![The Fishing Adventures of [ntizda]](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VUCIX7_JUeY/Tl6K-nXzWMI/AAAAAAAAACI/LshlOMB4mXE/s1600/1.png)
Late February 2011 @ Lake Wateree, SC
About 4pm, my Friend and fellow Firefighter[Blake Stokes] head out on the Lugoff side of the lake. This was Blake’s first time fishing with me and basically first time fishing in years. We pulled out the ole’ Bass Tracker TX-17[everyone is scared of the tracker] and head to some promising spots. I had all of my rod’s pre-rigged and tackle box organized with my soft plastics, topwater, some crappie jigs and some more stuff. Blake came prepared with a rod-n-reel [older than him] with line [older than him] and a tackle box of lures he had never used or never seen how they were used [spoons, spinner bait, and some old sun baked plastics.] I laughed and helped him choose a lure to use. We arrived at fishing spot I’ve never fished,[nice cove, about 12 piers inside of it and some large structure in water at the back of cove, Sunny/Chilly afternoon] and we start stalking some fish with the trolling motor.
We were throwing some soft plastic worms around the piers, trying to get a reaction shot out of some of the bass that were chilling and watching tv. We worked most of the cove without any luck or a single bite. So to show Mr. Blake Stokes that I can catch fish, EVEN if they are bream or some small crappie, I tie on a Chartreuse lead head with a pumpkin seed and bright orange swim tail and I start chunking the lure into structure. We worked around the structure for a good 20 minutes without landing something and then all of a sudden…… BLAKE GETS A……
…..Birdnest. So I proceeded to help him untangle his line and he had to cut like 30 yards of line off haha. Well when we finally got the line fixed and he started tying on another lure we were transitioning from 1 pier to another with no structure and I randomly casted my jig in the middle of the 2 piers [60 feet gap, of no structure]. Once it hit the water I let it drop for about 4 seconds and started a moderate/fast retrieve, when all of a sudden… BAM! BIG FISH ON!
IT SCARED THE CRAP OUT OF ME. I never had a fish take my jig and slam it that hard before! Being caught off guard, I lost the fish because I didn’t get a good hookset. So at that time, Blake is sitting there with drool coming out of his mouth and his eyes are huge. I tried to play it cool, like that was normal for me to get strikes like that because you know.. i’m “professional”[lol. jk.] But I started having the shakes because that just made my adrenaline go sky high! So I repositioned my boat and casted at the same spot. and… BAM! another one on! I set the hook good this time and this bad boy fought for a good minute or so! I finally got him on the boat and It was a beautiful Striped Bass[Not a trophy size but it was beautiful]
After that fish, I re-positioned my boat and casted same place and BAM! another one! and then did it again BAM! another one! and did that 2 or 3 more times and all together landed 5 Stripers all in the 3lb range. It was such a frenzy that I forgot Blake was in the back of the boat not having any success, So we kept on circling that area to see if he can get one on. no luck… By that time it is straight up DARK. I told blake, I’m sorry but we gotta start heading back to the landing so get everything situated and tie the rods down, get in the driver seat. turned the key…… BATTERY DEAD.
We were really far from both Lugoff and Clearwater Cove Landings. So I had a little juice left over in the trolling motor and started to head towards some houses with lights on. We see a guy in his garage and he walks outside and is walking across his yard, so we start yelling at this guy and waving our hands and HE KEEPS WALKING![found out that he had mp3 player in and just got done working out]. I look at Blake and he is pale.[At this time, I was calm because the boat has died on me multiple times and left us in the middle of lake trying to survive off of fig newtons. but those stories are for later times.] So I told blake, we need to land our boat at their pier and walk up and talk to them and atleast find out where we are so we can call up somebody to pick us up.
We start walking up in the yard with our Fire Department hats on and our Walkie-Talkies blaring different County Frequencies and pass by some huge dog droppings. We walk up the stairs to this beautiful house and finally get to the back porch. We look to the right and see 2 HUGE dogs, A White Husky/WOLF and a German Shepard that is taller than me napping on the porch. A woman comes to the window and peaks out and runs out the door right passed us and slams the dogs in a private room. Blake and I look at each other like… uh what is this crazy woman doing? Then a man comes to the door with a hat on that says “K-9 TEAM” and Tells us that we were very lucky that his German Shepard was sleeping because that dog was a Trained bite dog for law enforcement and he bites people that come in the yard.
Blake and I turn pale.
But to make a very long story short, He turned out to be a principal for a local school and he helps out the local police agencies finding bodies on the lake.
He jumped us off, and we started back towards Clearwater cove and made it home safely.
**Blake has not gone fishing with me since.**
About 4pm, my Friend and fellow Firefighter[Blake Stokes] head out on the Lugoff side of the lake. This was Blake’s first time fishing with me and basically first time fishing in years. We pulled out the ole’ Bass Tracker TX-17[everyone is scared of the tracker] and head to some promising spots. I had all of my rod’s pre-rigged and tackle box organized with my soft plastics, topwater, some crappie jigs and some more stuff. Blake came prepared with a rod-n-reel [older than him] with line [older than him] and a tackle box of lures he had never used or never seen how they were used [spoons, spinner bait, and some old sun baked plastics.] I laughed and helped him choose a lure to use. We arrived at fishing spot I’ve never fished,[nice cove, about 12 piers inside of it and some large structure in water at the back of cove, Sunny/Chilly afternoon] and we start stalking some fish with the trolling motor.
We were throwing some soft plastic worms around the piers, trying to get a reaction shot out of some of the bass that were chilling and watching tv. We worked most of the cove without any luck or a single bite. So to show Mr. Blake Stokes that I can catch fish, EVEN if they are bream or some small crappie, I tie on a Chartreuse lead head with a pumpkin seed and bright orange swim tail and I start chunking the lure into structure. We worked around the structure for a good 20 minutes without landing something and then all of a sudden…… BLAKE GETS A……
…..Birdnest. So I proceeded to help him untangle his line and he had to cut like 30 yards of line off haha. Well when we finally got the line fixed and he started tying on another lure we were transitioning from 1 pier to another with no structure and I randomly casted my jig in the middle of the 2 piers [60 feet gap, of no structure]. Once it hit the water I let it drop for about 4 seconds and started a moderate/fast retrieve, when all of a sudden… BAM! BIG FISH ON!
IT SCARED THE CRAP OUT OF ME. I never had a fish take my jig and slam it that hard before! Being caught off guard, I lost the fish because I didn’t get a good hookset. So at that time, Blake is sitting there with drool coming out of his mouth and his eyes are huge. I tried to play it cool, like that was normal for me to get strikes like that because you know.. i’m “professional”[lol. jk.] But I started having the shakes because that just made my adrenaline go sky high! So I repositioned my boat and casted at the same spot. and… BAM! another one on! I set the hook good this time and this bad boy fought for a good minute or so! I finally got him on the boat and It was a beautiful Striped Bass[Not a trophy size but it was beautiful]
We were really far from both Lugoff and Clearwater Cove Landings. So I had a little juice left over in the trolling motor and started to head towards some houses with lights on. We see a guy in his garage and he walks outside and is walking across his yard, so we start yelling at this guy and waving our hands and HE KEEPS WALKING![found out that he had mp3 player in and just got done working out]. I look at Blake and he is pale.[At this time, I was calm because the boat has died on me multiple times and left us in the middle of lake trying to survive off of fig newtons. but those stories are for later times.] So I told blake, we need to land our boat at their pier and walk up and talk to them and atleast find out where we are so we can call up somebody to pick us up.
We start walking up in the yard with our Fire Department hats on and our Walkie-Talkies blaring different County Frequencies and pass by some huge dog droppings. We walk up the stairs to this beautiful house and finally get to the back porch. We look to the right and see 2 HUGE dogs, A White Husky/WOLF and a German Shepard that is taller than me napping on the porch. A woman comes to the window and peaks out and runs out the door right passed us and slams the dogs in a private room. Blake and I look at each other like… uh what is this crazy woman doing? Then a man comes to the door with a hat on that says “K-9 TEAM” and Tells us that we were very lucky that his German Shepard was sleeping because that dog was a Trained bite dog for law enforcement and he bites people that come in the yard.
Blake and I turn pale.
But to make a very long story short, He turned out to be a principal for a local school and he helps out the local police agencies finding bodies on the lake.
He jumped us off, and we started back towards Clearwater cove and made it home safely.
**Blake has not gone fishing with me since.**
