Battle Ground Lake November 3, 2007

It seems like everything around here (Vancouver, USA) is in the "wait for spring" mode. I just read a fishing report for a lake on the other side of the state from me and it inspired me, I am going to go out this weekend and get me some fish, dog-gone-it!! The fellow in the report caught a 23 inch, five-pound-two-ounce Brown on a Wooly Bugger (WB) I have just recently learned how to use the WB. I tried to troll it at Battle Ground Lake, but I am not sure I am doing it right. I first put a sliding, clear bobber. Then a bead and then tied on a snap swivel. Attached to the snap swivel is a leader about 36" long with the WB on the end and the bobber half full of water. I cast out the line and then as I rowed I let additional line out until the bobber was about 60 feet behind me then I paddled the lake. First down the middle and then all around the shoreline. I had one hit down the middle, but failed to set the hook. That was it, I trolled for two or three hours stopping now and again to cast the WB and to fish with other lures and the trusty worm under a bobber. The worm was the only thing that got fish...too small for eating. Maybe I am trolling too fast/too slow, maybe I need more line out, maybe I need to weight the WB to go deeper...I do not know.

Any advice for a novice?

Most memorable fish

I never saw the only fish that ever stripped line from my reel. I was living in Sacramento and went with a buddy up to Yuba City to go salmon fishing, my first and only time. He caught and released one and I hooked and lost one. On the way home I was driving through all the rice fields and stopped every once in a while at an irrigation slough and fished for bass…my main target back then. I was under a bridge and there were signs of fishing there. A bucket, some trash and lots of footprints in the mud. I set up a bobber over a worm because the water was pretty shallow and I figured I would catch some gills. I found a sweet spot and caught 6 or 8 small ones and tossed them back. Then I tossed back to the same spot and missed by a few feet, dang, well as I was about to reel in to cast again my bobber splashed under. Line was stripping out of my reel like gangbusters. I had never had this happen before. I struggled with the fish for about ten minutes and then I decided my drag was set to loose, because I was not gaining on the fish so I reached over and turned the drag setting just a little to the right and bang the line snapped. Never saw the fish always assumed a cat fish.

The most memorable fish I ever actually caught was a bass. I had gone to an overnight outing with my wife’s work-mates. She was working as a legal secretary and the campout was at a lake and the flyer said “bring your boat” so I did. The lawyers all brought their big ski boats and such and I brought my 12’ double-hulled home-made fiberglass jon boat. My wife was kind of embarrassed, I think. We got there in the afternoon so I put the boat in to explore where I would fish in the am. I found a couple of good spots and when I returned there were a couple of the guys who said they would be interested in going with me. They all got drunk that night and no one would get up with me in the morning, so I went out alone. The only thing I remember about the whole day fishing is this one little cove I had spied out the day before. I approached it and cut the 6.5 hp motor and lifted it coasting into the cove filled on one end with lily pads as I drifted close in I cast my hula-popper right next to the pads and as it settled I popped it once and BANG it was sucked down. The fish fought well and broke the water once. It was my first largemouth bass. It was no bigger than my hand, but what a thrill…like it was yesterday.

As a side note I got in trouble with my wife when I told her I was going out after smartmouth bass and when her work-mates said there was no such thing…she defended me. What a gal I married!

Lacamas at night

What a frustrating night.
I went out to Lacamas at the old boat launch on the advise of some other fisherman to catch catfish. He said go at sundown and I was there at full dark and got skunked.
I was having a lot of trouble with my reel. The line kept tangling and I finally gave up on it and used my back-up rod and reel for a while and then just left...try again another time.

Friday Night

I do not know where I will go fishing tomorrow, if I go at all.

I could go out to Round Lake and catch a bunch of dink crappie and bluegill.

I could go out to Catapillar Island and catch a bunch of dink perch.

I could go out to Lacamas Lake and catch one freaking trout all day.

Where ever I go I have to go alone...God, I hate being alone. I wish I had a friend to fish with or talk to or hang out with.

Wooly Bugger II

I went out to Lacamas this morning. Got there about 8:00 a little late, but it was nice. There was a high fog. The temperature was moderate. The wind was light. I launched at the old WDFW boat ramp. The water is up to almost normal...maybe down 18-24 inches. I motored over to the mouth of the creek to try my new Wooly Bugger. With the water up I did not know exactly where the channel was so I fished "blind" for a half an hour or so with no result. I went back to the old reliable worm and bobber...same result.
I paddled up the creek to a bend where when the water was very low there was a small water fall. I tried the Wooly Bugger again (black and chartreuse) cast, retrieve very slow, repeat. I was pulling the lure/fly upstream where the fall was with a half-full clear bobber and about 36" of leader. I was just about to give up when BANG. I got a strike. It was very exciting. I am attaching a picture of the 12" Brown Trout. I do not know what the cut on his side is, but he tasted pretty good for my dinner tonight.

The Wooly Bugger

I am planning to see if Lacamas Lake is back up.

I was at Sportsman's Warehouse this week and as usual one of the fishing guys talked me into trying something new. First I was told to take these 3" lizards and properly rigged to a jig and tossed into any rocks on the Columbia a smouthmouth bass would be mine...garranteed! I did it with no results. Then I was sold a weedless jig with a black/purple/chartruese skirt and told to work that real slow accross the bottom of any cover and the bass would come running, could not fail. Lost it in about 6 casts.

This time I was sold a couple of nice big wooly buggers. I was told to string a clear bobber on my line then a small bead then tie a swivel clasp on. Tie the wolly bugger to a 36" leader and fill the bobber half way with water cast to cover or where ever I thought the trout were and use a slow retrieve. I am going to try that at the mouth of the creek at Lacamas...

...to be continued.

Waste of time

Wow, what a waste of time. Got up early this morning and had Matthew help me put the canoe on the Jeep. Remembered to charge the battery. Everything was great! Got to the slough and it was barely light. No problem getting into the water.
The problem was the water. It was lower than I have seen it and I heard one of the guys on a real fishing boat say that he had never seen it this low. I was going to try and catch some bass. I went out the night before and bought a "Rat-L-Trap" bass lure. I have crank baits that look like crawdads. I have a few colors of spinner baits. The water was only about four feet deep and clear as a bell. The water temp was...well, warmer than the air. I did not get any response to any of the lures I used.
I rigged a Trout Magnet and caught a few dinky perch. Then I went back to the area around where I fish at the boat launch and caught a bunch of dinky perch. Nothing big enough to eat.
I do better there when I fish from the bank. What a waste of time to bring the canoe, except that now I know not to bring it. I always go there and say to myself that I should have brought the canoe...cured that!
I stopped at Vancouver Lake on the way home because I always see cars parked like they are fishing there. I went to check it out and an old asian guy was going down and since I did not even know where to go I followed him...how goofy was that...he was stopping to pee in the bushes!
I went down where the fisherman were and they were congregating at the place where the slough that connects Vancouver Lake and The Mighty Columbia opens into the lake. A couple of the guys were using noodling poles. I have seen those in Wal-Mart for six or eight dollars and have wanted to try one. They were doing it wrong. They were all fishing less than ten feet from the shore. Very rocky and deep. I did notice sticks were setup for fishing at the mouth of the slough, must be for catfish or carp.
Well, I did not have a great day, but I did not get skunked. That is something, in'it.