TR by Gemini
Participants: Gemini, Richmond (separate trips, same day & location)
Conditions: Overcast, windy (10knots from south)
I had a late launch at Lake MacDonald at around 9AM, opting for the botanical gardens boat ramp. I made straight for bass bay, trolling a large bibless minnow until I hit the weedy areas. I made my way into the inlet off bass bay (which is a creek and has a name I believe, but it escapes me) and started casting my r2s baby vib.
Not far around the bend I had a sharp strike on the lure which didn't take. I paused, then twitched the lure slightly...BAM! I was on. He ran straight into the weeds, quickly tangling himself along with my lure. I tweaked and tugged at his position, feeling him shift in the weed slightly, but he didn't budge much. Eventually the pressure I placed on him took its toll and it felt as though the line had given way. Lucky for me this wasn't the case, and I pulled in my lure, minus one barb on a treble.
I continued down the inlet and found no further action by its end. By this time the wind was becoming annoying so I turned back, making the odd cast on my return journey while battling the headwind. Not far from the spot where I was set upon by the weed bound fish, I had my lure slammed by another. This one was taken in the center of the channel, so I didn't give him the option of setting out for the weeds. He had my rod bending nicely, so I knew he was no tiddler, and when he broke the surface I knew for sure. I landed him just as the wind blew me into the weeds, so luck was with me this time.
He measured in at 41cm, which broke my personal best for bass (was 38cm), and the NY record which I set only a few weeks back. I was a happy camper.
Unfortunately for the fish, during my preparation for this mornings fishing I neglected to bring my pliers. The lure was wedged right inside his mouth, and it wasn't coming out without a fight (or putting me into the emergency waiting room). It looked like I was having bass for dinner.
TR by Richmond
I decided to fish Lake MacDonald today seeing that the weather wasn't suitable for an offshore jaunt, and at only 5 minutes from home, it was easy to scratch my itch.
I launched near the Strawberry Patch, battling against the Cabomba weed and the lilly pads. Launching at 10 a.m isn't ideal, so I wasn't real confident of bagging a Bass.
I tied on a River2Sea Baby Vibe and started to pepper the edge of the lilly pads, casting as close as I could to them. It was a battle to avoid the Cabomba. The Cabomba was winning, so I found some deeper water and vertically jigged the Baby Vibe.
After about an hour or so with a strengthening wind creating havoc for me, I had a solid bite which resulted in a hookup. No hard fast runs from this fish but solid head shakes and short power bursts for the bottom.
I won the little battle and I slid the net under a nice 42cm Yellowbelly. Very happy as the intended target was Australian Bass, and I gave myself very little chance of catching a fish of any sort.
The fish behaved enough for me to take a couple of photos. In fact he behaved so well that I slipped him back into the murky water, never to be seen again.
Richmond.
No comments:
Post a Comment