Incredible Fishing Day

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Kevin & his son Braydon were with me this morning and agreed to try for a sturgeon or two before we shifted to a smaller species of fish. Little did we know that the sturgeon would cooperate and all other fish would be taking a back seat today!

After searching over the area for a little while, I settled on a spot that showed signs of life. With three lines in, all we could do was wait. It wouldn’t be hard to see the bite with practically flat calm waters from no wind. It was a refreshing change from the hurricane like winds from yesterday!

Our first bite was unlike what I expected from a sturgeon as the rod almost doubled over from the hit. A light bounce is usually what is seen but not this time. I set the hook into some weight and feared that the fish might have been foul hooked. Kevin took the rod and battled the fish for a bit before we saw why the bite was what it was. As it turned out, this was a channel catfish and a welcomed exotic catch! It weighed in at over 15 pounds on the Boga scale and was released right after a few pics. It may not have been the species we were after but we were on the board!

After resetting the lines, we didn’t wait long before the second bite. This time Braydon took the rod and he brought in the right species. It was a small sturgeon but it was what we were fishing for. He held it for a couple of pics before turning it loose. Now they were both on the board and I wanted more!

As luck would have it, we didn’t wait very long for our next bite. I had been seeing some larger marks on the sonar and hoped that some of them would find our baits. When I saw the next bite I immediately grabbed the rod and set into some weight. I knew it was the right one and passed the rod to Kevin to fight his first beast!

The sheer power of this thing impressed Kevin as all he could do was hold on while it took out line. As much as he reeled in, the fish just took it all back out and more! I told him that it was an endurance battle and not a race, so he would have to let the fish dictate what to do. Reel when you can but not when you can’t! He had never fought anything like this before but did well with a little coaching. After almost 15 minutes, we finally got a sighting and I was able to slide the net under his catch. It was definitely the largest fish he had ever seen!

It became a struggle for him to get a proper hold on the sturgeon but he managed to hold it upright for a few pics. They may have been mostly belly shots but it did show the overall mass of this beast! A quick release saw the fish disappearing back to the depths where it had come from. Mission accomplished!

We reset the lines after the release and just waited before getting our next bite. This time I was sitting right next to the rod, re baiting another line when it started to bounce. I just reeled with the rod while it was still in the holder to tighten up on the fish. It had the makings of another cat by the way it hit and Braydon managed to bring in his first channel. Although not as big as the previous one, it was still quality and welcomed. More pics were taken and the fish was sent on its way.

The pressure was off on producing fish and I wasn’t surprised to get another quick bite soon after resetting the lines. This time Kevin reeled in a small sturgeon and it was released afterwards. The next bite however wasn’t small and Braydon took the rod after I reared back on the fish. It felt big and I knew he was in for a struggle. Lots of coaching was needed for him to get in the groove if he was going to fight this fish till the end.

Early in the battle I could see the line starting to rise and I let him know not to pull when it breached, but to bow when he saw it go into the air. It was big and quite impressive when it finally jumped and we all saw what he was battling. As usual, it went directly back to the bottom again! Several more runs and a couple more jumps were made and 10 more minutes passed before it eventually came up to the surface. It had rolled in the line and Braydon struggled to reel it back to the boat. He did finally manage to get it close enough for me to slip the net under his catch! At 10 years old he was quite impressive, battling something almost his own weight!

There was no way that he would be able to hold the fish after fighting it for over 15 minutes, so his father helped him out. A few more pics were taken and the fish was quickly on its way.

They were having a great time catching big fish and wanted to stay on the sturgeon instead of changing to another species. We remained on these fish and as luck have it, Kevin battled yet another monster after I saw the rod bounce. This one took to the air early and we all saw exactly what he was hooked into! Having fought the previous one, he now had a better idea of what to do. This one would be a little bit easier, he hoped!

Ten minutes or so had passed with several runs and another great jump before I was able to net the fish. This time he held it much better for the pics and seconds later it was released. We immediately went back to fishing and had another bite about 15 minutes later. I once again set into some weight and Braydon took another turn at the rod. Unfortunately when it jumped, he had way too much pressure on the fish and pulled the hook on the re-entry. You have to bow to the king! A little heartbroken at the outcome, he quickly learned why!

I re straightened and re baited the hook and set all the rods back looking for more. Although we did have a few other fish they were a mix of bass, perch, walleye and one more small sturgeon. The afternoon traffic was also a problem as boats were everywhere now, causing constant waves. This made it difficult to see the bites and especially with all the gobies. I was constantly checking the lines and finding the hooks bare! Eventually we decided to call it quits on these fish and try for a few bass instead.

After shifting gears, I headed over to an area that I was sure they would be able to hook up. I set the rods up with soft plastics and instructed them on how to fish the baits. It took a little longer than I had hoped but I did find some fish for them to fight. Both Kevin & Braydon had multiple bass on their lines and landed several before we were done. They had officially both slammed with everything they had caught and couldn’t believe how good the fishing had been!

We packed everything up and headed back to the dock to take out. This had definitely been the best fishing day they had ever seen and couldn’t have imagined it would end this way. Especially landing the biggest fish of their lives, multiple times! I’m sure they will be telling everyone about their experience and wouldn’t be surprised if they return soon for another shot at more great fishing! I look forward to having them back soon!