Smallie On A Log…A Sad Tale

A Fish story from Terry J Dodge

Lost a monster smallmouth yesterday. There’s an old log that that extends from the river bank into the river that I have always believed to hold a large smallmouth. I have cast to this log thousands of time over the years. I have pulled some nice smallies off of this log but nothing really to brag about. Yesterday that all changed.

I had a tube bait tied on with a 1/16oz bullet head weight and I cast the rig to the log. BAM! BAM, BAM!!! Fish on! This feels like a nice fish I think to myself. As I play the fish it comes to the top and makes a roll. “Is that a carp?”, I say out loud. I reel the fish in closer and it comes to the top again. It’s a huge smallmouth!!! I reel the fish in more and it makes a run. Again I reel in more line and then the fish turns and charges at me. I reel faster to keep tension on the line. The beast stops and is within reach.

With my rod in my left hand, I lift it up and away from my body. I position my feet with a wide base and crouch down and slightly forward. With my right hand I reach out to lip the beautiful bronze beast. The fish stands up vertically on it’s tail fin (on top of the water), reaches in it’s mouth and pulls out the hook and tube, flicks the rig at me and say…..”Not today Dumbass.”, and then swims off.

This may have been the 20 incher I have spent over 35 years looking for.
I dropped my head and went to work.

Rockford, IL

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