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

Some Updates

Lately I have been fishing about once a week and its usually at the pits. I have pit fever, I keep hoping for a big one but I’m catching tons of small ones. Still a good time but I know that for posts, it’s getting a bit redundant. I figured I would switch things up a bit and stop talking about the pits for once! These are random ideas I have been thinking about and so I put them all in one post. 

• The fish fry – As of this moment I have yet to do my end of summer fish fry and I am well aware that we are in the middle of fall.  I really just haven’t gotten around to doing it but it is still coming and when it does, I will have pictures. 

• Number of fish – As of this moment I am at exactly 272 fish for the year. I know I will break 300. At the beginning of the year I knew that this was going to be a good year but I honestly never thought it would be this good. Last year was much slower but I learned a lot. This year I used those skills to get after some fish. I expect to surpass the 300 fish mark this year. Since I am doing so well, this leads me to what will be my goal next year and my next bullet point…

• A year on the fly- I need more practice on the fly, plain and simple. I have taken the words of Mel, aka the pond stalker aka the blog switcher (hahaha) to heart when he said that taking only your fly rod around forces you to practice casting and stripping and what not. I figure, what better way to improve at fly fishing then to force myself to learn more. This year I dragged my fly rods along but ended up just taking them for rides if I got success on the spin rod first. I figure if I am stripped down to just the fly rod and flies, it will force me to learn to catch more fish on the fly. With that said, I’m not going to be super strict on this.  If I go striper fishing with pops or visit a new fishing hole or set up a special trip, I’ll take my spin rod but most of the time I’ll be armed with a fly rod.

• Salmon fishing – Salmon season is on and cracking and I have only been out once. My goal this year is to catch 5 salmon and as my buddy Sean says, salmon fishing is only going to get better as the season goes on. As of right now it should be good so I might be giving it a try next week  I have yet to catch a salmon but I know it’s coming! I’ll let you all know when I catch my first one!

That’s pretty much it for now. I'm hoping to go fishing later today, I'll let you know how it goes. Thanks to everybody for reading along.

The Skunks Revenge

This year has been the first year have gone out and consistently caught fish instead of just being skunked. Sometimes its just one lucky fish I catch, sometimes it’s a big fish I catch and sometimes I have just had good days.  And occasionally I still have bad days. Here are the tales of two bad days in a row. 

So last tuesday I decided to get some crappie fishing out at my buddy Russell’s secret spot. I took Charles with me and we were ready for some fish. 

We ended up getting there right at sundown because Charles had some errands to run and we had to pick up some minnows. My rods were set up to add minnows and cast and so I did. 

Charles drew first blood with a nice little crappie that measured about 9 inches. I waited but bites were far and few between. My biggest mistake at this place is not having the net right next to me. I did have it at one point but then I moved down a few feet and since it was dark, it was hard to spot. 

It wasn’t until it was dark that that I finally got a take down. The bobber didn’t move or bob, it just disappeared so I knew I had something big on the other end of my line. I set my hook and sure enough, something pulled right back and took off peeling line. I played the fish and told Charles to bring the net. At one point I got him to the top and I saw his massive back and beautiful markings. Sure enough he was a largemouth around 5-6 lbs, nice and fat.  Charles had a difficult time finding the net so I continued to play the fish. When Charles finally got to my side, the fish shot in the opposite direction and back and then it was gone. I was left cussing like a fisherman! I apologized to Charles for my coarse language and when my adrenaline stopped pumping I threw another minnow on the hook and wished I would have caught that fish. What else can a fisherman do but replay the moment in his mind and vow to never lose one like that again. I ended up skunked that day. 

Then the next day with the sour taste of losing a big one, I agreed to go salmon fishing with Sean. Since it has been a full year since I last mentioned Sean, I will say a little about him. Sean is a biologist and works with fish DNA. He is also a true salmon slayer. The guy is on the river every chance he gets during salmon season and regularly gets into some nice fish. He is up to 6 fish so far this season. 

Sean is my salmon guy. He is always down to fish for salmon and is eager to see me get into my first king. Unfortunately this was not the trip. I ended up skunked but my desire to fish is bigger than ever. 

 

So that’s the deal, two days of fishing and two skunks. Tomorrow is another day! 

Total fish: 0

Spring 2014 Totals

As of this moment, I am 107 fish into the year. This is without many Largemouth trips or trips to the bee hive. What can I say, spring was good to me! I can’t even compare this to last spring, I think I was barely into double digits. I feel like I’m learning a little more about fishing by putting everything I learned last year into practice this year. Yes this spring was panfish heavy but I like the various other categories I dipped into as well. I am specifically proud of my striper total which is starting to look like it once did.

 I really think it’s time to start focusing on more of my fishing goals; specifically my trout, largemouth and striper goals. Also, Salmon season is opening up soon and this year I WILL be getting into my first five kings, this is a promise! Anyway, These are my fish totals for Spring 2014.

Carp/ PM = 02 pikeminnows

Pan Fish = 29

Catfish = 02

LMB = 08

SMB = 04

Trout = 00

Striper = 15

*Steelhead= 00

*Salmon = 00

*Sturgeon = 00

________________________

Total: 60 Fish

Fishing Goals for 2014

"I dare do all that may become a man" - Macbeth, Shakespeare

Oh man, he's getting poetic! That must mean it's time for some crazy fishing goals!! Here we go folks, time to do it big in 2014!

1. Catch 5 Salmon
This is five times last years goal (just to catch one) I told you I was feeling confident! I have yet to even catch one salmon but this year I WILL catch five!

2. Catch five Steelhead
Similar to my salmon goal, I am not only going to catch my first of these but I will catch multiple fish. Go big or go home!!

3. Catch 50 Trout
Oh man, I debated with this one. Last year I caught 10 trout total! I have never really been a trout fisherman and that is seen in the fact that I have only caught 11 in my entire life! But I am feeling confident today. I’m ready to shoot for the stars here. This definitely means focusing a lot more on trout fishing. I figure I will go a few more times this winter and I will be fly fishing a lot during small stream season so this goal is attainable!

4. Catch a new personal best striper, and then do it again!
I LOVE Striper fishing; It’s in my blood! Last year I slacked on the striper but this year I will be fishing the run, big time! I plan to break my previous personal best and then best that again, all in one year! I could have just tried to break my record once, but what better challenge could there be than beating your record twice in one year?!

5. Catch a 7 lb largemouth
I went huge last year in my largemouth goal. I went for a 10 lber. I figured this year I would lower that goal a bit and shoot for a 10 lber again next year.Who knows, maybe I will get into the 10 lber while pursuing the 7 lber!

6. Find 5 new fly fishing spots.
Who am I kidding, I LOVE fly fishing and I’m addicted. Every time I look at my fly fishing equipment, I want to fish! This year I will force myself to exit my comfort zone and search for new fly fishing spots. As a result I figure I will find some beautiful scenery and take some great pictures.

7. Catch my first fish in the ocean
I have been surf fishing once and did not do well. This year I am going on the Usal trip with my buddies again and this time I intend to spend more time hitting the surf. I figure even if I don’t catch one here, I can always try fishing off of a public pier or something.

8. Take a trip somewhere JUST to fish!
I JUST came up with this one while writing these goals so its new and exciting! Alaska , Montana , Idaho, Oregon? I haven’t thought this one out at all so I guess we will see!!

9. Catch my first Largemouth and Smallmouth bass on the Fly!
I have been wanting to catch a largemouth on the fly for a while. Why not commit it to paper and also add a smallie in there?!

10. Catch 70 Panfish
If you’re not breaking the bank, you’re not living!! It’s time for me to live up to my blog name. This is 10 less fish than I caught in all of 2013! I am going to catch 70 panfish in a year; bluegills, crappie, red ears, green sunfish, etc. If I accomplish this one and the trout one I will have caught more fish in one year than I have in any other year of my life!

As you can see, folks, I mean business this year! I have researched a lot, studied a lot and asked a lot of questions and it’s time to test my limits. Don’t get me wrong I am not trying to be the expert or act like I know it all but it’s time to really challenge myself. It’s time to break the bank, folks!

2013 Fishing Goals Report!

2013 was a decent year of fishing. It was the first year that I actually counted my fish so that’s a definite highlight. In 2013 I caught a grand total of 80 fish and I’m proud of that total! I worked hard for that total. I fished as much as I possibly could for that total. Part of me wants to say it’s not a lot of fish but it’s about more than just the fish, it’s about learning HOW to catch the fish! Its about always being a student of angling as opposed to being an un-teachable know it all.

My Personal best crappie - 12 in.

I am not an expert by any means but I now have 3 solid seasons under my belt. I would say that this third season has been the biggest learning year so far. That’s a huge milestone. In 2013 I learned how to fly fish, I learned how to fish for salmon, I learned how to set up a punch rig, I revisited and really learned how to use the slip-bobber rig to catch more panfish than I ever have. 

Fly fishing for the very first time

Out of all of these skills, my favorite by far is learning to fly fish. Ever since the moment I found out Mark would be teaching me to fly fish, I knew I would be hooked. So when I first held a fly rod in my hand, the moment I first tried to cast, the first fish I caught, the first trout I caught on my own rod;  all of those moments really confirmed that I would not forget about fly fishing and would eventually begin a lifelong pursuit of fly fishing. I will always remember 2013 as the year I became a fly fisherman. 

Below are the goals I had for 2013. Some I completed, others I will complete this year.

1.       Catch my first Salmon 

Incomplete. I didn’t catch my first salmon this year. However, my head is not down about this one. I learned exactly how to catch a salmon and the only thing missing this year was actually hooking into one. 2014 will definitely be my year for the king! 

2.       Catch my first Sturgeon 

Incomplete. Honestly, the weather has thrown my fishing schedule off. Usually around this time I would be trying for Sturgeon but the end of December and early January has felt like summer in Northern California. I usually wait for some rain to start salmon fishing but it hasn’t happened yet. All that to say I didn’t catch any salmon last year. Haha I will give it another go this year. 

3.       Catch my first steelhead

Incomplete. I didn’t really do anything toward this goal. I will however be going out for steelhead with they fly rod soon so hopefully 2014 will be the year for chrome!!

4.       Discover new fishing holes

Great spot on Dry Creek

Complete. I definitely accomplished this one! This year I found the bee hive, a salmon spot in Knights landing, A spot on dry creek for trout, and a great spot for catfishing at Ellis Lake. This year I will be on the hunt for more spots!

5. Catch more trout

PB Rainbow trout - 16 in.

stringer from New Melones

Complete. This goal wasn’t specific by any means but I have never been a trout fisherman. This year, I caught trout. I caught 14 total trout this year which was more than the single trout I caught last year. I also caught the largest trout I have ever caught which was a 16 inch planter. In 2014 I intend to catch many more. Its also important to note that 9 out of these 14 trout were caught on the fly. 

6.       Catch more smallmouth bass

My PB 24 in. Striper

Incomplete. I hardly even tried, but I will!!

7.       Break my striper record

Complete. This year I hooked into a hard fighting tuxedo bass that broke my old record by 2 inches. Even though I didn’t get into many stripers this year, I’m happy to say I got into my biggest so far. 

8.       Catch a double digit Largemouth

Incomplete. I hardly fished for largemouth this year and when I did get into them, they weren’t as large as I thought they would be. 

9.       More overnight fishing trips

Incomplete. I had a few camping trips but no overnight fishing trips. I need to put this goal back up in 2014 because I love al night fishing! 

10.   Do more fishing research than ever before!

Complete. I definitely researched more than ever. I think my tactic is different than in the past. Although I did do a ton of online research and video watching, I also asked a lot of questions to the experts like Mark with trout, Sean with Salmon and Russell with panfish. 

In all I met four out of my 10 goals. This year when I set goals I intend on focusing on those goals to get them done so I will choose wisely. 2014 Fishing goals are coming soon!