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Another great afternoon on Mattawoman with not another person in sight. I arrived around 2pm on a falling tide and fished 'til dark. The snakehead were quite active in the shallows. I managed multiple blowups on a frog and by 5pm I'd gotten two in the cooler, both ~24". Towards early evening low-tide the snakehead activity tapered off. I switched to a finesse worm and focused on deep water cuts next to lily pads. The water clarity was such that I could see numerous fish cruising under the Versa Board, including a number of nice largemouth. In one area the bite was so hot that I hooked five fish on five casts. They were all largemouth in the 3-4lb range and were a ton of fun. One charged my paddle board and came up underneath for a jump that ended up being a paddle board "head-butt". That move, while likely painful, proved effective as he came unbuttoned from the finesse worm hook. In addition to the two snakeheads I kept one largemouth that was gill hooked and bleeding. I'm planning to try out Gyotaku printing this evening, inspired by the artwork of Virginia kayak angler Rob Choi.
The real action of the day came at sunset. I had forgotten my headlamp and was planning to paddle out a little earlier than usual, knowing that portage would be required in a few spots at low tide. As I was paddling along the baitfish activity in the center of the creek channel picked up considerably. The weed growth at the creek edges are so thick at the moment that it seems most of the fish are forced to congregate towards the center during low water periods. In one particular area I spooked some VERY big fish. I suspected carp however just to be sure I stopped paddling and began casting the frog. On the third cast... *boom*. It hit like a giant largemouth, consuming the entire frog in one big sucking motion. I gave it a one-count pause, set the hook, then thought "wow, this thing feels too heavy and lifeless - he must have run under a log and fouled me up." Then I feel a big head shake.. "uh oh." I start fumbling to adjust the drag as he makes multiple, big *POWERFUL* runs in the thick grass. I can feel the kicks of the tail a'la a big bull redfish. He makes a turn and heads my way. It's a HUGE snakehead and he buries himself in the grass directly beside me. I was using a 7'3" heavy power rod with 40lb braid and a 15lb fleoro leader. As much as I tried I simply couldn't apply enough pressure to lift him off the bottom. I grabbed the line with one hand (gloves on) and put the rod in the rod holder with the spool set to free. Using both hands I was able to lift the line and pry him loose. The weeds were matted around his head and that seemed to have him momentarily subdued. I managed to get the net on him and breathed a short sigh of relief. Then I realized that I'd brought a knife to a gunfight. My net is a large-sized version that is meant for largemouth. It has a built-in measuring tool that goes to a maximum of 28", assuming the fish is laying perfectly along its length and fills the net. This guy was "in" the net along with a lot of grass, but over 2/3 of him simply wouldn't fit and was hanging over the side. I conservatively guesstimate him at 35"+. I'm an average build at 5'9", 165 lbs and his girth was easily the size of my thigh. It was also at this point that I realized the pliers were back in the vehicle alongside the headlamp. My only tools to wrangle him were an undersized net, plastic fish grips, and a pair of pruning shears. I took a moment for a deep breath, chuckled to myself and scratched my head. I hadn't fully brought hand-to-head for the scratch when he decided to take an alligator-death-roll. The 15lb fleoro had done all that it was designed to do, had done it well, and could do no more. After the splash I resumed chuckling and was also able to finish the full head scratch motion. On the quiet paddle out I startled a giant buck with an impressive set of head gear. I do love that place.
In addition to Gyotaku, today's to-do list includes ordering a gaff along with a double-extra-large net.
IMG_2719.jpg
The real action of the day came at sunset. I had forgotten my headlamp and was planning to paddle out a little earlier than usual, knowing that portage would be required in a few spots at low tide. As I was paddling along the baitfish activity in the center of the creek channel picked up considerably. The weed growth at the creek edges are so thick at the moment that it seems most of the fish are forced to congregate towards the center during low water periods. In one particular area I spooked some VERY big fish. I suspected carp however just to be sure I stopped paddling and began casting the frog. On the third cast... *boom*. It hit like a giant largemouth, consuming the entire frog in one big sucking motion. I gave it a one-count pause, set the hook, then thought "wow, this thing feels too heavy and lifeless - he must have run under a log and fouled me up." Then I feel a big head shake.. "uh oh." I start fumbling to adjust the drag as he makes multiple, big *POWERFUL* runs in the thick grass. I can feel the kicks of the tail a'la a big bull redfish. He makes a turn and heads my way. It's a HUGE snakehead and he buries himself in the grass directly beside me. I was using a 7'3" heavy power rod with 40lb braid and a 15lb fleoro leader. As much as I tried I simply couldn't apply enough pressure to lift him off the bottom. I grabbed the line with one hand (gloves on) and put the rod in the rod holder with the spool set to free. Using both hands I was able to lift the line and pry him loose. The weeds were matted around his head and that seemed to have him momentarily subdued. I managed to get the net on him and breathed a short sigh of relief. Then I realized that I'd brought a knife to a gunfight. My net is a large-sized version that is meant for largemouth. It has a built-in measuring tool that goes to a maximum of 28", assuming the fish is laying perfectly along its length and fills the net. This guy was "in" the net along with a lot of grass, but over 2/3 of him simply wouldn't fit and was hanging over the side. I conservatively guesstimate him at 35"+. I'm an average build at 5'9", 165 lbs and his girth was easily the size of my thigh. It was also at this point that I realized the pliers were back in the vehicle alongside the headlamp. My only tools to wrangle him were an undersized net, plastic fish grips, and a pair of pruning shears. I took a moment for a deep breath, chuckled to myself and scratched my head. I hadn't fully brought hand-to-head for the scratch when he decided to take an alligator-death-roll. The 15lb fleoro had done all that it was designed to do, had done it well, and could do no more. After the splash I resumed chuckling and was also able to finish the full head scratch motion. On the quiet paddle out I startled a giant buck with an impressive set of head gear. I do love that place.
In addition to Gyotaku, today's to-do list includes ordering a gaff along with a double-extra-large net.
IMG_2719.jpg
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