Like finding a needle in a haystack

Got out to the Hills for what is probably the last time before the summer heat hits, barring any noticeable activity in them there waters.

I continued to try my new straight retrieve with a Yo-zuri, slowly modifying in twitches over time. I had two follow-ups by what might have been ladyfish, but no bites. Both of the follow-ups were off the dock in deep water.

On a shallow cast, I did end up getting a vicious hit and hook-up with what ended up being a needlefish. It was a lot like playing a lizardfish, whith the needlefish slicing back and forth erratically in the water. Not wanting to bring the fish in, I played it until it self-released.

I didn't know needlefish hit lures. The Hills continues to surprise.

By the way, I'm labeling this post with "catching" since I did catch the little sucker. Frankly, I'd count a tail-hooked mullet these days.

Persistence on a four star day

It was a four star day on the solunar tables on Wednesday, so I took every opportunity I had to fish. I hit the docks on the Hills first. It was a beautiful fishing day, low 70's, very light breeze out of the north, and not a cloud in the sky. It would turn out to not be much of a catching day, but hey--the fishing was great.

I worked the whole seawall and both docks without a bite:




Later that afternoon, I drove over to my mom-in-law's to pick up my daughter. On the way, I tried casting the Gotcha under the Madiera Beach bridge to no avail. The water was very chalky today, which considerably lowers the effectiveness of artificial lures, as those lures depend on sunlight and clear water to be seen by the fish.

When I was under the bridge, a young teenager who was castnetting nearby let out a whoop. He had castnetted a huge sheepshead. His dad ran to the truck, got out the cooler, and came down and threw that keeper sheepie in. He gave his son a congratulatory slap on the back and you could see that kid's smile a mile away. It was a touching father and son moment and I was glad I got to witness it.

On my way back to the car, I saw a fishy spot over near a restaurant:

It was clearly marked no trespassing, so I lined myself up near a structure that would hide my illegal activities:

The sun was directly in my eyes, so on my first cast, I played it careful and tossed the lure out. The cast came up short of the dock, but diligently worked the Yo-zuri back to the seawall. I put a little muscle into my second cast, and dropped the Yo-zuri right under the dock. I let it sit for a three count, then worked it back with my classic, pop, pop, reel, pop. When the lure was less than ten feet away, a snook quickly rose to the surface and yanked the Yo-zuri under.

I was so surprised that I just yanked up on the rod. The snook came to the surface and angrily thrashed it's head about a half dozen times before breaking off my line. The bad news is obvious. The good news is that a few seconds later, my Yo-zuri floated back to the surface.

I tied it back on and casted it out, and was surprised when it got whacked close to shore by a feisty ladyfish. The ladyfish also self-released, and I decided to pack it up.

It was a great day of fishing, and though I am broken-hearted after losing yet another snook, I was glad that I persisted on a tough catching day.

On my way back to my car, I saw a father and daughter team fishing with live shrimp further down the seawall. I told them about my snook and ladyfish adventure, and the father just sort of nodded nonchalantly. However, when I was pulling away, I saw them down by the dock, eagerly casting away.

I hope they caught a big one.

Minnow crashing

Tried the Hills for about twenty casts yesterday, but it is just getting too hot to be fishing in a shirt and tie.

Spent the evening over at the Mayhew's house, and afterthe girls were fed and Dora was on, Kelly and I snuck out for a little fishing at CPB.

The fish were behaving the same as the day before, crashing schools of minnows on the surface of the still water. Since the water was still deep from the high tide, the fishing was easy.

Kelly and I both tied on Yo-zuri Crystal Minnows in the 1/4oz size and started casting. It wasn't long before Kelly hooked up with a feisty ladyfish, which he got within leader length before it self-released.

I managed a good hit in the same spot, but wasn't able to set the hook.

About a half-hour in, Kelly and I were approached by a woman who was "looking for Treasure Island." I'm pretty sure she was looking a paying customer. She bugged Kelly and me for several minutes, and by the time we got back to casting, twilight had turned into darkness, and it was time to pack up the gear.

I did try a topwater plug for a few casts, but it didn't garner any interest.

I'm going to label this one "catching" and "skunked" since both happened, and though I wasn't the one who caught the fish, I will give myself partial "guide credit" for scouting the location.

SKUNKED

I fished just about everywhere I could today, including the secret spot twice: once at 5:30pm and then again with my buddy Kelly at 8:30pm.

I fished mostly with a Yo-zuri, and a bit with a Gotcha.

I don't know if this is how it will be over the warmer months, if the cold weather that was pushing in the fish will have the opposite effect as the cold turns to warm and then to hot.

I mean, not a bite. Not a nibble, not a missed hit, not a fish seen or heard over two and a half total hours of fishing. It was barren. It was frustrating.

Catching some rays

Fished the Hillsborough river at lunch today. The river was teeming with fish--mullet were everywhere.

I also saw a few BIG jacks swimming around, so I was hopeful that I might hook up with one if I was persistent enough.

I started down by the docks and didn't get any action, so I started working my way down the seawall towards Kennedy Boulevard. About halfway down the seawall there is a submerged oyster bar. I usually don't fish near it because there is only 6-8 inches of water to work with, so it is snag hell.

I fished it today because the jacks I mentioned before were circling the oyster bar. There is also a tree on the seawall there, so I can cast in the shade for a bit. Still, despite the jacks and a hundred or so mullet, no bites.

The oyster bar:

About 50 yards from the bridge, I cast out and hooked up with a real rod bender, but unfortunately, the giant fish ended up being a cow nosed ray that I had foul hooked through a fin. I was pretty nervous about getting the hook out, as the ray was thrashing its tail and stinger around like mad. Thankfully, just as I began to hoist it out of the water, the hook slipped out and the ray fell harmlessly back to the water.

After that incident, I worked my way all the way down to the bridge, but even there, I couldn't entice any fish to take a bite out of my Yo-zuri.

The bridge over empy waters:

Back to work, but I was feeling better about the trip since there were actually some fish present.

The Hills is alive

Took my lunch out by the river today. As I walked to my fishing spot, I saw a lot of activity in the water, included a school of needlefish and three schools of mullet. One of the schools of mullet had three or four sheepshead swimming with it, something I've never seen before.

Curious.

I fished my usual spots to no success, so decided to try a more remote spot by the bridge that I hadn't tried in awhile. As I walked over to the bridge, I scanned the water for signs of life and saw a BIG snook hanging behind a little bend in the mangroves.

I walked further downriver of it, quietly got within casting distance, and tossed out my Yo-zuri.

I held my breath as I retrieved the lure.

No bite.

Tossed it out again.

No bite.

Repeat.

I don't know if I spooked the snook on the cast, or if it was the Yo-zuri I was using today. It was the 1/4oz size, in a white/orange/yellow combo. The color was garish, and I was a little skeptical when I tied it on, thinking it might spur a reactionary or defensive strike from a fish, but it didn't appear to be matching any specific real world bait fish.

Now I'm left wondering how it might have gone if I had strapped on my big 3/8oz Yo-zuri that I caught that snook on the other day. Or, it could be that the lure was okay and the snook either wasn't there anymore or wasn't feeding.

I'll have to test out the new Yo-zuri at the secret spot. If it doesn't work there, it won't work anywhere.

Blue Light Special

After my success with the snook yesterday, I decided to try the Hills, fully knowing that I wasn't going to catch jack shit. And while I'd like to use that first line as a way of throwing the reader off a blog that will ultimately be about some giant fish I pulled out of the river, I can't. I really didn't catch jack shit today.

I did have two passersby stop to chat me up, one a fellow staff member named David, and the other a student named Danielle. David talked about how he always saw fish in the river on the other side of this bridge:



Danielle, who actually knew a thing or two about saltwater fishing, said that she didn't see any fish in the river today. Advantage: Danielle.

After work, I ran by the Secret Spot to toss a few casts. The water was teeming with glass minnows, so I was hopeful that I could turn this one star day on the solunar table into a fish fest, but it wasn't to be. I did catch this little ladyfish on my 3/8oz Yo-zuri (the same one that caught the snook yesterday).



I saw a lot of ladyfish and trout following the lure up to the dock, but none of them were biting. My reasoning on this one is that the big Yo-zuri I was using didn't match the small size of the glass minnows in the area.

I made a quick switch out at the end of my twenty minutes and fished a Gulp mullet, which promptly had its tail bitten off, rendering it useless. I switched over to a rootbeer DOA shrimp, which I cast right into the middle of the glass minnows. A ladyfish picked it up and ran, but when it jumped it tossed the DOA out. Still, it felt good to hook a fish on a non-scented plastic lure.

About that time my phone rang. It was my friend Kelly, who was at the local Kmart. He said that the store was closing and that the fishing isle was all 50% off.

I jumped in my car and drove over, and bought six Yo-zuri's (two 3/8oz and four 1/4oz) and some wire leaders (for Spanish mackerel fishing) for a grand total of $28.14 after tax.

Six Yo-zuri's alone would have cost me sixty bucks, so this was a hell of a deal for me. I spread the news to a couple of other fishermen I knew and drove home with a overflowing tackle box.

Luck of the Bri-rish

Today I decided to toss out the ol' fishin' plug on my lunch break.

As I walked down to the seawall, I could see seagulls feeding off bait fish about 200 yards away. Since the tide was flowing toward me, I figured it would only be a matter of time before the bait school (and the fish feeding on it) would reach me.

In the meantime, I casted out into my usual ladyfish spots without a bite. At some point I was so bored waiting for the bait fish that I just stopped fishing and watched the seagulls dive bombing the school.

After about 30 minutes, I realized that the bait fish were not coming toward me. In fact, they seemed to be going the other way. That reminded me of something my father-in-law once told me: bait fish always swim into the wind.

The wind was blowing into my face, which meant the bait fish were going the opposite way.

Bah.

I was about to pack up in disgust when I heard a fish hit the water behind me. I decided to investigate.

I walked along the seawall, looking into the water with my super-spy polarized glasses. I saw a few mullet, and then what I took to be a larger mullet, but which was in fact a snook. Right there. I jolted to a stop and the snook saw me and swam off.

I walked further down the seawall and waited about 3 minutes to see if the snook would come back. I couldn't see any wake in the water or any other obvious signs that he had returned, but decided to cast in anyway.

First cast, nothing.

Second cast, FISH ON!

With the first leap from the water, I saw that I had caught the snook. Three more leaps later, I had it up against the dock and hoisted it toward me. Right as I got it over the dock, the snook thrashed and broke off the line, fell to the planks at my feet, and then froze. I reached down, pinned the snook to the deck, and pulled out the Yo-zuri.

I'm afraid that I don't have any photos to show you, but the snook had an amber tinge to it, perhaps from inhabiting the Hillsborough river. I did have my tape measure along, and the snook came in at exactly 19 inches total length. Yes, I've caught bigger ladyfish, but it felt so great to land my first snook of the year. This catch was especially meaningful to me after losing two big fish in a row. I knew there was a reason I wore my green tie to work today.

I tossed it back, and shook my head. The Hills never ceases to perplex me. I guess this means I'll have to keep fishing it.

For the record, the Yo-zuri I caught the snook on today was the "Blue Tiger" which has a top of blue tiger stripes and silver sides. I was using the 3/8 oz size, which is one size larger than the one I normally use.

One more thing: for comparison's sake, the snook I caught today barely pulled any drag off my reel. That just gives you an idea of how big the fish was that I lost last Saturday, the one that peeled half the line off my reel before I could turn it around.

Yes, it still burns.

Quick Hit at the S.I.S.S.

I tried the Hills at lunch today, and though the tide was incoming and strong, the bite was absent. I'm going to skip the drawn out explanation of how and why I didn't catch any fish and just say that the highlight of the hour I spent fishing was when I found a slip-bobber floating in the river. I scooped it up and headed back to work.


Yesterday I stopped by my local tackle shop, "Minnows & Monsters" and picked up a couple of rods I had left to be either repaired, respooled with 10lb braid, or both. While I was there, I picked up a couple of 5/8oz Gotcha lures. These were slightly different than the others I've bought in two distinct ways.


1) Instead of two treble hooks, the rear was replaced with a J-hook, and
2) There was a white bucktail tied on to cover the above-referenced J-hook.

See below:

I was chomping at the bit to toss this little sucker out, but my skunking on the Hills got me thinking that perhaps this modified Gotcha was still on the shelf at the tackle shop for a reason.

To further test out the lure, I ran by the Snell Isle Secret Spot for a quick thirty minutes of casting.

On my first cast, I hooked up with a big trout, and from what I could tell, it was going to be my elusive first keeper of the season. In my excitement, I horsed it a bit more than I should have, and the hook slipped when the fish was still 10 yards out from the dock. Damn.

My disappointment didn't last long, though, as my next cast netted a 15 inch ladyfish. There were a couple of guys fishing from the seawall, and the lady caught their attention. When I reeled in another ladyfish on my next cast, they packed up their stuff and left. (Sorry guys, didn't mean to rub it in your face.)

In the next twenty or so minutes, I would land three more ladyfish and another trout, bringing my total landed to six fish.

I worked the Gotcha in a variety of different retrieves, from a fast pop-pop-reel to a slow pop-pause-reel. Both caught fish, and neither seemed to have a particular advantage over the other.

The most interesting thing to come up today with the new Gotcha was that I caught all six fish on the front treble hook. Not one took the J-hook at the back of the lure. I did have several hits without hook-ups, so I wonder if the fish weren't having a hard time latching on to the rear hook. Or, it could be that all the fish were going for the kill shot and hitting the lure in the head, therefore getting the front treble. It's a headscratcher.

Got yer Gotcha

Even though the salinity was low in the Hillsborough today at lunch, I decided to fish it anyway. The day was simply too nice to not be outside.

To my benefit: the incoming tide. To my detriment: the incoming tide was slow and the water was very clear--too clear.

I was fishing with the same 5/8oz Gotcha from yesterday, and it produced a nice hit on my fifth or sixth cast. Unfortunately, the hit broke off my line, and as if to rub it in my face, the ladyfish jumped out of the water and flicked my untethered lure tantalizingly close to where I was standing.

The lure sank out of sight.

I went back to my car, tied on a big Yo-zuri (I can't think of the weight, but it is about twice the size of my usual Yo-zuri's). I figured that the larger Yo-zuri would raise the possibility of a ladyfish biting the lure instead of the line.

I did get two nice hits from very large ladyfish, but each time the ladyfish let loose of the lure before I could set the hook. That is one of the disadvantages of using a larger lure--with the treble hooks further apart, it lowers the possibility of a fish getting hooked on the first bite.

So I was skunked, but it was a great way to spend the early afternoon. The sun was out and for once the wind wasn't howling down the river.

Big ladies, little ladies--I like 'em all

Took my lunch out by the river today. I tied on a 1/4oz Yo-zuri with silver sides and a green top, went down to the dock, and started casting. On my first cast, I had a tremendous hit, and a large ladyfish burst through the surface, shook its head, and tossed my lure.

Second cast, I got a hit and then the hardest pull of my drag that I've ever put my reel through. I thought it would start smoking. I dug my rod butt into my stomach and held on, wondering what kind of fish I had on, when a huge ladyfish launched itself into the air and--predictably--tossed my lure out of its mouth.

Now, I ask you: What should I have done next?

What I did was cast out again, and hook another monstrous ladyfish, which jumped, shook its head, and snapped my line.

What I should have done before casting out again was check for weakness in my line after that second ladyfish put so much stress on my 10 pound braid.

So, my lunch break ended prematurely.

Later in the afternoon, I stopped by Coffee Pot for a few quick casts. I hesitated to even bring out my gear as it was so windy. I tried casting out with my Yo-zuri, but couldn't fling the lure more than twenty feet, which was not far enough out to reachthe ladies. Second, the water was so rough, it would have been hard for the ladies to see my lure in that chop anyway.

So, I walked back to my car and switched to a Gotcha lure to see if any of the ladies were hiding deeper in the hole. Cue superhero music:

I casted my Gotcha back into the same spot and started slayin' em. I reeled in three small ladyfish and jumped about six others in about 15 minutes. The 5/8 Gotcha is the smallest size they make, and really the only one light enough for my tackle. It was easy to fish and got fierce strikes toward the bottom of the water column.

Thinking about trying it out again tomorrow if the tide is right.

The Hills: Solved

I've been trying to figure out how to best fish the Hillsborough River. Some days the water is totally barren, while other days I'll be able to reel in a stray ladyfish. Lucky for me, I have a variety of data available to help inform my fishing opportunities.

Before I decided to fish today, I considered the following:
1) The tide charts indicated a strong, incoming tide today.
2) The COMPS station indicated warm water at 66 degrees, and middle to high salinity, at 24.5.
3) The solunar tables showed a 4 star day (which is the best). Solunar tables can inform the strength at which fish will feed. The peak time was 12:55pm.

I first set out to fish the bridge that connects downtown Tampa to Kennedy Boulevard. I was surprised to get a strong hit on my first cast--so surprised that I totally missed the hook-set. Over a half-hour, I had two smaller bites, but no hook-ups.

I then walked further down the seawall to a spot where I've had success in the past. I had a consistent bite on four consecutive casts, but couldn't set the hook. I noted that the fish were coming up from very deep to make the hit, so on the next cast, I ran the lure down a few feet, then commenced working it in.

BAM! Fish on. BIG ladyfish. It was 20" plus easy.

I landed it and then threw out the Yo-zuri, again running it deep before working it in.

BAM! Fish on. Another BIG lady. I measured this one against my pole at 20 inches.

Can he do it three times in a row?

Yes he can! BAM! This lady was monstrous, and jumped 9 times before I got her in. The Yo-zuri was a little deep in the mouth, so I grabbed my pliers and went to remove the hook. The lady chose that moment to thrash and pushed the line up against my pliers and broke it off.

The ladyfish floated, stunned for a moment, and I grabbed it around the belly, but it woke up and shot off like a rocket, my Yo-zuri with it. In the excitement, I had also knocked my pliers in the water, so it was a two-loss fish.

Regardless, I was feeling pretty high at figuring out the Hills. Can't wait to get back out there.

The Hills disappoints again

Took my lunch on the river today. I decided to pull out all the stops and put on a Gulp shrimp, which has never failed to produce a bite for me. Except today.

I tried it over by the bridge that connects Kennedy to downtown, and couldn't entice a single bite. I must have tried a dozen casts with different retrieve rates before I got hung up and had to break off my line. Bah.

Since I had only burned a half-hour, I walked back to my car, tied on a Gotcha lure and went back out to the docks for some casting. Got hung up twice but was able to pull the lure loose, which is a testament to the new knot I'm using.

No bites there either.

Back at the desk, I'm already dreaming of my next chance to get on the seawall.

An interesting bycatch

Today I took my lunch out on the river, and let’s just cut to the chase and say that I didn’t catch crap. I caught an oyster shell, okay? Meh.

As I fished, countless pieces of flotsam drifted by, perhaps the ugliest remains of last weekend’s Gasparilla parade. One plastic bottle floated close to the dock I was fishing from, so I reached my pole down and pulled it up. Upon closer inspection, I found that the bottle had a message in it.


I took the bottle back to my office, used some scissors to cut it open, and found this inside:


This is my best transcription of the note, which was written in severely slanted cursive on Paula White stationery:

“Eyes of Love”

Is my health getting any better? “No.” Every day my strength grows weak in my flesh. “But” Spiritually I grow strong by leaning on my father in heaven fully trusting with Sincere Love.

A pain struck my heart last night. In the state of Confusion on my heart called “Love.” “But” for God is of no Confusion. Trying to fight the Passion with Compassion of knowing I am in “Love.” How did this happen? I ask myself. A Burning desire burns within me.

How much longer can I hold back? Thoughts of you melt me inside. Eye contact speaks with deep unforgettable words.

You were never just a Donor. You were a soul mate.

I’m in “Love”!!! Even in painful silence, that’s good enough for me.

I don’t care what people dare to think! “Love” was made for you and for me.

Signed, Shawynclaus


The text is accompanied with a drawing of a house, a tree, and a horse. Over the house, the author wrote: “Stable for Beautiful.” The horse is accompanied with the text “Beautiful white.” Across the top of the page is a title of: “AWAY IN A MANGER.”


Detail of the letter:

I have to day, I can't stop thinking about this letter.

The Yo-zuri continues its streak

I took my lunch out on the Hills today. It was a full sun day, 73 degrees with a +1 foot incoming high tide. The high tide meant that the salinity would be high, therefore (in my calculations) raising the probability of catching a saltwater fish. The water temperature was 61 degrees.

I still had my 1/4oz black top/silver sides Yo-zuri tied on from my trip on Saturday.

First cast, I caught a ladyfish about 7 feet from the seawall. I watched it come up from the depths and snare the lure. It was somewhat of an awkward fight doe to the close proximity of the fish to my feet, but I landed the lady and sent her back to the water. I didn't bother to measure, but I'd put her in the 14-16" range.

The great thing about catching a fish on your first cast is that it opens up the possibility that the fish will really have their bite on. The bad thing about catching a fish on your first cast is that you have somewhat of an expectation that the fish will have their bite on, so when you don't catch anything over the next hour, you think, I could have just called it quits after that first cast.

But that wouldn't be fishing, would it?

Head to the Hills

Took about 30 minutes out of my day to try the Hillsborough. The tide was incoming and the water was warming, so I thought that would provide a decent shot at increasing the normally nonexistent bite of the river. Also, I realize now that a higher tide equals higher salinity, so the higher the tide the better chance there is of a snook, ladyfish, or trout actually being in the river.

It didn't matter. All that thinking, scheming, and all around brain effort was for naught.

I'm going to stop by Coffee Pot on the way home and see if the fish aren't biting there. It will be near high tide in St. Pete, which is the best time to target fish in the shallow bayou.

Fishyness still does not equal fish

Took my "lunch" by the river again today, and I remembered to bring my camera. Here is the spot I referred to yesterday, which I fished again today. Look at those pilings, look at that swirling water!

I tied on a white 1/4oz jighead (a bit heavier than typical due to the current) and a root beer shrimp tail, and commenced casting.


The only thing I caught was a clump of oysters which claimed my lure.

I walked back up to my car, tied on a 1/8oz red jighead and a grey shrimp tail and went back out to the seawall to fish.

After a few casts I was getting a bit agitated over the utter lack of bites and my inability to properly fish the Hillsborough River. I said to myself, "Maybe I should do something else over my lunch breaks. This is getting ridiculous."

Now, I normally retrieve a jig with a bump, bump, bump followed by a three second pause, then repeat until my jig is back at my feet. I've caught plenty of fish this way. In my irritation, I decided to drastically change my retrieve, and jerked my jig up hard, counted a second, then repeated.

And what do you know, I caught a ladyfish. Unfortunately, I had previously tightened my drag all the way down to break off my line when I got stuck on the oyster bed, so when the ladyfish gave a jump and a pull, it broke my line at the knot.

This whole line breaking thing has got my boxers in a bunch, so it was with great excitement that I read an article in my new Field and Stream magazine about the best fishing knots to use. They all tested above the pound test of the line, which means that the line will break before the knot slips.

We shall see.

Fishyness does not equal fish

I took my lunch out by the river today, which is to say that I brought my fishing rod and not my sandwich.

I spent 30 minutes fishing the spot where I caught the ladyfish a couple of weeks ago. (See this entry for a review of that day.) I fished the whole time with a Yo-zuri Crystal Minnow (silver sides/blue top), and didn't get a bite. I was encouraged to see a large school of mullet around the seawall, so at least the river doesn't look as barren as previous trips.

Next I worked my way down to the Cass Street Bridge. I was able to get in-between the two spans and planted my feet in front of the fishy-est water I've ever seen. I was convinced that I would hook a fish on my first cast. Unfortunately, and much to my disappointment, I didn't catch a fish on my first cast or any of the other casts I had in that next half hour.

I think the level of my disappointment was higher than usual due to the fact that today is marked as one of the four best days to fish in the month of January (according to the solunar tables). One of the other days was January 11th, when Kelly and I were catching fish on nearly every other cast. The tide was just ripping past me today, surely stirring up lots of bait, and yet not a bite. I wonder if it was a case of using the wrong lure, but with the air temperature in the 70's the past few days, the water should have been warm enough to get fish feeding in the top foot of water.

Tomorrow is the last peak day on the solunar tables for January, so I'll be out there again, probably with a different lure on for the sake of comparison.

Friday fishing report

I got out of work a bit early this afternoon, so I had about thirty minutes to fish before heading home so that Shawn could go to yoga. To maximize the possibility of catching a fish, I opted to head over to the Snell Isle Secret Spot. This would be the second day in a row fishing there, and I was hesitant to fish there on consecutive days--I don't want to draw too much attention to the spot. The lure of a successful day yesterday was too much to resist, however, and I drove over there as fast as was legally possible.

I still had my DOA shrimp tied on from yesterday, so I started fishing with it right away. It was on about my fourth cast that I hooked up with a fish, a fish that ended up being a 12.5" inch speckled trout.

Why the half-inch accuracy? you might ask. I actually remembered my tape measure today, so was able to get a quick reading instead of measuring the fish against my pole.

I should note that the three trout I've caught at the secret spot over the last two days have all totally swallowed the lure to the point where I can barely see the eye of the hook. Fortunately, all three have also shaken loose upon my landing them, therefore avoiding any gory de-hooking.

After about ten minutes of unsuccessful fishing, I decided to tie on a Rapala that I've been fishing unsuccessfully with over several fishing trips. My first cast produced a vicious hit from a ladyfish, which I missed, and which coincidentally fouled up my hook with my line, much to my frustration as three large ladyfish were following it.

Somehow I ended up with a knot around my treble hook, so it took me a few minutes to untangle. When the lure was loose, I tossed it back to the same spot, ready to hook the waiting ladyfish and...nothing. I tried the spot a few more times and...nothing.

Frustrating.

I tried to cast the other direction for a bit and quiet down the area where they were biting, and after a few minutes of not catching anything in that direction either, I switched back to where the previous ladyfish action was.

First cast and I had a fish on, which leaped high and tossed my lure back into the water.

Newman!

I checked my phone and saw I had just a few minutes left, so made one last cast, deciding to hurl the lure as far as I could. I succeeded in my cast, launching the Rapala far into the sky. Unfortunately, I had cast it so hard that the lure had become disconnected to my line.

I wasn't sure whether to be angry at losing another $10 lure, or happy that I wouldn't have to fish with that blasted thing again. Back to the Yozuri's.

P.S. Fished the Hillsborough for about 20 minutes today with a DOA shrimp. Nothing doing there either.

With deep respect, I honor the lady

This afternoon I decided to head out into the beautiful noon sun and fish the Hillsborough River a bit. Though the river has been barren every time I've fished it so far this year, I was hopeful that the cold front that came through yesterday would push some of the fish out of the bay and into the tributary in search of warmer water. I tied on a 1/4 oz Yo-zuri crystal minnow, (black top, silver sides) and walked down to the water. It was low tide.

There are two docks down near where I fish. I worked them both with about 12 casts each, starting at 9 o'clock on a watch dial and working clockwise to about 3 o'clock. It was on a cast to about 1 o'clock on the second dock that a fish simply crushed my lure and took off in the opposite direction. My line was screaming off the reel. Moments later, the fish launched itself into the air in an attempt to shake the Yo-zuri out of its mouth. It was a ladyfish. A big one.

When the ladyfish hit the water, my line went slack, and I knew I had lost the fish.

And then the fish proved me wrong by jumping out of the water again. My line tightened up and I knew my hook-set had to be true.

Each time I got the fish within 15 or so yards of me, it would peel off some drag and jump. We repeated this for a good five minutes, part of which I had an audience for, as two maintenance workers saw the commotion and came down to the dock to watch.

Eventually I got the fish to the side of the dock. I hoisted it out briefly to unhook it, measured the beast, and then rolled him back into the water.

A 22.5 inch ladyfish--my biggest ever, and the first fish of any kind that I've pulled out of the Hillsborough.

Recharged in my belief that the Hillsborough actually does hold fish, I commenced fishing, but not another bite. It deserves mention that while I was fishing the first dock, the biggest bull redfish I've ever seen (outside of TV) swam right by my feet. It was so big it startled me.

Here's hoping for more Hillsborough catches in the future.