|
Trusting your GUT
Every year I try to make a conscious decision to get better at one aspect of the craft. One year it was to learn to catch with a needlefish and after many, many fruitless nights, I figured it out and now, generally do very well with them(but that's another story).
Last year my resolution was to follow my gut as much as I could in terms of places, tides, etc. I found that trusting my gut paid off way more than it didn't.
As a cool example, a few weeks back I was heading to the Canal for an early morning bite. As I rigged the gear the night before, I put my trusty stick shadd on my 126mh, along with my just rebuilt Z27. This is my favorite canal outfit and I felt lost without it while the reel was being serviced. Set the rod in the racks when I suddenly had a hunch. I remembered a highliner that I respect tremendously telling me he had done well recently with big metal lips. I generally don't like them in the fast water but we were looking at daybreak slack. I pulled out a new Choopy A40 in Parrot and just got that gut feeling. Instead of putting it on the Z, I put it on my conventional 126.
Next morning as I arrive, a few fish are starting to show. Several guys are on with decent fish. I luck into some room and on the first cast with the conventional............Backlash!! Dohhh!!! After a bit of picking, we are good and and on the next cast(lob), slowww retrieve, when I gut a good thump, then the line starts screaming. 37.2#. 4 casts later, on again, 35.5#. Gave the spot to a buddy after that and stopped fishing.
Would I have gotten those fish on the stick shadd? Maybe, maybe not. I know that I usually work the shadd alot quicker than the metal lip. That big ML culled out the 2 largest of the morning by far.
So, couple questions. Anyone else throwing big ML's in the Canal with success and how about a few stories on following your gut.
|
Threaded Mode