A Monday 3/11 Passaic Report

[PGAProfishional]

Gents,

I had the day off today and had planned to fish the Passaic with my adopted son(joking), njbassman. Little did I know he had gotten into a bad car wreck, in VT, over the weekend. He's fine, thank god, but he's a little sore. Drop him a line...

My Wingman was down, but certainly not out!

I decided to get out there and take advantage of the nice weather.

"The sea was angry that day my friends,...like an old man trying to send back soup at a deli" - George, Seinfeld


Obviously I'm kidding...Water levels seem to be falling compared to levels during the past couple weeks. Clarity was pretty good considering the recent storm (Snow Melt). Water temp was 41, according to my thermometer. Birds were chirping, a couple spiders crawled onto my tackle bag, and trees are beginning to bud. It's nice to see some early sights of spring.

I explored some new spots and tried some different techniques. I was able to hook up to 3 fish today but unfortunately landed only one. Cool thing, even though I lost 2 fish, I did see each one. That counts right! j/k

All Caught Using:
6'8'' St. Croix Mojo Bass Wacky Style Rod
Okuma Hardstone Spinning Reel
15lb PowerPro Braid
15'' 15lb Spiderwire EZ Fluoro attached using an albright knot as leader
Everything was hooked on a Johnson Silver Minnow with a 3'' Grub Trailer


Sorry for the Sloppy Pics fellas, I was alone and forgot my camera, so had to substitute with my Iphone and stretch my arm as far as I could

I landed this 20+'' today...
http://i1325.photobucket.com/albums/u638/PGAProfishional/IMG_0100_zpsd69ec984.jpg
Another Pic Same Fish...
http://i1325.photobucket.com/albums/u638/PGAProfishional/IMG_0101_zpsbfd42fd0.jpg


Cheers Ladies and Gentlemen,

Violent Hook sets!

[awavefromher]

nice, 15 lb fluro not getting bit off ?

[PGAProfishional]

nice, 15 lb fluro not getting bit off ?

No my friend, 15lb works perfectly fine. Trust me, Fluorocarbon is pretty tough. I cast the stuff into all sorts of nasty, thick cover and it performs really well. You can use a higher pound test with great results also. I'd try to stay under 30lbs though.

Pike have some sharp needle like teeth and the Fluoro always stays intact. Just make sure you adjust your drag accordingly and don't try to "horse" the fish in.

Monofilament will absorb water and in turn increase in breakability, and decrease casting distance. Fluorocarbon is almost invisible to fish, does not absorb water, which results in softer casting presentations and further casting distance. Fluoro will hold its strength and sink faster than mono. Lastly, Fluorocarbon will not "breakdown" in extreme UV light situations.

Don't get me wrong, you will have to retie, and check for abrasion, but Fluoro is nothing like Mono. You'll be surprised how well it holds up

I highly recommend using FLUOROCARBON as a leader.


One major piece of advise. On a rainy day; Practice you knot tying skills, and what specific type of knot to use in a given situation. It will pay off tremendously. Poor knot tying is a large reason, if not the number one reason, for missed fished and line breakage.

Hope that Helped

[Skunk City]

Nice fish and good report.

[PGAProfishional]

Nice fish and good report.

Nothing like the Lunkers you and your buddy have been pulling in!

Awesome "Big Momma's" Thread bro.

No B.S., thanks for the inspiration. Hope to catch up with you soon.

[bunker dunker]

Sweet!!!!!!! Nice Fish

[Skunk City]

Nothing like the Lunkers you and your buddy have been pulling in!

Awesome "Big Momma's" Thread bro.

No B.S., thanks for the inspiration. Hope to catch up with you soon.

Haha thanks dude! Got a nice 35" from the kayak on Sunday, but definitely not the numbers from last weekend. We'll see what the Spring brings.

[Buschwacker]

Nice catch ... congrats!

[basspilot]

Great report and nice looking fish! I hit it yesterday near two bridges and it was pretty much dead. I lost something huge working a jig on the bottom kind of gave me the impression of a super letargic bass or a pike that didn't quite relize it had been hooked yet. None the less it popped off and I got the skunk but I'm glad to see someone was catching them yesterday.

[Skunk City]

Great report and nice looking fish! I hit it yesterday near two bridges and it was pretty much dead. I lost something huge working a jig on the bottom kind of gave me the impression of a super letargic bass or a pike that didn't quite relize it had been hooked yet. None the less it popped off and I got the skunk but I'm glad to see someone was catching them yesterday.

I'd guess snagged Carp. They've been stacking up like crazy lately. Yesterday I had three consecutive casts that came back with a big ass Carp scale on my lure. The fight will make you think its a state record Pike until you see that big gold fish wearing your lure lol.

[tycomps]

http://www.pikehead.com/PikeHandling.aspx

[njfisherman1975]

Nice pike there...was up at two bridges Sunday afternoon without a touch. Grew jointed rapala and a daredevle for a while with nothing to show...

[NorthJerzyG]

Nice One!!

I also........... hit the river yesterday. First time out using sonar and prob spent more time cruising around marking spots than fishing lol.

Ended up hooking one decent pike that charged in and hit a swimbait at the last second. Fought hard enough to shake loose boatside. Then we had a larger pike lazily follow a slow reeled baitfish right up to the boat and then turn and swim away.........:mad:

Strong currents kinda made it tough but not impossible. Not an action packed day but nice to be out.

http://i1092.photobucket.com/albums/i419/NorthjerzyG/IMAG0441.jpg

[buzzbaiter]

River will be going up,up,up over the next three days. I think it might be July before it reaches the levels I like(<300 cfs). I may need to go waaaay upstream to find clear water.

[njbassman]

You hurt that fish squeezing it like that! It probably wont spawn now if it lived through the trauma... not to mention the anguish I feel everytime i look at the picture of you holding it so carelessly. And I can't stop going back for another look... did you really need two pictures?

[AndyS]

It looks a lot like the Millstone and they stock pike in there also.