A Few First’s

To begin, the reel for my 6’ build came earlier this week and it’s been a long week waiting for the time to fool with it. I had doctors today and finished early so you know what’s coming. Having put the reel on the rod and spooled it with 100 meters of Varivas twitchmaster VLS in 4lb, I was ready for the trial. I’ve used braid for a long time and wasn’t sure if I’d like the nylon but off I went. Dropped in about 3:30 with approaching wind and rain, but I was going regardless. Started close to the ramp just in case it got bad but it never did. The first fish to hit the Itty Bitty was a dandy of a redbreast, one of the biggest I’ve ever seen.

And I’m telling you he was a tough one. I just had to wait and stay buttoned up and keep him out of the branches close by. He went home after his cameo. Next up a nice gill picked up the jig and didn’t want anything to do with me, but he eventually came to visit.

I’m liking the personality of the combo about now but the line does absorb some of what I’m used to feeling. Nothing that was causing me to miss fish. The drag on the XT has a higher pitch and is louder than the Daiwa, but both are smooth and want for nothing functionally. By now the rain had passed and the wind had laid down some so I went lookin, and I found some. Not a lot but enough to make me smile. My 5’6” build had a black and squirrel tail body with a chartreuse head and they liked it fine. I was having to concentrate a lot with the wind blowing my slack line around. I dropped the jig to the bottom to do something and felt a faint something or other and lifted the tip to find the first redear of the season giving me what for. Best fight and lots of drag screaming that I’ve had in a long time. About 11 1/2” and a little thicker than usual. Took twice as long to get him in the boat than any other fish today. He made long runs and stripped drag at the end of the fight. He was still gittin it when I scooped him with the net.

I got a few more gills that were all on their game today. After setting the hook all I could do was lift the rod tip and wait for the thumpin and refusal to cooperate to subside before I could make headway. Can ya see me smilin? Now it’s about 6 and the fish have slowed and I should be getting back to my queen, big yard sale tomorrow. Thanks for visiting with me and I hope you enjoyed the ride. I know I had a blast. A couple of years ago my Daughter and I went after work on a Friday and fished for 2 hrs and 15 minutes and caught 15 good gills like in these pics and 10 above average redears, both her and my PB’s among them. This afternoon reminded me a lot of that trip and made me miss her. A lot. But anyway, here’s the rest of todays players. Hope y’all get out and find some soon…….Skeet