All posts by Christopher Kuhn

Bass

Bass and Panfish Poppin’

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Here Fishy Fishy!

Taking advantage of the near 70-degree highs that we experienced on Saturday, the Moose Knuckle crew headed out to a legendary lake in Sussex County. We were expecting to catch a few Sunfish, maybe a Crappie and at best a juvenile Bass. What came to pass was a Panfish Slay Ride not witnessed since early in the fall of last year.

Panfish Slay Ride

The neighbors graciously allowed us to borrow one of the 12-foot Aluminum hull rowboats dry-docked along the shore. We brought our own electric trolling motor, a necessity if you want to fish and not row yourself to exhaustion.

Mark was spin fishing primarily with a two inch Rapala Floater; I of course, commenced throwing my Mohair Leech. We put in around 1:00 PM with blue skies and the bright sun overhead. As one would expect, our shadows spread far and wide, disclosing our approach early to the sluggish fish.

Crappie ferociously swam up from deep below

Besides a few Crappies nailed right at the put in, we messed around for a while attempting to comprehend the underwater ecosystem. Whilst conducting our exploration of the lake, Mark and I landed around ten Sunfish each. Then it dawned on us, fish are cold blooded, the water is chilly and the sun is hot. We motored straight back to the shallow, swampy, and most importantly warm flat-water section of the lake.

Head to the Flats

Here as we navigated the partially submerged stumps and the militant Swan, Mark landed his largest Bass of the year; that is until he caught the next three after that. Myself refusing to admit defeat to the Rapala Floater, switched to a Muddler Minnow. This quick fly change was rewarded with a few more Sunfish. At this point, I was intent on catching one of these Bass I pulled out of my arsenal an old standby, the Black Hale-Bopp Leech.

Chunky Bass landed on a Rapala Floater

Just as I switched flies again, Mark landed another Bass! Consumed, with a feeling of pressure, an intense biological demand to get my fly in the water; I cast out to the shallows as far as my Sage VXP 4 weight rod could go and hooked right into a log.

I attempted to free my hook from the “log” but it started moving back and forth like a tractor through the algae. There was a Bass at the other end of the line! At this point, it should be noted that when a Bass swallows a leech dangled on a 4-weight rod quite a contest arises. After a few minutes, out popped the most haggard Bass I have ever seen. He had a cataract in one eye; the scars of herring attacks on his back and sandpaper like skin. Needless to say a fish is a fish.

Haggard Bass and the Sage VXP

Lessons Learned

Fishing is turning on much earlier than last year. The mild winter, in the majority of the lower 48 states, was lenient on fish. This being said, waters are still not at their optimal range for active feeding activity. Bass and Panfish will be caught in the warmer, shallow and flat areas of a lake or pond. Attempt a retrieve at varied speed, on the fly I found that two six inch strips followed by a short waiting period was triggering a strike. Bass seemed to strike during the active retrieve while the Sunfish attacked when the fly stopped. Do not be afraid to experiment and vary the speed of retrieve.

See all of the pictures here.

Wildlife Photography

Mallard Family Visits the Trout Pond

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I awoke to furious quacking this morning; it is the first time seeing the Mallards splashing in the Moose Knuckle Proving Grounds casting pond this year. Ducks are semi-monogamous, this pair is seeking a suitable nesting site for mating season. The male is brightly colored while the female is brown and slightly larger.

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Favorite Patterns

Mohair Leech

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Hot Fly For Opening Day

When fishing lakes, ponds, slow moving backwaters and other placid water fishing you cannot go wrong with a leech pattern. Leeches are one of the reasons that pond fish have the potential to grow larger than their cousins in the river. For a hungry trout, a single leech packs some serious protein. The pattern I am about to tie was taught to me at the Sparse Grey Matter – Fly Tying Fest. It will work great on opening day, fresh stocked Brook Trout love the color red. A few weeks later when the Rainbow are stocked, they will lust after the same fly. Fish the Mohair Leech similar to a Wooly Bugger.

Materials

  1. Mustad Size 12 STD Dry
  2. Cyclops Beads 7/64” Brown Olive
  3. Lead Wire .015
  4. Uni Thread 8/0 Red
  5. ¼ OZ. Dyed Red Marabou
  6. Krystal Flash Pearl Red
  7. Mohair Yarn Roe Red
  8. Rabbit Dubbing Red

Steps

  1. Take the hook and place the Cyclops Bead on the point, smaller opening will face the eye of the hook. Push the bead along the shank, forward to the eye. Secure the hook and bead into the vice.
  2. Using the lead wire, wrap ten turns on the shank of the hook. Cut off excess wire and push coil forward along the shank until snug inside the larger opening in the bead.
  3. Start the Red thread behind the lead coil on the shank. Create mound to hold lead coil snugly in place. Now wrap the thread over the lead coil to bead, then wrap back along the shank until you stop directly above the barb.
  4. Select a nice piece of Marabou, there should be a thick tail area, lacking stem.  Using your thumb and forefinger starting at the stem, smooth the feather back to the end. Repeat this action a few times until the feather is all aligned in the same direction. Using thumb and forefinger pinch a section 2/3 of the shank length. Tie in at the pinch with four wraps. Remember to start holding the pinch in front of the shank and use the force of the thread to align the Marabou to the top of the shank.
  5. Now hold the Marabou up and slightly out of your way. Wrap the thread forward along the shank to the beginning of the lead coil. Do not attempt to build up body, this is unnecessary and will be completed in the future with Mohair Yarn. Cut off excess feather and return thread to tail at tie in position.
  6. Select two pieces of Crystal Flash Pearl Red. Tie in at the 2/3 length on the front side with two wraps of thread.
  7. Now loop the remaining Flash material out towards the eye back along the far side of the shank. Tie in with two additional wraps. Cut the four pieces even with the tail.
  8. Cut off six inches of Mohair Yarn, tie in with four wraps on the top of the shank where you tied all other pieces in. Wrap thread forward to the bead.
  9. Now wrap the Mohair Yarn forward up the shank in the same direction as the thread. Continue to the bead head and then tie in, cut off excess.
  10. Select a pinch of Red Rabbit Dubbing, Dub onto thread, creating enough for about three turns of dubbing behind the bead.  Dub the three turns, this creates a nice presentation and hides the thread wrapping.
  11. Whip finish and it is complete.Purchase One Here