Never did THAT before

[agelesssone]

While throwing a castnet for shad yesterday morning, I must have thrown it onto a brushpile, cause it got snagged.
I maneuvered the boat around, tugging on the net the whole time. Finally got it unsnagged, brought it in and was very surprised at what I saw.
I had caught 5 good sized bluegills.....and fourteen big crappie!
Most of the crappie looked to be 11-12 inchers and the others would have been legal for sure.
I've been throwing the castnet for a few years now and have caught everything in the net, and many, many crappies. Just never caught that many in one throw of an 8 ft net. That's very concentrated.
Fortunately for them, and unfortunate for me, they all got released. Game fish caught in a cast net have to be released because I don't pick and choose which laws to follow. I just plainly follow them all.
BUT! I did mark the exact spot on my GPS!!!

[JKTrevecca]

It had to be pretty tempting to keep those things! I'd be curious what the most unusual thing we've all caught in our nets is/was.

My best living catch was a 10-12 pound striper on the Cumberland River by the sewer treatment plant. I've also caught a few large gar and my personal best largemouth in the cast net. Interestingly enough, that is also the spot where my worst non-living catch was. I pulled up a fairly large roll of barbed wire. It took over 30 minutes to get the net out of it once in the boat.

What is the strangest thing you've brought up into your cast net? Any snakes?

[XxthejuicexX]

Two keeper crappie and a 15" Large mouth in one cast. I was out in front of Jefferson springs boat ramp trying to catch bait for hybrid. All fish went back into my bucket... err water

[tkwalker]

Originally Posted by agelesssone

While throwing a castnet for shad yesterday morning, I must have thrown it onto a brushpile, cause it got snagged.
I maneuvered the boat around, tugging on the net the whole time. Finally got it unsnagged, brought it in and was very surprised at what I saw.
I had caught 5 good sized bluegills.....and fourteen big crappie!
Most of the crappie looked to be 11-12 inchers and the others would have been legal for sure.
I've been throwing the castnet for a few years now and have caught everything in the net, and many, many crappies. Just never caught that many in one throw of an 8 ft net. That's very concentrated.
Fortunately for them, and unfortunate for me, they all got released. Game fish caught in a cast net have to be released because I don't pick and choose which laws to follow. I just plainly follow them all.
BUT! I did mark the exact spot on my GPS!!!

Merv, I had the same thing happen to me below Cordell Hull Dam when I Caught 4 Walleye in the 4 pound range .. >like You I threw them back and my brother thought I was crazy ... <'TK><

[jaybird]

Couple of weeks ago, I was chasing bait and in one throw caught four large mouth, around 1-1.5 each, as well as a crappie that was 10 inches. I knew I had something because the net was heavier than it should have been but could not believe I caught all that in one throw.

[MNfisher]

At the steam plant one day I had 2 shellcracker and 5 largemouth in a 4' net. I now fish that spot....and it still holds bass and shellcracker, haha


Mike

[agelesssone]

Two years ago I threw a net and caught 5 largemouths, all in the 12 inch range. They must have been hanging around a stickup that I couldn't see.

So far, I've caught a gar about 4 ft long, numerous crappies, largemouths, a 17 lb carp (actually another one 14 lbs), shellcrackers, bluegills, a 12 lb channel cat, an 8 lb flathead, no smallies, no hybrids, one juvenile striper, some yellow bass, a few drum, lots of tilapia, and sometimes, I even catch the target fish, SHAD!

Right now, there are gazillions of 3 inch shad all over Percy Priest.
It's tough to find the five inchers I prefer to fish with.

After finding a cove full last Wednesday (two consecutive casts, probably 100-150 shad in each cast, 3-6 inches), went back there Saturday, couldn't catch ONE. Tried for 30 minutes, finally moved 1/2 mile and caught A BUNCH of smaller ones about four inches.

Is anybody having as much trouble as me, finding the hybrids this year?

[agelesssone]

Originally Posted by tkwalker

Merv, I had the same thing happen to me below Cordell Hull Dam when I Caught 4 Walleye in the 4 pound range .. >like You I threw them back and my brother thought I was crazy ... <'TK><

TK, not many things tempt me on the water, but I believe I would have had to pray for strength when I saw 4 four lb walleyes in the net.

I mean, a man can only stand so much temptation, right? We all have a breaking point!

[XxthejuicexX]

Originally Posted by agelesssone

TK, not many things tempt me on the water, but I believe I would have had to pray for strength when I saw 4 four lb walleyes in the net.

I mean, a man can only stand so much temptation, right? We all have a breaking point!

Yes sir, that would have been tough.

[TNBronzeback]

Walleye? What walleye? Lol.

[tkwalker]

Originally Posted by agelesssone

TK, not many things tempt me on the water, but I believe I would have had to pray for strength when I saw 4 four lb walleyes in the net.

I mean, a man can only stand so much temptation, right? We all have a breaking point!

Merv, it was probably the second hardest decision since I said "I DO" over 51 years ago... I did good on that decision! .. And besides the TWRA was known to park above the ramps with binoculars (And I knew them all)... And I had just got my Capt. Lic. And my boat was known in the area ... I wasn't about to lose all of it over four Walleye ... Besides my Gut told me to stick to the law and I had no trouble going to sleep that night ... <'TK><