Little side trips

Monday I started a school for my new job in my command's safety department. It was to last only three days, but the break from the grind was much appreciated. Since it was a "typical 'old school' Navy school" we mustered late and secured early every day. This was a good thing! Not only would it allow me the opportunity to do school work it afforded me some time to do some bank fishing.

I didn't take the kayak out because Danielle had the truck at work (I know...). That was okay because sometimes you just have to go back to where it all began. Standing on a bank and tossing a line in. Tuesday I went to NAS Oceana's lake for about an hour or so. I didn't catch anything, but the beautiful part was that I had the entire lake to myself! So I took the opportunity to try some new lures out and make sure I knew what to expect the next time I used them for real. Again, nothing caught but the time was well spent and greatly appreciated.

Wednesday I went to "The Pipe" on Mill Landing Rd. It is a little honey hole I found while fishing on Nanny Creek. A culvert pipe runs under the road from one side to the other. Depending on how the wind is blowing a current flows through the pipe. If you are on the Nanny Creek side, and there is current flowing into the creek, then the bite is usually on and big fish start chasing little fish. On the other side of the road it isn't as obviously visible if the bite is on. But I know there are some good fish over there.

If you choose to fish from the bank you can "dance the road", hopping from one side to the other. That is what I did for a couple of hours. I could see the commotion of feeding going on, but it wasn't consistent like it has been in the past. The total fish count for the day was three missed strikes, two Yellow Perch, two largemouth bass, and one huge extremely mad Chain Pickerel. I lost one spinner bait and one crank bait that the Chain Pickerel stole when it cut my line with his teeth. It was okay with me, though, due to the fact that the bill on the crank bait broke off some way, somehow in the fight. Nothing was a keeper. Well, the Pickerel was, but who keeps those? Just a good time tossin and crankin!