Nickajack Angler, Durham, NC Pond, Bass & Bream, 4/25/09, alone

[FishNews]

Had to go to Durham for business this past Thursday - Sunday. Sitting in seminars at the Hilton is a poor way to spend some of the best weather we've seen in a long while. So, Sat. evening, the meeting let out at 5:30pm. The hotel just happened to be about 2 miles from a family members small farm just outside of Research Triangle Park. My Aunt's uncle was a NC Game Warden for 40 yrs and while the RTP was being built, he would be there when the dams of many small farm ponds dam's were broken. He would pick up the bass, crappie and bream to take home and throw in his two small farm ponds. So knowing this small body of water and knowing there are 2lb bream in there... shellcrackers and bluegills makes me turn into a kid. I also found a dandy Diawa ultralight combo a couple of weeks back and hadn't yet gotten to give it a good "test run". I even called my Dad for he is always there when we get to go fishing there and said "It's a hard decision.... throw for bass for the 1 1/2 hrs I have or catch some two lb bream...." We agreed the bream are pretty outstanding there. So, bream it was. I put on a panfish assassin on a 1/32 oz head and went to town. Slammed on the first two casts by two huge bluegills. They were bedding just out from shore where I was standing and you could see a handful of them attack the bait. I realized I ddin't have my camera and ran up to the barn to get it from my car. When I returned I caught a smaller but beautifully colored bluegill. Then moved down about 15 yards down the dam of this small farm pond. When I got situated I heard some comotion back where I was just standing. A few large bream were boiling at the bank line. I threw back to my left close to the shoreline where the boil was. And something immediately thumped it and moved right, toward the center of the lake and to the stand pipe. I had already noticed that the new ultra light was a WAY whimpy rod, and I did just put on some new 6 lb Trilene XL.... but that little wire hook! And then the drag started to scream. I could do nothing to turn this fish. Then she let up and turned back to the left away from the stand pipe and made another drag screaming run. All I could do is stand there and hope I get to see it... this has happened to me there before as a boy. Then it jumped clear of the surface and plopped broadside on the re-entry. I was thrilled. A whopper and I'd only been there five minutes! Finally wore her down and had to drag her a bit up the grass line starting to form on the bank and lean way out to pick her up. It was nice to go to a childhood farm pond and do so well. I couldn't have asked for a better day.<br /><br />Oh, and just before I had clipped my line and was turning to walk up the old cow path up the bank and a big hiss let out. I almost jumped out of my skin and was surprised to find this HUGE snapper walking right up behind me. I stuck out my rod and tried to get the reel of the Citica close enough to give it some scale, cause this was a bruiser. But he raised up his backend and charged the rod butt.