Last week the temps here in NJ skyrocketed into the low 90's bringing the lakes to life. Had the afternoon off on Friday, so I took the kayak and headed out armed with two rods.
BFS: Bass Pro Microlite MIL60MLT 6', Tsurinoya XF-50, 8# Yo-Zuri Hybrid
Spin: Daiwa Presso 7' UL, Shimano NASCI 1000, 4# Cortland Camo Mono
(I think in previous posts I've mistakenly listed the Presso as 6'6")
Started with BFS and a Bitsy Bug. This was my first time out with the Microlite. It's less "finessie" than the Kuyung Teton, and the hope was it would do a better job setting the heavy hook of the Bitsy Bug. A cast near the waters edge proved the theory with a 3 or so pound LMB coming to hand (top left in pic below).
After that bass I switched to spin, using a 1/16 oz jig hook with a plastic grub/worm and landed a couple more bass and a few pickerel.
Moving into a shallow lagoon I tied on one of my all time favorites, a 1/32 oz. Berkley Atomic Tube. The fishing had already been good but now it became amazing! With the shallow water, wakes would appear when the lure hit the surface, providing clues as to how big the fish would be. Despite casting near a lot of lay downs and pickerel with their sharp teeth, no fish broke me off.
The Atomic Tubes produced my first ever
Jersey Slam which is a bass, pickerel, crappie, bluegill and yellow perch in one day. To borrow from
The Lord of The Rings, this little bait truly is my "One Lure to Rule Them All".
(Didn’t take any pics of the gills and pumpkinseeds)