06-23-2008, 03:29 AM
The alarm went off at 4AM and I cursed myself as I made coffee. I have been to Yuba 6 times since the ice went off without much success save a few fat perch. Now I was going back at the insisting of one of my life long friends, Rodney Johnson or "WrongWay" as many of his friends address him.
Wrongway has been living in the past reminicing the great days of walleye fishing in Yuba and was convinced we could fill a boat with walleye in a morning despite my whinning that it wasn't going to happen.
It was 6:50 when we launched the boat at painted rock and went directly to the island when we commenced to bombard the shoreline with jigs dressed with night crawlers. We circumvented the island several times with the electric trolling motor catching 30 or so fat healthy perch and 1 small (12') northern.
It was warming up around ten and the casual boaters began to swarm the reservoir threatening to capsize us with each ever closer passing. "To hell with this" I told him. "lets go trolling for a northern. Who knows we might get a 20 pounder."
I wasn't really optimistic even though a lot of big northerns have been caught in recent days. We tied on Rapalas without the benefit of steel leader.
We had just finished our first pass along the painted rock when the med heavy GLoomis went off. I knew instantly we were on to a big fish by the drags screaming run. I had thrown the motor in neutral and was clearing the other lines when the line rapidly went from the back of the boat to the front and the fish headed for the dam.
"Loosen the drag." I advised but I was wasting my breath. Wrongway had the fish under control. It took about ten minutes of ever diminishing runs before the big Northern came to the surface
I about fell out of the boat. This was the kind of fish you find in the Canadian provinces, not in Utah.
It took a while, but we finally got him in the undersized net and into the live well. Why the fish had not surgically severed the line with its razor sharp gill covers or teeth is a greater mystery than why my wife chose to marry me some 40 years ago.
38 inches, 14 inch girth and 14.75 pounds on an IGFA certified scale. He wasn't the biggest northern caught out a Yuba in recent weeks, but he was hands down the biggest fish Wrongway has caught in fresh water and probably the largest northern he will ever catch.
So there were perch fillets for the frying pan and a big northen for the wall and a lot of great memories. Certainly worth getting up at 4MYGAWDAM. Tight lines
I don't know why I can never post a pic to this forum. I'll quit trying. I apologize it is a nice photo and a great fish.
[inline "wrong way yuba pike resize.JPG"]
[signature]
Wrongway has been living in the past reminicing the great days of walleye fishing in Yuba and was convinced we could fill a boat with walleye in a morning despite my whinning that it wasn't going to happen.
It was 6:50 when we launched the boat at painted rock and went directly to the island when we commenced to bombard the shoreline with jigs dressed with night crawlers. We circumvented the island several times with the electric trolling motor catching 30 or so fat healthy perch and 1 small (12') northern.
It was warming up around ten and the casual boaters began to swarm the reservoir threatening to capsize us with each ever closer passing. "To hell with this" I told him. "lets go trolling for a northern. Who knows we might get a 20 pounder."
I wasn't really optimistic even though a lot of big northerns have been caught in recent days. We tied on Rapalas without the benefit of steel leader.
We had just finished our first pass along the painted rock when the med heavy GLoomis went off. I knew instantly we were on to a big fish by the drags screaming run. I had thrown the motor in neutral and was clearing the other lines when the line rapidly went from the back of the boat to the front and the fish headed for the dam.
"Loosen the drag." I advised but I was wasting my breath. Wrongway had the fish under control. It took about ten minutes of ever diminishing runs before the big Northern came to the surface
I about fell out of the boat. This was the kind of fish you find in the Canadian provinces, not in Utah.
It took a while, but we finally got him in the undersized net and into the live well. Why the fish had not surgically severed the line with its razor sharp gill covers or teeth is a greater mystery than why my wife chose to marry me some 40 years ago.
38 inches, 14 inch girth and 14.75 pounds on an IGFA certified scale. He wasn't the biggest northern caught out a Yuba in recent weeks, but he was hands down the biggest fish Wrongway has caught in fresh water and probably the largest northern he will ever catch.
So there were perch fillets for the frying pan and a big northen for the wall and a lot of great memories. Certainly worth getting up at 4MYGAWDAM. Tight lines
I don't know why I can never post a pic to this forum. I'll quit trying. I apologize it is a nice photo and a great fish.
[inline "wrong way yuba pike resize.JPG"]
[signature]