"Reds, Rattletraps and Redemption"
Hit the water around 7:30. The plan was to target redfish. I started off trolling a chrome rattletrap towards the middle of the lake. It didn't take long to reach a school of redfish hitting the surface. I reeled in and casted in their direction hooking up after a few casts. Evidently my drag was not set correctly and when the red ran, my line snapped. I was a little frustrated but the mistake was mine. I was also using 10# test with no leader. I caught a 12# redfish a few weeks ago on this same setup but I now know I was very lucky to do so. A boat in the area hauled in two nice reds but I didn't get another bite. I headed off to troll the dam. Close to the buoys I landed a 21' redfish on a shad rattletrap. It was choppy, so I turned around at the buoys and headed back. No bites until I reached the kayak launch cove. This red ran immediately and took about all the line I had on my reel. The drag was set right (almost too right). I attempted to get the kayak to turn around as the red ran the opposite direction the kayak was facing. It wasn't happening. A last ditch effort, I put my thumb on the reel and paddled my butt off to get the Hobie to turn left. About the same time, Ol red decided he wanted to make another run. SNAP! Another redfish and rattletrap lost. This time I was more frustrated with the darn kayak and may have let everyone in the cove know about it (don't worry, all adult males so no vulgarity was shouted in the presence of women or children). Headed in not too long after as the frustration had reached its tipping point. Made a stop at the store to buy more rattletraps.
Was on the water by 6:40 the next morning. I knew the bite would be early and I didn't want to miss my chance at redemption. I paddled out to the same general area the fish had been the day before. I fan casted a chrome rattletrap (w/ a 20# test leader) and kept my eyes open for activity on the surface. I made sure my drag was set properly. Around 7:40 the reds moved in. I saw a couple roll on the surface within casting distance. A few casts later I hooked up to a nice 9# 26 inch redfish. Once the photo shoot was done I paddled back to the same area and began casting. It didn't take long to hook up again. This one was smaller but still put up a good fight. It came in at 21 inches. Trolled around for another hour before calling it a day. I found what I was after on this day. Redemption.
Hit the water around 7:30. The plan was to target redfish. I started off trolling a chrome rattletrap towards the middle of the lake. It didn't take long to reach a school of redfish hitting the surface. I reeled in and casted in their direction hooking up after a few casts. Evidently my drag was not set correctly and when the red ran, my line snapped. I was a little frustrated but the mistake was mine. I was also using 10# test with no leader. I caught a 12# redfish a few weeks ago on this same setup but I now know I was very lucky to do so. A boat in the area hauled in two nice reds but I didn't get another bite. I headed off to troll the dam. Close to the buoys I landed a 21' redfish on a shad rattletrap. It was choppy, so I turned around at the buoys and headed back. No bites until I reached the kayak launch cove. This red ran immediately and took about all the line I had on my reel. The drag was set right (almost too right). I attempted to get the kayak to turn around as the red ran the opposite direction the kayak was facing. It wasn't happening. A last ditch effort, I put my thumb on the reel and paddled my butt off to get the Hobie to turn left. About the same time, Ol red decided he wanted to make another run. SNAP! Another redfish and rattletrap lost. This time I was more frustrated with the darn kayak and may have let everyone in the cove know about it (don't worry, all adult males so no vulgarity was shouted in the presence of women or children). Headed in not too long after as the frustration had reached its tipping point. Made a stop at the store to buy more rattletraps.
Was on the water by 6:40 the next morning. I knew the bite would be early and I didn't want to miss my chance at redemption. I paddled out to the same general area the fish had been the day before. I fan casted a chrome rattletrap (w/ a 20# test leader) and kept my eyes open for activity on the surface. I made sure my drag was set properly. Around 7:40 the reds moved in. I saw a couple roll on the surface within casting distance. A few casts later I hooked up to a nice 9# 26 inch redfish. Once the photo shoot was done I paddled back to the same area and began casting. It didn't take long to hook up again. This one was smaller but still put up a good fight. It came in at 21 inches. Trolled around for another hour before calling it a day. I found what I was after on this day. Redemption.