Total amateur move!

[Bottomfeeder]

Got out of work early and was psyched for some bonus fishing time! Head down below Farrington Lake and set up right under the dam, get ready to play with the Husky Jerk, which I feel I'm on the verge of mastering and I'm feeling great. First cast, go to reel it in, SNAGGED! It's stuck good. Not gonna lose that lure, Im in too good a mood. So I ditch my shoes and socks and start heading in there. After creeping in up to my waist I see my lure caught on a big branch! Its pretty deep though and pretty close to that dam So I grab the line and give it a good yank, and snap the line!

Now for the amateur part.
Keep fishing with a bunch of different soft plastic stuff and Im getting lots of hits, but nothing taking it. Trying different things and different spots for about an hour, same thing lots swinging and missing. Just want to catch a fish switch to live worms I had with me. Every cast came back without a worm or a fish! My bonus time has dwindled down to about 30 minutes. Go to another spot, tie on a cheap rubber frog and cast it along the bank under a tree and boom! Something starts swimming out and down and around and even breaks the surface then starts ripping drag! I've only been fishing for 6 months and have yet to really catch a real good size fish, but this is it. So Im doing my thing and its doing its thing and I'm pumped and then I see it and it is pretty big, not huge, but big by my standards! This one Id actually post a pic of on here. So I pause and dig around for my phone and turn the camera. Fish still on. Think to myself, I shoukd get my pliers because I've never dealt with a fish this big. Back up about twenty yards to where my stuff is and get the pliers. Camera and pliers ready, time to land this beast! Boom! Line goes limp! And there goes my monster swimming away!! Guess she got tired of waiting while I was putzing around like an AMATEUR!
Live and learn, next time I'm taking the hook out with my hand and no pictures!

[Bicey]

Bummer........but lesson learned! First thing above everything, land that fish! Keep working you get some bigguns!

[njfish4life]

Welcome to "the one that got away" club.. we have all been there. You can ask any fisherman and they can all tell you stories of the big fish they landed and the even bigger one that got away. Keep at it and I will keep my eyes out for your first monster pic.

Fish it up.

[gwl2oneida]

Fished the ramapo in May. I lost 2 lures in 2 casts. Left after that and headed to Gander to replace them so I wouldn't be reminded of that day every time I open tackle box.

[rob]

hah that's pretty funny. I caught one my first cast today but it snapped my line right before I landed it.

As a fellow amateur I think there are a lot of factors here...first being knot tying, second being understanding drag.

I think my knot tying is okay but I also think I screwed up my line. Lost my clippers and had to use a cheap, small knife the other day. Line wouldn't cut clean and instead ended up making my line all wavy (like when you see those little girls with ribbons in their hair and their mom's use scissors to make them curl). So now my line just doesn't feel smooth, gets caught when casting, and Im guessing that has a lot to do with losing fish.

I suck, too. So don't feel bad. You'll get em.

I also lost 3 full plastic worms w/ hooks and sinkers today. Not the end of the world compared to lures, but I bought a 5 pack of brand new Gamakatsu's and lost the last three in an hour span.

[Lard Almighty]

It doesn't matter how long you've been fishing, we all have days like that from time to time. Just keep at it, you'll have your lunker someday.

[Eskimo]

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Great post. I agree that social media has changed the way we deal with catch & release.

These are my thoughts when I hook a big bass:

1) Oh please, just let me see it.

2) C'mon, If I touch the leader it counts as a 'catch'!

3) Wow - this is big! I have to post it on Facebook.

4) Where is my phone?

5) Okay, don't get the phone wet or drop it in the water (again). The replacement cost is over $600.

6) (Camera is on -fish out of water) Is the whole fish in the frame? Is my face in the frame? What the hell am I wearing? Should I take off my glasses? Should I smile?

7) Where is the sun? I don't want the sun the be hind me when I shoot the pic. Do I need to spin the kayak to get the sun right?

8) Decent. One more pic. Okay.

9) Now, we release the fish.






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[rob]

Hah that's a pretty good list.

For me, getting a picture is all about being able to show it to my dad. I think it's the only thing I can do that makes him think he didn't fail miserably with me!! haha

[Bottomfeeder]

Thanks.for the encouragement guys! I learned long ago the importance of being able to laugh at yourself. I will be back at it
this evening!