pdxfisher

@Swamp Girl says to herself should I catch big fish or a lot of fish and then always says to herself, "why not both" Those fish are just so pretty and healthy. Awesome that you are getting some on topwater already. I have not thrown a topwater yet (nor seen any fish pushing bait to the surface). It is probably time to start tying one on each trip.

@BrianMDTX Sounds like you handled a bad situation really calmly and in a very smart manner. You should give yourself a pat on the back for how you rose to the occasion. A lot of folks would panic in a situation like that but you kept your cool!

Your success is only exceeded by your modesty!

Wow! 8 in a row is fantastic!! You have your waters completely dialed in. You post so many great reports and we know there is a lot of skill and talent going into achieving those results. Thanks for sharing another amazing trip!!

I had forgotten about this stretch. This definitely helps a good bit. Thank you for reminding me of this!

@Alex from GA I did try casting with my left hand a bit last trip. I will have to give that more of a go next trip.

Thanks for the kind thoughts everyone. I have already had surgery on both shoulders in the past (3 anchors in my left shoulder and 5 in my right). I have a connective tissue disorder and have lived with joint issues and pain since I was a kid so this is far from my first dance with this demon. I will try one more trip being super careful (and try not to set a distance record on every cast). Either that will work or I will be off the water for a month or two.

I hit the Columbia on Sunday the 11th. The wind forecast was supposed to be dicey so the plan was to spend most of the day in the slough downstream from the ramp a little ways. The wind lived up to its forecast and I was happy to fish (hide) from the wind pretty effectively for most of the day. It was really pleasant not fishing in a maelstrom all day long - although I did venture and fish in the main river for an hour at the end of the day because I am a glutton for punishment Overall it was a decent day. I caught 23 bass in all with 10 of the bass being between 2lb 4oz and 2lb 11oz. I was really amazed I did not catch anything over 3lbs. The best lures on the day were a 3" white swimbait and Ned rig. I also caught a handful on a Jack Hammer Stealthblade. The water temp in the slough was 62F and in the main river it was 57F. I started out fishing in the main river (before the wind kicked up) and caught my two first fish in 20' of water after blanking in the shallows. After that I made my way into the slough. I had passed through it once but I had never fished it before and I only knew about the parts that are about a foot deep. I was pleased to see that there was plenty of 8-12' of water in places although there were vast expanses that were only a couple of feet deep. The first spot I pedaled up to was a small island (of which there 5). On my second cast I picked up my first bass (just a little guy) out of the slough on the JH. I kept that lure in my hand for a while and picked up a couple more fish in short order. However, after a while I felt like I was just not getting bit as often as I though I should so I put down the JH and picked up the little swimbait. Within a few casts I had a nice 2+lb bass which was pretty encouraging. The bite was never on fire in any one spot but as I pedaled around I would pick up a bass often enough to keep my throwing that swimbait. Eventually I reached a shoreline that was a bit deeper than most of the spots I had been fishing. It was 8' a short distance from shore instead of 4-5' that same distance from shore. It looked great but after fishing it with the swimbait for a while without a bite I decided to try the Ned since I though perhaps the fish wanted something on the bottom. That ended up being a good call because for the next couple of hours I had steady action with a lot of 2lbers in the mix including one that tied my day's best (2lb 11oz). Eventually I had more or less covered most of the water in the slough and I decided to brave things and go out into the main river. The wind was whipping pretty good and there was an armada of sailboats across the river having some sort of regatta or race. I figured that since I had been doing well in shallow water in the slough that I could tuck myself into some spots and stay out of the worst of the wind. Once again the bite was not on fire in the main river but the action was steady. I pretty much only threw the swimbait since I really wanted to try and cover a fair bit of water. I picked up a few fish out in the main river including another 2lb 11oz bass. It was a little challenging with the kayak control in the wind (wind an current in opposite directions) but it was not too bad. Eventually I was feeling tired and decided to head back to the ramp. I had bought a new rod the day before (St. Croix Premiere) to fish wobbleheads with. The rod I had been using had cracked the tip top and when I replaced that guide I must have overheated the blank (I could not get that tip top off!) and the tip of the rod was just mush (I could bend it 90 degrees with zero effort). So anyway I had this new rod. So on the way back I decided I would try to catch a fish on it out of the 20' spot where I had caught two bass on a drop shot at the beginning of the day. Well, I had a good bite and set the hook into a fish but it immediately popped off so the new rod is still waiting to get slimed. I do like the way it casts and it feels nice and sensitive. I will be excited when I can properly break it in. The only real bummer is that now my right shoulder is seriously messed up.The labrum was already torn but I think I developed an impingement or tore the rotator cuff from all the casting and reeling (much harder on the shoulder than fishing a drop shot). At the moment I can't lift that arm over my head. I will have to see if I can continue to fish with it like that or if I will have to sideline myself for a while. I will definitely be extra careful on every cast next trip out. Anyway, enough of my whining. Here are some pics from the day and video.

You are just building up the tension for a monster trip!

Sounds like a fun day!

Another great report! Loved the fish pics, of course, but really love the scenery shot. I can almost feel your canoe being jerked around by those fat fish

Wow!! Those are some beautiful looking bass. They are so thick and healthy. Way to lay the smack down on those beasts! I could not fish this past weekend due to the wind being out of control. You have me chomping at the bit to get out there!! Only thing missing from your report were some of the nature shots you often include. I always love seeing those!

Out here even 2lb smallmouth regularly puke out 6" smolt when they are outmigrating. The tanks that @Dwight Hottle is catching would likely just see that jig as a snack.

Hawg callin' to the extreme!

Awesome report. That first one is such a tub! Those fish are all so beautiful and healthy looking. Plus getting to enjoy all the creatures of nature as you stealthily glide over the water.

Awesome report! Glad to see you wrecking them!

Sounds promising! I look forward to some pictures of some big fatties!

Thanks everyone! @Bird the east wind is usually good around here if it is fishable. @Swamp Girl you will be putting up big numbers of big fish soon! @A-Jay the wobblehead is so underrated. Maybe we should keep it secret

Nice! That is a toad of a river smallmouth!

I had a planned procedure for my hand scheduled for Friday which meant no fishing for me this weekend, thus I decided I better take a day off of work and fish while I could. I decided to go to my favorite bass spot, Stevenson WA. I decided to go even though the wind forecast was a bit brisker than I would have preferred - if you wait for conditions to be perfect you aren't going to fish very often The day started out slow for me. I figured the bass HAD to be up shallow give that the water temp was in the low 50s. I spent an hour unsuccessfully trying to prove that I was right. I continued to fish shallow off and on throughout the day but I never had so much as a sniff on a moving bait all day. Fortunately I eventually conceded and started fishing my deeper water pattern. The first spot I hit was a fairly nothing 20' flat near a big commercial dock. I think it is a good staging area for prespawn bass since it is close to some shallows that look like good spawning grounds. My first cast with a drop shot brought my first fish of the day, a nice little 1lb 10oz bass. Getting the skunk off makes it so much easier to relax and fish! That spot produced 4 more fish on the drop shot and then seemed like it died. I moved off of that spot and then went back to beating some shallow water (I really wanted to catch fish on moving baits). That of course was a dud and so I ended up at a small rocky structure in 25' that has been on fire for me this year. The magic spot did not disappoint. I caught 3 bass in pretty short order but decided that since the wind was out of the East that I should move to my Westernmost spot and fish my way back to this spot later in the day. The next spot I went to is a popular spot and I was happy that no one was on it (not too surprising for a Wednesday). I tried the drop shot but the current in that spot made fishing the drop shot hard in the kayak so I switched to throwing a 1/2oz wobblehead with Zoom Z-craw trailer. That ended up being the right bait for the conditions and my top producer by far for the day. I relentlessly pounded that spot for several hours and pulled over 20 fish from that general area, once again in 20-25' of water. The wobblehead was perfect since I could throw it a mile into the wind, it go to the bottom quickly and I could fish it at a good pace while keeping it on the bottom. The only change I made was at some point I switched from 1/2oz to 3/4oz because the current seemed to have picked up a bit. I also occasionally mixed in some casts with a Ned rig (1/4oz) but the wobblehead was the star. So the bulk of my fish and all my best fish came off this spot. My best 5 was not great (only 13lb 6oz) and my best fish was only a 3lb 10iz but the action was fast and furious so I didn't complain. The only difficulty is that I had to slowly pedal all day long just to stay in place. If I stopped I would start drifting downstream at 2mph. So a little after noon I decided to fish my way back to the ramp. I of course immediately started fruitlessly beating the shallows again as I worked my way back upstream. Eventually I got tired of all the casting and not catching so I went out to my magic rock. I had not caught a fish in the last hour or so of beating the shallows so it felt awesome with I hooked up on my first cast on the magic rock! I am not sure how many bass I pulled off that spot, maybe a 1/2 dozen or so but I had a stretch of 4 consecutive fish on 4 casts. Once again, the size was not impressive but the fish were hungry and they put up a good fight on my light spinning rod. Eventually I decided I should start to head home since I was getting tired from the constant pedaling. As I headed towards the ramp I checked my fish counter and saw that I had 38 bass. I just had to get to 40 so as I was pedaling back I marked a fish on my graph. I cast out and immediately caught it. Now I just needed one more. Why is it so hard to catch that last fish!! I tried 3 spots without a sniff and I was almost to the ramp. I decided I would carefully fish the point closest to the ramp. As I worked my way along the point I felt pressure when I lifted my Ned rig. Wow, "This has some weight", I thought. I knew I had something big on. Turns out it was a really big stick However, I redeemed myself a few minutes later by landing my 40th bass and I called it a day. It was a lot of work but man was it worth it. I usually don't catch quite those numbers on the Columbia so that was a real treat. So my midweek trip was a big success and tehn my procedure on Friday went well (needle fasciotomy for Dupuytren's contraction) so it was a good week! Here are pics of my two best fish and the video of the day.

Great way to start off the year! Lots of pike and a big smallmouth. Sounds like a really fun day.

That is a pretty darn good for a bad day!

Sounds like an awesome day!

It's a good hurt! You know you've had a good day when it takes half a week before you can unlock your phone with your thumbprint

Congrats on your first bass of the year! Those are some beauties.