11/5/17 November Rain

          Kelly and I went out on a terrible weather day to fish for some Pike. I was shocked when Kelly agreed to go fishing when the weather forecast was calling for a high of 42 degrees and rain. We didn't get on the water until after 3:30pm so we didn't have too long to find some fish. We were both throwing jerk baits and before long Kelly had several strikes with no hookups.
          The first fish of the day came after more than 30 minutes of casting. Kelly threw her X-Rap into an eddy and after a few moments a fish rocketed up and took her lure. The water was clear and I knew immediately it was not a Pike by the beautiful bronze color of the fish. It looked like a carp when it was first hooked, but before long I knew we were dealing with a Mammoth Smallmouth Bass! Once in the net I knew it was the biggest Smallmouth I have seen this year. It bumped at 19.75"! The pictures don't do it justice, it was a VERY nice fish!
          It was about this time that the rain decided to make it's first appearance. It down poured several times on us over the rest of the day. You'll notice some of the pictures got blotted out by the rain. It was nearly impossible to get the camera lens entirely clean to get good shots, but we did the best we could!
          Just a few minutes after releasing the monster Smallmouth it was my turn to hook up. I made a cast and within a few jerks my X-Rap got slammed and the battle was on! It turned out to be a very nice fish around 32" and before long I had him in hand and unhooked. The fish was absolutely beautiful with not a mark on it other than where I had hooked it. I let that fish go and within minutes I got my second fish of the day. This fish was also very nice. I love the way Pike hit lures and the first surge of energy you get from them once they are hooked! After that fish we went a while with no more action. We got rained on several more times before getting another fish. Suddenly, Kelly hooked up on a very nice fish. After a short but intense battle another Pike over 30" was in the boat.
          The action continued to be slow and before long we were heading back to the truck. We made it 95% of the way back before Kelly got her next fish. After a very nice battle our 4th and last Pike over 30" was in the boat. Really all in all the action was never fast and furious but we made the most of our opportunities. The average size of our fish was very good. I'm not sure how many more days we will have this year to fish open water Pike. I am hoping for at least a few more! I did get some good video of this trip and will try to get that edited and posted as soon as I can.