Bob - That striper was no five pounder but they sure do pull hard. A little adversity has made me appreciate cruising around in a running truck even if it is a little long in the tooth.

I dodged the wind this morning and got a couple nice bass and a pike minnow on the topwater bug. First pike minnow on the surface for me. Not exactly on the bucket list like the permit or the 100 pound tarpon but that is okay. If I was starting a native species bucket list the topwater pike minnow would definitely be on it.

The morning topwater bite window can be short. It seemed like it lasted about an hour and then shut down. If you are going out to fish morning topwater do not show up late.