bass
After reading a post by @uplandsandpiper I could not stop thinking about sturgeon fishing. I have not caught a sturgeon in a few years. I was hit with stage 5 kidney failure and have lost a lot of strength as a result. I was not sure I should go after those beasts but night after night I dreamt of mighty battles with those prehistoric throwbacks. I finally decided I would go and if during a fight I decided could not take it I could, regretfully, cut the line.
With that plan in place I decided to give it a go. Turns out I was being overly cautious and maybe I have regained more strength than I realized because I had a BLAST!!
I got to the ramp a bit after sunrise, in no huge rush. I got unloaded and launched and started pedaling around looking for sturgeon. I found some likely looking marks on the old FF and decided to hook up to a barge with the clamp that is right there beside me. That was supposed to be right there beside me. Doh! I left it in the truck so back to the ramp I went, grabbed my clamp and pedaled back to the spot that looked promising.
I baited up a 5/0 Gamakatsu circle octopus with my normal sturgeon bait (1/2 anchovy). I cast out wondering if I was marking carp or sturgeon (I have been fooled before). I cast out and in short order I could feel some line rubs. You feel that plink, plink, plink as the line slides over their scutes. I knew I was in the right spot. It still took a while for that first bite but I was so excited when I reeled down on that fish and felt some decent weight.
That first fish put up a nice tussle and would have been in the keeper range if there were a season. In the 50+ degree water those sturgeon can really pull!
The bite was red hot at first and stayed pretty good for most of the day. My strategy is that after I cast out I slowly count to 300 and if I have not had any bites or line rubs then I reel in and recast. There were only a few times I reeled in without a fish.
I ended up with 18 on the day with my best being a nice, thick 6 footer. Unfortunately my gopro was glitching during that part of the day I missed getting that fish and 4 or 5 others on video. There were a handful of tiny shakers but most of the fish were in the 3 to 4 and half foot range, which is about my favorite size to catch. My arms are still a little sore.
I also broke off 2 big fish and pulled the hook on a third. I am confused by the line breaks. I think maybe the braid was wrapping around the sinker or something weird because there is no way I should be able to pop 50lb braid. I was not wrapped around anything either time just leaning on a big fish in the middle of fight and POP. I am thinking about switching to 30lb mono. I am wondering if that might hold up better. I will have to think some more about that.
Overall, I am just so excited that I was able to once again do battle with those beasts. The weather ended up being much better than forecast. The wind seemed lighter and the rain did not start up until I was back at the ramp! The fish were cooperative and let me win most of the time. It could not have been a better day.
Here is an action shot from the day:
Here is a (way too long) video of the day:
Here is a short of an exciting moment:
With that plan in place I decided to give it a go. Turns out I was being overly cautious and maybe I have regained more strength than I realized because I had a BLAST!!
I got to the ramp a bit after sunrise, in no huge rush. I got unloaded and launched and started pedaling around looking for sturgeon. I found some likely looking marks on the old FF and decided to hook up to a barge with the clamp that is right there beside me. That was supposed to be right there beside me. Doh! I left it in the truck so back to the ramp I went, grabbed my clamp and pedaled back to the spot that looked promising.
I baited up a 5/0 Gamakatsu circle octopus with my normal sturgeon bait (1/2 anchovy). I cast out wondering if I was marking carp or sturgeon (I have been fooled before). I cast out and in short order I could feel some line rubs. You feel that plink, plink, plink as the line slides over their scutes. I knew I was in the right spot. It still took a while for that first bite but I was so excited when I reeled down on that fish and felt some decent weight.
That first fish put up a nice tussle and would have been in the keeper range if there were a season. In the 50+ degree water those sturgeon can really pull!
The bite was red hot at first and stayed pretty good for most of the day. My strategy is that after I cast out I slowly count to 300 and if I have not had any bites or line rubs then I reel in and recast. There were only a few times I reeled in without a fish.
I ended up with 18 on the day with my best being a nice, thick 6 footer. Unfortunately my gopro was glitching during that part of the day I missed getting that fish and 4 or 5 others on video. There were a handful of tiny shakers but most of the fish were in the 3 to 4 and half foot range, which is about my favorite size to catch. My arms are still a little sore.
I also broke off 2 big fish and pulled the hook on a third. I am confused by the line breaks. I think maybe the braid was wrapping around the sinker or something weird because there is no way I should be able to pop 50lb braid. I was not wrapped around anything either time just leaning on a big fish in the middle of fight and POP. I am thinking about switching to 30lb mono. I am wondering if that might hold up better. I will have to think some more about that.
Overall, I am just so excited that I was able to once again do battle with those beasts. The weather ended up being much better than forecast. The wind seemed lighter and the rain did not start up until I was back at the ramp! The fish were cooperative and let me win most of the time. It could not have been a better day.
Here is an action shot from the day:
Here is a (way too long) video of the day:
Here is a short of an exciting moment:
