Fall 2014 Totals

Ok so here is the wrap up for Fall 2014. 

There is so much and so little to be said about this season. First, it went way better than I thought it would have. Of course it slowed down the colder it got and as soon as the rain came I went into my cave to hibernate. 

Here are the numbers:

Carp/ PM = 00

Pan Fish = 00

Catfish = 00

LMB = 83

SMB = 00

Trout = 00

Striper = 00

*Steelhead= 00

*Salmon = 00

*Sturgeon = 00

 

Hahahaha! Apparently I only caught Largemouth bass this fall, which is cool but I also didn’t realize that I was fishing for bass so much. I did go out a few times for Salmon but got skunked.

Like I said, not a whole lot to say about it, it was a hell of a season!

Christmas Tradition

high and muddy water

I am not a Christmas guy. I am not a Christmas music/spirit/presents person. I’m more of a thanksgiving type of guy.  My wife LOVES Christmas and she loves decorating the house as what she calls a “Christmas village.” I didn’t want decorations, she wanted decorations so we compromised and had decorations! The things we do for the women we love.

Anyway, one Christmas tradition that I love is Christmas fishing with Ol Pops. For the past few years we have been hitting the fishing hole after Christmas Breakfast and this year was no different. However, there was one difference. Nor Cal had some rain around that time so our rivers and sloughs are VERY high and flowing quickly. 

Deer is to the left of the gate

We hit Lisbon slough for a few quick hours of fishing. We brought chicken livers and nightcrawlers hoping for some big cats. I was hoping to hit a specific spot I have on Lisbon but that spot was flooded so we just hit a new spot. 

Just a great view

I tossed two lines in and my dad tossed in one. We waited and waited but no bites. Meanwhile it was a cold but beautiful day in Woodland. In fact there were three does that decided to make an appearace on the other side of the slough. We watched them as they ate grass and hung out and even though we weren’t getting bites, it was cool to see these woodland creatures hanging out.

We ended the day with no fish but it was a great time out with my dad enjoying our fantastic tradition! 

Total fish: 0

To Catch or Not to Catch?

That is the Question! 

Howard from "Windknots and Tangled Lines" made an interesting statement on my blog the other day that I thought I would dissect a little bit in order to examine my own motives.

The statement was, “numbers and size just really don't mean much. Enjoy the experience.”

 Am I really only after big fish and numbers? I would have to take apart the question a bit and I start with the word, “Only.”

Am I “only” after the big fish? The answer is no. This year most of the fish I have caught have been smaller. In fact I caught a lot of panfish and I’m one of the only guys in my fishing circles that still has a blast with a bobber, worm and good a panfish hole. I’m not only interested in big fish, but with that said, I definitely DO want to catch some big “trophy fish.” And the idea is that I want to excel at catching fish. It’s like getting a promotion at a job or increasing your max at the gym. I want to constantly improve and attempt to master anything that I do. I am a fisherman, I catch fish. 

Am I after numbers? This year, I would have to say the answer is yes. Just being honest. I was out to prove to myself that my research thus far has paid off. Last year I learned a lot and this year I was testing my research. I feel my research paid off. Now am I only after numbers, no. However at the very least I am after one! If I don’t beat the skunk I sometimes feel like I failed. A man once said, “There's a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot.” While Salmon fishing I remembered this quote… but then I realized I was on a boat and that made me feel better.

View from above (slip bobber at center of picture, close to top)

To be honest, it’s not always about catching fish but sometimes it is. If I went on 5 fishing trips and didn’t catch one, I would be concerned. Then again, It depends on the trip. Like there is a fishing trip that I forgot to mention a couple of Fridays ago. It was an impromptu Friday night trip to Lake Minden, the lake where my buddy Russell works. It had been a while since I had fished with him so I was looking forward to hanging with him and drinking some beers together with lines in the water. 

Two rods out in the darkness

I had a slip- bobber rig in and a bottom fishing rig in the other. I got nibbles on the slip bobber rig and nothing on the bottom feeding rig. That is until I got a big take down. I set my hook and must have pulled the hook out with the big set but that’s not the point. It would have been nice to catch a fatty catfish but I didn’t see that trip as a failure by any means. I drank beers and ate brats with my good buddy and we caught up on life. Whenever I have a trip like this one, the last thing on my mind is catching fish but catching fish is a nice little bonus! Same goes when I’m fishing with Mark or getting to know a new buddy like Jeremy or if I’m night fishing with the buddies or fishing while camping. 

Thoreau once said, “Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after.” I know what I’m after, only sometimes is it big fish.
 

Total Fish: 0

B-day Fishing

The day before my birthday I decided to make a little fly fishing trip out to “Central” putah creek in Davis. I had originally planned to take a bigger trip out to Western Putah in search of some trophy rainbows but ended up waking up too late.

In the past I haven’t taken pictures of this fishing hole that once graced me with my first largemouth bass on the fly so I decided to snap some on this day.

My first stop was this hole which might look great but is actually only about 1-2 ft deep and teeming with pikeminnows.  I threw a couple of flies but due to the low hanging tree branches and tight casting I decided to move to the next hole.

This next hole is the big producer for me. Here a black wooley bugger gets the job done all summer long. Now I’m not sure if it was because  the water was cold or my inexperience (or a combination of both) but on this specific day the fish were scarce. I didn’t get a single fish to take my offerings. I only saw one bass in the water; I usually see them following my flies, but not on this day. 

My final stop was this third hole. This hole usually produces when others don’t and although I did see a few more fish out here they were not interested in what I threw in their direction. Around this point I started getting hungry so I split. 

Well, it’s always good to practice my fly cast. Big news coming soon but that’s it for now!

Total fish: 0

Still Chasing Salmon

Chinook Salmon have become my white whale.  And Yet I am getting VERY discouraged because I am like 0-12 with catching them  in the past two years. Any confidence I had for salmon fishing is now gone or close to gone. 

We went out last week with Sean at 6 am. I have been out with him all the rest of the times in the afternoon. We never caught any in the afternoon so I decided to go with him in the morning. 

We launched at around 630 and it was super cold. I really wasn’t prepared for it but I had to tough it out. 

We set up at one spot, cast out our lines, had coffee and waited. We waited, talked and hung out waiting for a bite and nothing.  We noticed an older Russian gentleman bank fishing and he ended up catching 4 large carps by the time we switched to our second spot. I’m glad somebody was having a good day!

We switched to our second spot and set up at the end of a six boat hog line. We were ready. Reports from the other boats were that nobody had caught any salmon that day. We set out our rods one at a time and while Sean released his second rod, his first one dipped! By the time he rushed to the rod, the bite was gone. It was the most excitement I have seen during my entire time Salmon fishing. Yes I know, that’s sad! 

We finished up the day with no fish and another day skunked while fishing for Salmon. Always good to get out on the water though! 

Total fish: 0