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2008
M A R C H
Late start in 2008
This year hasn't been the best for getting out fishing. I guess that is pretty obvious with my first journal entry coming in March. Late in the month of February, I did get out and managed to catch some fish, none of which I considered decent enough to get this years page going. After registering a few decent fish in March, and people wondering if I was still around, it is apparent I better get something posted! A White Sucker was my first fish of the year. Not exactly what I was targeting but at least I found a fish willing to cooperate. To the right, is a very nice small water fish that was rather exceptionally large. This fish, was a dandy Steelhead that measured in right at 29". It was taken on a Mepps spinner and provided quite a battle. To the bottom left, is a nice Rainbow Trout taken from the same body of water as the Steelhead. This trout being far more typical of a catch at this location. With the extreme wet weather we have been having just about all tributaries have been running high and muddy. Because of this, I found myself bottom fishing with bait which worked to catch this trout and many others like it the past few weeks. I did have a good number of other fish such as River Chubs and White Suckers also find my bait as well. It didn't bother me at all as I enjoyed catching whatever was biting. The nice 19" White Sucker to the bottom right was definately picture worthy, a heck of a nice speciman for the species. In fact, the largest one I have ever caught at the time I'm writing this. Being that this year did get off to a very slow start, it may have served as a motivation to turn things around. All fish this year have been released.
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Small surprises
A few late March surprises ended the month on the right note. The fish on the left was a 10.5" Bluegill caught while bottom fishing a private lake near Cleveland, Ohio. On the right is a very rare Ohio catch, a small Brook Trout. This is only the third Brook Trout I have ever caught. It was nice to have Jill along to see both of these catches, she is not a big fan of the cold so I was glad the weather was fair. Both of these catches were released.
A P R I L
The type of fish to 'steel' your heart
Man oh man, if only every fish would fight like this one did! Every now and then you encounter one of those fish that displays a fighting spirit that is at a level few fish can match - that is exactly what this fish did. I was casting a Matzuo Prism Grub when this 24" Steelhead slammed the offering. It was the type of strike that nearly jolts the rod right out of your hands. As fast as the fish hit and I set the hook, it leaped a solid 6 feet into the air. No sooner then it returned to the water a second leap covered more then half the same height as the first. After these first initial jumps it took to the stream peeling my 6 pound test like nothing. After I finally got it turned, it went right by me the opposite direction doing the same thing again. This went on for quite a few minutes before I was able to get it to the net. It wasn't a huge fish, but very memorable. As far as freshwater is concerned, this fish reminded me that nothing fights harder than a Steelhead! Due to the nature of the long fight and some other variables, I decided this fish would be harvested.
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Welcome to Huron, Ohio
After moving from Port Clinton to Huron in late December 2007, I had been itching to get my first decent 'hometown' catches. Just a little something as if to say, "Welcome to Huron!". Of course making the move in the middle of winter, wasn't the best for making this happen early on. As weather finally improved, I got a few fish. A couple of those first catches included this fat bellied Channel Catfish and a nice sized Freshwater Drum, both released.
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A nice day on Lake Erie
I managed to get out on my buddy Matt's boat for the first time as part of loosely organized event on the ohiogamefishing.com. The annual event was dubbed "Hetfest 2008" and launched out of Turtle Creek Marina near Oak Harbor, Ohio. Along with Matt, and Chuck who I had previously met, I got to meet a couple new friends, Joey and Frank. We had a lot of fun jigging up our 20 fish limit and weather couldn't have been any better. The picture over there is showing me holding a limit of tasty Walleye after a great day of fishing on Lake Erie. A big thank you to Matt for the invitation, I hope I can get out again soon.
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J U L Y
So little time for fishing
Most of the weekends and free time this summer was spent getting things done for the wedding. Jill and I made it to the beach and pier just a small handful of times. I didn't really catch anything that interesting but usually caught a few fish. The Channel Catfish to the right was the largest fish landed in those few trips. I did have one enormous fish on that took a white jig/grub combo, however, it came off just a few minutes into the fight. Sadly, didn't even get a chance to see what it was. Most likely, a snagged carp but I would have loved to confirm that's what happened. I guess that's fishing for ya. It is pretty amazing that I didn't go through fishing withdrawl having gotten out so little this summer!
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A U G U S T 2, 2 0 0 8
Atlantic City, NJ, fish of a lifetime!
Well it's not easy figuring out where to start with the most amazing fish I have ever caught. What is easy is to say giving this fishing journal entry one of my platinum fish awards was a 'no brainer'. So here's the story on the largest fish I have ever caught, the Bluefin Tuna that was 130 pounds! I hope you enjoy the story. Let the epic tale begin;
Weather started pretty bad with a storm that seemed to want to follow the boat. Eventually, we managed to get clear of it and started fishing about 35 miles off the coast. About an hour in, we got hooked up on a big fish. I have never seen such controlled chaos and excitement! As I positioned myself in the chair I was preparing for what I knew would be a challenge but had no idea just how big of a challenge it would be! The fight itself began really easy at first... (fish is swimming along with us). The line was coming in very easy and I either caught it up to the reel or it made a run - all I know is when I suddenly 'felt' the fish it felt like we had snagged into a submarine. I never felt something so strong in my life. Of course the fish hit on the line that was out 300 yards and I have to admit I was exhausted after the first 5 minutes. Little did I know I would be going on adrenaline for another 28 minutes. The fish made 2 major runs and it was nothing short of painful getting it back in each time. My forearms were burning bad and every muscle in my body was cursing me. The site of the leader was a thing of beauty, unfortunately I would see it come and go a few times. The crew & my brother kept shouting encouraging comments to keep me going... several times I wondered if I truly had it in me to get this fish in. I never once in my life dreamed I could encounter a fish that physically challenged me like this. I did in fact stick with it, and the fish never really gave up either. I would say it was more of just reeling like crazy until my heart felt like it was going to pound right out of my chest and then controlling the fish enough when it was close to the boat to allow the crew to try to gaff it. After a few failed attempts with the still spirited fish, the first mate Ed was able to get the gaff secure into it. He and another crew member Gene, as well as my brother, then combined to pull it up into the boat. I can't even begin to say how relieved I was to see the fish in the boat!
As I stared at the monster fish, I was pretty much still in shock. The 'high fives' were exchanged and I recall asking if anyone actually hit my hand as I couldn't feel it. It was hilarious to have my arm completely numb from the elbow down. The fish was too large for the regular tuna cooler mounted on the boat and got placed in the tank under the fishing platform that runs the length of the transom. I opened the door several times just to look at it, simply fascinated by it's size. It didn't take very long at all to begin realizing this was my fish of a lifetime.
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Proof that some fishing stories are true!
Before we had left, I had inquired a bit as to what our goal was and what a good fish might be. The goal was to catch a good sized tuna in the 40 -50 pound class. Little did I know, hours later I would be holding a 130# tuna on the docks at the Trump Marina Hotel and Casino with a huge cheering crowd! The fish and the whole experience is something I will never forget. A huge thank you to my brother for arranging and buying this trip for me, and helping pull my shoulders back during the fight with the fish - all while videotaping, and helping to pull the fish into the boat, and taking the fantastic still shots of the fish after we were in. I also want to thank Captain Tony Malandro (whom I call the "Fishing Godfather"), Ed, and Gene. Visit www.sportfishingandcharter.com.
S E P T E M B E R 4, 2 0 0 8
Honeymoon in New York State
After a year of wedding planning and having a storybook 'big day', Jill & I both were ready for some rest and relaxation. We headed to a resort in New York State, called Peek n' Peak. It was a fun filled week of all the typical tourist activites including shopping, eating good food, and site seeing. Jill was nice enough to let me drag along some fishing poles and I appreciated the chance to fish some new waters. My expectations were very low as fishing was just a side note and I really wasn't prepared. Good luck seemed to follow us though, and everywhere we went we caught fish. We fished a few piers on Lake Erie, Lake Chautauqua, Findley Lake, and a few streams. Even though fishing expectations were low, I managed to catch a beauty of a Smallmouth Bass that measured 19.5", an award sized fish for New York State! How cool was that?!
Upon return to Ohio, it seemed there were just too many projects to get done and not enough time to fish. In the few trips made, nothing notable.
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