Latest Catch Pics Thread

[Bird]

Wife and I camped all week on the lake and had perfect fishing weather.

Water temp 70* and thick overcast skies.

This lake has VERY steep banks, did very well all week on 1/8 Shaky head/Zoom speed craw and Jackal flickShake 4.8 watermelon candy.

[throttleplate]

4 minutes ago, gimruis said:

I wasn’t fishing today, but it would have been nasty out there. It was 42 degrees when I got up and there was a stiff NW wind.

 

Thats what it was here thursday, cold and windy but the fish were biting.

[Swamp Girl]

Well fished, @gimruis!

 

Those are beautifully marked bass, @Bird.

[AlabamaSpothunter]

Would have been an amazing day, but I had my first big fish (5lb+) get hooked poorly resulting in some bleeding.    She absolutely choked that big 7.5" Shimano head first and that stupid treble went under the first gill slit.   I was able to go underneath and remove the hook and the wound wasn't very traumatic, but you read stuff and some people will tell you it's a 100% death.   It makes me sick, and I pray to God she lives.  If I quit this awesome sport it's because of the guilt.   Never felt this way growing up, but now I'm a bleeding heart.  

 

Sorry I had to get that off my chest.   

 

Caught a super healthy 6.6 on a buzzbait, as good of an explosion as the lost giant video I posted a few weeks ago, one that you know instantly that it's the right kind of fish.   Stupid GoPro was filming upside down.   I got to disable that rotate feature.

 

Then I caught the 7lb fish on the Shimano swimbait.  

 

Lastly I caught a Warmouth which was magnificent, I love these little dudes.   If they grew to LGM size, nobody would fish for LGMs.   

[Swamp Girl]

5+, 6.6, and 7 lbers???????

 

And you still have something in reserve to love the lovely Warmouth!

 

Alex, I'm so proud of you. I have never had a fishing session like that and likely never will. Incredible. That's Mexico resort-grade fishing. 

 

As far as the fish surviving, I fish around bald eagles. When I fished below waterfalls in northwestern Ontario, there were often eagles there watching, waiting, and hoping. One time, I hooked a little smallie and when I released it, it was clearly hurt. Not bleeding, but hurt. So, I went back to fishing and within a couple minutes, an eagle descended and grabbed it. I've caught thousands of bass in Ontario over decades and that was the ONLY TIME I've ever seen an eagle swoop to a fish I hurt. My point is that bass are pretty sturdy. In the video, you return that goblin to the water ASAP. I think that's the MOST IMPORTANT thing we can do to protect them. They're drowning in our air, just as we'd be drowning in their water if something took us down.

 

And if the bass dies, it will be eaten. Nothing is wasted in nature. And she's already reproduced several times, so her genetics aren't lost.

 

Still, after all I just wrote, I love that you're affected. I would be too. 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

You're a special person Katie, I truly mean that, and I take comfort in your words!  The first 10mins I still had that narcotic high going on from catching a good one, but as each hour went by until I posted that and heard comforting words from you, the guilt feeling has grown.   I don't feel guilty about harvesting game, but when I'm not trying to harm these critters since they generate so much joy in my life, it's just soul wrenching hurting a special one especially.   

Thank you for the kind words as well, just to clarify a bit....it was just two nice ones, the 6.6 on the buzzer, and then 7 on the Shimano swimbait.   

 

Fishing at least for me is the ultimate test in persistence, as well as managing your expectations and frustrations.   Mon-Thurs, every day I got stuck in a thunderstorm on the lake, so much so that a really nice gentlemen waived me down today and gave me his card with his number and a few of his neighbor's number in case I got in trouble.   "Me and my wife love to watch you out there fishing, but sometimes we worry about you because you don't seem concerned with the weather".  I explained to him my singular focus on my white whale and told him I'll send him pics of her if I get her, or he'll see me riding the Pequod to the Icey depths ? Really classy and kind act.  

 

I got the smallest taste of @king fisher life today, and I'd like a refill, and make it in a larger glass ?   

[Jar11591]

5 hours ago, gimruis said:

My Father and I had a pretty epic day targeting brown bass on Mille Lacs.  Not a ton of fish, but all quality ones.  My Father tied a PB with a 21 incher, and I caught two over 20 inches.  I weighed one of them just to see how much it weighed and it was 5.65 pounds (5th photo).  None of the smallmouth we caught were under 18 inches.  They were all prespawn females.  We even caught three accidental walleyes, one of which just happened to be in the keeper slot which was a pure stroke of luck.  This is a very big lake, and the wind rarely cooperates.  I only have a 17.5 foot boat and I need it to cooperate in order to fish where and how I want to.  For the first time in 3 years, that occurred yesterday and it paid off.  A perch colored jerk bait did most of the damage.  I feel very fortunate to have caught these fish.  Here are a few photos.  I'd like to thank @A-Jay and @Dwight Hottle for their advice, education, and inspiration when it comes targeting smallmouth on big waters.  They are a big help when it comes to this specific type of fishing.

@gimruis Good to see you’re finally able to bass fish. Nice to way to open the season!

 

@AlabamaSpothunter Now that’s a day! Looks like that 7lb was sitting right at a inflow pipe? That warmouth is the nicest colored one I’ve ever seen. Thought it was a cichlid at first.
 

I can certainly relate to the guilt when fish are inadvertently harmed. Our sport needs more people who care about the well being of the fish. And the way you care about the fish, you are waaaayyyyy net positive as far as fish surviving due to proper handling vs fish harmed inadvertently.  

[AlabamaSpothunter]

@Jar11591 Thanks so much for those comforting words friend, means all the world to me!  I knew you'd understand as you're all about taking care of these special fish.   This is a special place full of special people like you and Katie, pretty rare thing these days.

 

I pulled up to that spot and said if anything ever looks money, it's this right here.....4 days of heavy rains dumping straight into a shallow flat that drops off to 30ft within 30-40ft.    Bet that girl was just sitting up there with her nose in the current just slurping.    Something about the day of a new moon.   Lots of my bigger fish have come on new moon days.  

 

Agree on the Warmouth, never seen one that dark before.  Such cool, mean little fish ?     

[throttleplate]

1 hour ago, ol'crickety said:

an eagle descended and grabbed it.

 

[Swamp Girl]

5 hours ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

 I don't feel guilty about harvesting game, but when I'm not trying to harm these critters since they generate so much joy in my life, it's just soul wrenching hurting a special one especially.

 

You're right about intentional harvesting of game to sustain our lives and accidentally killing being different. The latter is the worst. But, in the end, you don't know her fate. You cited a 100% mortality rate, but there's no such thing. There are always survivors. Heck, we've all seen the photos of fish maimed by muskies and Great Blue Herons who live on and there are so many stories of our species who inexplicably recover from 100% mortality situations.  

 

Well, I'm off, and fingers crossed that I don't get hurt nor hurt and I hope I get to dance with a great goblin or two like the mighty Alex just did!

[Dwight Hottle]

@gimruis You had a true quality outing congrats to you & your dad. 
@AlabamaSpothunter Nice score on that new bait. I haven’t got mine wet yet but you just motivated me. 
 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

2 hours ago, Dwight Hottle said:

@gimruis You had a true quality outing congrats to you & your dad. 
@AlabamaSpothunter Nice score on that new bait. I haven’t got mine wet yet but you just motivated me. 
 

Thanks Dwight!   Can't wait to see the giants you produce on this bait.   It's a blast to fish with, and a buddy recommended putting a "tracer" on the forehead of the bait which I'm going to do.   Also need to play around with suspend dots as it won't take much to get this bait to suspend.    

 

Again looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this bait.

 

 

5 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

 

You're right about intentional harvesting of game to sustain our lives and accidentally killing being different. The latter is the worst. But, in the end, you don't know her fate. You cited a 100% mortality rate, but there's no such thing. There are always survivors. Heck, we've all seen the photos of fish maimed by muskies and Great Blue Herons who live on and there are so many stories of our species who inexplicably recover from 100% mortality situations.  

 

Well, I'm off, and fingers crossed that I don't get hurt nor hurt and I hope I get to dance with a great goblin or two like the mighty Alex just did!

You're absolutely right Katie, I've caught some otherwise perfectly healthy fish this last year that look to be true survivors of some pretty traumatic injuries.    

 

Can't wait for the report, I hope while I'm typing this you're boating a giant in the most secluded beautiful bog ?

[Woody B]

I went this morning from 5:45 until 10.  Caught 9.  No "real" dinks, at least by my standards.  The smallest ones were 2 poundish.   I caught a 3 1/2 pound spot within my first dozen casts.  Later I caught a 3 1/2 pound Largemouth.   The early ones came on a Devils Horse.  The later ones on a Bladed jig.   I left the lake aggravated with 2 messed up rods.  The insert in the tip fell out of one.   The other has a big groove/crack in the tip insert.  Both started "feeling funny" so I looked and saw the problems.   I've got a friend who builds rods for Carp fishermen.  These 2 will be going to him tomorrow.  I might just start buying Ugly Sticks and throw them away when a guide fails.  I fished for 30 years with no guide failures.  I've had 4 now in the past year.   

[Swamp Girl]

Alas, the bass won. And one. Yes, I only caught one. I did have a big one erupt beside my canoe as I lifted a Livingston Bull Nose out of the water and it seemed big based upon the noise and violence, but since this is a tale told by an idiot, it might have been just sound and fury signifying nothing.*

 

*I apologize for going full nerd in this sentence. 

 

Anyway, here's the one fish. It's beautifully dark, but a Chicken McNugget for Alex's toads.

 

 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

9 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

Alas, the bass won. And one. Yes, I only caught one. I did have a big one erupt beside my canoe as I lifted a Livingston Bull Nose out of the water and it seemed big based upon the noise and violence, but since this is a tale told by an idiot, it might have been just sound and fury signifying nothing.*

 

*I apologize for going full nerd in this sentence. 

 

Anyway, here's the one fish. It's beautifully dark, but a Chicken McNugget for Alex's toads.

 

 

 

And that fish would have just eaten the two I caught earlier like peanuts ?

 

It's a beautiful fish, and the fact you only got one confirms the fact you were fishing the right way for big fish imho.   She's a coming for you, I have absolutely zero doubt about that.    

[GaryH]

22 hours ago, gimruis said:

My Father and I had a pretty epic day targeting brown bass on Mille Lacs.  Not a ton of fish, but all quality ones.  My Father tied a PB with a 21 incher, and I caught two over 20 inches.  I weighed one of them just to see how much it weighed and it was 5.65 pounds (5th photo).  None of the smallmouth we caught were under 18 inches.  They were all prespawn females.  We even caught three accidental walleyes, one of which just happened to be in the keeper slot which was a pure stroke of luck.  This is a very big lake, and the wind rarely cooperates.  I only have a 17.5 foot boat and I need it to cooperate in order to fish where and how I want to.  For the first time in 3 years, that occurred yesterday and it paid off.  A perch colored jerk bait did most of the damage.  I feel very fortunate to have caught these fish.  Here are a few photos.  I'd like to thank @A-Jay and @Dwight Hottle for their advice, education, and inspiration when it comes targeting smallmouth on big waters.  They are a big help when it comes to this specific type of fishing.

Outstanding ???

[Texas Flood]

First river smallie of the year. Caught him on a Tokyo Rig. This was the first time using the TR, but I really like it. Can’t wait to see how it works on the lake next week. 
 

[LrgmouthShad]

My Mom FaceTimed me with a few fish this morning. She said she caught five today out of Ol Muddy pond. As always, on her favorite lure and the pond special, a 5” solid black senko. 
 

Ol Muddy lives on despite me being far away. 

[thediscochef]

The scale says that night fishing is here. Largest measured fish of the year, 6lb 8oz is where the scale stopped. Classic. I got my one good one and that's a wrap for tonight. Probably coulda done more but now I'm strategizing lol

 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

16 minutes ago, thediscochef said:

The scale says that night fishing is here. Largest measured fish of the year, 6lb 8oz is where the scale stopped. Classic. I got my one good one and that's a wrap for tonight. Probably coulda done more but now I'm strategizing lol

 

It's the cheat code brother, most simply don't have what it takes to do it.   

Fantastic fish, you earned that one! 

[Jmontgomery87]

It took about 10 minutes to land my new PB today. Caught it on a spook and it buried itself in some vegetation about 25 yards from shore on a ridge with deep drop offs on both sides. I had to go in after it with my jeans on in over a foot of mud and water to my waist. At first I thought about breaking off and figured the fish was gone but then it started fighting again. It was really tangled up and I had to pull it out by hand. Not a monster, but I fought for every 5lb 3oz of it.

[AlabamaSpothunter]

1 minute ago, Jmontgomery87 said:

It took about 10 minutes to land my new PB today. Caught it on a spook and it buried itself in some vegetation about 25 yards from shore on a ridge with deep drop offs on both sides. I had to go in after it with my jeans on in over a foot of mud and water to my waist. At first I thought about breaking off and figured the fish was gone but then it started fighting again. It was really tangled up and I had to pull it out by hand. Not a monster, but I fought for every 5lb 3oz of it.

DAYGUM SLAUNCH!   Magnificent fish sir, certainly worthy of your new PB.   Don't get any better than that, congratulations, and enjoy the high!  

 

Change that avatar, moving on up in the world, cue the music  ?

[Jmontgomery87]

12 minutes ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

DAYGUM SLAUNCH!   Magnificent fish sir, certainly worthy of your new PB.   Don't get any better than that, congratulations, and enjoy the high!  

 

Change that avatar, moving on up in the world, cue the music  ?

Done! 

[thediscochef]

46 minutes ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

It's the cheat code brother, most simply don't have what it takes to do it.   

Fantastic fish, you earned that one! 

Thanks! Felt good to feel a heavy again, it's been a while. Second biggest bass I've ever caught off the bank, shy of a shore PB by about 2 ounces and overall by about a pound and a quarter. Absolutely inhaled a minimax, hooked about as close to the gullet as it gets while also being hooked in the roof. First time in a while I've been able to fit a whole hand in a fish's mouth.

[BrianMDTX]

Yesterday morning was good. Caught 12 bass and missed one. First bass was on a Whopper Plopper 90. About 1.5 lbs. Caught it on my 3rd cast. About 10 mins later I watched it get slurped down just as I started reeling it back. Something looked off and the so did the fight. It wasn’t a bass. It was a 3 lb. channel cat. Caught one on a squarebill last year but this was my first topwater catfish. 
 

Chatterbait struck out. Caught the rest on Texas rigs with a blue/black laminate Senko, a Zoom Z-Craw in California 420 and a General’s Watermelon Neko Macho, as well as a black Senko WR. 
 

Speaking of the wacky rig, I was getting ready to pack it in for the day and lost my Senko at the boat reeling in a bass. I had that Neko Macho (torn up at this point) handy so I rigged it wacky-style on the 1/0 circle octopus hook and soon caught another bass (#9), but that destroyed the bait. I didn’t want to go through my Plano box for another O-ring and get another black Senko out of the bag for just a few last casts, and when I put my hand in my pocket I felt a bait- a 4” Rage Menace in Green Pumpkin. I must have removed it as a spinner/chatterbait trailer and forgot about it. I figured “what the heck” and hooked it through the nose on the circle octopus hook and casted it near partially-submerged brush. Boom! A 2 lb. bass took it immediately. So did the next bass two casts later, and the 3rd bass three casts after that. It’s a light bait and sinks slow, but it had great action on a slow retrieve being nose-hooked. I’m going to try that again!