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Between my job, projects around the house, bad weather, and other obligations I had not been fishing for 19 days. Today I said to hell with that and took off work to go on a little road trip hoping to get in on some of the last of the speckled trout action before they vacate our area and go to wherever it is they go during the winter. I met some friends at the launch and we were greeted with a stunning sunrise.
After a very brief time throwing topwater (probably 3 casts) I quickly got to work trolling my usual 3" paddle tails. The fish were biting sporadically today but biting well enough to keep me entertained and on the water for 6 hours. The highlight of my day was this very plump speck which measured in at 18.5" with the tail pinched. My previous best was 13" which I just could not seem to break... I had caught numerous specks in the 12-13" range but none larger... so this was a nice upgrade.
Other notable fish included 17.5" and 16.5" (pictured below) specks. So not only did I beat my previous PB but I beat it 3 times in the same trip. Pretty cool. I finished the day with 9 specks, 6 rockfish (largest 18"), and 2 nice perch.
Sadly, the day ended in heartbreak. I hooked up with a really nice fish on the troll... drag was screaming off my 6' light combo and I had a feeling it was a big speck from the way it was fighting so I fought it very delicately so as not to rip the hook out of the soft mouth. I got it all the way to the boat and confirmed it was indeed a big speck... this thing was a gator and looked every bit of 22-24". I was guiding the fish into my net when the hook pulled out while the fish was about a foot out from my net. I got a very good look at it which somehow made losing it hurt even worse. Oh well... I broke my PB 3 times in one day so I'm sure I'll get an even bigger one eventually.
After a very brief time throwing topwater (probably 3 casts) I quickly got to work trolling my usual 3" paddle tails. The fish were biting sporadically today but biting well enough to keep me entertained and on the water for 6 hours. The highlight of my day was this very plump speck which measured in at 18.5" with the tail pinched. My previous best was 13" which I just could not seem to break... I had caught numerous specks in the 12-13" range but none larger... so this was a nice upgrade.
Other notable fish included 17.5" and 16.5" (pictured below) specks. So not only did I beat my previous PB but I beat it 3 times in the same trip. Pretty cool. I finished the day with 9 specks, 6 rockfish (largest 18"), and 2 nice perch.
Sadly, the day ended in heartbreak. I hooked up with a really nice fish on the troll... drag was screaming off my 6' light combo and I had a feeling it was a big speck from the way it was fighting so I fought it very delicately so as not to rip the hook out of the soft mouth. I got it all the way to the boat and confirmed it was indeed a big speck... this thing was a gator and looked every bit of 22-24". I was guiding the fish into my net when the hook pulled out while the fish was about a foot out from my net. I got a very good look at it which somehow made losing it hurt even worse. Oh well... I broke my PB 3 times in one day so I'm sure I'll get an even bigger one eventually.
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