Sweet redemption!

[HuntFishAK]

I've had a bit of a run of bad luck losing fish at one of my local lakes. This lake is barbless hooks only and I just haven't been able to keep fish on. Well, that changed tonight. Fisrt spot I went to, I was basically standing on a huge boulder that mad a 5-6 foot drop off before the bottom flattened out again. I was about ready to move, but I made one more cast with a SK Ocho in junebug. Meanwhile, a man with his daughter showed up and were about to throw some nightcrawlers and a bobber. This is a no-no on this lake. So while I was explaining this to him, I felt a solid bump. I told him to hold on a sec, and proceeded to set the hook on and land a decent largemouth. Even a guy in a float tube gave me the thumbs up. I thought the whole situation was amusing.

I decided to move to a spot where I usually get at least strikes. I was walking along the sidewalk that goes along the bank throwing a frog and after thoroughly working that lure, switched to the Ocho. A couple dudes were just walking up on me when I get a strike. I thought I had missed it, and probably had, so I lowered my rod tip when the fish struck again. After a short battle, I landed this fat, healthy largemouth.

Not bad for about 2 1/2 hours of fishing. Every bass I catch now is bittersweet. I'm moving to bassless Alaska in 2 weeks, and each bass could be my last for a long time.

[b.Lee]

Great story man and equally great catches

[Jigfishn10]

Very nice. Good luck with your move to Alaska!

[Nice_Bass]

"a man with his daughter showed up and were about to throw some nightcrawlers and a bobber.  This is a no-no on this lake." 

Why??

I would think a man and his children should have first rights, and whatever bait they use would be a yes -yes....?

[HuntFishAK]

"a man with his daughter showed up and were about to throw some nightcrawlers and a bobber. This is a no-no on this lake."

Why??

I would think a man and his children should have first rights, and whatever bait they use would be a yes -yes....?

I apologize, I should've explained in a little more detail.  This lake is regulated by what is called "selective gear rules" for trophy brown and rainbow trout.  This means artificial lures and flies with a single barbless hook.  I did the guy a favor by explaining the rules to him as it would be a hefty fine if he got caught.

[hookingem]

Great story and nice bass! Sorry to hear about the bassless move!

[Nice_Bass]

"a man with his daughter showed up and were about to throw some nightcrawlers and a bobber. This is a no-no on this lake."

Why??

I would think a man and his children should have first rights, and whatever bait they use would be a yes -yes....?

I apologize, I should've explained in a little more detail. This lake is regulated by what is called "selective gear rules" for trophy brown and rainbow trout. This means artificial lures and flies with a single barbless hook. I did the guy a favor by explaining the rules to him as it would be a hefty fine if he got caught.

Makes perfect sense.  Wow, that is pretty serious regs.  Thanks for the info, and good luck on the move.

[HuntFishAK]

No problem.  There's quite a few lakes and stretches of river that fall under those rules.  You need a law degree to decipher our river regs sometimes.