I visited my Dad in North Carolina the week leading up to Easter. We had hoped to get a jump on some good pre-spawn smallie action. However, my expectations for fishing Lake James are tempered by the lake’s technical nature and past experiences working all day for one or two quality fish.
Within the first hour and a half on the water we found a school of smallies. My Dad hooked three quality smallmouth landing two that both exceeded 15 inches. We were sure our pre-spawn smallie-fest was on. Unfortunately, the bite abruptly stopped and the electronics on Dad's boat completely fried -- a real killer on a cold, deep mountain lake. We ultimately settled for about twenty minutes of smallie glory. We later went to Cherokee and each caught trout on the Oconaluftee. This river is so beautiful you can honestly view the hook ups as a bonus. Even though we never really dialed in the trout bite, it was a needed break from fishing for lock-jaw smallies on Lake James.
Looking back on the trip I am most happy to have spent some real quality time with my Dad and I am proud to have been there to net two of his prized Lake James smallmouths. Fishing always seems to teach valuable life lessons. In this case I was left with the thought that all things are fleeting, so enjoy the moment. But as I reflect on the trip I can’t wait to start planning the next one.
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2 comments:
We had a great time together even if the fishing was less than stellar didn't we Matt? I too can't wait to plan our next foray. By the way, I went to a luncheon with the neigborhood guys, and talked fishing with the ones that actually tournament fish. They have been driving to Lake Norman and Lake Rhodiss instead of Lake James and will not fish the lake until early May, when they say its worth their time...so we were just too early.
There is more to a fishing trip than the number of fish we catch.
love,
Dad
I've had some good success with trout lately -- but I love that pic of Dad holding that smallie.
I'll blog my trout updates later. Anyway, trout are not that big of deal here in colorado unless they are over 5 lbs anyway. Love the Rocky Moountain trout fishing but really do miss living in bass country many days.
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