Day IN the lake part II 06/28/09

[dirt dame 561]

After my initial wading excursion in the lake, I made a couple others that were fairly mediocre. So today when I was loading the gear into the truck I had mixed feelings about going. Maybe the time of year for a good bite was over. Maybe the water was too warm. Maybe the bass moved into deeper parts of the lake. It looked even worse as I approached the lake. As I drove past the deep part, I could see that the recent rise in temperatures had caused an algae bloom to start up and the surface of the lake looked quite green and murky. Not a good sign.

I parked as near to the south end of the lake as I could and suited up. It was hot and humid; thunderheads off in the distance to the south and the sun beat down mercilessly as I sweated my way down to the most southerly part of the lake in neoprene chest waders. I had a nice 6.6 baitcaster loaded with Soft Steel copolymer 8 lb line and my favorite 4 inch Yum Dinger swinging on the end of the rig. I slipped into the lake a little further north than usual, partly to check out a hole in the weeds that I hadn't fished before and partly because I didn't want to get heat stroke. The water was still pretty murky where I stepped in, the bottom soft and clogged with grass causing my feet to sink in and stick like I was trying to walk in wet cement. The water was fairly deep, too; above belly button level. A few casts there told me that it wasn't a bass hole , so I continued trudging down the shore line in the fetid heat to my usual entry point. Then I tippy toed out, watching the frogs, bluegill and juvenile bass scooting out of my way. The first spot I fished there, and it was pole bending time.

The water looked much better (clearer) down here.

Don't forget to eat your weedies.

Mr Largemouth is on-line.

There were fish everywhere. And they were quite agressive. And somewhat bigger than the other times I had fished here.

This one had one spooky eye on the left side of his head, but it didn't keep him from seeing the bait.

Splish splash, I was catchin' a bass....

Let me light that seegar for you.

Another Dinger fan bites.

At this point, the sun was hiding in the clouds, a breeze had come up, the smell of rain was in the air and I had caught quite a few decent sized green fish, but I was still hoping to run into a "hawg", and then....

SOMETHING came up, waked the surface and sucked down the Dinger as I gently pulled the bait over a clump of weeds.

And the fight was on.

I could see that the fish was not a petite flower bud, as she peeled line and pulled drag like a walk in the park, tangling my light line in each weed clump that she freight trained into. I followed, untangling my line at each clump until I caught up with her and hauled her in close enough to grab. Holy cow (literally)! I couldn't even hold the camera far enough away from her to get the whole fish in the picture! It was like trying to hold a bag of charcoal at arms length. [EDIT] I calculated her length from the tip of her nose to the end of her tail fin to be just about 28 inches.

Remember, I have the lens set to wide angle and the bass is slightly behind me rather than in front.

I've caught bass up to ten pounds and this bucketmouth topped any of them! I don't know what she weighed and I didn't have a scale, so I guess I'll never know, but she was great! I was so excited that I was shaking as I slipped her back into the water with a little pat on the back. She meandered unhurriedly off into the weedbeds propelled by that magnificent tail that I didn't get in the photo.

I caught my breath, changed the mangled bait and bent hook, then headed for the next hole, when out of nowhere a peal of thunder shook the lake. There I was standing in the middle of a lake with my portable lightening rod and a storm was very, very CLOSE.

End of fishing trip. No need to get struck by lightening. I can't say that I ran out of the lake. That would not be possible; but I hurried as fast as it is humanly possible to get out of the weed choked, hip deep water covering a muddy, uneven lakebed, and back up the trail to my truck. I was winded before I ever hit the shoreline, but kept moving. By the time I got to my truck, the sky had opened up in a gentle rain, but my day was complete.

Lake record so far is 14.3 pounds. Maybe I'll break that record soon. I couldn't have been too far off today.

It's days like these, that I don't think too much about riding motorcycles.....

[kiwi 0]

O.K. which fishing book did you steal word for word from including pictures? Way to well written to come from a dirt bike rider. Great writing!!! And that Bass is HUGHE!!! I need to go riding with you so I can find out where your top secret fishing hole is.

[bluefin2na 0]

smoking and off the hook right there

[Spaugh 1]

nice bass!!!

what do you think 4.5 - 5 lbs? maybe 10 if anyone asks

[PastaPilot 17]

Damn that's a big ass bass!

[dirt dame 561]

nice bass!!!

what do you think 4.5 - 5 lbs? maybe 10 if anyone asks

Brad, go get an eye exam.

A four pound fish is 19 inches long.

[bikeslut 1]

nice bass!!! You're still supposed to plan a trout and scout DS/fishing ride sometime... Troy?

[dirt dame 561]

nice bass!!! You're still supposed to plan a trout and scout DS/fishing ride sometime... Troy?

Troy as in Meadows? Still want to schedule a trip for August, but DSfox sent me a bulletin about some lame deal where they aren't going to be stocking the Kern river this year. So I don't know how much fishing would be going on. Luckily, there's plenty o' riding. Details soon.

[Spaugh 1]

nice bass!!!

what do you think 4.5 - 5 lbs? maybe 10 if anyone asks

Brad, go get an eye exam.

A four pound fish is 19 inches long.

whats your estimate? more than 10lbs? Hard to tell, it isn't as bloated as the 10lb bass I've seen. the last one is a monster though. we'll just go with 16lbs.

[dirt dame 561]

whats your estimate? more than 10lbs? Hard to tell, it isn't as bloated as the 10lb bass I've seen. the last one is a monster though. we'll just go with 16lbs.

Well, just bigger than 10. She's post spawn, so not nearly as fat as she would have been a month or so ago. If she makes her way back to the main part of the lake, she'll have lotsa stocker trout to fatten herself up on.

At full weight, she would probably top the lake record of 14.3 easily. Bass her length don't get much longer than that, if any; they just get bigger around.

I caught a fish one time at Barret, that lengthwise should have gone about 7 pounds, but the fish was just over 3.5 pounds. It was so sad. The fish was all head and everything behind that was shriveled up. We would catch them and let them go, but some of them were so weak and fragile, they just died when we put them back in the lake. A lot of the fish were starving and had parasites and diseases that year because of a lack of forage fish.

[Jaynen 0]

That an impressive catch there! I need to renew my fishing license havent been in AGES. A combination long weekend + camping + riding + fishing would be awesome

[dirt dame 561]

Now, I'll have to carry a scale next time I go out there.

And some kind of little rubber ducky to hold my camera far enough away from great big fish, so that the whole thing gets in the picture. Either that, or I need to grow longer arms!

[Spaugh 1]

whats your estimate? more than 10lbs? Hard to tell, it isn't as bloated as the 10lb bass I've seen. the last one is a monster though. we'll just go with 16lbs.

Well, just bigger than 10. She's post spawn, so not nearly as fat as she would have been a month or so ago. If she makes her way back to the main part of the lake, she'll have lotsa stocker trout to fatten herself up on.

I caught a fish one time at Barret, that lengthwise should have gone about 7 pounds, but the fish was just over 3.5 pounds. It was so sad. The fish was all head and everything behind that was shriveled up. We would catch them and let them go, but some of them were so weak and fragile, they just died when we put them back in the lake. A lot of the fish were starving and had parasites and diseases that year because of a lack of forage fish.

are you fishing barret? no worries if its a secret. I moved down here from good old stockton CA a decade ago. Our house was on a lake and we were about a mile off of the san juaquin delta. lots o bass fishing. then I moved here, got a pole and tried a few times, but never could catch anything. Buying a ticket at ticketmaster and hitting the lake weirded me out so I never went that route. I'll bug you about it next time I ride with you.

[Jaynen 0]

whats your estimate? more than 10lbs? Hard to tell, it isn't as bloated as the 10lb bass I've seen. the last one is a monster though. we'll just go with 16lbs.

Well, just bigger than 10. She's post spawn, so not nearly as fat as she would have been a month or so ago. If she makes her way back to the main part of the lake, she'll have lotsa stocker trout to fatten herself up on.

I caught a fish one time at Barret, that lengthwise should have gone about 7 pounds, but the fish was just over 3.5 pounds. It was so sad. The fish was all head and everything behind that was shriveled up. We would catch them and let them go, but some of them were so weak and fragile, they just died when we put them back in the lake. A lot of the fish were starving and had parasites and diseases that year because of a lack of forage fish.

are you fishing barret? no worries if its a secret. I moved down here from good old stockton CA a decade ago. Our house was on a lake and we were about a mile off of the san juaquin delta. lots o bass fishing. then I moved here, got a pole and tried a few times, but never could catch anything. Buying a ticket at ticketmaster and hitting the lake weirded me out so I never went that route. I'll bug you about it next time I ride with you.

Fish farm fishing doesnt feel right I agree

[dsfox 0]

hey there,....more book material...eh?....amazing catch...(the biggest fresh water fish I ever caught was 3 1/2 lbs and that seemed huge to me...would love to get out and fish, been a long time for me too....

[dirt dame 561]

Anybody with some medium weight freshwater tackle, a current fishing license and a set of chest waders is welcome to join me at the lake. Just PM me about it and we'll make a plan to go. :clapping:

[dirt dame 561]

are you fishing barret? no worries if its a secret. I moved down here from good old stockton CA a decade ago. Our house was on a lake and we were about a mile off of the san juaquin delta. lots o bass fishing. then I moved here, got a pole and tried a few times, but never could catch anything. Buying a ticket at ticketmaster and hitting the lake weirded me out so I never went that route. I'll bug you about it next time I ride with you.

Haven't fished Barret since 1997. Too much money for what you get. I get great fishing at this lake for a lot less $. It's also more scenic and the area I fish is often overlooked and goes largely untouched by the general public. Every time I go, I'm the only angler out there and that makes me quite happy for the most part. :clapping:

[R2 RIDER 0]

Holy Cow Mimi!

Nice catch! Personal Best Bass? That's fantastik. I agree, that fish could have been a 'Teener last month. She looks damnear 3 feet long!

Mid-day, afternoon? Those fish are hungry, eh? Ever thro a frog (or other top-water) there?

Great FR, the adv of it all!

Congrats again.

Gots to hook-up one of these days!

R2 RIDER

[dirt dame 561]

Nice catch! Personal Best Bass? That's fantastik. I agree, that fish could have been a 'Teener last month. She looks damnear 3 feet long!

Mid-day, afternoon? Those fish are hungry, eh? Ever thro a frog (or other top-water) there?

Gots to hook-up one of these days!

R2 RIDER

Personal best; the largest fish on the lightest test(8 lb Soft Steel). Previously largest bass, a 10 pounder I got was a few years back at El Cap. Lots of 7s, 8s and 9s out of Hodges and a few out of Southerland.

I have been getting out to the lake around one or two in the afternoon. Nobody else is ever there. All the other bass anglers go at the first light, I think. I've been told that frogs work the best out there and that the fish ignore little worms, so the 4 inch Yum Dinger will be my little secret. When the fish are in a negative mood, they'll eat it off the bottom and when they are in an aggressive mood, they'll eat it when pulled over the top of cover, the same way they'd eat a frog. I carry some frogs with me and I've thrown them (no hits, so maybe it's too late in the day, maybe first light is the best for frogs), but I don't switch to them when I'm getting bit on the Dingers.

I carry mostly 3 and 4 inch Dingers, a few frogs, a couple of poppers, a spinnerbait or two, a few Palm Trees and some assorted finesse plastics when I go out there.

Got waders? Any San Diego Adventure Bassers PM me.

Maybe one of you could be the next person pictured in a thread holding up the lake record.

[RogerTOWM 0]

Got waders? Any San Diego Adventure Bassers PM me.

I've got a frying pan?

[dirt dame 561]

Maybe one of you could be the next person pictured in a thread holding up the lake record.

Nah....on second thought, that next person is gonna be me.

[Jaynen 0]

Maybe one of you could be the next person pictured in a thread holding up the lake record.

Nah....on second thought, that next person is gonna be me.

I don't have a current fishing license, a pole, waders, anything else and have not fished in probably 15 years or I would join you hehe post some pics of the next lake record holder

[dirt dame 561]

I had nothing to do today but take some measurements of the size of my hand and the size of most of the fish in the picture and after doing a bunch of measuring and math, I would calculate that the big bass was close to 28 inches in length.