Heavy Lifting

[Pete Collin]

Hello All,

 

Was supposed to work today, got an 11th hour reprieve so I launched in the wee hours by myself.  No time to find a boatmate (sorry Isaac!)

 

I learned a lesson from my last couple of trips.  You are far better off taking the time to search for good concentrations of fish before you start jigging than to go to where you found them before and hope for the best.  The early hours are often magic, so you tend to get over-eager to bounce a leadhead somewhere rather than prospecting.  This morning was calm enough that I could putt just upwind of a blip and target a single fish that way.  Got 2 like that, but realized that it was a lot of work and if I just looked around I would find a carpet of lakers with my name on it.  Motor along the contour, check the screen.  Motor deep, check the screen.  Motor in shallower, check the screen.  You can catch suprise lakers on a blank screen, but a good bounty of fish can not hide themselves from your sonar.  Friends make fun of me for "watching the TV" too much, but I believe that my graph will show me the way.

 

It was still pretty early when I found the screen that I was looking for.  Out go the drift bags, the net handle gets extended, I don the posture of John Henry about to drive a rail spike.  I bounced and cranked among the blips......and nothing happened!  What happened next would test the faith of any jigger.  Two different charter boats passed by.  They came close, wanting to chat with me because you see so few jiggers out there.  Both boats hooked up just as they drew abreast.  The second boat hung a double.  "Boy, I bet that's fun when you do catch one!" shouted one of the captains.  Fun indeed.  No idea why trolling would crush when jigging didn't.  I swiTched to a spoon, thinking that would be more like what they were using.  I did catch a few, but wasn't really connecting like I thought I should.  This is where the doubt sets in.  "Should I stow the jigging rod and troll?"  This nagged me for a little while until the strike came that refused to budge off the bottom.  Pump, crank, pump, crank, big surge for the bottom that gives back everything I gained.  Headshakes and thrashes at boatside that confound a one handed net job.  Finally get him in - a 34 incher.  Lovely!  The downriggers can stay where they are.  This is what jigging is all about!

 

I had a steady pick for the rest of the morning.  It was funny - The wind was perfect for sending me along a contour at just the right speed with 2 bags out.  There were times I went an hour without having to pick up and move.  But while I thought I would only have to go upwind at the same depth, I'd often find the fish weren't where I just left them.  Either the wind shifted ever so subtly, or the whole mass of lakers was roaming around down there and I had to find them.  Either way, I had to make sure I didn't begin drifting until I saw a good screen.

 

What became exciting as my head count grew, was that the bite got better the longer I stayed there!  I began with changing lures, colors, sizes to try and make those blips show me something.  As noon approached, it got way easier.   You would get a hard strike anytime you put the jig into a group of fish!  All that varying of color, size and presentation.  And when it all comes down to it, when they feel like biting, that's what they do.  On Keuka Lake, land of the 2-4 pound laker, you can rack up big numbers when all those fish decide to bite.  But these Ontario fish - each one is such a tug of war to land.  I have had 40 fish days on Keuka.  I believe I could have gotten 40 fish to bite this morning.  But play and land that many?  Not without some training in the gym!  20 fish seemed like a nice arbitrary goal to hit before I quit for the day.  I carry a clicker counter, and had 13 fish tallied so was well on my way with oodles of lakers still under my hull.  But that 14th fish made me decide to head in despite the bite still being on.

 

Fish 14 wouldn't come off the bottom.  Didn't like being pressured upward one bit.  Didn't respect my drag.  Shook his head like a crocodile.  I played him with all the hopes and dreams a jigger can have.  I needed to see him.  I could never forgive myself if he broke me off.  Up he came....slowly.  Eventually I saw the knot for the leader.  he was still under the hull.  I readied the net.  Here comes his head, in the hoop he goes, and suddenly it was like I was trying to haul a wet labrador retriever on board.

 

He was so big and old that he was actually greyed up.. like that same labrador retriever after his eyes go cloudy.  He was so much bigger than every laker that I have ever caught that is was just stunning.  He kicked and wriggled as I brought him to the measuring tape that is decaled to the gunnel.  It used up all the numbers.  Man oh man.  With 10 pound line and a bass rod bought at Wal Mart for 11 dollars, I landed a 40 inch lake trout!

 

What was the point of continuing after that?  My arms and back didn't need another go, and I already had the day I had dreamed all winter for.  The only thing that would have made it perfect was a picture.  Alas, forgot camera on the passenger seat and the cell phone on the night stand.  With a 3:00AM wakeup buzzer, I'm lucky I remembered to hitch up the trailer!  I'll have to go back with a partner and we can blaze away with flash bulbs.  There's plenty of summer left.

 

Pete Collin

 

www.pcforestry.com

[Xxx]

Excellent job and story, I'll bet that will be in the memory book for ever, congrats on your banner day and let many more come to you. I can't imagine the expression on your face when you finally saw that hawg,40" is a very stout fish and a wall hanger at least!!! Great job man!!!!

[Flanman]

Pete - I've done my share of jigging on the finger lakes with moderate to great success. I've tried Lake Ontario 3 times now and tried cabelas jigs and both 1 and 1.5 oz jig heads with paddle tails that work on Keuka and Cayaga but I can't get it to go. I am really anxious to get it to work on browns, lakers, and salmon. The screen was very strange today in 65-120 as in loosely formed bait with some hooks but not what I'm used to seeing. Your post gave me a lot of encouragement to keep trying. Did you catch all lakers? I know guys catch browns on the butterfly jigs but I still need to get some. I use 1 oz cast masters on Keuka in the fall with good success - I'm going to try that next. I am running about 35 feet of Floro between the lure and braid.

Thanks so much for this post. It will keep me trying.

Flanman

[Roughrider IV]

Excellent story to read, gotta try jigging them here in jersey one day.

[cdgn troller]

Congrats Pete and great story. I was surprised to see you again but after that story I'm sure we'll see you at the launch more often. We ended up running deep and after about 2 hours with no releases we were second guessing our 30 minute motor but we found the steel head and kings. We quit around 11 and ended with 4 kings and 7 rainbows. Good luck out there!!

[cdgn troller]

Sorry I double posted

Edited July 21, 2014 by cdgn troller

[woody 184]

Pete, your story was awesome. I've tried jigging on Lake O and it's a chore but the rewards are sweet. Nice job. Woody

[john1947]

Some years ago I sort of gigged a nice king up 90 ft. off the bottom.I was trolling a copper sutton 38 and had a flutterfly 38 brass and silver on a cheater line.Somehow I got hung on bottom and yanked and yanked .The king hit the butterfly and the battle was on .Thirty minuetes later it was tired enough to net.If you could get those butterflys down they would do the job.I still catch many kings on 38 silver and brass. This was one of my sure  luresI used evryday trolling.But then I hardly ran myself much over 2 unlesss I usd hordes,js,or diamond kings.

Tomorrws ticket is hordes over diamond kings in close.Keep you posted.

[reeleyz]

Great read!

Sent from my iPhone using Lake Ontario United mobile app

[Gatorbait]

Great story. What's your guess on the weight of the big one. That's just a beast !

[momay4000]

Awesome story Pete - great narrative!!

 

- Chris

[justtracytrolling]

Thanks for the read....very enjoyable and good report.

[Sk8man]

I guess my previous post on this got dumped when the server had problems but basically Pete I said you should be writing a fishing column for the newspaper or magazine fishing pieces ...very captivating description and incredible fish....   Les

[Pete Collin]

Les, I wrote a fly fishing column in the Livingston County News for a couple of years. It was fun seeing my words in print. But I got paid 10$ per column. Took an average of 3 hours to write. Got tough when I had real work to do and a deadline approached. I'd have no idea how to market myself as a writer. We'll stick to timber work and telling you fine people whenever I have a good day!

[Sk8man]

[panfisher]

Great story Pete.....   And a wonderful day of fishing. I still have to get out there and try the jigging for those lakers on the Big O...... You have taken me there with your post!!....... A 40 incher? Got to be 25lbs+......!

[GAMBLER]

 A 40 incher? Got to be 25lbs+......!

I would say so.  The 24.11 I have mounted on my wall was 39 3/4" and the 34.06 on my wall was 43 3/8" long.  Awesome story and catch!

[panfisher]

Yup.....depending on the girth.......

[FLXTroutman]

Excellent storyteller that Mr. Collin.  All me mateys are spoiled for the bounty that Lady O giveth to them that seek her beauty.

[Kevin J Legg]

Great story. Thanks for sharing. I've jigged them in the Finger Lakes but I think it's time for me to try Lake O as it's a fun way to fish and that's what it's all about.

[Gatorbait]

A

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