School has begun in earnest. That means that time for fishing now has to be manufactured. I can't simply wake up and decide where I might go. Now I have to make sure my "responsibilities" are taken care off and then make sure there's enough daylight. I say all this because my fishing exploits were very stunted for the week. In fact I didn't even get out to fish until the Sunday of Labor Day weekend.
Sunday, September 4th:
My family and I were invited to a friend's property in Clarion, PA. We've been to the area multiple times and we always enjoy it. It had been a couple of years since I had last been up there. In fact it was long enough ago that I was into a different hobby, geocaching, then. In the fishing department I knew of a small put and take pond within
Cook State Forest, but that was a children's fishing area. I stopped by a local "general store" type of place and purchased a license, which all anglers should do, and asked about possible places to try. The gentleman at the counter asked if I was "going by book?" Since we were only in the area for 48 hours I left my kayak at home. I walked down to the edge of the river and made some casts, mainly in the deeper poles, with my trusty jig and grub. Unfortunately I had some small pulls but nothing that I could bring to shore. I know it's a cliché but I really feel that sometimes it isn't about catching as much as it is about enjoying the beauty of the area. This was one of those times. I spent a good bit of it just admiring the glory of God's creation. And after the first week of school I think I needed that most.
Monday, September 5th:
Being the long weekend of Labor Day, we came on Monday. After getting back to Maryland, with experiencing zero traffic problems, we unloaded the car and then I set off to give Hunting Creek a try. The area has changed a good amount with the lack of rain. The water itself was mocha colored and barely moving at all. In fact a small "levy" had developed which was stopping the water from getting through. I thought about how it would effect the area. (In fact I may try to do something about it one day in the not too distant future.) I had a 1/8 oz jig with a black and yellow grub on the line. I made a few cast into the water and on the third or fourth I was rewarded with a 13 inch largemouth bass. I made a few more cast and hooked up with another fish. I got this one to shore and was taken a back a little. It resembled a sunfish but it mouth was considerably larger than any sunfish's I had seen before. I took a few photos and released it. I then moved down the bank a little and ended up catching two more. As I drove home I was wondering if they might have been "rock bass." So I fired off a couple of photos of them to the Maryland's Anglers Log. I heard back from them pretty quickly. Come to find out rock bass aren't very prevalent in my area but "warmouth" are. I had heard of them, Lepomis gulosus, but had never caught one, which meant I had a new species under my belt. It also meant that it was another species that I've caught at this location, bringing the total of different one to eight or nine.
That evening, just after dinner, I drove down to the beach at Calvert Beach. Once again with small number 4 hooks with pieces of shrimp I made some casts. I had heard some people had been catching red drum, or redfish. I didn't have the same luck but I did catch another new species for myself. On one cast I felt a "tap tap" and I gave it a good yank. I reeled it in as my oldest son arrived, since I asked him to bring me something. Lo and behold I had caught a "northern puffer" (Sphoeroides maculatus).
Maybe all of 5 inches long, I pulled him out of the water and he inflated. I had seen photos but never caught one before so even though I was looking for a different fish I still got a surprise. I guess that's one of the things I like about fishing the most - the unknown. I can head out and "target" a species but until you get it to shore or the side of the boat it's a mystery. Until next time - tight lines!
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