06-29-2006, 12:25 AM
[cool][#0000ff]TubeBabe and I hit Willard NE area about 6:30 AM. Perfect morning. No wind, no bugs, no power squadron. Water 75 degrees and good clarity.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Kicked out into an area where we saw some sporadic individual feeding splashes (not carp). Casted a variety of hardbaits, plastics and even feathers. TubeBabe had one hard smack on a 3" white twister. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]We both put out a rod with minnow to drag while we continued casting. The small cats were pesky...one after the other. We eventually each kept 7 and released as many or more. The ones we kept went from 14" to 17". Lost a couple of larger ones at the tube.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]At 8:15 I set the hook in another "bitty kitty" and it took off on a dandy run. Yeeeee Hawwww. 21" wiper that weighed out at 4#. Really bent my stick and stretched my string.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I worked over to the dike to investigate the small fish that were jumping right next to the rocks. I fired out a tandem rig of small plastics and promptly started bringing in little smallmouths two at a time. They were in there gorging on the shadlets.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I dug through my collection of hardbaits and found a couple of little 2" shad imitations. I think they are made by Cordell. I have had them since I lived in Arizona and used to fish the largemouth boils when they fed on the small threadfin shad each year. They are small, light and run shallow. Got a good wiggle. I tried them on the little smallies and they approved.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I kicked out into deeper water, where I had been seeing those occasional splashes. Two casts later, with the little shad wiggler, I got nailed. I was using a light spinning rod and 6# line so I got beat up a bit. I was thinking another 4# wiper. Surprise. It was only about 14". Fought bigger. They all do.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]After exercising several more of the mighty mites, I passed on my remaining shadlet lure to TubeBabe and she scored a couple of the small wipers before it was time to depart. They were still hitting. I caught the last of about seven or eight as I was kicking back in.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Now, for the title story. I was casting a small plastic, near the dike, when I felt it stop and then start jumping. Strange. I reeled in the fish and was really amazed at what I finally realized I was seeing. I had hooked the tip top of a 1 foot section of fishing rod...broken. To the rod was cinched about five feet of line, to which was tied a lure, upon which was a 13" channel cat. I am sure there is a good story behind that, but I can't figure how that little channel cat would be capable of breaking a rod, and then having the line wrap the broken tip and to stay secured to the fish. Even more remarkable was my hook finding the tiptop of the piece of rod and bringing the whole thing up. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Oh yeah, I released the little catfish. I would love to hear the stories he tells the other fish around the evening fire.[/#0000ff]
[signature]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Kicked out into an area where we saw some sporadic individual feeding splashes (not carp). Casted a variety of hardbaits, plastics and even feathers. TubeBabe had one hard smack on a 3" white twister. [/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]We both put out a rod with minnow to drag while we continued casting. The small cats were pesky...one after the other. We eventually each kept 7 and released as many or more. The ones we kept went from 14" to 17". Lost a couple of larger ones at the tube.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]At 8:15 I set the hook in another "bitty kitty" and it took off on a dandy run. Yeeeee Hawwww. 21" wiper that weighed out at 4#. Really bent my stick and stretched my string.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I worked over to the dike to investigate the small fish that were jumping right next to the rocks. I fired out a tandem rig of small plastics and promptly started bringing in little smallmouths two at a time. They were in there gorging on the shadlets.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I dug through my collection of hardbaits and found a couple of little 2" shad imitations. I think they are made by Cordell. I have had them since I lived in Arizona and used to fish the largemouth boils when they fed on the small threadfin shad each year. They are small, light and run shallow. Got a good wiggle. I tried them on the little smallies and they approved.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I kicked out into deeper water, where I had been seeing those occasional splashes. Two casts later, with the little shad wiggler, I got nailed. I was using a light spinning rod and 6# line so I got beat up a bit. I was thinking another 4# wiper. Surprise. It was only about 14". Fought bigger. They all do.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]After exercising several more of the mighty mites, I passed on my remaining shadlet lure to TubeBabe and she scored a couple of the small wipers before it was time to depart. They were still hitting. I caught the last of about seven or eight as I was kicking back in.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Now, for the title story. I was casting a small plastic, near the dike, when I felt it stop and then start jumping. Strange. I reeled in the fish and was really amazed at what I finally realized I was seeing. I had hooked the tip top of a 1 foot section of fishing rod...broken. To the rod was cinched about five feet of line, to which was tied a lure, upon which was a 13" channel cat. I am sure there is a good story behind that, but I can't figure how that little channel cat would be capable of breaking a rod, and then having the line wrap the broken tip and to stay secured to the fish. Even more remarkable was my hook finding the tiptop of the piece of rod and bringing the whole thing up. [/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Oh yeah, I released the little catfish. I would love to hear the stories he tells the other fish around the evening fire.[/#0000ff]
[signature]