Bountiful Pond 10/6

[akammerman]

Brought my four youngest to Bountiful Pond tonight for about 90 minutes. We had a lot of fun, but most of our bites were from the mosquitos! I thought I had packed the repellant, but I couldn't find it in the van.

My 8 year-old got her first fish (most likely a bluegill) but it came unhooked as we went to land it because it got tangled in her brother's line that he had set down so he could run and get the camera. Oh well, next time she'll bring one in. She was the least excited to go, but after the trip she said she wants to go again. I'm sure the ice cream cones on the way home helped.

I was targeting the carp with bread on a treble, but no luck. Then, I tried fly and bubble since it seemed as though fish were picking off the small flies on top of the water. No luck. My son tried some spinners with no luck, and I kept a worm under a bubble on the pole for my youngest two kids. I figured I'd try for some SM and rigged a small plastic craw on a dropshot. One bite, but then nothing for a while. Switched to a 5" Shim-E-Stick on a whim. First cast...as it's sinking to the bottom....WHAM! Didn't really need to set a hook, he snatched it real good. I let my 14 year old daughter reel him in, not sure what it was. I was super happy to see my first SM. My son switched his rig to the same as mine and my daughter fished my pole -- but neither had any more hits for the next 30 minutes or so until sun down. Don't know the rhyme or reason on the lone catch of the night. Didn't even really toss it to a strategic location (at least no cover that I could see). Dumb luck, I suppose--but it was fun!

[fishon]
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[scartinez]

Sweet catch but that is a largemouth bass. I don't think they have smallies in bountiful.
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[akammerman]

How do I tell the difference? I thought the mouth was big, but I had stuck in my head that Bountiful Pond only had SM. Well, that means I still have to catch my first SM; but at least I got my first LM!
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[albinotrout]

[quote akammerman]How do I tell the difference? I thought the mouth was big, but I had stuck in my head that Bountiful Pond only had SM. Well, that means I still have to catch my first SM; but at least I got my first LM![/quote]

Here ya go

Largemouth Bass

[inline LMBass.jpg]

Smallmouth Bass



[inline SMBass.jpg]
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[Troll]

Looking at the pictures Albino Trout posted, do you see the way the jaw of the largemouth extends behind the fish's eye? Largemouth. On the lower fish, see how the jaw ends in front of the eye? Smallmouth.

There are color differences too, LMB are greener and often a black stripe can be seen running front to back on the sides. SMB are more Bronze in color (Bronze-back is a common name) and often have stripes running top to bottom in several rows along the sides.

But the most reliable way to tell which is which is to close the mouth and see if the jaw ends in front or behind the eye.
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[akammerman]

Thanks for the tips. Hopefully, I'll get a lot of practice at telling them apart by catching more and more. I had caught a bunch of smaller bass at Bountiful, and by the coloration, I now know that they were all LM.
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