Sun, easterly wind and missed takes

Rick, his girlfriend Lisa and I went out in good spirits without a real plan or target. Just fishing. I had just come back from a three week break and had not really had a chance to fish myself. Luckily I know the river well, so that should not be an issue. It was fresh in the morning and the wind did not help. We started with shads to approach the spot gently, then switched to progressively louder lures. It stayed quiet for a long time, too long really, and the first spot did not even produce a take. I had been hopeful about doing well early, because my experience of warm sunny weather in the middle of the day is not exactly good.

It turned out to be a stiff start, and only after two hours of fishing did the first fish come into the boat. A good zander took a fairly hefty spinnerbait of Rick's.

We ran a good way further downstream to a classic zander spot. It lies reasonably sheltered and there is always a fish to be had there. First cast Rick got a hard tap, but sadly he forgot to set the hook. After two more missed takes I decided to make a cast myself. I do not often fish along, because I think it matters that I pay attention and make sure my guests get bites, but now the itch got the better of me. I hooked up immediately and a small zander hung on the other end of the line. Sadly that turned out to be the last bite and it was time to move.

So we had collected a fair number of takes, but they were not convincing. It was hard work in the sun and the wind. The wind was exactly wrong for a good drift, so I had my hands full steering. We went to fish in the lee on a little spot where I rarely if ever fish, but it looked promising. The first bite followed quickly, but it was missed. After another three or four misses Lisa finally caught her fish. A nice pike came up neatly in front of the boat.

Added up we got plenty of action, but the takes were half-hearted and would not hold. Just before the end Rick landed one more small pike, but beyond that their determination brought nothing more. Rick and Lisa, it was a pleasure to have you aboard, and you worked extremely hard to get those fish over the line.