For quite a few years, I used to work in a fishing trip on my birthday. But as birthdays often become just another day consumed by work and responsibilities, the fishing trips seem to be postponed or fall by the wayside altogether. This evening outing a couple days post birthday number 51 was as close as I was going to get.
And as it turned out, I wound up about as close to getting shut out as you can get. Still can manage a “fishing report” though, despite it not being much of a “catching report.”
Stats
Date: July 25, 2018
Location: Lost Grove Lake, IA
Time: 6:20pm-8:35pm
Weather: Partly cloudy/breezy
Air Temp: 81-77F
Water Temp: no reading
Totals: 1 bass
Lures: Booyah Buzzbait (snow white shad) – 1 bass
Top Bass: 1-0
Notes & Nonsense
Close Call – I caught my lone bass at 8:12pm which meant that I was indeed getting a little nervous about posting my first goose egg of 2018. My buzzbait had just ticked off of some weeds on the way to a strip of open water in the midst of a big batch of duckweed and it was on, as shown in the GoPro video below.
Originally I was kind of bummed as I had a corrupt video that I was pretty certain was the lone catch. Fortunately, I was mistaken and got my bass on “film.” No trophy but I continue to get a kick out of this fun bit of technology, kind of cool to see the duckweed holes fill back in after the battle as well.
The Soundtrack OR when you don’t really have quality fish to blog about…
I don’t know about anybody else, but when I’m flying solo on the drive and on the water, tunes are a big part of my distraction and daydream. Generally it is a rather crazy soundtrack featuring an eclectic mix of cuts that either stopped me on the radio or came to mind based on some observance on the water. And while maybe not necessarily worthy of a “Top Trip Tunes” post, I do dig talking tunes.
Party in the USA (Miley Cyrus – 2009) – Okay, let’s get this one out of the way first. I heard this Miley Cyrus tune while driving and actually let it play for a while. Bad idea but you’ve gotta admit, it’s got a catchy hook. Hence, the song was running through my head most of the evening, especially when I was rowing the boat like yeah, casting my lure like yeah or I would see some “butterflies fly away.” Kinda rough, but, “you know I’m gonna be okay.”
Angeline (Allman Brothers Band – 1980) – There’s a station that I get up here, 107.7FM out of Polo, IL that is frequently the winner for best song on the dial when surfing through the presets. Interesting and unusual cuts abound, and even more so recently as I believe it has changed hands, or at least format. Didn’t know this cut, but sure knew who was performing it.
Forever Autumn (Justin Hayward – 1978) –Same as the above tune, it’s always a treat to hear something I’ve never heard before but recognize in some fashion. Swore this one was The Moody Blues but not too far off as simply their lead singer instead.
Uncle Tom’s Cabin (Warrant, 1991) – Darn near a full moon caught my eye during the trip, indeed it was quite hard to miss. Of course, the moon is a popular subject for more than a few song lyrics and the scene brought to mind, “Where the full moon shines through the rooftop cracks.” Got a million of ‘em upstairs, something for every occasion.
Fun snapshot from some GoPro footage with moon, reflection and buzzbait (right of reflection)
Okay, back to the fishing part of the report with a GoPro blooper finale.
This one will go on the 2018 blooper reel as it was a swing and miss but the brain said “pull the trigger” and I was indeed a little desperate to end the shutout.
This mishap from the outing pretty much sums up my last several months on the water.
Better luck next time, I guess, as 2018 fishing continues to be a little rough on me. Talk to you later. Troy