First River Striper!! And, Some PBs

[NorthJerzyG]

Started a long weekend yesterday so I took a ride out to try for some big trout. Gauge readings were showing above average flows but the temps looked good. When I got there the water looked to fast to wade and I considered leaving to find some smaller water. Figured, since I was there, might as well take a few casts....

First cast, first spot, Boom, fish on! Fish felt pretty good so I'm thinking it must be a 20" + trout. Finally get him in after a nice fight and see it's a....... STRIPER!! My first ever and out of trout stream no less. Over the next 10 casts, I hooked 3 and landed 2 more. Biggest went 18-20", a NEW PB, lol, and had been eating well!! The one I lost may have been bigger but shook of my barbless hoooks. I'm assuming these where Big D stripes that swam up a trib to escape the high muddy waters, but I didn't think there where still stripers in the D this time of year??

Decided to stay a while and work my way downstream in search of more. Soon after I fought and lost a pretty heafty bow right at my feet. Couple casts later, I had my F5 rapala just floating downstream when something practically jumped out of the water to grab it. Thought it was another trout, but ended up being my PB fallfish, lol. Decided to get a quick pic, set my phone down, and realeased it. After a few seconds of searching, noticed I had realeased my phone into the river as well!!! Grabbed it and dried it of quickly but it had gone black......

Almost called it day after that but kept going. Picked up another bow and a small smallie before calling it a day. Got home and left my phone out in the sun for a few hours, occasionally flipping it like a burger, and sure enough, it came right back on!! Drowning my phone almost ruined my first striper experience, almost............

.......

..........

........