Big Hugh vs. ICW

TEAM JO-JO:

After Wednesday me posted trip and indicated, (re: Team Jo-JO’s future stratagem)  me may be making trip with Big Hugh Saturday if he can make it, it did not take long for Big Hugh texted me that he be in for trip. So me had a first mate for Saturday trip, even before me made call to get one, that’s what me call clairvoyance in action.

Big Mike never did respond for him to make a trip this weekend, guess him and me to hook up on a later date. I know he be busy working on solution/s  to able to project Lowrance GPS / Fish finder screen on TV for our next Team Jo-Jo Fishing Curriculum Session on 3-16-24 at Fatty’s Seafood. We looking to have someone explain / interpret what we see, (i.e. fish, bottom/s /brush, drop offs / shadows, / etc.)  on screen at meeting.

SIGNS:                            

·         Missed Friday fishing trip, had lunch date but it got cancelled at 10:38 , decided just to get up for today’s trip

·         Re-rigged (2) trolling  rods & reels

·         Rigged up some more pre-fabricated trolling squids to minimize knots needed to replace in field

·         Dropped off a pre-rigged, (3/4 oz. jig head, matrix shad, & (2) trailers) at Big Gus so he could show his customers / crew on how we rig them up

·         Suggest you stop by Big Gus (Hwy 433) and get your squids before he runs out of them, along with the ¾ oz. jig heads.

CONDITIONS:

·          Perfect

·         Wind, W. 5-6, W, 10-12,  W.N.W. 12-14 mph

·         Water status / conditions: clam to slight chop

·         Sky, sunny & clear snow bird day

·         Temp, kept jumpsuit on all day

·         Water level, up 4-6”

·         Water Temp , 61.34  F

·         Salinity,    1.8

·         Specific Conductance  3400 

·         Pressure,    30.15  R

·         Water clarity on a scale of 1-7, 6 plus

·         Tide, slack, then started to fall

·         Peak tide,   03:00  H  0.98’

·         Peak tide,   14:42  L  0.30’

·         Major Feed Time:   05:40  /  18:07

·         Minor feed time:    0617  /  17:44

·         Tidal Coefficient:     83

·         Fish Activity

·                              Very  High Activity  

·         Boats out and about,  10-12 in areas we fishing

·      ONEOFTHEPACK’S REPERTOIRE OF TECHNIQUES / STRATEGIES      

·         Be safe

·         Have fun

·         This be me daily therapy for ALL me aliments

·         Put some run time on the Bay Flat Jr and the Yamaha Nightmare Machine

·         Gather Intel for future trips, and to share with fisherperson, (on Facebook) to help assist them in their choice of areas to fish, lures to use and presentation of same to the elusive Silverwonders.

·         Catch what catch can

·         Learn what learn can

·         Re-introduce Big Hugh to Lake P Troll technique / presentation

·         Try out some new areas to do Lake p Troll in, see if they productive too

·         Bring home some dinner for Big Hugh & family

·         Find a spot  # with the seven fundamentals / criteria of catching:

1 WIND AT YOUR BACK: (This criteria was our challenge for the day, wind / tide in same direction, made Bay Flat Jr be moving too fast, 1.6 to 2.6 way too fast for Lake P Troll technique, we let all or line out and still could not get to bottom. We moving so fast, turn motor off and used wind to push, we be going 1.4 mph with just wind pushing us, but it was hard to control our direction so we gave up on that idea.)

2 MOVING WATER: (Slack at first, then wind picked up start to fall, then tide kicked in and it be moving real good all day)

3 WATER CALRITY: (Be a 6 plus. Looking real good, had a fresh water look to it, but extremely fish able / catchable it be)

4 HOLDING FISH:  (ICW rocks)

5 PATIENTS: (Took about 17 minutes for first fish, it be a Stripe Bass, all in all slow action day, but Big Huh & Oneofthepack be believers so we trolled until around 2:45 PM trying to make it happen)

6 SKILL: (Lake P Troll technique / presentation)

7 LUCK: (Having a first mate who likes fried chicken as much as me do, if only the fish feed like we did)

·      Oneofthepack ‘S repertOIRE of TECHNIQUES / PRESENTATIONS:

·         Anchor up cast & retrieve slowly along the bottom, with a twitch every now and then, tight lining…………………………………DID NOT TRY

·         Drift with the wind cast & retrieve (DWWC&R)……………DID NOT TRY

·         Oak River Troll (ORT)……………….Did not try

·         Reverse Oak River Troll (RORT) ………..DID NOT TRY

·         Oak River Skim (ORS) ……………DID NOT TRY

·         Cork ……..DID NOT TRY

·         Lake P Troll (LPT)…………….All fish caught this way

·         Dead bait……None

·         Live bait………………None

·      Oneofthepack ‘S repertOIRE of LURE DU JOUR:

·         3” H&H Purple Beetle, matched up with H&H ¼ oz. round white head with gold hook……………Did not try

·         3” Chartreuse Glow Beetle, matched up with H&H ¼ oz. round white head w/gold hook………….Did not try

·         Matrix Shad Lemon Drop, matched up with H&H ¼ oz. round white head w/gold hook……………Did not try

·         Matrix Shad Lemon Drop, matched up with H&H 3/8 oz. round white head w/gold hook……………DID NOT TRY

·         Matrix Shad Lemon Drop, matched up with H&H 1/2 oz. round white head w/gold hook……………DID NOT TRY

·         Matrix Shad Lemon Drop, matched up with 3/4 oz. round lead head w/ 2 trailers, all fish caught with this rig.

§  Pink & Green trailers

§  Big Hugh put on a purple trailer and he went 2 for 2 very quickly

·         Tandem rig, ¼ oz. round H&H jig head with gold hook, matched up with Matrix Shad Lemon Drop …..Did not try

AREAS / SPOTS / NUMBERS ON THE MAP FISHED:

ICW, & ICW at Hot Water canal

OUR REWARDS:

·         Lived to fish another day

·         (21) Silverwonders, 16 Miniwonders

·         (5) Flounders

·         (1) Bass

·         (1) Stripe bass

·         (1) Log

·         (7) Bottoms, 4 popped lines, lost 4 Lake P Troll rigs

·         Delicious fried chicken, provided by Big Hugh, good it be, thanks man me needed that.

·         Big Rudy & crew Friday 2-23-24

o   (41) Silverwonders, 24 Miniwonders

o   (3) Flounders

·         Big T-Doc & crew Saturday 2-24-24

o   (4) Silverwonders

o   (9) Redwarroies

o   (8) Bass

o   (1) Gar fish

·         Lessons learned:

o   West wind tough wind to do Lake P Troll, wind & tide going in same direction, our boat speed was 1.75 to 2.65 mph, needs to be 1.5 to 2 mph, we moving way to fast

o   Found (3) more location do to Lake P Troll that also produced

o   Found and identified some hang ups along bottom, got them marked in me brain for future avoidance

o   High expectations don’t always come through, slow day today

·         Best fishing trip of my life, until the next one.

FISHERPERSON OF THE DAY:

Big Hugh did not need any re-introduction to Lake P Troll technique, he be like he never stopped using it, and when he put that purple trailer he was on, on, on, on. He also had a variety of species he caught, bass, flounders, and Silverwonders. Big Hugh be fisherperson of the day.

Oneofthepack needs a re-introduction in Lake p Troll, me struggle all day, did catch a strip bass, and a flounder or two, but for me Silverwonders where hard to come by this morning.

SUGGESTIONS:

Word is Lake P Troll still very productive technique. Word also Big Gus (Gus Tackle & Net, on Hwy 433) and has all you need to be prepared to design your own Lake p Troll rig. Plus he now has a video on how to rig it, and has a sample of one rigged so you can touch, see it & feel it.

Suggest you get over there soon, and get while the getting is good!!!!!

PONDER OF THE DAY:

"The Silverwonders do not rise in the cemetery, so you better do your fishing while you are still able."

Q&A:

What’s the most frustrating lure you own?

TEAM JO-JO’S future stratagem:

Nothing plan. But that never stopped us before, until then:

Good Fishing

Team Jo-Jo & Oneofthepack

釣り先生

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