Smallmouth Bass (Catch & Release)

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I need to go fishing
Yes You do!!
I certainly miss it.

Bear
We don't have any smallmouths in my neck of the woods, but I have caught quite a few on Cherokee Lake in Tennessee. They are real fighters and quite acrobatic. 62 fish in 5 hours...WOW!! That's a nice day of fishing and tons of fun...
Thank You Charles!!
They give you a workout!!
You can be bringing a small one in, maybe 10" long, and until you actually see it, you'd swear it's going to be 16" or 17" long!!
And Thanks for the Like.

Bear
 
Nice catch.......... :emoji_thumbsup: Brings back memories fishing with my dad. When I was a kid we would go up to the dam near Susquehanna and night fish for huge carp with semi boiled pealed potatoes. Cut my finger on the fishing line on my first carp when it was taking drag. Caught my first musky too. Not to mention I froze my ass off a lot waiting in the car waiting for them to pack it up when it got cold at night....lol
 
Those are some nice looking fish John.

Chris
 
I live 10 minutes from Busch wildlife . 32 stocked lakes by species . It gets hot so damn fast I never go . I think Missouri is the chigger capital of the world .

Now You did it, Rich!!
By mentioning "Bugs & Fishing", You just awakened a "Bear Story":

I'll never forget an outing with my Brother Jim, who I lost not long ago to Covid.
We used to fish a lot when we were Kids, because our Dad was a "Fishing Machine". Then a few years later, after we were both married, and had both been to Vietnam & back, Jim kinda moved away from fishing, but I kept it up, and continued fishing a lot with our Dad. We practically lived on the Delaware River, and hit a lot of Trout Streams in between.
Then one day I managed to talk Brother Jim into getting a license and doing some fishing. So I picked him up about 6 AM on Saturday, and off we went.
We stopped at our old Breakfast haunt, up near Stroudsburg, at Snydersville (AKA Besecker's Diner) and had a couple of great Breakfasts, like we used to get there often. Then we were fat & happy, so we could resume our trip.
So we got there about a half hour later, and nobody else was there, but that was pretty normal for "Saw Creek". It didn't get fished hard, except for the first few days after the season opens and for a couple days right after restocking.
Nobody wants to have to work for their catch, like we were taught.
So after a short time, we each had one trout in our bags, but the little "Black Flies" started being a PITA. We tried to ignore them, and just kept fishing.
After about a total of 2 hours, I had 3 trout & Jim had 2, but the Black Flies were getting worse. They weren't biting but they were being a Huge PITA.
I told Jim to try to stay in the shade, because they are definitely worse in the hot Sun. I think Jim was wishing he had 3 arms, so he could fish with one & chase flies with the other 2. I was laughing, because Jim looked like a Wind-Mill out of balance, with his arms & hands going every which way. They were mostly flying in & out of our noses, mouths, ears, eyes, and landing on the backs of our necks. That was when Jim made one of my favorite Statement Memories. We were on opposite sides of the creek, when Jim said "Now I Remember Why I quit this F'n Sport!!"
The bug spray we were using wasn't working with these particular bugs, so we packed up & ran a few miles North on 402 to "Pickerel Inn", which was a combination Bar, Restaurant, Hardware Store, Gas Station, Boat Rental, Bait Store, at Peck's Pond. We bought the stuff that they said was the only thing that worked on those Black Flies---"Deep Woods OFF" (with DEET).
I also bought a nice Camo' Face Net, just in case, because I needed a new one for Archery Season anyway.
So we got back to Saw Creek to try to fill our limits with Trout, and that Deep Woods Off really did work!! However the hot sun slowed the Trout action pretty much, and I think we pulled out of there with a total of 4 Trout Each.
We managed to stop at our favorite Stroudsburg Sports Bar, for a few Beers, and some of their special "Bacon Wrapped Flame Broiled Hot Dogs", of which I had my usual 3, and Jim had 2.
So in conclusion Jim & I had a Great time, except for the Bugs, and Jim is up there right now, since most of my family assembled & took Jim's Ashes up & put them in Saw Creek. Bear Jr led the convoy, because he was the only one who knew where it was, and where Jim wanted his ashes to go.
BTW: Our Mom & Dad were already there, and they're ready for me, whenever I get there. I'm in No Hurry!

THE END of this fishing story.

Bear
 
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John I really enjoyed the story. Your writing style is such I swear you could be an author. I do love catching smallmouth. A year ago I went up to the lower Niagara on a guided trip and we caught about 65 in two days. It was a great time and something I’ll do again. Look like Bear Jr and wife had a ball.
Thank You Jeff!!
My Mother was an Author, mostly for Newspapers & Magazines.
I learned much more from her than I did from school.
And I would say catching Smallmouths is more fun than catching any other fish, and Boy can they Fight !

Bear
 
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Great story and pics! Thank you for sharing!

Thank You Jed!!
And For the Like.

Bear

Never caught Rock Bass

But we just got in a minute ago. Mona and I just playing with different lures
down on the dock.
Catching a few smallmouth as it was getting dark, mosquitos were winning .
Came in to scratch, lol

David

Thank You David!!
You'd love catching Rock Bass.
They're like a cross between a Bluegill & a Smallmouth.
They don't get very big, but they're down around the rocks on the bottom & boy can they fight!!
Bugs?? See my Post #25 on this thread:


Bear
 
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Nice catch.......... :emoji_thumbsup: Brings back memories fishing with my dad. When I was a kid we would go up to the dam near Susquehanna and night fish for huge carp with semi boiled pealed potatoes. Cut my finger on the fishing line on my first carp when it was taking drag. Caught my first musky too. Not to mention I froze my ass off a lot waiting in the car waiting for them to pack it up when it got cold at night....lol
Those are the fun memories---I like them!!
Was that dam the Conowingo Dam??
My Grandpa used to use parboiled taters for Carp too, and boy did he catch some Huge Carp---Bigger than Me, but I was kinda small then. My Grandpa used a "Hand-line" way back then.

Bear
 
Good story Bear, nothing like black flies to piss up a good day of fishing
And some good memories of your brother Jim for you.

David
Thank You David!!
Yup---Great memories, but I think they make me miss him even more.
After sleeping in the same 9' X 9' Bedroom for the first 16 years of my life, until Jim went in the Army & Vietnam. Then he came home & I left for 3 years.
By the time we were both home again, we were both married, with our own homes. RIP Jim.

Bear
 
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Bear, thanks for sharing! What a great day fishing! I know that a day on the lake or river fishing can make a huge difference in ones enjoyment out of life!
 
Bear, thanks for sharing! What a great day fishing! I know that a day on the lake or river fishing can make a huge difference in ones enjoyment out of life!
Thank You Civil!!
Right now Bear Jr is doing exactly that, because he's getting a lot of those days!!

Bear
 
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Well you taught him right then! That’s call wisdom in my book!
Yup, I taught him a lot, but he can afford to do a lot more of it than I ever could.
LOL_--He's got all kinds of boats, and enough rods & reels to supply 20 people for fishing. I can't fish any more, so I'm kinda living through him.

Bear
 
Yup, I taught him a lot, but he can afford to do a lot more of it than I ever could.
LOL_--He's got all kinds of boats, and enough rods & reels to supply 20 people for fishing. I can't fish any more, so I'm kinda living through him.

Bear
That's awesome Bear! Another "you done good", if your kids can live better and you can enjoy it with them!!!!!
 
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