I hit 5 spots this weekend and the high water was not encouraging, but on the 5th try I finally found some active cats. The biggest one got away. The one pictured below was the largest at 21″. The one I missed had to have gone 24-28″. I was horsing him when I noticed the hook had come out before he did. I went to grab him and he turned just as my hand got in the water. I nabbed the tail, but that is not a battle you are going to win very often.
I caught a smaller 18″ channel and man was he strong; had to pry him straight to get a picture of him. The river must be giving them a good workout. I also caught another that I wish I took a picture of because he had a very golden hue to him.
The first fish I caught didn’t count. That’s the close up picture below where you can kind of see some how I actually lassoed the fish! It is tough to see, but the hook grabbed the leader line and cinched down on the bugger. Normally fish try hanging themselves after they get caught by me, so this was a first.
These fish were found in a large eddy and they were caught on crawlers because in the beginning I didn’t care if I caught a sheephead or carp, I wanted to catch something. It took a 6oz weight to keep the bait in one spot, which isn’t exactly ideal for channels, but the conditions warranted it.
Some of the other areas that I eliminated this weekend were a creek mouth that met the river and fishing in the mouth of the concrete channels that pour into Mill Ruins. I was trying to find some water that they could stage and escape the brutal current. At the creek mouth, although there was a seam, the water flowing into the creek was still pretty strong.
I wish I could go back tomorrow, but the forecast does not look promising. The spot should produce as long as the flow is strong and the water stays up.
I know it isn’t the most exciting report, no 10# plus fish, but some channels none the less. I only fished an hour, so who knows… 
