J
JeannaJigs
Today is a day I quite literally will never be able to forget. I could have chronic end stage alzheimer's and not know anything else, but I will remember this day.
It was my first springer trip of the year, and I made the great migration to the 503 in search of some chrome below the poo falls. I was hoping for greatness, but having not really fished in a while my expectations were low. Exceptionally low. Expecially with those crappy counts so far. Nonetheless, the day before I got into mad scientist mode in the kitchen and brined some herring with my own little mixture of what I would like to eat if I were a salmon, and went to bed. 430 this morning I got in my Jeep and made the 2 hour trip north, eager to get out of town and get on the water.
There were a ton of guide boats out but there wasn't a lot of action.
9:25, I got this little beauty. I'm used to upriver fish with decent-ish eggs, but this fish was fresh--eggs the size of fleas. She apparently had a tag in her so ODFW chopped off the top half of her head, leaving me the body and a lower jaw...not so pretty after that.
It was slow..so it was on to sturgeon.
I've never sturgeon fished. Ever. I had no clue what was involved or anything. I missed a ton of bites. I had no idea these things bit like gentle little trout. Caught a few small ones, I don't know how big, we will say 3 feet or so. They fought pretty good, and I was pretty impressed.
I think altogether we caught around 20 sturgeon, some small, some keeper size, though retention is closed so none left the water, and all were released.
I caught 4, and probably would have caught more...if I hadn't quit fishing.
I quit fishing because I hooked a beast. A freaking monster. I knew sturgeon got big, but other people catch those, I'm not supposed to. We estimate this inland shark to be in the 8 foot area. It was absolutely massive. It's head was huge. I was not prepared for what happened when I set the hook. At all. Almost went over, and as soon as i regained my balance, realized i was in a "holy S! it's big, what now?" situation. I don't know how long it took, it seemed like an eternity. It tried to beat me, with everything it had, and it almost did, but i wasn't going to hand it off. I just wanted to get it in so I could get rid of it, and then reflect with the "HOLY S's" afterwords. So I did. Oversize sturgeon are not for wimps with back problems. I am suffering, but it's the best kind of suffering EVER.
I am high as a kite, on the most memorable fishing day of my life.
Thanks to Jay and his dad for letting me bum along.
There is video somewhere of this epic beast...I think. LOL. coming soon to an OFF thread near you.
It was my first springer trip of the year, and I made the great migration to the 503 in search of some chrome below the poo falls. I was hoping for greatness, but having not really fished in a while my expectations were low. Exceptionally low. Expecially with those crappy counts so far. Nonetheless, the day before I got into mad scientist mode in the kitchen and brined some herring with my own little mixture of what I would like to eat if I were a salmon, and went to bed. 430 this morning I got in my Jeep and made the 2 hour trip north, eager to get out of town and get on the water.
There were a ton of guide boats out but there wasn't a lot of action.
9:25, I got this little beauty. I'm used to upriver fish with decent-ish eggs, but this fish was fresh--eggs the size of fleas. She apparently had a tag in her so ODFW chopped off the top half of her head, leaving me the body and a lower jaw...not so pretty after that.
It was slow..so it was on to sturgeon.
I've never sturgeon fished. Ever. I had no clue what was involved or anything. I missed a ton of bites. I had no idea these things bit like gentle little trout. Caught a few small ones, I don't know how big, we will say 3 feet or so. They fought pretty good, and I was pretty impressed.
I think altogether we caught around 20 sturgeon, some small, some keeper size, though retention is closed so none left the water, and all were released.
I caught 4, and probably would have caught more...if I hadn't quit fishing.
I quit fishing because I hooked a beast. A freaking monster. I knew sturgeon got big, but other people catch those, I'm not supposed to. We estimate this inland shark to be in the 8 foot area. It was absolutely massive. It's head was huge. I was not prepared for what happened when I set the hook. At all. Almost went over, and as soon as i regained my balance, realized i was in a "holy S! it's big, what now?" situation. I don't know how long it took, it seemed like an eternity. It tried to beat me, with everything it had, and it almost did, but i wasn't going to hand it off. I just wanted to get it in so I could get rid of it, and then reflect with the "HOLY S's" afterwords. So I did. Oversize sturgeon are not for wimps with back problems. I am suffering, but it's the best kind of suffering EVER.
I am high as a kite, on the most memorable fishing day of my life.
Thanks to Jay and his dad for letting me bum along.
There is video somewhere of this epic beast...I think. LOL. coming soon to an OFF thread near you.