Your Story for Fishing 2008

[Daniel My Brother]

2008 was a great year for me and I need to give a lot of thanks for that to the people on this website. Here are just a few highlights:

I went fishing with the girls and caught a new PB.

Managed to snag a giant gar.

Rediscovered my love of catfish.

Caught 200 hundred white bass in one day.

And even helped dig up a mastodon jaw!

I fished all kinds of new water this year, targeted new species, and made some new fishing buddies in the process. Thank you all for the expertise, passion and humor that make this site my favorite place on the web.

[burleytog]

2008 for me?  SUCK

[paul.]

first and foremost, got to have some very fun trips with my youngest including a new pb for her which was my top priority this year.  second storyline would be my introduction to swimbaits this year, learning these baits, and catching some good fish on them.  other than that, i have been just happy and blessed to catch a few nice fish including a new spinning tackle pb, new topwater pb, and new live bait pb.  '08's fishing ain't over yet for me though.  maybe there'll be some more good stuff to come.  

[baboosicbass08]

I'd have to say this year was my best year of fishing, my most memorable experience would have to be July 4th weekend when i went camping with a couple friends, getting up early fishing all morning heading back to the site cook some burgers and dogs, head back to the lake fish all afternoon, head back to the site throw on more burgers and dogs, head back to the lake fish from shore knee deep in the water perfect temperature catching fish from 8pm-2am, heading back to the site cooking smore's getting sleep and repeating the process the next day and the next day and the next day...... I also become very confident in topwater fishing this year as I caught my first topwater fish early on in the year and was able to fish topwater baits confidently at night for the summer, I also caught my first spinner bait fish this year (thanks to a member who i also got to fish with this year, and hopefully get to next year) and I got a little practice in with a baitcaster.

[islandbass]

It was a mix for me. Personally it was the worst as in practically non-existent for me. I broke my ankle in two places on back in May and that practically did me in. I was looking forward to learning jigs and shakey heads.

Vicariously however, it was quite good. One outing with my dad and the other with my daughter.

My dad visited from overseas and even with a full fledged cast on my right leg, I took him smallie fishing (in July) because he wanted to go. Then in September, I helped my daughter, a trout catching machine, catch her first bass.

VICARIOUS EXPERIENCE #1 July 2008

This is what I composed to remember the outing:

Finally Gone Bass Fishing with Dad!

Some of you might know that I broke my ankle in late May (double fracture) playing with the kids at the playground (that's the truth) and as a result, fishing for this season is pretty much not going to happen until I heal. Per Doctor's orders, I cannot put any weight on my right ankle lest I want to risk having surgery.

My dad came a long way to see me, and he wanted to do some fishing it possible and I thought to myself, I really shouldn't fish, but on the other side of the coin, I don't get to see my dad often enough because he lives so far away and he really wanted to go fishing, probably more than me!

This past Monday, I gathered up what we needed including a chairs for us to sit on.

It was a blue bird sky day. My gut feeling was saying that prospects were going to probably be slim and fishing tough.

I was hoping to be wrong and it appeared that I would be. Within minutes of rigging him up with the drop shot (6'6 med action rod with cabela's 6# fc line) rig. He gets his first nibble as I am preparing my own set up. He gets my attention and I observe the rod's tip twitch. I said excitedly, Dad, set the hook!

Just moments before the first bite.

Just to let you know, my dad is a newbie to fishing. The last time he fished with me was at this spot last year.

He reeled up the slack and pulled back just as a pro does to make a cross the eyes hook set and I thought. Wow! What a hook set! Where in the world did that come from? I didn't teach him that. Well, at least he looked good!

I started laughing but not because he missed the fish. It was such a beautiful hook set, but unfortunately, that type of hook set is not needed when drop shotting. It was probably a decent sized smallie too.

I proceeded to tell him that that I meant for him to just reel up the slack to get tension to the line. He was bummed out but still kept an optimistic outlook for the rest of the day.

I spent most of the time trying to get my first jig fish: both jig and pig and Shakey head, but no luck today. I had followers with the J-n-P (30% of the fishing time), Shakey-head (30%), spoons (5%), lucky craft jerk bait (4%) and homemade inline spinners (30%) but no takers at all despite the adjustments I made in size and lure color.

My poor dad had no luck as the day went by miss after miss.

I switched to my comfort technique the drop shot (1%) and on about the 3rd cast with my dad right next to me I mentioned, Got it, as I reeled the slack in.

It might look like I am putting weight on my right leg but I am not. It's all on the left leg.

I knew it was a small one but being only my second time out this season for bass fishing, I will take it. It is also my first bass this season too.

He jokingly said that I stole his fish and that my unasked help on that hook set was an attempt of sabotage.

I was really hoping and praying he catch at least one fish, but it was not to be.

We fished for just less than three hours, but had to leave to beat the traffic to catch his train.

He went 0 for 8 and I went about 1 for 4, not including the followers.

It was definitely great father and son time, something I cherish deeply. So in addition to taking the kids fishing, if possible, don't forget to take a parent(s) fishing too.

VICARIOUS EXPERIENCE #2

Daughter's First Bass 09-01-08

I am glad to say that I have finally gotten this monkey off of my back and it has been there for a long time. My daughter is my first fishing buddy and she has been a trout catching machine since day one. However, catching a bass until today has been so elusive for her. So after a very long time of trying and trying and trying, her persistence has finally paid off.

We faced a cooling trend and overcast skies after a good period of decent warmth. On the way to the lake she told me that she was not going to leave until she caught a bass.

I set her 6'6 spinning rig with a drop shot set up and I set up mine as well.

The first 30 minutes was not productive for either of us and to be honest I was awaiting a comment along the lines of, Can we go now?

Instead, she says, Papi, we have to move to another spot. There is nothing happening here. I thought I needed to clean my ears because hearing those words was like hearing music. The other neat thing was the degree of determination in her voice and attitude. You could not only see it, but also feel it.

We moved to another spot that has been productive for me in the past. We had to pass our car on the way to that spot so I unloaded unneeded items we were carrying.

Unfortunately, time was running out for fishing because we had other plans. We only had about 20 minutes left. So as I unloaded the unnecessary items, I decided instantly that I was going to give her my complete and undivided attention. I put away one rig and told her that I wasn't going to fish so that we can both focus on getting that first bass.

We were fishing riprap and while she held the rig, I kept my hand on above the rod's fore grip. Then, as she dragged the weight over the rocks, I asked if she could feel the vibrations. She said, Yes, those are rocks.

Shortly after, I felt a nibble but before I could tell her or say anything, she blurts out, A bite! and yanks to set the hook. I thought to myself that maybe she should be teaching me. Goodness gracious that has got to be a good instinct because when I started fishing, it took a long time to figure what was a bite and what was not.

Naturally, that kind of move will just yank the lure away from the fish. I shared with her that unlike a regular hook set that all she had to do was to reel up the line until there was some tension.

We're down to our last five minutes and she is still determined. She encounters a snag and so I grabbed the rod above the fore grip to pop the rod and managed to free it. My fingers were still on the rod when the weight landed and I felt very small tug. I didn't say a thing.

Apparently my daughter did too. She says she has one and starts reeling up the line. Oh the joy to see the line moving and you know they're hooked. I was Iaconelli-ing it loud and proud, fist pumping, and yee-hah-ing it all the way to the bank. Speaking of the bank, folks on the bank of the other side of the canal gave their approval with cheers and applause of their own.

I quickly took photos and she released the cute little bass.

Beautifully hooked if I may say so. She did well!

First time lipping a bass, readying it for release.

My little girl did it. And she didn't give up. This definitely made my day (despite going home skunked fishing solo in the early morning) and I know it made hers.

Sorry that this is long winded.

Location: Lake Union, WA

Conditions: Gray, Overcast, 65 degrees

Gear: 6'6 MH Compre/2500 Symetre, 8# Spiderwire Mono (trunk rig)

Technique/Lure: Drop Shot/Sniper Snub

-ib

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

Some great posts here guys!!  I see many of you got to spend some quality time with family and there's nothing better than that!

I also got to fish with my brother this yr.  Last time was maybe 10 yrs ago.  This is Brian with his Step son Drew.  Drew is now addicted and is a big help when it comes time for CAST events.  Looking forward to having them on the boat again next year and I also just found out that I have another family member who wants to come wet a line,.....MOM!!  Next yr for sure.

[Muddy]

#1; Taking 10 guys out for a weekend of fishing, with stuff donated mostly from fellas here, and extending this sport to them. I am appreciative to all of you and for the chance to help some fellas out

#2, Sharkbite being brought back to the cabin at 4am in the morning by the fish and game guys, fishing with no licence on him, with a flashlight taped to his hat at the Chunk.

#3. Many days spent with Bruce ( the other 1/2 of 2 mooks in a boat) on the Chunk and various ponds with LMB and rivers, slaming some smallies.

#4. My best friend Steve and I on the Chunk and watching his face as he pulls out the biggest smallie I have ever seen from the Chunk

#5. Putting my friend Mark onto his PB Large Mouth Bass

#6 and #7: Fishing with both Zel and Speedbead on the Chunk from right here at BassResource.com

[TheBeast]

I was fishing so that was the best, you can't ask me to single out any one day.  

Met and fished with 4 new friends from here, great guys all.  

[Mobydick]

This year was very important for me. I learned more about fishing this year than I can say. I learned to fish the dropshot, jig, and carolina rig. I also bettered my techniques in everything else. I read a lot of articles from bassmaster magazines, books, and this site. I didn't catch as many fish this year, but definetely better quality. I have moved away from the bank this year also, yea, go ahead and laugh, but until this year, I didn't care to fish in water where there was nothing to throw at above the water. Now I spend more time fishing off the bank than on it, and I gotta say, I love it. I learned a lot from you guys on here, or else I wouldn't be fishing like I am now. Scince I became a member on this site, I have learned how to pattern the fish, and be able to adjust to the conditions to catch them. I am now trying to perfect my techniques with the jig and the dropshot. This year I am a senior in high school, and trying to decide what I wanna do when I get out of college. I want to become a professional bass fisherman, which is why I spend a lot of time on here and even more on the water. This year was very important as far as deciding my future, I am learning something new about fishing every day now. Well, time to hit the water!

[KYntucky Warmouth]

Personally this year has been a crap shoot for me... only thing that sticks out is a descent sized walleye on a Strike King series 3 gizzard shad

[Long Mike]

Wow!  What a great year I had!

I had the great opportunity of meeting the BR guys at Guntersville and fishing with several of them.  If it hadn't have been for Roadwarrior, I could not have made the trip.  he gave up his own bed to accommodate me when I was left high and dry by my the guy who pledged to share my room rental.

I caught my PB on Caney Reservoir in Louisiana while fishing in a snowstorm with my Cajun cronies.

I had the opportunity of rooming and fishing with Ghoti at a neat little private fishing spot in Missouri.

I had the opportunity of meeting Catt, who clued me in on a neat fishing spot on Toledo Bend.

I had the opportunity of meeting, rooming and fishing with Fishfordollars.  What a great teacher he is!

All in all, I didn't catch a lot of fish, but I have learned more than I could have ever hoped for.  One great year!

[toolpush]

Caught a 20# flathead catfish on, yes, let's hear it..... a spinnerbait and 10# test. ;D