretty disappointed in myself. Another lost fish story that I have is that of my possible first Salmon/Steelhead. I was fishing a crappie tube on my ultralight rod in a stream around St. Joe, MI, and I saw a giant fish, maybe around 25-26 inches just sitting around. I cast my lure at him for around 10-20 minutes, and eventually I got the perfect cast right in front of him. He ate it, and the creek exploded with jumps and runs. Since I have personally never hooked a fish that big, I didn't really know how to fight him on my ultralight, and as I was fighting him, he broke off. It stung for a bit, but it also gave me some experience on how to fight bigger fish!

[roadwarrior]

I fished the Tennessee River yesterday below the Pickwick Dam. We had a steady

bite from 11:00 until we left at 4:30. We caught a little bit of everything including

some huge cats. Our bigger smallies were 3 1/2-4 lbs, but around 3:00 I hooked

up with a MONSTER.

 

The fish came up immediately and it was game on! Several runs and three more

jumps before getting her to the boat, the first time. Missed the net and off for

another run, then under the boat. Whoa! It was really exciting until she came

unbuttoned.

 

This was the biggest smallmouth I have hooked up with in more than a decade,

but I know where she lives and I will be back next week. Hope to have a verified

weight and picture soon.

 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

4 minutes ago, roadwarrior said:

I fished the Tennessee River yesterday below the Pickwick Dam. We had a steady bite from

11:00 until we left at 4:30. We caught a little bit of everything including some huge cats. Our 

bigger smallies were 3 1/2-4 lbs, but around 3:00 I hooked up with a MONSTER.

 

The fish came up immediately and it was game on! Several runs and three more jumps before

getting her to the boat, the first time. Missed the net and off for another run, then under the 

boat. Whoa! It was really exciting until she came unbuttoned.

 

I'd take losing a monster to be fishing below those dams again...just so many 5lb+ Smallmouths below those dams 

They are magical for exactly the reasons you just listed.   You never know what just hit your bait, you never know if you are going to catch your next PB Smallmouth, and when they generate power, the bite can be more electric than anywhere on earth.

[Bankc]

9 hours ago, Woody B said:

 

I don't think so.  I've never heard of a drum being caught in Lake Wylie or any where else around here.   How far inland will you find Drum?

 

 

[A-Jay]

5 hours ago, NittyGrittyBoy said:

We'll when she came up, she tailwalked, shook her head, and said bye. 

 I've never owned a landing net, always thought it was for sissys..

Interesting perspective.

I always thought it was for folks who enjoyed heartbreaking loss & bleeding. 

A-Jay

[Jmontgomery87]

10 hours ago, Woody B said:

 

I don't think so.  I've never heard of a drum being caught in Lake Wylie or any where else around here.   How far inland will you find Drum?

I've caught freshwater drum in Oklahoma.

[Spankey]

I’m not having a banner year. Everything is off in my fishing world this season. I have not broken a PB which is ok and if I don’t ever again that will be fine. When ever I’m out I fish to break my PB. My season is not over yet. I’m still gonna be out.  
 

What I’ve lost this season is part of fishing. Nothing I did wrong, nothing I’d of done different. I had a few that broke water that I thought were decent river largemouths. Spit my lures like bubble gum. But in that same area I caught a nice 16” greenie after those losses. 16” is no prize but is respectable.

 

At the lake I had a couple of losses. They were never seen. 15-17 feet deep. Fishing deeper crankbaits. While making my retrieves, at the end of the retrieve with the lure on a rise below the boat they were big time hits with definite mass. Largemouths ??? Where my PB Greenies have been caught. But I caught Channel Cats this season and past season on crankbaits in this same area. It happens. 
 

My unique catch of the season to this point is a fat White Bass on the river. 14+” I’ve never caught a White Bass, didn’t think they were in my river. White perch yes. Caught on a Shad Rap. 

[Swamp Girl]

On 10/5/2022 at 7:20 PM, geo g said:

I see you live in Maine so what I’m going to say is absolutely impossible, but it sounds like a big peacock bass.  They often take long runs and then reverse direction, and of course a few big jumps along the way.  Lol

I didn't know that, but then, I've never caught a peacock bass. However, I sure wanna!

[roadwarrior]

Peacocks, which are native to tropical fresh waters of South America, have a genetic

intolerance to cold. Their populations will not tolerate sustained water temps below

 66 degrees Fahrenheit.

[Swamp Girl]

I am amazed at the posters who don't lose big fish because big fish are stronger and smarter. I'm wondering if my technique is faulty or if I'm using the wrong equipment. Sometimes it's the bog itself that bests me. A bass will burrow into weeds and come free. However, I think it's also me. Sigh. 

[TnRiver46]

11 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

I am amazed at the posters who don't lose big fish because big fish are stronger and smarter. I'm wondering if my technique is faulty or if I'm using the wrong equipment. Sometimes it's the bog itself that bests me. A bass will burrow into weeds and come free. However, I think it's also me. Sigh. 

Everybody loses big fish, some just don’t like saying it haha

[Dwight Hottle]

33 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

I am amazed at the posters who don't lose big fish because big fish are stronger and smarter. I'm wondering if my technique is faulty or if I'm using the wrong equipment. Sometimes it's the bog itself that bests me. A bass will burrow into weeds and come free. However, I think it's also me. Sigh. 

 

Everybody experiences losing big fish but some minimize the occurrences. You can minimize your big fish losses to the bog weeds by using braid. The braid itself will cut through most vegetation to help you free the fish. I learned that lesson a long time ago when pike fishing and had a trophy or two bury itself in deep cabbage. Mono would not get them out only braid would work. 

 

[Blue Raider Bob]

On 10/5/2022 at 8:04 AM, GTN-NY said:

All my fish were lost fish in 2022. Due to injuries I only got out 3 times and most of the fish I hooked on those 3 days I lost. 
It’s been a sad year?

Here's to a better rest of 2022 and a fantastic 2023 and beyond!!!!

[geo g]

2 hours ago, roadwarrior said:

Peacocks, which are native to tropical fresh waters of South America, have a genetic

intolerance to cold. Their populations will not tolerate sustained water temps below

 66 degrees Fahrenheit.

They are also plentiful in South Florida! I have caught over 500 here  in the last 20 years since the state of Florida released them in our waters.

[Fishlegs]

My lost fish story for 2022 involves three fish on the same day. I was fishing with @roadwarrior. The morning had a very good start. It only took us about 5 minutes to catch the first fish. We caught several at the first spot, but nothing big so we changed spots. The second spot we tried seemed promising as well. I was yanking a lipless crank through the grass, and got a big hit. She jumped so we got a good look at it...a 5 lb largemouth. This is what we were looking for. She came up again, gave the lure a shake, and was gone. Tough luck, but I still had hope for the day after a promising start. roadwarrior offered some technical advice to help me with the next one, and we moved on.

 

A little later I hooked another big one. About 4 lbs or so this time. I'm trying hard to do what roadwarrior suggested, but it throws the lure again. I'm kicking myself, but it's still early so I'm still hopeful that I'd have a shot to redeem myself. This was on a Monday. I caught a 5+ pounder just three days before so I knew I was capable of landing one, but doubt is creeping in.

 

The third big one that I hooked that day was the real heartbreaker. It was crazy from the start. I cast to a spot, and before my lure hit the surface a huge fish came out of the water to get it. I started to reel as soon as I thought she had it, but I wasn't able to get a great hookset. I felt the weight of the fish on my line so I thought I'd be OK. I knew it was a good fish. She jumped again...big one. PB level fish. Since I'm telling this story here, you already know she got away. I asked roadwarrior what I did wrong. He simply said, "Sometimes the fish wins. That's how they get big."

 

Looking back, I think my primary mistake was using a new rod that I had never used. That's what I tell myself anyway. If I had landed those three fish my "best five" would've been around 22-24 lbs that day. What a day. I was so close, yet so far off. It's a fine line between the thrill of victory, and the agony of defeat. There will be another day though.

[Swamp Girl]

Wisdom here: "Sometimes the fish wins. That's how they get big."

[Benjamin J]

I was fishing a creek for smallies by my house in early March. The hole I was fishing was about 7-8 feet (deepest hole in that section) with a slow current. The water temp had spiked up to about 41 degrees so I figured I'd launch the yak and look for some active fish. I would never get too many bites there, but the bites were usually decent fish earlier in the year. A good fish here would be about 18", considering it was a smaller creek. I drug my tube through the back end of the pool and felt a nice tap, so I set the hook. If I hadn't had felt the take, I would've sworn I had just set the hook into a log. After a few seconds she shook her head and started fighting. Hard. I eventually got her right under my kayak, but she wrapped the line around a log and snapped my 8lb leader like butter. I'm guessing it was upwards of 5lbs which is pretty unheard of in there. I cringe just thinking about it. 

[Blue Raider Bob]

11 hours ago, Benjamin J said:

I was fishing a creek for smallies by my house in early March. The hole I was fishing was about 7-8 feet (deepest hole in that section) with a slow current. The water temp had spiked up to about 41 degrees so I figured I'd launch the yak and look for some active fish. I would never get too many bites there, but the bites were usually decent fish earlier in the year. A good fish here would be about 18", considering it was a smaller creek. I drug my tube through the back end of the pool and felt a nice tap, so I set the hook. If I hadn't had felt the take, I would've sworn I had just set the hook into a log. After a few seconds she shook her head and started fighting. Hard. I eventually got her right under my kayak, but she wrapped the line around a log and snapped my 8lb leader like butter. I'm guessing it was upwards of 5lbs which is pretty unheard of in there. I cringe just thinking about it. 

An 18" Smallie is a good fish anywhere! I drive long distances bi-weekly to seek them out, but rarely ever come across one.

[roadwarrior]

Two monsters this week that got away.

The first was fishing a Vision 110 in Second Creek at Pickwick. After a wicked

strike I swept my rod, but in the process somehow hit the release. The line balled

up like cotton candy. I tried to bring it in by hand, but the fish staged and bent a

middle hook. The back hooks had two scales intact and that's all she wrote.

 

Number two was yesterday below Pickwick on the Tennessee River. This was a big

brown bass that struck, dove and ran. When I got this princess turned around she 

came at me, then up and out...a three foot leap at least.  Brought her a little closer,

but she didn't like the boat, so she went airborne again. This time she returned my

lure, express mail. 

[Darth-Baiter]

I only have one 2022 fish that leaves me with questions.

 

it was January, and the fishing was slow.  so I came up with some out of the box thinking.  I took my BFS rod combo.  tied on a tiny 1/8 bullet weight, and a tiny 1/0 wire worm hook.  I threaded on a Zoom Z-drop worm.  it was a tiny set up presentation.  first cast.

 

I put it into deeper water by a weed line. the yank was HUGE.  it ran under my kayak and I almost broke the rod trying to get the line to the other side of the boat.  the fish made a run and I tightened my drag...opps.  bad move.  the "tink!" of the line snapping broke my heart.

 

it was my only bite of the day.

I never laid eyes on the fish.

and why did I mess with the drag!!!??

[Swamp Girl]

1 hour ago, roadwarrior said:

Two monsters this week that got away.

The first was fishing a Vision 110 in Second Creek at Pickwick. After a wicked

strike I swept my rod, but in the process somehow hit the release. The line balled

up like cotton candy. I tried to bring it in by hand, but the fish staged and bent a

middle hook. The back hooks had two scales intact and that's all she wrote.

 

Number two was yesterday below Pickwick on the Tennessee River. This was a big

brown bass that struck, dove and ran. When I got this princess turned around she 

came at me, then up and out...a three foot leap at least.  Brought her a little closer,

but she didn't like the boat, so she went airborne again. This time she returned my

lure, express mail. 

This is top-class storytelling. You really put me in the boat and each time, I suffered with you!

 

The fish that jumped reminded me of a largie that jumped on me.Twice. Both times I could see her glory. 

[Blue Raider Bob]

On 10/7/2022 at 7:49 AM, ol'crickety said:

I am amazed at the posters who don't lose big fish because big fish are stronger and smarter. I'm wondering if my technique is faulty or if I'm using the wrong equipment. Sometimes it's the bog itself that bests me. A bass will burrow into weeds and come free. However, I think it's also me. Sigh. 

It's definitely not you! All we can do is present our offerings in the right place at the right time and hope our hooks hold. Bigger fish are also stronger fish.

On 10/28/2022 at 10:46 AM, roadwarrior said:

Two monsters this week that got away.

The first was fishing a Vision 110 in Second Creek at Pickwick. After a wicked

strike I swept my rod, but in the process somehow hit the release. The line balled

up like cotton candy. I tried to bring it in by hand, but the fish staged and bent a

middle hook. The back hooks had two scales intact and that's all she wrote.

 

Number two was yesterday below Pickwick on the Tennessee River. This was a big

brown bass that struck, dove and ran. When I got this princess turned around she 

came at me, then up and out...a three foot leap at least.  Brought her a little closer,

but she didn't like the boat, so she went airborne again. This time she returned my

lure, express mail. 

Terrific story! Really must have been frustrating when you inadvertently released the bail. I'm sure you were asking yourself, "Did that really just happen?"