Caught a nice size Catfish while fishing our local lake – Lake Lavon. Caught it on juglines fished in 10 feet of water. Caught other smaller Catfish; the largest went 32 inches! Was fishing from a kayak.
Decided it was better to and it at the boat ramp. For this podcast, we summarize the trip and point out some key lessons learned to take with us on the next trip!
See our Podcast Page at iFishNews Fishing Podcast.
Do check it out when you get a chance!
Last week made a quick pond fly fishing trip to Bethany Lakes. Used the MaxCatch 2wt fly rod but this time went with a 2wt WF fly line instead of the Rio Trout Max skagit head.
Fun time after finding the Bluegill that were lurking mid-pond. But, had to call it short when I lost the Foam Spider they were liking… did get a little Bass to hit a Near Deere though!
Do check it out when you get a chance!
Fun time juglining and kayak fishing Lake Lavon Saturday. Even caught a personal best Blue Catfish from a kayak… went 30 plus inches!
Did catch a bigger one several years ago on Lake Lavon but that was in a jon boat and with a fishing buddy. This one was caught and landed by yours truly!
Lots of fun… had to make a run to shore to land it. Lots of winds and waves and no net; did not want to risk losing it trying to land it in the kayak.
Longer than normal video… includes details on the kayak jug lines used and setting up the first group of three jug lines.
In keeping with the COAF Field Team’s motto… “Learn to fish by our trials and errors”
This round we review the GoFish Cam! We purchased the GoFish Cam to replace our lost Water Wolf Camera. After tinkering with it and taking out on several fish scouting trips; here is our an initial impression of the GoFish Cam – specifically, what we like, would like and really like!
Do check it out when you get a chance!
Fun time at Lake Lavon fishing juglining for Catfish. Made modification to flagging juglines to better see when a catfish struck. Put in at Lavon’s Highland Park after catching shad at the boat ramp. Three of us went fishing; team managed to catch three Catfish and one Gar.
Overall, liking the modified juglines… but may need to try fishing with Circle Hooks; this round used J-Hooks and had several strikes but no hookups.
More to come!
More GoFish Cam Fish Scouting at the local pond. Was sidetracked from scouting for fish with the GoFish Cam when five hot air balloons were passing by. One seemed to be low but quickly climbed higher.
Still learning the GoFish Cam but am liking the ability to scout likely areas holing fish. This round added a plastic tube to keep the baited hook from landing close to the lens and blocking our view of the area… seems to work.
Mainly Bluegill and Sunfish again, but did get a glimpse of a Bass passing by!
Do check back for more GoFish Cam Fish Scouting!
Went fishing at Lake Lavon. Caught three Catfish and a Gar fishing juglines. Put in at Lake Lavon’s Highland Park around 8AM; bite did not start till around 10AM. Do check back will get a video posted; able to put the GoFish Cam on one of the juglines… hopefully, will see a fish or two!
Took the GoFish Cam camera yesterday for another round of scouting the local pond for what is lurking below. Had some catfish strike a doughbait but forgot to turn the GoFish Cam recording on. Lesson learned… went back this morning to scout the same spots plus a drainage channel that we know holds fish.
Still have some adjustments to make with the GoFish Cam and its setup but did manage to capture the underwater action to include a bass that had a Panther Martin inline spinner in its mouth!
Do stay tuned for more as we seek out other areas to go scouting with the GoFish Cam!
This round we talk about cast nets and catching bait… shad in particular. Recently, we learned we could freeze shad for use at other lakes. That said, it’s has been hit or miss catching them. But, we do have a few bags ready to go for our next fishing trip.
Do check out this week’s podcast where we talk about where, how, and why we cast net for bait!
For a change of pace, decided to checkout the Waterfall Pool at the local pond. Normally catch little Sunfish, Bluegill, and the occasional Bass.
Brought the two-piece Micro Fly Rod and started fishing a Near Deere with the Corq Strike Indicator, but switched back to the Line Strike Indicator… fish seemed to be distracted from the fishing fly and wanting to strike the Corq.
Also, tied a Scud on as the Near Deere was just too big for the little fish in the pool.
Fun time catching and releasing the scrappy fish… but of course, had trouble with determining which cast would be the last cast for this trip… aka “one more cast” for your’s truly!
Made it back to Lavon Sunday for more cast net fun. Was working the beach area at Brockdale. Was able to wade further out until the water felt cooler and cast.
Caught smaller Shad compared to the ones caught at Highland. Did shift to Highland and was able to add more Shad, filling a Ziploc bag.
Was using an 8ft diameter cast net that we repaired. Did get the chance to try a fishing buddy’s 14ft diameter cast net earlier in the week.
It’s heavy but sure covers lots of water!
Had a tough time catching shad for bait Thursday at Highland Park on Lake Lavon. With Charlie watching things and urging us on… was able to net enough Shad to fill a Ziploc Bag… in only 37 casts! At least it was a good workout!
Did observe windy conditions, and the water was unusually warm as if you were in a bathtub. This may have impacted the Shad and their wanting to tend to a windward shoreline. Spot we tried has been a consistent producer of Shad in the past.
Caught some nice size Shad; just took a lot of strikeouts to finally get enough to fill a pint size Ziploc bag.
No worries… bait will come in handy for upcoming fishing trips!
This video answers the mail – a YouTube Viewer requested we show the hand hold we used in the video One Rod, No Reel.
The intent of the One Rod, No Reel was to show quality fly line was more important than the fly reel, and the suggestion was to focus more on a quality fly line, followed by the fly rod, and then the fly reel for most fishing situations.
In One Rod, No Reel, we used a premium but old 5wt WF Fly line that we have since retired… keeping about 8 yards of the forward portion of the fly line, attaching it to a short section of dacron backing, and a rubber band.
We then attached the rubber band to the rod handle, and then demonstrated casting without a fly reel as well as catching a trout or two at a local pond.
To answer the mail, we removed the 4wt fly reel that was zip tied to an Orvis Practicaster, and used the heavy “rope like” practice line that came with it to show the hand hold used.
And since, we still had the fly line used in the One Rod, No Reel video, decided to show it can be cast using the short three foot Orvis Practicaster, too!
Do check it out!
PS: Appended the On Rod, No Reel video to the end of the demo for ease of reference.
Mixing things up with the catch and cook recipes. This time going to cook the Catfish we caught Sunday at the local lake using a Blackened Fish Recipe.
Recipe calls for the following:
Pan fry preferably in a cast iron skillet using a 1/4 stick of butter and olive oil. Cook 1″ to 2″ for thin fillets, 3″ to 4″ minutes for thicker fillets on high heat. Fillets are done when white and flaky. Cook in 1″ increments each side if fillet does not flake with a fork.
Do try it out first chance you get… it’s tasty!
Posted an earlier video that shows the items we like to keep at the ready in our kayak fishing jacket.
As a follow-up, decided to grab the jacket and show the items we currently have pocketed away like… a whistle, extra line, multi-tool, etc!
Do check it out!
Here is the follow-on video of yesterday’s kayak fishig trip to Lake Lavon. Bought new kayak fishing sandals from the Columbia Allen Outlet Store to replace the ones that “blew a flat” last year.
Had to give them a “test drive” and take them fishing. Decided on putting in at Lavonia South Ramp. Lots of boats and jet skis but did manage to catch a nice Catfish, several Yellow Bass, and a Crappie.
All caught bottom bouncing a Slab and Jig Rig by backpaddling the kayak along a drop off near the boat ramp.
Fun stuff… do stay tune for more videos and be on the lookout for the new kayak fishing sandals, our footwear of choice in the Summer!
Been missing the kayaking sandals but finally found the replacement pair – Columbia’s Ridgeway!
Water shoes were not cutting it; this will be our fourth pair of Columbia Sandals – First two were Santiams (I think), third one was the Riptide, and this one is a Ridgeway.
Columbia is our favorite for fishing shirts and kayaking sandals…. will see how the Ridgeway works out this season and on!
In the past, the sandals stay secure, can get wet but not slippery, and makes a cool tan line when you take them off!
Do stay tuned for more kayak fishing videos… and be on the lookout for the Kayak Fishing Sandals!
Made it to Lavon for a chance at an evening round of kayak fishing the point at Brockdale Park. Another hot day but luckily not too hot to stop us from fishing!
Arrived at the boat ramp with only one other boat at the park. Quick launch and was on the lake trolling shortly after.
Fished a couple of hours without a strike, then shifted to the back paddling technique where we paddle the kayak backwards, and let the slab and jig rig bounce bottom. Managed to avoid a strikeout by getting one Yellow Bass.
No worries… best thing about kayak fishing, can always get a workout in at least!
Posted video of the trip, and then added past video from a trip last year that shows more details on the back paddling technique. Do check it out!
Monday made the run late in the day to Bethany Lakes. Was trying the Bennett’s Lunch fishing fly we picked up in Gruene a few weeks ago. Late start because the temps were hot that day… in the 100s, opted to wait till just before dark.
No takers on the Bennett’s Lunch, will have to keep trying as we know it is a great pattern for Stripers and Bass. Did catch a couple of Bluegill on the Foam Spider using the Discount Switch Rod – Maxcatch Fly Rod, Orvis Fly Reel, and Rio Trout Max.
Throw back Wednesday to celebrate “Hump Day” and get us through the midweek blues… how about a catch and cook of trout we caught last season?
Froze the trout in ice, and they stayed as fresh as the day we caught them last Winter. Used a Rubber Legged Near Deere to get them to strike!
For cooking, decided to try a new recipe – Pan Fried Habanero Trout!
Ingredients:
Directions:
