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I fished Lincoln Harbor channel this evening from 5-9. I had several bites, hooked up on 6 and landed 3. Two were bullheads and three were channels. Two of the channels broke off at the bank. The one I landed was my first ever. It was 22.5", 3.4 pounds, and will go on the contest board, as a start anyway. I'm pretty sure the two that got away were at least 30 inches ;-). My line is too light but I decided, as the old saying goes, it is better to have caught and lost than to never have caught at all. On the third channel I played him until he was tired before I netted him. Upgraded tackle is on its way. Thanks to all who helped me get started with good suggestions. All fish were caught on white bass meat on #1 or 1/0 baitholder hooks. Water temp was 72 on arrival, reached a high of 74, and dropped back to 71 by 9:00. Air temperature on the drive home was 59-60. The mosquitoes were bad around sunset and of course I forgot the repellent. All in all, I'm catchinon.
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great catchinon
been tough up in the north county. I can't seem to find any over 26 even went up to cutler the other day 26.5 was biggest. Tuesday night they were only 21 inch at the refuge. Just got in from a run down the river and not even a bite. Beef up your gear and get them 30's. Good luck and glad your on the board. [inline DSCN3511.JPG] [inline DSCN3513.JPG]
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There's Always Time For One More Cast
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Well done! Sounds to me like you are the one "hooked" now. Hope that new gear helps to prevent some of those break-offs. Will be watching for your first 30 incher.
BLK
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Sounds like you will be there soon, addicted and chasing kitties like the rest of us... Nice job figuring it out so quick... Also that 11" bullhead is a really big one for what I'm used to... Maybe Utah lake grows them bigger, but up north that would be a record book one from Cutler... Most are 6-9" up this way... On lines I use a good 20-30 lb braid and tip it with 12-15 lb mono for a few feet... I got tired of losing everything when I snagged up, so I went stout and the fish still bite fine... Good luck... J
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I don't understand why you would use lighter leader on your braid. Doesn't that make the leader the weak link and negate the toughness of the heavier braid? Also, what knot do you use to join mono and braid; what is the best color of PowerPro; can you tie hooks directly to the braid? Thanks for all your insight.
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Well done! I'm glad yo ufound some that wanted to play. When BLK get's his 36 inch monster, you'll have to ask him for you hooks back[  ].
Do you use a landing net? They are helpful once the fish get in close and much of the area around the dikes and harbor has a lot of sharp rocks right next to the waters edge.
Keep up the good work!
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For Utah Lake I don't use a leader and just tie the braid to the hook. While fishing in clear water I use the double Uni knot to attach the leader to the braid if I don't want to use a swivel.
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Yes I use a net, aka my chicken nabber. In fact I'm headed back to the lake now because I left it there in the dark last night. Hope it's still there. What the escapees did was run up the channel a ways and then roll. On the third one I was able to control it enough to bring it straight in.
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I use 50 pound leader when fishing for cats. 6/0-7/0 demon circle hooks and 30 pound mono. Rarely lose a fish on a solid hookup. My theory is that they offer me the opportunity to catch them I like to put them the boat. Just good manners. Caught a cat last year that had 5 pieces of mono hanging out of his mouth.
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Don't know if the mono is necessary, but I formed a habit and I stick with it... I use the mono as the fuse, if I have to break the line, I like a section that will break... For the most part the leader is really tough as well and most of the time I don't break my line... When I have lately it has been due to my superline getting old and going bad on me... For knots I use the uni-uni knot... Later J
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Thanks, ice_sled. I never thought I would want anything that heavy in fresh water but I see your wisdom. Two more questions, if you don't mind. What type and size bait do you put on those big old hooks? And what size reel do you use?
P.S. I went looking for those Demon hooks and I think I need more info. Are those the Mustad ones? Any other designation?
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Those are Mustad hooks. I don’t usually use pieces of bait larger than about 11/2 long. Usually carp, white bass and chubs. Sometimes I use the whole head of chubs and white bass if the bite is really on. That being said I rarely fish for any other species. I use only ABU Garcia bait casting reels. 6000 and 7300 models.
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I used a chub head my first outing this spring but got no interest from the cats. Chubs are the only baitfish I have now - used up all the white bass. I was afraid that the chubs wouldn't be as good as white bass. What do you say?
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[quote SkunkedAgain]Don't know if the mono is necessary, but I formed a habit and I stick with it... I use the mono as the fuse, if I have to break the line, I like a section that will break... For the most part the leader is really tough as well and most of the time I don't break my line... When I have lately it has been due to my superline getting old and going bad on me... For knots I use the uni-uni knot... Later J[/quote]
I do pretty much the same. I use 40# braid for my main line and 12#-15#mono for my leader. I use large circle hooks and even larger pieces of sucker or carp meat. I have only broke the braid once and it is pretty common to pull free from most snags with my line only broken at the hook eye......or the hook broken at the hook eye.
I have yet to meet my match with a fish on that setup.....meaning that a fish has never broken me off, but only snags.
Mike
P.S. The suckers here at Bear Lake are fixin' to start spawning within a week or so and when they do it is very easy to fish the outside edges of the dikes and snag a seasons supply of the best catfish bait I've ever used.
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I have had great days using chubs, white bass, and carp. I always rig two poles with different baits. Let the cats decide what they want. A 3-4” chub fished whole has been a great setup for me.
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Hey Mike tell me more about those sucker? I'd love to get a few but is it like Cisco to catch them, using a big hooked cast master? I assume snagging must be legal for them or you wouldn't mention it? That's got to be one wild fight to pull a foul hooked sucker in. I'll probably be cutting hay, but it sounds fun. Later J
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Hey Jeff,
I just use a 1/4-1/2 ounce jig and cast beyond them and just reel through them. It's pretty easy to get the hang of it. They are just like carp as far a DWR is concerned when it comes to snagging. I will post when they start spawning so that you will be able to get over to collect some bait.
Mike
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[quote gmwahl]Hey Jeff,
It's pretty easy to get the hang of it.
Mike[/quote]
Pun intended?
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[quote catchinon][quote gmwahl]Hey Jeff,
It's pretty easy to get the hang of it.
Mike[/quote]
Pun intended?[/quote]
Nope, but I'll claim it!
Mike
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