Saturday Night River Fishing (7/16)

[Travis C.]

I had a blast throwing big ole jerkbaits all last night. It was just an awesome night to be out under the fading full moon. I caught several fish including my first walleye and pushed up some personal bests. The others I talked to had some luck as well.

Here are some photos of the lil ones from last night...

A nice brown got too close to the trebles



Another taker laying on the 15" lid



Here is the one that owes me a new net



And finally a fish bit when another boater was around. I asked him if he'd take a good picture for me. I was getting tired of taking pictures off of my lantern top with a timer. If either of you guys are on here...thanks a lot for the picture and maybe I'll bring a treat for your dog so he'll like me better next time.




Fun times....can't wait to get back out there.

Great fish! How large was the Walleye? Are you below the dam on the Caney? (Not asking for location, just the river)

[Travis C.]

Here it is laying on 15" live well door. It is not big but my first.

[Travis C.]

Originally Posted by fisherman550

Great fish! How large was the Walleye? Are you below the dam on the Caney? (Not asking for location, just the river)

Yes, but not below the Dam.

[jad2t]

I really want to try night fishing the river but I don't have a boat. Would you highly advise against wading at night? Obviously I'd get a head lamp or something like that so I could see where I was walking. Safe idea or stupid idea?

[tjustin]

Glad you finaly got ya walleye!

[txnative]

Awesome browns. We were out there sat night, too, and caught 6 browns, a rainbow, 3 walleye, a sauger, and a surprise 10 lb flathead. Biggest brown landed was about 18", but my fishing apprentice lost a monster when we were trying to net it. That fish was nearly 30" and chunky. He was in an inflatable pontoon and the fish shook off on its' way to the net. Bummer, 'cause we really wanted a pic, but he got to enjoy the fight and the fish swam away healthy, so it wasn't really a loss. Btw, travis, i got a new yak sunday, so if you wanna try 'yak fishing, i got a fishing sled for ya.


Chris

[Travis C.]

Awesome man, I bet that fish was a heck of a fight. I ended up only fishing about a 20 yard stretch of river. One of those don't leave fish to find fish scenarios. There are a few more I want to try. Kayak will be better I think than the jon boat. Every time something was moved around in the boat it was loud.

I had a surprise Sunday after the boat was trailered then started wading. Some fish were working in the middle of the river so I slipped behind and ended up catching fat solid bluegill . That was first there as well.


jad2t- Its okay to wade at night but you really need to be familiar with the area. After you know it good in the day you should be fine at night. The place I was fishing can't be wade at night too deep. We have caught a lot of fish wading on low water at night. You should try it sometime.

[jad2t]

I'm gonna try it. Are the larger browns actively feeding at night even on low water? There are certain areas of the river I know really well and I'll feel comfortable wading it at night. What if I got one of those lamps you strap to your head? Just so I can see whats ahead of me and see what I'm doing when I re-tie, release fish, etc. Or will that spook the fish when its shining all over the water?

[Travis C.]

Originally Posted by jad2t

Or will that spook the fish when its shining all over the water?

Light will spook the browns. Use it as little as possible. Yes they feed at night. The big ones are pretty much only nocturnal feeders other than days of long generation periods. All large browns over 20" really bows too became mostly meat eaters. Browns will be almost exclusive meat eaters that size while bows will still eat bugs.

Keep in mind a 24" brown can eat a 12" rainbow.... and will. He may not eat again for a couple days but if you want big then big is on the menu.

[txnative]

Jad2t,
Get a headlamp that has a red light as well as the standard white bulb. Use the white for getting to the water, and use the red from the moment you walk in until you leave. The red bulb will not spook trout and it does not affect your night vision. Using the white light actually blinds you when it lights up all the fog, and if you want to guarantee every trout in the area knows you are there, flip on the white light and look around. You may actually see a huge brown pushing a wake as it bolts from your light, lol.


Chris