Got a story like this?

[Susky River Rat]

Gotta catch fish to have fish stories. 
 

I was musky fishing with my dad. I hooked up with one got her into the boat. 45 plus pre spawn fish. My dad misses netting the fish and it wasn’t that the fish was thrashing or anything. He goes to scope it to early again catches the dussa hooks on the side of the net. By this point I’m freaking out.  We flip the net and net it inside out. In the bag!  Start to get my release tools my dad lowers the brim of the net. I’m like whoa dad look what you’re doing the fish is over the brim of the nethe tries lifting it but over half the fish is over now. The hook that was hooked into the net breaks and off goes a really good musky. I through my rod and freaked for about 15 minutes. After that not a word was spoken for the next 8 hours. 

[Dogface]

On 1/7/2024 at 9:15 PM, WRB said:

My Musky story was titled in the Nestor’s new “Antique Net Ruined”.

Tom

 

Tom's story reminds me of a net I ruined many years ago. My sons and I were fishing a big lake in Quebec east of James Bay. We were trolling a rock cliff for walleye. At the end of the cliff, I began a gradual turn to troll back along the cliff. As I was making the turn I hooked a big pike.  

 

I was using 6 lb line and a 3 or 4 inch green grub. We eventually got the fish up to the boat and my son netted it. When he lifted the net the fish broke right through the bottom of the net bag. There I was with me on one side of the net and the fish taking off on the other side. I quickly slid the rod through the hole in the net and started fighting the fish again. I was able to hand-land the fish. 

 

I did not get a weight but the length was over 52 inches. 

 

What is unusual is I caught another monster pike in the same place with a similar grub and the same rod, reel and line combo while fishing for walleye two years later.  

[Woody B]

Nothing like the others, but one that got away.  I still laugh every time I think about it.  

 

I haven't done much saltwater fishing, and have never owned any saltwater gear.   My Mom had a cousin that lived at Long Beach NC.   "They" said the Tarpon were "running".  (whatever that means).  I decided I was going to catch one.  I had my brand new Ambassador 5500C reel and a new Ugly Stick rod.  I put 17 pound test line on it because "Tarpon are big".   I tied on a fairly heavy hopkins spoon and heaved it out into the surf.   A Tarpon, or something hit it and proceeded to run all the line off my reel.   I didn't even slow it down.   

 

[Swamp Girl]

1 hour ago, Dogface said:

the length was over 52 inches. 

 

Of course, that would be huge for a musky, but nearly unimaginable for a pike. Great story. Thanks.

[Dogface]

5 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

 

Of course, that would be huge for a musky, but nearly unimaginable for a pike. Great story. Thanks.

 

No not "unimaginable" up there. The place was noted for its giant pike not to mention walleye, lake trout and brookies. 

 

BTW I measured the fish and it was 2 inches plus longer on both ends of my 4-foot-mounted tape.  I did not have a longer tape. 

[OmegaDPW]

About 10 years ago I was fishing a friend's farm pond. It was stocked with crappie, which was my main passion at the time, but also had bass and bluegill. There were actually two ponds separated by a dam and a drop off of about 5 feet from the dam to the pond. You literally had to move cows and one stubborn bull out of the way to fish either pond. Their neighbors had collected donkeys and an alpaca and they had free reign over the ponds as well.

 

 My wife and kids were fishing with me that day and I was alone on the dam fishing one side of the pond. I had just cast out an in-line spinner of some sort and heard a bunch of noise behind me. I turned around and one of the dumb donkeys was in full gallop charging me on the dam! I have no idea if it heard the spinning sound from the reel or what, but something triggered it. Until that time, I had literally no idea how fast a donkey could run until it was bearing down on me. I was in disbelief for like two seconds watching this unfold before my brain kicked in and realized it was going to attack me. The only way was down and I threw the rod and jumped. Luckily, I wasn't in 12 feet of water- there was a shelf before you got into the deep part. During that two second pause, the landowner's chocolate lab also noticed what was happening and took off after the donkey and chased it away from me. I have no doubt the donkey would have jumped on top of me- or fell on top of me because it couldn't stop in time- if it wasn't for that dog. 

 

 I climbed back up on the dam after the donkey and dog had ran off. My wife and kids were howling with laughter on the other side of the pond while I was still shaking. I picked up my rod and started a fast retrieve of the lure to re-cast and bagged this on the retrieve. To this day, my family thinks this is the funniest thing that has ever happened to us. I beg to differ. I also let that chocolate lab hang around me every other time we went.

 

 

[Bluebasser86]

I've swam out to get a big bass that snagged me in a downed tree when I was bank fishing once. It was way more effort than it was worth because the fish had significant ground shrinkage after I got back to the bank. What I thought was a 5-7 pound fish while it was thrashing around on the surface was more like a 3.5 pound fish.