Thursday, April 1, 2010

Well Worth The Wait.




Several months is a long time to wait for someone with a strong urge for golden bones. The long, cold, and snowy Northeast winter of 2010 can be blamed for the extra long wait. When the local waters began to melt from the death clutch of below freezing temperatures, the ghosts of freshwater began making their way to shallow water intent on marging mad food. Fly fishermen across the United States have been waiting for them. The season has arrived.

Weapon of Mass Destruction.

I drove to a local pond in the state of Delaware intent on sight casting to some bones. The pond is situated away from the road and protected by dense brush. Not an ideal situation for someone that lacks a boat. Topping it off, the water was extra high and murky from the large amount of recent rain. There were also two boats putting in at the sorry excuse for a boat launch. I meandered by and said my hello before making my way to the only piece of bank side real estate. A ten foot long piece of bank situated in a small cove slightly elevated above the water. The only spot with a perspective good enough to sight fish to some cruisers. I rigged up and the waiting game began. Ten minutes is a long time waiting to cast but slowly my eyes began to re-adjust and my carp sense began to kick in. Shadows and mud clouds became visible and soon two carp began moving in my direction. I laid out the damsel about five feet in front of them and two feet beyond, twitched it twice and waited for a response. They changed direction and headed towards the bait. At this moment I began a slow retrieve and BANG, the first carp of 2010 nearly took the rod out of my hands.

First Carp 2010.

Damsel in Distress.

Small 4-5 Pounder.

Well Worth the Wait.

After another hour, I decided to try my hand at some bass. I had only seen a few more carp and barely had a chance at any of them. Bass were erupting at the surface all over the pond and I just couldn't resist. I tied on an articulated rubber leg sculpin and began working the banks, this time descending into the water sinking and plodding my way through the mud. Just when I was about to make my way home a small thud make my line become taunt and I tied into the largest largemouth bass I have ever caught. Good fun. I may need to target bass more often.

Delaware Lunker.

Bucketmouth.

6wt.

Pumped For Some More Spring Time Action.

1 comment:

The Dentonista said...

Looks a bit like Texas actually. Nice fish! TexasFlyCaster