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Gettin' Jiggy Wid It
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Thanks Bass for an awesome first time sturgeon experience!
Bass and I hit the water around 7:45 am this morning for my first intro to sturgeon fishing. The 14 mph winds whipped us around, but the rain was held at bay, and a couple of shakers had been landed in the first hour. Around 8:45 am Minnowmagnet hooked into a 6 ½ foot oversize and fought it about 10 minutes before graciously handing off the rod to me. Talk about an act of chivalry! You are truly a class act, Minnowmagnet.
Once I grabbed the rod I knew I was in for a battle. My first sturgeon ever, the rod bowed in a semi-circle, the line peeling off the spool. For the first 10 minutes, I awkwardly pumped the rod every now and then and reeled, the fish slapping me around, cruising along the bottom like it was king.
Minnowmagnet asked, “What's the biggest fish you've ever landed?”
“A 9 pound steelhead,” I admitted, embarrassed.
That's when I realized I was way out of my league here with this 100+ lb. Fish. With every run, my forearm and biceps ached as I strained against the fish. With no experience in big fish, and no technique to fall back on, it was a rough ride to say the least. The fish was clearly beating me up.
Suddenly Bass cruised up in his kayak, radiant. “You've got to fight that fish! Don't let him rest. Pump that rod...thumb the spool when he makes a run...keep the pressure on him constantly. Don't let him hang out on the bottom. You have to force him to the surface.”
His words suddenly snapped me into action, and I focused on the fish, quickly developing a rhythm of pumping the rod up, reeling down hard, then pumping it up again. By 9:15 am, a surge of massive bubbles
rose to the surface and I wondered if I were reeling up a submarine.
“The bubbles! That's it...he's coming up now,” Bass encouraged.
But another lightning run, the rod dipped low as line peeled out, the spool burning under my thumb. The leviathan wasn't giving up yet.
Another 10 minutes passed, me frantically reeling down on the fish after every hard pull upward, constantly thumbing the spool tight to slow his runs, my thumb stinging...my biceps aching.
“We're in 17 feet of water!” I said, quickly gauging my depth finder. The line was almost vertical in the water, the kayak almost on top of him. “He's close!”
I pulled off my knit cap, “I'm burning up!” I said, though it was 45 degrees outside with a cutting windchill.
And then at 9:25 am the beast surfaced suddenly...exhausted...and rolled onto his back exposing his soft white belly.
Minnowmagnet unhooked him while Bass and I watched in silent reverence.
Bass grabbed the tape measure. “78 inches long,” he said.
Minnowmagnet fired back, “This fish probably weighs about a 120 lbs.”
Minnow passed the fish off to me, and I grabbed the sturgeon's vast, rubbery mouth to feel its weight. I was in complete awe.
A couple of quick photos and he was released, down into the depths, to grow another foot or two.
Thanks Bass and Minnowmagnet for and incredible oversize sturgeon experience!
--Vance
p.s. My narration in the video gets funny when it's time to release the fish. I was repeatedly saying, "Do i just let him go? Just like that?" In my mind I was thinking... Am I supposed to revive him first? How do I revive a 120 lb fish?!
Bass and I hit the water around 7:45 am this morning for my first intro to sturgeon fishing. The 14 mph winds whipped us around, but the rain was held at bay, and a couple of shakers had been landed in the first hour. Around 8:45 am Minnowmagnet hooked into a 6 ½ foot oversize and fought it about 10 minutes before graciously handing off the rod to me. Talk about an act of chivalry! You are truly a class act, Minnowmagnet.
Once I grabbed the rod I knew I was in for a battle. My first sturgeon ever, the rod bowed in a semi-circle, the line peeling off the spool. For the first 10 minutes, I awkwardly pumped the rod every now and then and reeled, the fish slapping me around, cruising along the bottom like it was king.
Minnowmagnet asked, “What's the biggest fish you've ever landed?”
“A 9 pound steelhead,” I admitted, embarrassed.
That's when I realized I was way out of my league here with this 100+ lb. Fish. With every run, my forearm and biceps ached as I strained against the fish. With no experience in big fish, and no technique to fall back on, it was a rough ride to say the least. The fish was clearly beating me up.
Suddenly Bass cruised up in his kayak, radiant. “You've got to fight that fish! Don't let him rest. Pump that rod...thumb the spool when he makes a run...keep the pressure on him constantly. Don't let him hang out on the bottom. You have to force him to the surface.”
His words suddenly snapped me into action, and I focused on the fish, quickly developing a rhythm of pumping the rod up, reeling down hard, then pumping it up again. By 9:15 am, a surge of massive bubbles
“The bubbles! That's it...he's coming up now,” Bass encouraged.
But another lightning run, the rod dipped low as line peeled out, the spool burning under my thumb. The leviathan wasn't giving up yet.
Another 10 minutes passed, me frantically reeling down on the fish after every hard pull upward, constantly thumbing the spool tight to slow his runs, my thumb stinging...my biceps aching.
“We're in 17 feet of water!” I said, quickly gauging my depth finder. The line was almost vertical in the water, the kayak almost on top of him. “He's close!”
I pulled off my knit cap, “I'm burning up!” I said, though it was 45 degrees outside with a cutting windchill.
And then at 9:25 am the beast surfaced suddenly...exhausted...and rolled onto his back exposing his soft white belly.
Minnowmagnet unhooked him while Bass and I watched in silent reverence.
Bass grabbed the tape measure. “78 inches long,” he said.
Minnowmagnet fired back, “This fish probably weighs about a 120 lbs.”
Minnow passed the fish off to me, and I grabbed the sturgeon's vast, rubbery mouth to feel its weight. I was in complete awe.
A couple of quick photos and he was released, down into the depths, to grow another foot or two.
Thanks Bass and Minnowmagnet for and incredible oversize sturgeon experience!
--Vance
p.s. My narration in the video gets funny when it's time to release the fish. I was repeatedly saying, "Do i just let him go? Just like that?" In my mind I was thinking... Am I supposed to revive him first? How do I revive a 120 lb fish?!
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I will get pics off the camera tonight and add a few pics to the post. Vance did a great job fishing for sturgeon for the first time under some very difficult conditions. The current was not very strong, the sturgeon were biting very lightly, and the wind was whipping and shifting directions a lot which was swinging us all over the place. However, he did a really good job of focusing and landed several shakers completely on his own. I only handed him a piece of bait. When he felt his first bite he said, "it feels like they are just scratching it". That is great explanation of what a sturgeon bite feels like. 
