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Got to Lincoln Beach just at first sun rays over the mountains. Launched and headed out the channel. Middle of channel is between 2.3 and 2.6 ft deep, then gets to 4 to 5 feet at the buoys. Was very calm and buggy. Put my head net on before I even put the boat in the water. [:/]. Was the first rig in the parking lot and the first boat on the water. Guess BLK stayed home? No matter.... got set up pretty close to BLK's usual spot. Was drowning a worm and washing a Mussel, and 59 minutes from launch, boated a nice Cat. Did the CPR thing. Was hoping to pick up a White Bass or 2 for bait, but not in that spot, not at that time. Bugs dissipated somewhat as the sun came up full, but the water was almost like green / brown glass. Decided to make the run to Bird Island. Water depth from Flats to BI was a pretty constant 6.5 to 7.0 feet. Anchored off the west side of BI in about 5 fow that was showing lots of fish. And quite a bit more island above water. Just got settled good, gave up on the Mussels and went to just worms, and didn't take long. Got both rods bouncing same time. Turned into a WB 2fer. Boated both. Cut one for bait, saved the other for later. But as if a switch had been turned off, no more bites, not even on the fresh WB. Went back to the Flats intending to drop anchor and get the boat squared away while I soaked more bait. It was getting hot, and buggy again. I like to get most of my gear on the boat stowed away before hitting the dock or the ramp. Lets me make a faster get away from the parking area. I took my time, and was distracted by a couple more pesky WB turning cannibal. Caught 2 more on my next to last chunk of cut bait. That chunk was used up, so stowed that rod, and got the rest of my boat gear secured. OK, old habit check list, rods not in use, stowed - check. Tackle boxes closed up and secured - check. Bimini top rolled, bagged, dropped and stowed - check. Rod holders stowed (except for that rod soaking the last piece of WB) - check. Net stowed- check. OK, lets get that last rod in and stowed so we can head in. Reaching for last rod........Zinnnnng, drag screamin..................rod in the holder and bent almost double........... grab rod, tighten down drag a bit, get out of rod holder, Slam!!! good hook set, I can feel head shake, fish takes more line like I didn't even have a drag.......OK this is either a big carp (been seeing a ton of them all day), or a Cat with attitude, but I doubt it's the 36 incher I been telling BLK I was gonna poach from him [shocked] I reel, it comes a ways, then does an underwater U turn, more line stripped off. It stops, did I loose it.........nope, coming back at me..........reel MORE, Faster..........ok got it on tight line again. Yikes....... heading under the boat.......I think some of those Cats know they can maybe snag off the line on the hull of a metal boat. I lean out far as I dare, rod up, REEL.............. Oh geeeeezzee, I see it, it's a Cat, Dang big one............
OH CRAP...... I done just about everything right, right bait, right place, right rod, right hook, good set, kept him from getting under the boat, BUT I ALREADY STOWED MY NET !!!!! I can't reach it and fight this big bruiser Cat at the same time......[  ] Well, from the look I got at the boat hull before he took his last dive, I got a good hook in the side of his mouth, point all the way thru. OK, gonna risk it............ lift it into the boat without a net.............geeeze it just keeps coming up out of the water, he is HUGE... 25...27...29....30...31...33 inches, still coming...........CRAP #@#$%&*^$@#$^&&&^%^$ !!!!! Line snapped !!!!![mad] [mad].......
Well Lynn, I ALMOST had your 36 incher............... well, it may have turned out to only be 29 or 30" but I would have gladly used it to bump my score a few inches. Bet they could hear me cussing all the way to Provo State Park.
I left LB with my tail between my legs and that Cat is still out there waiting on you. Took my 3 Whities home and cut them up for next trip. [pirate] [fishon]
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Loved reading that post. Sounds too much like a monster I hooked that ended up in the anchor rode and broke off. It must've been at least 38 inches [  ]. Seriously, I wish you had landed him, but again, that's fishing. I'm going to try again tomorrow morning, between AF Harbor and Lindon where I've been doing OK, and it's very close to home for me.
Keep your fishing stories coming! (I won't post mine unless it's half as entertaining as yours).
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Nice one Forest, I'd like to have seen that one... Did you rewrite the check list to stow net after last rod is in? I seem to do the same thing, hate to reel that last rod in until it's time to go and I've found myself needing a net after it was put away before... Always makes things interesting... amazing how much I rely on a net these days, they save a lot of fish... On my Winds trip, the fish were grabbing the lures from the side and not getting hooked, but they wouldn't let go until they were right at my feet... A net would have caught a bunch more fish... but I wasn't going to carry one in there... Thanks for the tale... Later J
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Yea Jeff, I had been boating those whities without the net cuz they were small and had pretty much swallowed the hooks. After being out there over 5 hours with no big hits, even the first cat was boated without the net, I was really not expecting to hook up a big one. At first I was sure it was a big carp. The line I have on that rod is 12lb. Stren, only about a month old, and I had just tied on a new long barbed bait hook. After catching my breath and looking at that line, it wasn't due to a slipped knot. The way that Cat was rolling and diving, I think he got the line wrapped around one of his side spikes and cut it. Seen even smaller cats do that and cut the line.
But like TD says, since I didn't boat it, and no one else saw it, I can claim it was as big as I wanted it to be....right? [sly] It was a big one though. I mentally kicked myself all the way home yesterday.[:/]
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Probably wouldn't have tasted very good anyway, so a great story might be better... Thanks for sharing it... J
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Good blow-by-blow account of the one that got away. Sure sounds like the one I have been after all summer... probably was.
I fished from the shore in Goshen Bay Sat. night so I was probably catching up on my ZZZZZs when you launched yesterday morning. Fishing from shore was slow and bug infested. Several groups fishing Lincoln and Goshen Bay... some brought beer with there rods and some brought a rod with their beer. Not much catchin' done. Catcarsen caught one decent cat, about a 2 footer.
I hit Lincoln and BI this a.m. hot on the trail of the big one that broke your line. Arrived about 6:00 and picked up some bwb and carplettes for bait then shot off toward the island. Slow. Caught 3 or 4 but no sign of Mr. Big. Caught two that looked like twins, about 26 inchers. Actually did better back by the springs but couldn't take the heat so had to leave early. Nice calm day but could not see the mountains for all the smoke from the SF Canyon fire.
He's out there... just a matter of time before someone boats him.
BLK
Note: Lost knife?? The knife in pic #4 was found on the south side of the LB launch. Yours? Anyone? Be glad to return it. Let me know and I'll get it to you.
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Aww Cats that big never are very good to eat IMO. But had I boated it, I would have respectfully measured and photographed it and returned it for BLK to catch...[ ]
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Lynn, you had my hopes up with that knife. I went to cut the one WB yesterday for bait, couldn't find my good, favorite and very sharp Rapala filleting knife. Had to mangle that one wb with an older, and duller one I keep in the boat. Guess I'll go get another one, and sharpen the boat knife.
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Hey Forest, if it had been a "...good, favorite and very sharp Rapala filleting knife" I would not have looked for the original owner.[ ]
That's the way it is; you always lose your sharp knife and end up using one that cuts like a hammer. Been there, done that.
Bummer that you lost yours.
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It was Catfsh Hunter and you ain't never gonna git em!
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Hey Lynn, I found my good knife[ ]. Seems one of my sons put it in the Cabela's bag I use to carry a couple boxes of my Trout lures and tackle while we were up at Hyrum last month. I don't carry that bag in the boat unless I know I'm going to trout water. Just happened to look in it in the boat shed Saturday, and thar she was.......[  ]
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Good! Losing a favorite knife is like losing a good pair of leather gloves that have a perfect fit. They can be replaced but it takes time.
Hope you get to use that knife soon.
Best tp ya.
Lynn aka BLK
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Have you guys ever tried pruning shears for making quick cuts of WB? I've been using a small pair for about a month now and find them to be much faster and easier than a knife. I usually snip the tail off, then get a couple chunks past that before I need to start splitting them a little more.
I keep the fish on a stringer or caribiner hook until I need another chunk. Maybe you guys have a better system, but it was a random idea that worked out great for me.
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Nope, not tried that. I have such a small boat, not really any place to keep pruning shears if I had them. Live in an apartment, don't do yard work anymore, so gave all my yard type tools to my son.
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I'm talking about the ones that are the size of a pair of scissors. I started using them because I'd take them on an inflatable boat and didn't wanna have an accident with the knife that resulted in an unplanned swim to shore.
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Kitchen poultry shears are just as good. They even fit in belt holsters made for pliers.
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