Round Valley 12/1

[cmoran719]

Started out by myself at 4:30AM at Round Valley. Fished with two fellas sharing the point with me. First bite in the dark came from one of their slip bobbers and it was a short. Shortly after my bobber goes under and I have a fish on the line, though moments before landing he gets unhooked! AGHH, Me: 0 Trout: 1. Some time passes and my bobber goes under again, and this time he stays on. Get him in the net with some help from my new friends, 16" brown. OH YEA! Score 1-1.

The game continues, next fish comes on the rainbow powerbait. Solid 15" rainbow. As soon as he's netted my other pole with a shiner on the bottom goes off. Pick up the rod and a swing and a miss!! UGH!! Score 2-2. Some time passes, one of the fellas gets a brown hooked in the weeds and he gets snagged up, lost the fish. Next bite my rod doubles over hard, rod comes flying back up before I get a hand on it and fish is gone. 2-3. Shorty after I'm trying live lining in the weeds near the rocks when my rod doubles over in the distance on the point. SPRINTING TIME!!! As I'm doing my world record 40yd dash I see the fish jump and my rod is going all over the place, my adrenaline pumping hard. I get to the rod and the fish is ON. Another solid bow, this time 16" and fat. Zach M happened to be walking across the rocks as this happened. Score 3-3.

The next hour passes with nothing but a gentle nibble on anyone's rod. Zach B and his girlfriend show up as well in the meantime. Eventually Zach M gets a solid strike followed by another swing and miss. More time passes with nothing happening. Then comes the best, or worst depending on how you look at it, moment of the day. Zach B says "Where are the fish?" and within seconds they answer. My rod doubles over HARD with my tip reaching the water, the pole nearly flying out of the rod holder. I scream HOLY SHIT with such immediacy as though the words were an instinctual response. Off to the rod I race and the fish is ON...... for a moment. With one solid jump moments after hooking him the fish is off. Our hearts slow just as quickly as they raced. This strike was one I'll never forget. It was the type of strike that keeps you coming back no matter how many times you get skunked. It's what we anglers live for. Though that strike made the score 3-4, I consider it a win. Cause who's keeping score anyway...?