Springtime At Last!!!!!

[Ed Wahl]

It's here, it's here!\\:D/\\:D/=D>

Well, almost.:-?

I had the fever.

Had to get out and check on my ole pals, the Smallies.

Got to my favorite "brown line" about 9:30 this morning. I used the "Mike's Place" access.:-$

Immediatley upon getting out of the truck I knew I was a bit early. That breeze was rather cool.
Relax, I said to myself, it's been over 70 for days now. These fish are on.

Any fisherman who can't lie to himself on demand is no fisherman.:^o:rolleyes:

So I hit the water, wading wet. This spot demands way too many miles of walking to wear waders.

Upon entering the water my first thought was "hmm, maybe I've made a mistake". But I hung in and got used to it, almost.

I caught this little but very important first Bass of the year at my first hole.

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a288/edfish333/Smallies/Smallies009.jpg

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a288/edfish333/Smallies/Smallies010.jpg

After that fish I had to wade a bit deeper to keep going. Yep, had to go 'that' deep.:eek: Did I mention a cold wind was blowing?







So I start walking and prospecting my way upstream. I wanted to fish the hole above the truck.

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a288/edfish333/Smallies/Smallies012.jpg

I found out upon my arrival at the hole that I had pulled my first (of many I'm sure) boneheaded moves. I'd left my spools of leader material on the counter at home.#-o
So I fished the deep, deep, hole with a floating line and about a 4 ft long stub of leader.](*,) Nada. Gotta get deeper. So I did what any bonehead would do in such a situation. I started searching around for some discarded fishing line.
Now, you've gotta remember, this is very early in the year. I couldn't find any wads of line on my side. Ordinarily, this is something to celebrate, but not today.
I had to head downstream to a riffle, cross over, and walk back up to the hole on the other side. There's an easy access on that side. And, as most of you know, where there's easy access there's also litter. And Viola, there it was. A wad of old line of questionable breaking strength. Hah! Back in Business!\\:D/

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a288/edfish333/Smallies/Smallies014.jpg

So I walked and waded back to my original spot, this time ready rake in those bad boys that live down in the tractor tires.:-k

I'll just cut it short. It really is early and cold still. Here's my best pic from the Dam Hole.

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a288/edfish333/Smallies/Smallies016.jpg
At least it's proof that springs here.

It was one cold walk back downstream, then I had to cross at the same spot as before, yep, that deep again.:eek:

It just keeps gettng better from here.

Ed

[Hairstacker]

Nice report and good looking fish Ed! 8-) Between you and your leader material and David and his fins, I hope you guys aren't starting some kind of trend . . . . :lol:

I imagine it will be pretty soon now. In any case, as someone once said, "Ya don't know, if ya don't go!" ;)

[David Lee]

You gotta love the first one of the year ..... !!

Too bad he wasn't 'all-striped-up' - LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL !!!!!

You sure do know that 'home pool' Ed . Strange , how many Bass are in there .....

David

[roostersgt]

Ed,

Thanks for sharing your trip. I really enjoyed it. Nice pics too.

Steve

[Scott V]

Good going Ed, I am glad to see the bass are biting. Should only get better from here on out.

[Ed Wahl]

Phil wanted to feel a fish before he goes in for some shoulder work in a couple of weeks, so back to the creek we went.

Still tough fishing. Nothing showing in all the usual spots.

I believe this is the reason.

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a288/edfish333/Smallies/Smallies020.jpg

Looks like it's gonna be another couple of weeks before it starts really picking up.

We fished a ways upstream, and Phil came up with a very nice Squawfish.

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a288/edfish333/Smallies/Smallies023.jpg

Hey Bill, notice the hat?

I managed a few really small bass a little later, then we had to move due to the heavy off roader crowd that swept in on us.:mad:

Went in at a different spot farther down, no fishies there either.

But these were out.

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a288/edfish333/Smallies/Smallies025.jpg


http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a288/edfish333/Smallies/Smallies026.jpg


http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a288/edfish333/Smallies/Smallies027.jpg

Gotta be careful in the tall grass.:eek:
This one was rather mellow, he moved off the path into the taller grass and flattened himself out. It would have just let us just walk on past, but, of course we couldn't just do that. When it figured out it was had it took this cool defensive posture and really let the rattle fly.

After our snake encounter we still had a quarter mile left to walk, most of it in ankle to knee deep grass. Paranoid would be an understatement.:paranoid:

No fish at the last spot either, but it was an excellent day to be out, and as usual there was plenty of wildlife to see.

Ed

[David Lee]

After our snake encounter we still had a quarter mile left to walk, most of it in ankle to knee deep grass. Paranoid would be an understatement.:paranoid:


Ahhhhhh , yes . I know paranoia well !

I recall you had the good manners to NOT laugh at my childish fear of reptiles , you only stared at me in mild disbelief . Again ..... quite civil of you .

Welcome to my world - the one where the sight of a Snake (ANY Snake) makes your mouth go dry .

Just LOOKIN' at the picture gives me the willies ......

David

[Ed Wahl]

Hah, that last pic came out even more dramatic than I had hoped. I'm lovin my new camera. Trust me, I wasn't very close.

David, we all have our little idiosyn.....idiosi......our own little quirks.;)

I've never once seen yours stop you from fishing a spot.

You guys who have a phobia can relate, I'd see David come S-L-O-W-L-Y through some really "snakey" looking cover that I've just walked through:-\", teeth clenched and white as a ghost, sweating up a storm, and oddly, not saying a word.:paranoid::shock:[-o<

But he always got through.

You know all the good gags we pull on people who are afraid of snakes? You know the ones, the broken fan belts, pieces of garden hose, funny looking branches, pieces of rope?:evil: Well, I've never even considered pulling one on him. His phobia is for real. And after he woke up he'd probably flog me with my own rod. Then when the rod broke, jam the pieces somewhere they really don't belong.

My joke instinct gets overridden by my survival instinct.

Scotty and Phil, as you know by now, you're still fair game :evil::unibrow::ninja:.

Ed

[Hairstacker]

Funny thing you guys talking about snakes today, as I was looking over snake-proof boots in a catalogue last night. Was comparing the 15 and 16" models and wondering how practical they would be for fishing around creeks and streams . . . maybe practicality shouldn't be placed quite too high on the priority list. :shock: :lol:

So the creek's been a little slow . . . you think it has anything to do with water temps? I was scouting out the lower Tuolumne this morning and talked to a fella who fished it regularly and was having a very slow day. He told me it should really turn on for smallies when the water temps come up a bit.

[David Lee]

I'm currently looking for a Snake-proof jumpsuit .

Forgot to add .... GREAT photos , Ed !! Nice to see the West-side water warm enough to make babies/fry .

I might eventualy beat my fears . Perhaps the first step will be to quit watchin' " I was bitten " and " Heinous Snake Week "on the Bug channel . I do love those lovely California King Snakes , though ...... they're good ju-ju and I feel no abject terror around them . Sadly , the last one I saw in the wild was at Folsom Lake in the late-80's .

I miss them .

David

[Ed Wahl]

Mike, from what I know of Smallie spawning behavior, the female makes the nest, then when the time is right, I don't believe it really depends on water temp, the male will do his thing with her, then the female takes off and pretty much acts like a normal smallmouth, IE, eating anything smaller than herself. The male, meanwhile, stays to guard the nest from marauding predators, be they 'gills or squawfish.

What I'm seeing, I believe, is the female. The nests are dug out but the fish on them are skittish as hell and will not feed. I saw a tadpole swim right over the top of one, right past it's mouth. Normally that's a gone tadpole. But the smallie never even blinked. Not feeding at all.
The male, while guarding the nest, will charge out 10 or 15 feet and totally demolish a baitfish pattern. Nothing is safe around them at that time.

In the midwest, this happens pretty much when the ice melts, but here the water never gets much colder than 50 degrees, thus my doubts about the whole water temperature thing.

I forgot my thermometer,(nothing new there) but the water was comfortable to wade in. Considerably warmer later in the day. But the Smallies, Squaws, and Sunnies that you would normally see just have'nt come out of there hidey holes yet.

I did see schools of suckers moving around, and the Dam pool had a bunch of yard long spawning carp in it. Couldn't catch them either.

Be ready Mike. When it get's good me and David are quite prepared to drive to Tracy and gunny sack you to get you up here.

Ed

[Phil Synhorst]

Scotty and Phil, as you know by now, you're still fair game :evil::unibrow::ninja:.

Ed

I think perhaps someone has forgotten a certain Bear incident some years back.:???: Then the next day, thrashing the tall brush behind the two guys that encountered it, while they were stopped for a break along the stream.:mad::mad:......That was funnier than $#%@, I think Kevin and I had more jump and hang time than Michael Jordan ever had. That should have been on video.:)

Great pics dude!! That rattler came out really nice, I need to get a good point and shoot.

[Ed Wahl]

:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:
I had forgotten all about that.

There's still a bit of "lusher than usual" growth at that spot.:lol::lol:

I still regret not being quicker witted when that deer snorted during our nighttime "cocktail hour".:eek:#-o

[Scott V]

At least you saw this snake before you went for a drink of water Ed. That is one moment in time I will never forget.

[Ed Wahl]

You know, I think I may have built myself up a bunch of good Karma with these animals over the years. I'd saved them from shovels and shotguns, and educated some folks who'd kill 'em just because their dad would've.

Now that I've jinxed myself I'd better start carrying my Sawyer Extractor kit again.;)

So far every rattler I've come across in the outdoors has just wanted to get away. If they have that chance they take it.

Scott, think about this. Up there at Slinkard, where I almost kissed that bad boy. How many cow heads do you suppose that snake has seen over the years dipping down to take a drink? No threat to it. My head, apparantly, was bovine enough for it not to take much offense.:???:
Lucky me, a bite on the noggin would have really sucked. But as I remember, that snake, after seeing you, just wanted to get out of Dodge as fast as possible. Maybe it was just camera shy.
I looked it up, that would have been a Great Basin rattler.

This snake however, did not like the paparazzi. Walking by was fine, but stopping for some pics kind of torqued it off.

I wish I could have gotten a pic of it while it was flattened out, that was pretty cool.

Ed

[Phil Synhorst]

This may be going a bit off topic, but.....Two days later I still have the heebee geebee's. I was walking by some bushes bordering the parking lot at Raley's in Loomis today when something small rustled around in there. I jumped clear off the side walk.:o