It's post spawn here now, and I have been catching a lot of nice
bass...2-4 lbs., but today, I had a "heart stopping" moment!

I wasn't paying a lot of attention, just enjoying the beautiful day...I
was fishing a weightless 8" green pumpkin worm, I threw it out and was
waiting for it to "fall"....I didn't have to set the hook! My heart
skipped a beat when the pole almost bent double....I was using a light
rod with a Quantum spinning reel, 6 lb. mono! I finally regained my
senses, and re-set the hook (I don't think I needed to though) .

The fish jumped, and I had another heart beat skip...it was a BIG fish!
I had not checked my drag before I started fishing, and thought, crap, I
better loosen it some and see what I have here. I finally got the drag
set where I thought I was o.k. with the fish, and the test line. I was
holding my pole down close to the water to try and keep her from jumping
again and tossing the hook....that worked great, but what I had forgot,
was that there was a thick weed bed close to shore! She went into the
weeds, and there was a few seconds of panic on my part...I just knew she
was gonna break me off! I loosened the drag a bit, then just held a
light pressure against her...she came out of the weeds, and I tightened
the dag a bit, and held her above he weed bed! I didn't want her to go
back down, so I took a chance and tightened the drag some more, and sort
of horsed her over the weeds, and into the trough between the weeds and
the bank.....A few seconds later, I was able to get her next to the
bank, and hold her there, she settled down, and I was able to hold her
against the bank til I could reach down and "lip" her....what a thrill!

9.4 lbs. of beautiful bass! She was the most healthy looking bass I have
ever seen....not a really fat belly (she evidently had already got rid
of her eggs, and was ready to "feed" again). Her eyes looked bigger than
quarters, so jet black, and glistening with "fight", that I almost
didn't wait to weigh her before I put her back in her
environment....burt I had to "know"!

What a great feeling when I watched her swim off....a great "lady", back
where she belongs!

P.S. Know I just know there is a 10 + in this little lake!

Life is good!

John B