Photo By Jody Only
the “honey hole” looking to somehow squeak out a couple more bites. Upon my return, the water had dropped quite a bit and with the wind action, it remained pretty stained. I was having trouble getting the boat back into the thickest of tulles and found myself having to try and reach pockets from in front of the tulles and casting way back. Just about the time I was telling myself this spot was done, I spotted what I thought were a couple of carp just under the water. They were sitting over a little alley, just sunning them selves. Wouldn’t you know it, upon looking closely, there was no fork in their tails and suddenly it became apparent they were bass. Not only bass, but bass locked on a bed. The situation really set up perfectly for me. The wind was blowing right into me, so it was easy to stay back and make long pitches to them. Also, every time I changed rods or put on a new bait, the wind would push me away and not right over them. I apologized to my co-angler and told him I was going to stay put for a while, that I really needed just one of these fish.
It didn’t take long for me to be rewarded with that “mushy” feeling of a bass on the line and in a matter of moments, I had a two and a half pounder in the boat. Out goes the twelve incher and I am suddenly once again, a happy man. I mentioned that I needed to go back and see if the bigger fish was still there and upon returning, to my surprise, they were actually BOTH still there and they were both bigger than the one I just caught. Two or three pitches later and fish number two was in the net. A solid three plus pounder and out goes a two pounder. Man, this day is getting better quick. OK, one more peek up there to
ISSUE 2 June 2011
see if fish number three is still hanging around. She’s still there but pretty weary. A grub over her back and a little tickle of the line along her side and now she’s ready to eat. One more pitch and unbelievably, fish number three, and the biggest of the group is in the net allowing me to get rid of the first bed fish caught there. Whew, what a rush. In a matter of less than fifteen minutes I managed to cull up no less than six pounds and all off one bed! I came to the scales with over twenty-one pounds. Enough to jump me from twenty ninth place all the way into thirteenth. I missed the cut by a pound and a half, disappointing but still feeling extremely happy with my good fortune.
Well, that pretty much sums up my tournament. It started off slow, had its moments of action and excitement along with some lows and even heart breaks and ended in a grand finale that will keep me fishing hard for a long time. Until next time, tight lines and take lots of pictures.
Thanks to Dobyns Rods and mostly, my wife Lori for allowing me to take so much time away from the family to pursue this sport I love so much.
Repair Shop
We specialize in high quality propeller repair and sales of both new and used marine propellers in stainless, aluminum and bronze. Also we have the ability to repair skegs and cavitation plates on both out- boards and I/O’s and offer quality instalation of marine electronics,
trolling motors, downriggers and deep cycle batteries.
Tackle Store
At Phil’s we carry a large selection of fishing tackle for all species
(including live bait) in both fresh and saltwater. Brands like Yama- moto, Roboworm, Shimano, G-Loomis, Lowrance, Gamakatsu and LuckyCraft just to name a few can be found in store or on the web at
Philsprop.com where easy online ordering is available.
3037 Twin View Blvd. Shasta Lake, Ca.96019
800-462-3917 530-275-4939
www.philsprop.com
info@philsprop.com
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