Went out fishing Sunday on Pool 4 wiht captddh (Dan). A beautiful day for March, and almost no ice anywhere we went. We started in the morning, and had plenty of fish we were marking, but I think we may have had one bite the first 4-5 hours. Pretty much the same with everyone we talked to on the water. Finally we started getting a few fish around noonish, and we also noticed a number of other boats were getting one here and there. Then, with one little bump on a jig, everything changed.
I set the hook, and didn’t know what I hooked. I didn’t move. I pulled harder, and after a another 10 seconds or so, I finally got a head-shake to confirm it was a fish rather than a log or something. Then the fish started to slowly leave the area. With 10 pound test line, and an 8 pound leader, I didn’t have a lot of say in the matter, but kept the pressure on. About 5-10 minutes in, it came to the surface for a moment, and then we got to see it’s head. A big sturgeon! A fish I had never caught before! And then I really got into it with the fish. For the next hour, I would gain a bit of line, the fish would take it back, and Dan would use the trolling motor to keep the fish from going under the boat, or the motor. The fish finally made a big mistake, and moved from 20+ feet of water, to about 10 feet. And after fighting him for an hour, I had a feel for how he fought, and was able to use my hand to give the drag a little help when the fish wasn’t going to surge. And during all this time, that fishes tail must have hit the line at least a half-dozen times. Once he hit it so hard, Dan was able to see the line “pop”, but the line and the hook held, and we finally got the beast into the net. Well, at least enough of it into the net, and managed to get it in the boat.
Unfortunately, neither of us had a camera on us. (Seems to happen a lot when I catch a big one!) Fortunately, one of the boats nearby did! He snapped a couple pictures of Dan and I with this River Monster! Then a quick measurement, and she was back in the water, none the worse for wear.
She measured out at 60″, and the DNR claims an average sturgeon that length would be 56 pounds. I believe it!
So, thanks again Dan! Had a great time, and my wife and I are planning on sauger for supper tomorrow night!
