EricM
Well-known member
Yep, we went again. And yep, sumpthin' got broke. Twice.
5:00 am. Erik shows up at the house and we load the boat. I start the drive to the new ramp on the other side of the river at Ft Loudoun dam. Whoops! Pull over and let Erik put the boat bumper/float back into the boat since it had flown out on the end of a rope and was threatening to get caught under a wheel. Next I see that the running lights on the trailer weren't working, so we stop and jiggle the plug. Ha! Fixed! Got to the ramp and I find that the plastic rod holder that I had put my net into has snapped off and the landing net had tangled on another rod holder and was still in the boat. I'm suprised that is is not on the side of the highway near where his bag of brand-new tackle flew out on our last trip.
Great brand-new ramp. Erik put on his waterproof suit and got out the cast net. 30 throws and not a single fish, just something that looks like a clear jelly 5 lb slug from the bottom. We moved up against the dam which is running a bunch of water and he threw another 30 times. Not a fish. I did, however, manage to slam up against a concrete wall and flatten one of my high-dollar stainless steel rod holders.We started to rig up with spoons and jigs and a friendly striper guide hollered at us about the bait. We told him what we had done and he gave us some advice, which we followed. We found the bait in very tight balls, and finally threw the net just right to get a bunch. Yay! Of course, by now, the best of the fishing is coming to an end for the morning........
We started making drifts and hanging up on the bottom regularly. I finally managed to catch my only fish of the day, a keeper sauger. I am an expert at catching odd fish while trying for something else. A few more tips from the guide, who was apparently feeling really sorry for us (or hurting laughing), and Erik hangs a small striper that escapes at the side of the boat (it gets counted using Mad Bomber rules). Aha! Now we have them dialed in! A bunch of lost gear later (the bottom was very hungry this morning) I have had enough and am hurting like an old man sometimes will, so I give up and just drive the boat. Erik hangs another striper and the fight is on! Went around the boat several times as we screamed downcurrent and finally tired and was netted. A fine 25 pounder, very long and skinny, fooled me into thinking it weighed a bunch less. We made another identical drift or two (Erik offered to drive so I could fish, but it wasn't really in me) and he hooked up another good fish. A long run that I followed with the boat ended with a nice 22-23 pound striper. Erik is thrilled!! I fished one more drift myself to no avail, and had Spurhunter use the last bait for a final drift. Fish on! A short tug-of-war yielded a fine drum to finish the day. Drumking would be proud of us.
I was totally beat. Erik even slept a bit on the ride home. I took some pain pills and my back was feeling a bit better by the time we got home. I hate getting old. Lots of stress and jerking around in the boils of the dam wears me and my lower back out quickly. It was a fun day, and was sooooo much better once we finally found a few fish. Well, that's the cost of fishing new places - a steep learning curve. Next time will be much better! Here are a couple of pics again:
5:00 am. Erik shows up at the house and we load the boat. I start the drive to the new ramp on the other side of the river at Ft Loudoun dam. Whoops! Pull over and let Erik put the boat bumper/float back into the boat since it had flown out on the end of a rope and was threatening to get caught under a wheel. Next I see that the running lights on the trailer weren't working, so we stop and jiggle the plug. Ha! Fixed! Got to the ramp and I find that the plastic rod holder that I had put my net into has snapped off and the landing net had tangled on another rod holder and was still in the boat. I'm suprised that is is not on the side of the highway near where his bag of brand-new tackle flew out on our last trip.
Great brand-new ramp. Erik put on his waterproof suit and got out the cast net. 30 throws and not a single fish, just something that looks like a clear jelly 5 lb slug from the bottom. We moved up against the dam which is running a bunch of water and he threw another 30 times. Not a fish. I did, however, manage to slam up against a concrete wall and flatten one of my high-dollar stainless steel rod holders.We started to rig up with spoons and jigs and a friendly striper guide hollered at us about the bait. We told him what we had done and he gave us some advice, which we followed. We found the bait in very tight balls, and finally threw the net just right to get a bunch. Yay! Of course, by now, the best of the fishing is coming to an end for the morning........
We started making drifts and hanging up on the bottom regularly. I finally managed to catch my only fish of the day, a keeper sauger. I am an expert at catching odd fish while trying for something else. A few more tips from the guide, who was apparently feeling really sorry for us (or hurting laughing), and Erik hangs a small striper that escapes at the side of the boat (it gets counted using Mad Bomber rules). Aha! Now we have them dialed in! A bunch of lost gear later (the bottom was very hungry this morning) I have had enough and am hurting like an old man sometimes will, so I give up and just drive the boat. Erik hangs another striper and the fight is on! Went around the boat several times as we screamed downcurrent and finally tired and was netted. A fine 25 pounder, very long and skinny, fooled me into thinking it weighed a bunch less. We made another identical drift or two (Erik offered to drive so I could fish, but it wasn't really in me) and he hooked up another good fish. A long run that I followed with the boat ended with a nice 22-23 pound striper. Erik is thrilled!! I fished one more drift myself to no avail, and had Spurhunter use the last bait for a final drift. Fish on! A short tug-of-war yielded a fine drum to finish the day. Drumking would be proud of us.
I was totally beat. Erik even slept a bit on the ride home. I took some pain pills and my back was feeling a bit better by the time we got home. I hate getting old. Lots of stress and jerking around in the boils of the dam wears me and my lower back out quickly. It was a fun day, and was sooooo much better once we finally found a few fish. Well, that's the cost of fishing new places - a steep learning curve. Next time will be much better! Here are a couple of pics again:
