MassBass

Some more big herbivores on the fly

I went somewhere North, where the dirty urban river is a pristine mountain stream. I'll let you guys debate what specie the long toothy is!

I believe in bright colors. Firetiger, parrot, and rapala used to make a color called hot mustard which was deadly. In clear water 10'+ visibility. The smallmouth can see the lure from far away, and is instantly curious and comes from a great distance to check it out and often bite.

Some more big game fly fishing. I'm on a permanent vacation. Catching fish like this on my fly outfit makes me feel like I went somewhere far flung, maybe New Zealand, or Patagonia, or far up the Congo. Just a bank of shrubs and berry trees on my tidal urban river. But it's the feeling that matters.

Sight fishing carp on the fly. The fly imitates a berry, and they love it. This is my first fish on proper fly tackle. It's crazy, seeing the fish, the take, and then the strong runs from river carp, sometimes into the backing. Haven't been this excited about a bite in a while!

Bass is a warm water fish. If you put all your effort into targeting warm water fish during the cold water period, you will be often disappointed. I think about now would be a good time to try hard for bass. And striper.

You need to suffer. Add some rain and cold wind to.

Got in on some dirty water bass action yesterday, mixed bag 2 sm 2 LM. Felt good to get that first LM after thinking my old tricks weren't working. Can see one of the small mouths was pretty good, I think a main River fish that moved up on a wash up bank.

My big brown from a couple weeks ago. Gotta try for bass maybe this week before early season passes by.

Can get some real nice small mouth around there now.

You can see my lure

Pond somewhere in Boston was wide open, and the South wind was perfect. Limited out on holdover browns

Got humbled by the dirty water yesterday. Nothing. Not all moving up yet.

I'm hoping for open water around Boston by this weekend.

Fish of Thailand. No stocked ponds, no guaranteed bites, but water far more intriguing- a stream far into the Thai countryside, then finding myself washed up on a beach, piers into the dark Thai Sea at night, an ancient squid fishing outpost, and a vast lake- with rows of mountains in the distance, where on the other side there are people of a different kingdom, and spirits from ancient wars with Burma hang in the clouds. My first success was after leaving Bangkok and it's canals, where I feel the fish there have evolved alongside the technical Thai angler; to be shy, smart, and witty. Arriving at the River Kwai, there was a different feeling, the air was fresh and you could sense the wilderness. Early morning, kayak upstream. Based off some information I saw, I started with a blade bait. The river bank was heavily forested with overhanging branches and thickets, here and there were patches of floating weeds. It seemed fishy so I downsized blade baits just to get a bite, as it seemed there was small bait fish activity. Soon after- bite, my first Thai fish. Pla Gasu, also known as filamentosa barb (aquarium trade) or jungle perch. The action ended up being pretty fast, with a fish or two on every weed patch, and a stringer of 8 fish. Stopping at the local bait shop later, the old Thai lady at the counter expressed how people at the hotels never learn. They think they can catch the fish they can see under the dock. But I showed her a picture of my stringer caught from a kayak, and she said no one ever catches that much pla gasu in one outing. This morning catching pla gasu was my first moment fishing in Thailand that I will never forget, and it would earn me respect from my local guide friend, and other Thai fishermen I would encounter along the way. After repeating some success with pla gasu the second morning, we would leave early the next day to make way to Thung Wua Laen Beach. I would be staying here a week while my guide worked her day job. From pouring over the map of this spot again and again, it looked like a good rocky point and shore at the end of the beach that I could walk on and cast. Preparation is invaluable, but preparation is useless. I had already lost acouple spoons in the rocks before I realized that the rocks were not only sharp with coral but they were also always wet and treacherous. Nevertheless, there were signs of bait fish and bigger fish. One morning seemed very promising, I just broke off another spoon and tied on a rattlebait (a sure thing I hoped) picked up my rod to cast- and my old spinning reel was locked from the salt. I licked my wounds and went for a swim before breakfast. While at my beach lodging, we traveled by night to nearby piers and bridges. I developed an intimate affinity for the dark pier, it was like we were on a big vessel upon the sea. Pier and bridge fishing at night yielded some interesting catches, the leftover bait of fresh shrimp was boiled along with the catches for late dinners. The dirt roads of the Southern Thai countryside would lead to the shore of the Gulf of Thailand, where fishing villages and humble homestays have timelessly existed between the surprises of the jungle and the bounty of the sea. As we set out on the boat after dark had settled in, the cliff walls loomed over us from the shore, and plankton glowed neon green in the wake of the boat. The first squid trap showed no squid in the net. I was unimpressed but knew this is fishing. The second trap showed a net with some squid. The third trap, they asked me to come up and help. The Thai fishermen were cranking up the net, but it looked like nothing was there. Suddenly, excitement as everyone realized there was a great fish in the squid net, a big pla saak or barracuda. This was the fish I wanted right before me, but this opportunity was not the way I was expecting. I grabbed a hand net, and tried to net the fish; this was not working as the net was far too small, but it may have helped tire the fish. The Thai captain brought the net up a bit more, and I reached overboard and gilled the fish, and brought it onto the deck. Everyone on board was very excited and surprised about this, but to me the fish was like a big pike or pickerel, that I had to get. Fresh sashimi was served back at the lodging. The next morning, I had some good topwater hits from barracuda, but I couldn't connect and handle them for more than acouple seconds. It seems it's true, pla saak do not make easy wins, they make memories. Those two topwater bites are the hooks that stay in me.