Fish of a Lifetime

Sunday morning, Jake and I got a late start, but were on the water by 8:30.   The rains came down pretty hard on us all the way to the launch at Elkhorn, but the skies showed signs of clearing as we pulled away from the dock.   Overall, the weather was just perfect for fishing.

I have been fishing the stretch of river near Elkhorn for the past few weeks, and have found fair numbers of bass on the steep rocky banks all along the west levee.   The back-trolling technique I have been practicing for a couple of weeks has allowed me to fish long stretches of the shore quickly and efficiently without having to drop anchor.  Today my intention was to use the technique the along a 1.5 mile long stretch of steep bank covered with large rocks along a 12' deep cut at the base of the levee.

As I positioned the boat facing into the current in 15' of water 20' off the rocks, the finder screen lit up with activity.  Large balls of bait just off the bottom rolled by with multiple large returns just above them.   This was definitely the spot to begin fishing.  I set Jake up with a fluke on a drop shot rig about 4' beneath a strike indicator.   I tied on a flutter spoon,  one of my signature Shakee-Head rigs, and a medium crankbait that Jake and I freshly painted earlier in the week.  The crank would ultimately be the only lure that actually hits the water.

First catch of the day

After putting Jake's line out his rod went into a holder near the rear of the boat where he could easily reel it in, Jake joined me on the front deck.  I picked up the crankbait first at Jake's request.  On the third cast, the rod doubled over, as a very strong and determined fish attempted to swim upriver with the plug.  After a short battle, a 20" striper landed on deck.   Jake was totally stoked.  "We caught a big one Daddy," he exclaimed.  Before I even snapped a pic and returned the fish to the water, Jake was ordering me to catch another one.


It would not be long before another fish would grab the lure and take off running.   The second strike was  a solid thud that nearly pulled the rod from my hands.  As the line peeled off the reel, the fish ran straight towards the middle of the river, and started to take the boat with it.  The fight that ensued was by far the longest, and most difficult I have ever had with a fish on the line.  It became pretty obvious to me within 10 seconds of the strike that this was a large fish, and not a bass.   For a good 6-8 minutes I fought the fish to the boat only to have it take off into the current again pulling line of the reel regardless of how tight I thumbed the spool.  I am certain that had the boat been anchored, the fish would have broken off as I attempted to reel it against the current on my feeble 10# flourocarbon line that was now stretched far beyond its design allotted.  Ultimately, under Jake's direction, we got the slab alongside the boat, and with a great heave, onto the floor of the deck.

Our Monster Catch

I couldn't help but let out a cheer, and Jake responded with a hoot of his own.   The display earned us a nice round of applause from a couple of shore anglers as well as a group in a passing fishing boat who had witnessed most of the action.  Our catch measured 24.5", which, according to most charts, weighs 8.8-9.2 lbs on average.  This is by far the largest fish I have ever pulled from the river, as well as my biggest fresh water catch.  The opportunity to catch this fish with Jake standing two feet away is absolutely my best lifetime fishing moment. 

 

 The fish was released unharmed after a couple of quick pictures, and Jake and I decided to take a rest for a minute.   After less than 20 minutes on the water, Jake had witnessed 40" and 15lbs of fish striper caught.  This would be a good limit for any striper fisherman, but for a bass guy, this is a world record.  I hope he doesn't think this is the way it always works out on the water.  We ate a Pop-Tart and drank some apple juice to calm down a bit.   Jake couldn't tell, but I was the happiest dad in the world to be there with him in that moment.  His response to what he just witnessed was, "Dad, can we catch some little fishies now?"

Big Smallie

Unfortunately for Jake, the smallest fish in the boat would turn out to be a solid 2.5 lb smallmouth, and we would also manage another smallie pushing 5 lbs. The rain would eventually force us to return to shore around 11, and even thou Jake wanted to stay for more, I truly had the best possible day on the water with him, and felt that we should save some for next time.  Thanks for being a great fishing buddy Jake!!!  We will most certainly do this again soon.