January Fishing Sessions: Schuylkill River (01/14)


Heya, Readers!
I finally have a little bit of time and disposition to bring you another January Fishing Session! Before I get there, a couple updates and reminders:
 
- The 1st Catfish Tourney that I'll hold will be in MARCH 17th until further notice. I'll have a DEFINITE date by the end of February. So far, I have gotten quite a couple people. Therefore, I think this first tourney will definitely happen. If you are WILLING to participate, send an e-mail to sheng12182527@gmail.com. For more details on this event, click here.
 
I'm bringing you guys some videos of my latest Catfish session on the Schuylkill River, recorded yesterday (02/17) by my funny friend Andrew. Until I bring you the full report on that day, enjoy it:

 
Part 1 - Intro
 
Part 2 - Setting the Hook
 
Part 3 - Landing the Fish
 
Part 4 - Extra: 4lber.
 
For a change, my last Skuke fishing session of January was a great success! Maybe it was "God's" gift to me for almost dying that day! Hahaha. Okay...without jokes, it was a near-death experience - kind of creepy.

The original plan for January 14th was for Mike and I to hit Haddon Lake in NJ. I met Mike around 6:45 a.m. at our usual spot, and we hit the road! The road was slippery from the rain of the day before. It was also dark...And that's when some SCARY STUFF HAPPENED on the road. It all happened too fast - as soon as Mike hit the highway, something went wrong, and our car drifted a good 360+45 degrees! Basically, the car gave a full rotation plus a little bit more, kind of like in those "Need for Speed" games that I used to play before (it's not fun in real life, though. Believe me...at least not fun when the car is NOT MADE to drift and the ROAD is FULL of cars).

So, we clashed against the wall. Thankfully, no other cars hit us, and we didn't hit other cars. Mike was nimble enough to control the car after the drifting, so, only the front of the car was damaged. We were actually able to drive back to the auto-shop to get it fixed! Believe me: if other cars actually hit us, creating a domino effect, I would probably not be here writing this at the moment! Therefore, guys: drive as safely as possible. The seatbelts really really helped.

After the near-death experience filled with adrenaline, we decided to call it a day. Mike went to fix his car and relax a bit (he really needed it!), and I went to the Banks to "chill." Since I had all my fishing supplies with me, I thought: "Why not?"

I started my session around 8:30 a.m. - same set up as the previous sessions on the Skuke. For my surprise, the first fish came really quick! After I set all my 3 rods in the water, one of them was already getting a hit! The first Catfish of the day came up at 8:55 a.m.: 2.5lbs. After that, it was all gooooood!

The weather was extraordinarily nice (I didn't even have my jacket on), and the fish kept hitting from 8-11 a.m. I missed a few, but finished the day with 9 Channels: 2.5, 2.0, 2.5, 2.5, 2.0, 1.5, 3.0, 4.0, 3.0lbs. Notice that the heaviest ones came last, around 10-11 a.m.

As I mentioned before, maybe it was "God's" gift to me for a really bad experience...hahaha. Fun day on the banks, and glad to be alive!

Pictures are below:

1st Catfish of the day: 2.5lbs

Another little guy! Notice that I didn't even have my jacket on. The weather was super nice that day: 45 degrees+! The water temperature was a little bit higher as well. Perhaps, that was the trigger for the feeding.

At a certain point of the fishing session, fishing was SO GOOD that they kept coming one after the other. As soon as I reeled in the first rod, the second rod hit. When I reeled the second fish in, the third one hit! Note that all three of them were released and swam away safely. The longest one was kept outside of the water for about 6 minutes, which is a safe amount of time for the Catfish Species.

Smallest one of the day - 1.5lbs.

Biggest one of the day - 4.0lbs

4lber from another perspective. I compared it to my feet. Heh.

Winter is almost gone, and the fishing is about to get GOOD. This means I'll fish much more on MONDAYS and FRIDAYS as well, making a possible 3-4 sessions a week! It all depends on how much homework I have...

I'll keep you guys updated on my catches;

Best of luck for all of us,

Long Days and Pleasant Nights,

Sincerely

Leo S.