Reward Offered

[rps]

I fished early on the 4th - 6 AM to 10 AM - and did surprisingly well on a top water. I caught three, including the one pictured, in the first hour. Seven others blew up on the bait but did not connect or stay buttoned.

In the second hour I tried a second location and things slowed down. I caught one dink and had two more misses. Right at 8 AM the largest fish I have had on this year freight trained my bait. I could not turn her and she took my bait back into the brush from which she came. I tried to ease up with the trolling motor to see what I could do, but she got leverage and broke me off. She took with her a Tim Hughes painted Top Dollar with Daiichi Deathtrap hooks and hand tied feathers and tinsel. It was Tim's House color #2. If anyone finds it I will pay a reward.

After 8:30 I tried to find walleye but only found bait balls suspended at 15 feet over deeper water.

Water temp 79 to 81. Surface choppy with boat wakes when I got off.

[Quillback]

I'll keep an eye out for your bait, but I'm thinking you were probably up river a ways from where I usually fish. Stinks to lose a favorite bait.

[rps]

Yes, I was just upriver from HI.

The baits I had Tim paint have lasted very well. I have given two or three away, beat up a couple, and lost two to fish. I still have fishable ones, but the one that wen away today was nearly pristine.

[Albiontiger_34]

Leatherwood creek area?

[abkeenan]

Dang RPS. Just posted in the other thread that I hoped your lost topwater wasn't a custom top dollar. Looks like it was....that stinks.

[5bites]

I'm going to need coordinates. I'll be down next weekend for a few days and will do my best.

[vonreed]

Dang, I never seen anybody put up a reward for a lure, It must have been a special one.

[Jerry Rapp]

Dang, I never seen anybody put up a reward for a lure, It must have been a special one.

he didn't say what the reward was? LOL! But I bet the bait had a white belly.

[Ham]

I ALWAYS use a loop knot on my crappie jigs and Zig JIgs. I would be miserable if I HAD to fish a jig tied direct, but I fish with guys that are better crappie fisherman (Lincoln Godfrey) and trout jig fishermen (Richard Cross) that tie direct to their jigs.

I'm not gonna hate on rps for his obsession with Top Dollars with custom paint jobs and fancy hooks. IMO, that bait is too hard to throw, too hard to work, and has too many blowups that are not hookups, but it makes him happy to fish it.

I hope you get your bait back rps.

[rps]

Ham is correct, I only throw the Top Dollar because I am a masochist.