PDA

View Full Version : Breakfast Meeting



mikenewman
09-19-2006, 05:29 PM
This morning had a curiously dead feel to it. Usually when setting up the boat in the half light you can hear the occasional splash of feeding fish but not today.
Spent the first hour pitching into my favorite riprap/tullie pockets -nothing! Nothing moving. Nothing biting. Nothing doing.
Decided to cross the slough to a promising looking tullie bank that I hadn't yet tried. Third pitch up along side a point brought a great fat bulge in the water that signalled the big diver had been inhaled with a lazy confidence. She showed her flank on the hook set - omigawd!!!
This was a fish that was obviously used to having her own way, so I gave her a lot of stick and reckon I had her out of the thick stuff before she knew what was happening.
I was convinced she was a double from the time I stuck her to the time I read the boga scale at 8lbs dead. 8 lbs of green, gleaming, fabulous wildness.
Absolute joy :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a317/Mikenewman_/Bass8lb.jpg

Katz
09-19-2006, 05:38 PM
NICE!! :D

Kraig

Hairstacker
09-19-2006, 05:44 PM
Awesome Mike!! I'll bet that first glance sent your heart racing, eh? What fly did you get her on? That is too cool!! 8) 8) 8)

David Lee
09-19-2006, 06:38 PM
8 Lbs. , eh ??

I'll put money on you breaking that record later this fall :idea:

Very well done !

David =D>

k.hanley
09-19-2006, 06:41 PM
Sweet! Nice going Mike. :D
Cheers, Ken

Charlie Gonzales
09-19-2006, 07:38 PM
Very nice Mike. Must have been the pike fly?

JerryInLodi
09-19-2006, 07:45 PM
Mike, I was listening to one of the pro bass hardware chuckers making some predictions for the fall delta on the radio last week. While he expected the overall bite to slow dramatically, he also predicted some of the biggest fish of the season would be caught if a string of four or more days with similar weather could be put together.

It appears that he was dead on. Like you, my catch rate has really slowed in the morning until the sun warms the water a couple of degrees. Unlike you, I haven't stuck, "The BIG ONE yet!"

Totally awesome! From the looks of the fish, if pumped up with roe or milt, probably would have busted ten pounds in the spring!

nightgoat
09-19-2006, 10:51 PM
well done Mike! That's a beauty :thumbsup:

09-19-2006, 11:20 PM
Hey Mike,

Awesome fish :) ! Jerry told me there are some really big ones out there when we fished together recently and yours definitely proved that.

Bill

Bill Kiene semi-retired
09-20-2006, 12:29 AM
I want one too......I guess you just have to keep going?

8 pounds of LMB is a lot, especially on a fly rod.

Adam Grace
09-20-2006, 02:08 PM
Very nice bass!

mikenewman
09-20-2006, 03:22 PM
Yep, fly was a "pike fly" replicant without all the fancy stuff between the tail feathers which basically means it's just a big diver - 5" long on a Gamakatsu B10S 2/0 (Love that hook: it's heavier than your average stinger and helps the bug sit in the water properly)
Jerry, she was actually a nice fat fish in great condition (Lovely tonsils :lol: ). Camera angle makes her look kinda skinny but I don't know how to take a good solo photo on a big fish that doesn't involve undue stress, so I've opted for the release shot. Maybe I could have tethered the boga and held her tail for a better angle :!:

Mike

lee s.
09-20-2006, 03:56 PM
Awesome!!!!! :)
....lee s.

KD
09-21-2006, 01:29 AM
Mr Newman, NICE FISH! Very Nice. Hey, I'm proud of YOUR fish!:-)).

It just goes to show that you've got to play the game to get the rewards. An 8lb topwater bass is an awesome catch anywhere/anyhow. Good job Mike. Guys like you, Richard, "Bald Heron", and some others have taken to the Delta fishery with commitment for the game. It's an awesome game and we're lucky to have one of the best lmb fisheries in the world so close.

Again, congrats on a beautiful green beast of wildness!:-)....it won't be your last..that is certain! Keep 'em coming..

mikenewman
09-21-2006, 11:19 AM
Thanks Kevin - I knew you'd be pleased :D
It never ceases to amaze me how the Delta Topwater Game is effectively ignored by local fly guys. I've talked to quite a few trout addicts and they sort of look down their nose at me like I'm something the cat dragged in :lol: Then they wax lyrical about some trout water that's like 4 or 5 hours drive away. Even the striper guys migrate come Spring. Maybe there's the idea that the LMB aren't challenging enough !!! :lol: :lol: :lol:
Or maybe it's the need for some sort of watercraft that put's them off? But I'm sure Rickey could point them at a great kayak for not much more than a Sage rod and Hairstacker shows what can be done with a plastic pool lounger and a sense of adventure :D
Anyway, I've been fishing a long time and I've never enjoyed it as much as pursuing these great fish - absorbing, challenging, heart stopping, just plain GREAT!

Mike

Bill Kiene semi-retired
09-21-2006, 12:24 PM
I think if any fly fisher went out for a half day with KD in the Delta and saw how exciting top water bass is they would be instantly converted.

Also, the Delta is a very fascinating, vast water way that is never boring.

KD showed us that we can fly fish 12 months of the year down there too.

Now somebody just has to buy a really big place down there?

Some of us have thought about putting a trailer down there and leave the boat down there too.

Hairstacker
09-21-2006, 09:13 PM
Yes, I will be happy to assist anyone interested in pursuing these beasts with a "plastic pool lounger." :lol: :lol: :lol:

It is curious why some fly fishermen eschew any thoughts of pursuing these gamefish. I've even heard some trout guys go so far as to refer to them as "green trash fish." :? I think it's a case of what Bill said -- folks simply have to experience a successful, exciting topwater day out there at least once.

Perhaps some folks were discouraged when they only experienced the areas of the Delta inundated with cabin cruisers and water/jet skis versus the nice quiet areas you can practically have to yourself even on a weekend day. To me, with so many new areas to explore and new flies to tie and try out, it always seems fresh and exciting. You never know when your next cast might be slurped up by an 8 lber. :shock: 8)