Largemouth Bass Striking Spinnerbaits with Gusto!

I went out in the rain to see if I could finally hook a good bass over three pounds. My neighborhood pond has for the past couple years been yielding loads of bass about two pounds, but none larger. Interests me that a pond's bass population can alter over time in size. It used to be we caught loads from nine to 12 inches, and a 14-incher was the exception. We did catch some over three pounds, and four years ago my son caught a five-pounder and two others over four. I can't account for the shift to larger-size bass, but I am wondering if I'm going to hook a real lunker at all in the pond this year beyond whatever took that Senko a couple weeks ago and tore off on a run. I can't be absolutely certain that bass was any bigger, since a two-pounder sometimes feels much larger at first.

For the first five or ten minutes today I couldn't buy a hit. I began to think that had I brought along a Husky Jerk suspending minnow plug to work it slow, I might catch one. I have done so here in cold water before, but then I thought it didn't matter. I was interested in whether or not bass would respond in a warm water way. I began to think my claim about two weeks ago that we've already reached the warm water season beyond the early season fluctations with real cold water was bogus. It never really got out of the low 40's yesterday, and now it's in the low 50's or so.

Then I got a jolt way out in the middle.

The pond is shallow. It's about three, maybe four feet out there. But I know from experience these fish orient to very shallow water around the edges as well as deeper, and even to the edge between where the difference may be a foot of depth.

In little over a half hour total I caught eight bass on the 3/8th-ounce black Colorado blade spinnerbait, two of these just over two pounds, the rest of them close to two pounds. I usually just grab a lure or two and go, the pond in close walking distance, and the irony today is that the spinnerbait I previously used has a larger blade commanding a slower retrieve you'd think would be appropriate today. But what the hell; I got the bass chasing. All of these bass struck out in the middle. Certainly they were not rolling over spinnerbait wakes at the surface, but they were pouncing on that lure for sure. This was not true cold water fishing at all.

Appreciations for Delaware & Raritan Canal/Millstone River Aqueduct at Lake Carnegie Princeton New Jersey

I had my camera bag right by the door, and going out I just felt I didn't want to drag it along. By my plans it was altogether unnecessary. I was on my way to register our 12-foot inflatable with the state of New Jersey (55 pound thrust Minn Kota Endura--nice), visit my parents, and a friend at Princeton Medical Center with a bill over a million. No problem with that--he's alive and completely confident.

But I make it up as I go along. Plans I never allow to bind me anymore than I would any other tool. I turned out of Washington Circle onto Route One north, vaguely intending to cut through Kingston and either take Route 533 or 206 into Somerset County and then on home. I ended up on a road flanking the south side of Lake Carnegie as it passes "Hogwarts School" (Princeton Center for Arts and Education) and follows along the Delaware & Raritan Canal back westward. In short order I realized where I was headed--the Millstone River. But it wasn't until I got there that--of course--I found ample parking exists for an area I've actually had in mind on occasion over the years, where the Millstone passes underneath the canal to enter Lake Carnegie at the lake's deepest hole of over 20 feet. I have not been here for about 30 years, when I caught a largemouth on a crankbait in the lake right about this time of year where I soon found myself standing. But certainly no lilypads had emmerged then as early as they have now. I can hardly believe it--lilypads, New Jersey, and the month of March.

Experiencing this place moved me profoundly--the Millstone, canal, lake, the fishermen with a five-gallon bucket full of big bullheads--brown/yellow bullheads at that, nice, healthy fish--the lilypads, the crew racers--some from Annapolis Naval Academy--and just a great, wholesome feeling that I have been at this place all these 30 years.

It's the interchange of waterways that attracts me strongly to the vistas here, the sense of connection to Roman aqueducts and other marvels of ingenuity in a wide open world. I don't care for the ancient Romans so much since I despise power and might when it is valued above intellectual reflection and aesthetics. Intellectuality is fun, aesthetics joyous, and power and might without these values are brutal stress and torment, despair, defeat, and death. If intellect and aesthetics triumph, there will be no war, no presumed reasons for it. But I appreciate the mind's practicality in any civilization. A friend of my younger brother once suggested years ago that I could be an engineer. It is fascinating, but I would write about engineering before I would do it. There's only so much time in life.

I want to go there again, with my son, a rod and reel apiece, and a bucket of shiners (and camera). Why shiners? Well, I caught the bass years ago on a proper crankbait in cold water. Now I might go in July--with shiners--because I want to behave contrary to expectation, and not even care if we catch anything until we might. I just want to be there.

Passaic River with Pike in Mind

 Had only 20 minutes to fish the Passaic River on my lunch break. This second time I've ever fished it I got skunked, as if anything more would be expected on such a short stint. I caught three smallmouth bass in 2006 or '07. First time I've fished a Storm Thunderstick. I really like this plug. It has excellent bouancy, but it gets down a few feet and responds very well to tip action. If any pike stalked it I would be surprised. However, plenty pike are in the river. Stocked by the state each year, the fingerlings grow fast and large. Considering that this is New Jersey, the 46-incher reported by the angler who wrote a great piece on Passaic pike for On the Water magazine is a huge fish.

Should get out again next week. I'm off work and pike are on the agenda. Spruce Run usually yields a few for my son and I and friends. I want to try Ryker's Lake for bass too, although the main focus of this trip will be snakes, as my son observes and photographs many different species. Ryker's Lake is reportedly a mile hike into the wild, so this should be interesting.

Never Saw Millstone River in Better Shape: Looks Like an Ideal Trout Opening Day Ahead

Today I drove along the Raritan River, over the Millstone River at Wilhousky Street, and over the South Branch Raritan at a couple of points, and the Neshanic River as well. All of these streams are in perfect shape. I really thought of Opening Day ahead a week from now less than I did of what a perfect spot for spawn-driven pike that dam at Wilhousky appears to be. But I guess it's too late now. Better to have tried sometime in February this year.

I could have geared up to fish at lunch break, but I'm just not so organized because I can't stand being bound to routine, so if I can get out the door in the morning without even thinking at all of gathering my camera bag and tackle tote, I will tend to do that and enjoy a little freedom. I find little ways to let go of the grip of routine rather than being fixated on security. Today I had intended to meet a friend during my break time, so it was easy to have overlooked preparing to fish in case this didn't work out as it didn't.

Had a taste of Paradise at Wilhousky Street, Manville, New Jersey--just the sight of that clear Millstone River water for a moment, which is so unusual for the Millstone, typically more off-color than clear. I think it will be an ideal Opening Day for trout, not that the Millstone will have any. I'm thinking of Opening Day for my son's sake; I'm just along for the ride to serve as guide. 

Warm Weather Season Arrival

Since I was seven or eight, I've paid close attention to weather. In all those years I've lived in New Jersey at least part of the time, and I've never known anything at all approaching the weather abnormality we've had the past two weeks. We had more than a solid week of May and June temperatures. It never hit 85 or 87 as I expected it would, but it did in Chicago, and we had two days in the low 80's along the bottom edge of the Highlands, many days in the mid and upper 70's. A few scattered days of temperatures in the 70's are normal for March, and I vaguely recall a day when it hit 80 at Hopatcong while fishermen braved melting ice one last day six years ago or so. But for weather like this to be sustained almost for the majority of the month: we have never known this before.

I could have gone out and fished today in weather plenty mild, but it's a slow Saturday for me without the usual eagerness to enjoy the weekend. I may go out and fish a local pond tomorrow, and record results on my Fishing in New Jersey blog to add to the information archived about fishing in this state, which to the contrary of its largely false reputation, is a very interesting tract of land geographically, ecologically, and culturally.

On lunch break yesterday I fished the canal near Weston and the Raritan River behind it. Hoping for a pike in the Raritan, since the Millstone River flowing into it not far upstream is stocked with pike by the state, I cast a large Rebel Minnow, and ran into another angler who related that he caught--in the river--a 28-inch pickerel, the largest he had ever caught, understandably that, using a Redfin minnow plug. I have no doubt many more 28-inch pike swim the river than pickerel that size. My impression was that someone had tossed a few pickerel in from the canal, or Hurricane Floyd left a brood stock.

It was nice being out, but I had no hits or follows trying that Rebel, a smaller Rapala and a spinnerbait. Once again I felt dismay with the canal, but that instance last summer of hooking a really good bass on a Senko-type wacky rigged worm is enough incentive for me to look ahead to perhaps trying again in July or August.

http://www.fishinginnewjersey.blogspot.com/

Rebel Pop-R Strike, I Imagine Plenty Bass have been Caught on Surface Past Week in New Jersey

Shot's from last year, but certainly bass will strike balsa plugs with this heat. I wonder if some ponds won't have spawning beds by Thursday afternoon. It seems unlikely, given that night temps will dip into the 40's. Water temps will probably reach the mid-60s in some ponds Thursday afternoon with 85 degree air temperatures, perhaps 87--weathermen having been running 5 to 8 degrees under actual afternoon highs--but largemouth need temperatures sustained over a period of afternoons at about 65. So is Saturday out of the question? The earliest I remember bass spawning in New Jersey is April 16th.

Well hit the beach and sunbathe.

If you know of a clean water pond, take a swim.

Happy first day of summer.

I did cast a Rebel Pop-R well after sunset for a ferocious strike, certainly a two pound bass at least. But I was surprised I didn't catch any. Give it a try on Thursday I think.

http://www.fishinginnewjersey.blogspot.com/

Fishing Salmon Eggs For Rainbow Trout, Brook Trout

For recently stocked rainbow trout, nothing beats salmon eggs. If trout have been in a stream weeks or months, it's time to fly fish. But for the April weeks rainbows get stocked, fishing salmon eggs properly is a challenging, exciting, and rewarding exercise. Plenty of trout may be caught, but probably many more hits missed. Rainbows and salmon eggs are like sheepshead and sand fleas--both species bait stealers par excellence. But a salmon egg placed on a size 14 snelled hook (doesn't have to be a gold salmon egg hook) on two-pound test leader attached to a small snap tied to two-pound test spooled on the tiniest spinning reel you can find, seated on the shortest. lightest rod you have searched out, is game, no doubt about this; this is fun and something you will never feel you have mastered.

With my three-foot, six-inch ultra, ultra light rod I cast a single salmon egg with only a small snap for additional weight halfway across the North Branch Raritan. Compare the butt thickness to my thumb in the photo above. It is quite thin, thinner than the diameter of a salmon egg. The tip is so light I can bend it to the rod shaft. When I hook up, the fight of a ten-incher is strong and drag-screeching; it takes a while to bring the trout alongside my waders. I once landed an 18 1/2-inch brookie on this rod, foul hooked in the back near the tail. And you know how a fish advantaged like that fights.

Brookies take salmon eggs, but not as unhesitatingly as do rainbows.

For either fish, you need to practice, practice, practice at getting the eggs to drift right. (You will never hook every trout that striikes.) In deep, fast moving water you need to use some split shot or cylindrical weight such as the Boss Tin Stylers or Stix. But most situations call only for a snap; some demand that you add a piece or two of the swivels attached to the snaps, which you cut off from the snaps with nail clippers, only the snap leftover remaining whole. I keep what I cut by running a baby pin through the remaining loop of each swivel, then pin my vest. It's a small detail, but such a subtle difference--which gets a salmon egg in range of trout at the bottom of a faster moving run--can mean a fish or not.

http://littonsfishinglines.blogspot.com/2015/02/super-ultra-light-salmon-egg-spinning.html takes you to a more comprehensive article on the method. 

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