Goodbye #20s. Hello 2/0s.
Goodbye 6X. Hello 10lb test.
Goodbye delicate presentations. Hello splashdowns.
Goodbye lifting the rod tip to set the hook. Hello lifting the rod tip, with attitude, to set the hook.
Rip it.
Rip it.
Goodbye 4wt. Hello 8.
Goodbye sips. Hello flushes.
Goodbye nettin’ ‘em. Hello lippin’ ‘em.
Goodbye four-hour drives to the mountains. Hello five-minute walks to the pond.
Ten to the river.
Okay, so maybe I’m jumping the gun just a little. The Haw is still running a bit chilly for the local bucketmouths. I did get into one good fish during yesterday’s pre-season scouting trip, only to lose him when he ran straight downstream, directly at me, and came unbuttoned as I franticly tried to keep things tight. It was a nice chance, but the only one of the day. It'll get better soon. It is, after all, still February.
The pond, however, is warming nicely in this pre-spring burst and I nicked a handful of small ones during a brief detour on my way back to the house. First of the year. Not the last, to be sure.
Don’t worry - I’ll keep chasin’ trout too. But largemouth season is coming. Bass time.
Goodbye finicky. Hello fun.
Yay, bass season!
ReplyDeleteBuddy, I am READY! Just bought my first fly rod since I lived in Boone 14 years ago......it's a 5wt for LMBs and sunfish!
ReplyDeleteI am a warm water freak.
Perfect photo and title combination. I think I'm going to see what I can get to bite at a local pond in the next couple days. I'm looking forward to my first bass of the year... no matter how small that one is always special,
ReplyDeleteVery nice. I too look forward to the warmup for bass, even though I probably have a longer wait. I'll always be a trout guy, but got a taste of SMB on the fly last year and have been itchin' ever since.
ReplyDeleteI'm still not sure if we're ice free yet. Mind if I read about yours until I get my own?
ReplyDeleteI am loving it, watching the bass wake on blogs from the south. It started in Texas a couple weeks ago. Now I've got two starting to get them in NC.