Hello, Readers!
Here's my fishing report for September 27th:
--- September 27th, 2014 ---
Location: Upper Cooper River/Wallworth Lake (Haddonfield, NJ)
Time: 9:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Fishes caught:
-- 1 Bluegill X Green Sunfish Hybrid
-- 1 Pumpkinseed
-- 5 Bluegill
-- 7 Black Crappie
-- 1 Yellow Perch
-- 25 Largemouth Bass
-- 11 Gizzard Shad
I usually like to tell my fellow anglers that size is not everything when it comes to fishing. Of course size is important: I believe that at a certain point in life, anglers have all experienced that punch of adrenaline when fighting a "trophy" fish! You know...that wonderful moment when you get all shaky? For a Multi-Species angler, it's not so different! That punch of adrenaline can easily come in while reeling in a rare Species of fish or a surprise catch! I remember very well when I first caught a Common Carp; a Channel Catfish; and even a Banded Killifish, a Common Shiner, and a Warmouth -- and man...I was shaking back then, over and over and over again. Heh. It's an awesome feeling, isn't it? I truly believe that this "shaky feeling" is one of the aspects that makes fishing unique. If you are reading this and you are not an angler, I highly recommend you to get a pole and hit your closest body of water! It's at moments like these that I like to quote Robert Altman: "You put that line in the water and you don't know what's on the other side. Your imagination is under there."
But anyways...when it comes to Multi-Species fishing, there are a couple locations that I'm very fond of. Most of these locations are able to produce 5-10 different Species of fish in a single fishing session! It turns out that the Upper Cooper River and the Wallworth Lake in Haddonfield are some of these fond locations.
The plan was to tag along with my friend Bryan K.L. and catch some fish. I started by introducing him to the Upper Cooper River, and later we moved to Wallworth Lake. I was quite happy to see that my friend Bryan was enjoying not only the fishing, but the environment as well (there are a couple photos of him below). As cited at the beginning of this post, I was able to catch 7 different types of fish around the area.
Photos of the session are below:
"Things that you don't see when you stay at home:" A Blue Jay wandering close to Hopkins Pond, Haddonfield.
My first fish of the day: A Black Crappie on a float-jig setup.
This one was my biggest Black Crappie of the day, surprisingly caught on a Thomas Gold/Nickel in-line Spinner at the Wallworth Lake. The fish was safely released above the falls. :)
A healthy male Bluegill from the Upper Cooper River. It was caught on a small Gulp! Alive Minnow, hooked on a 1/64 oz. jighead.
Here's a Bluegill from the Wallworth Lake, right below Evans Pond.
A beautiful Green Sunfish X Bluegill Hybrid from the Wallworth Lake. Note that it has "Bluegill traces" on its Operculum and "Green Sunfish traces" on its Anal and Caudal fins (yellow/orange coloration).
My friend Bryan K.L. with his trophy catch of the day -- a trophy Largemouth Bass from Wallworth Lake. Sarcasm aside, that smile is golden, though. :)
While fishing for Largemouth Bass with my in-line spinner, a couple Gizzard Shad tagged along. It just so happened that they were having their Fall run; thus, gazillion Shad were just swimming around the Wallworth dam. It was nearly impossible to not snag them.
The first of 25 Largemouth Bass. Most of them were caught in the Wallworth Lake. The hypothesis is that they were following their "food supply" around (a.k.a. Gizzard Shad).
Another Largemouth Bass -- this one with a beautiful lateral line. Note that I released all the small Largemouth Bass above the dam; therefore, there are 25+ Largemouth Bass between Evans Pond and the Upper Cooper River now. Heh.
This fella was one of the biggest Largemouth Bass of the day!
"Things that you don't see when you stay at home:" A very very suspicious needle at the Haddonfield PATCO station.
A nice Pumpkinseed decided to go after my in-line spinner at Wallworth lake.
A nice scenic view of my friend Bryan K.L. focused on catching the big one.
A nice view of the second dam that divides the Wallworth Lake and the Upper Cooper River.
Here's a Yellow Perch from the muddy Upper Cooper River. Note its faded colors, which is typical for a fish living in high saturation waters.
Hope you guys found this report informative. Also, if you have never tried before, I would definitely recommend Multi-Species fishing! :)
Best of luck for all of us!
Long Days and Pleasant Nights,
Sincerely,
Leo S.