Members Lloyd Posted June 18 Members Posted June 18 On Sunday I had a marathon creek fishing day, starting before 6 am and ending after 8 pm, and the fish were chomping. I've heard that on the Susquehanna the fishing is best after rain when the water is rising, and maybe that's the case here, too. According to a nearby river gauge the water level peaked around 3 am and then started dropping, and the water at the creek was up and had a slight stain. Over the course of the morning and afternoon I caught a number of 17 - 19.5 inch fish on a fluke and a WTD bait, making it a great day, but the best was yet to come. It was a little after 6 pm towards the upper end of the smallmouth habitat on the creek. I had made a cast into the lower end of a long pool when I saw a big wake behind my fluke. It followed for several seconds before it hit, and then a drawn out battle ensued. When the fish jumped I saw that it was big, but I didn’t realize just how big. Maybe I should have guessed, because she just wouldn't come in. I’d gain some line, and then she’d make a 10 - 15 foot run. There was a small tree in the water towards the far bank, and she very nearly got into it a few times. I had to really strain the line to keep her out. This was the first time while fighting a smallmouth that I felt that 8 lb. test wasn’t quite enough. I would have felt a lot better with 10 or 12 lb., as she definitely had the upper hand for most of the fight. Obviously I lost all sense of time while fighting the fish, but I’d guess it took me about two minutes to get her to the bank, and then I saw what a tank she was. I knew immediately that she was pushing 20 inches if not over 20. And her depth was so much more impressive than any of the 19 inch fish I’ve caught. I had the thought that she was in a different category of fish, that she might as well have been a different species. Holding her up for pictures, I was confident she weighed at least four lb.s, although I’ll never know for sure. While keeping her in the water I carefully measured her several times and she was a little over 20 inches. I've caught the same fish twice several times on this creek. When released she swam off strongly, so hopefully I'll have another run in with her in the near future. What a thrill. basska, netboy, fishinwrench and 19 others 22
jdmidwest Posted June 18 Posted June 18 That is a nice one for a small stream in MO. Greasy B and Lloyd 2 "Life has become immeasurably better since I have been forced to stop taking it seriously." — Hunter S. Thompson
BilletHead Posted June 18 Posted June 18 Congrats Lloyd! Lloyd and Greasy B 2 "We have met the enemy and it is us", Pogo If you compete with your fellow anglers, you become their competitor, If you help them you become their friend" Lefty Kreh " Never display your knowledge, you only share it" Lefty Kreh "Eat more bass and there will be more room for walleye to grow!" BilletHead " One thing in life is for sure. If you are careful you can straddle the barbed wire fence but make one mistake and you will be hurting" BilletHead P.S. "May your fences be short or hope you have long legs" BilletHead
Johnsfolly Posted June 19 Posted June 19 Congrats on a great creek smallie. I love throwing a fluke as well. Such a great bait. Hope that you can catch her again 😉 Lloyd and Greasy B 2
basska Posted June 19 Posted June 19 Congrats! Glad to see people still pulling out 20s from the creeks! Greasy B and Lloyd 1 1
Gavin Posted June 19 Posted June 19 Congrats! Keep on keeping On! Wishing you many more! Lloyd and Greasy B 1 1
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now