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Just fished solo for the first time and thought I'd share. My dad used to take me fishing as a child and only fishes with live bait despite the massive tackle collection he has, which caused some issues because I'm autistic and as a child I reacted extremely badly to strange sensations. Just the thought of skewering my own worms was viscerally repulsive to me, and I refused to touch any of the fish either of us caught, but I still have some fond memories of fishing with him. He stopped bringing me after I got into my teens and still couldn't even bait my own hooks, but I still enjoyed the idea of fishing and wanted to get back into it. Cut to today, where 26-year-old me pulled into a local park with a cheap medium-light Walmart spinning combo with 6 lb mono, some discounted lures, and too much time on my hands. Part of me immediately regretted not bringing heavier tackle and/or bread because the lake was loving boiling with carp, but I wasn't particularly bothered and trudged down to the weirdly barren fishing dock. I ran into my first hurdle, which is that my dad (and by extension I) had only ever used spincasters and that I wasn't quite sure how to operate my new reel. After a lot of futzing around and almost decking an innocent woman with a tiny crankbait like an absolute idiot I eventually managed to work out how to cast, and spent the next hour messing around with the crankbait to no avail. Eventually I swapped it for an inline spinner, which almost instantly proved more fruitful as I got my first bite within the next couple of casts.  I thought it was decent for a first solo fish and congratulated myself on a job well done, and went to go and free it... only to realize that my childhood "ewww" instincts were still alive and well, although not nearly as crippling as before. I managed to get it off the hook with minimal physical contact (made easier thanks to crimped barbs) and continued on, throwing it back in the same spot in the hopes that I'd catch a few more from its school. Instead, after a few casts I got a good, solid hit that my hazy childhood fishing memories recognized as a bass, and in trying to reel it in I realized I didn't know how to adjust the drag on my new reel. I semi-learned in the moment as I messed with the reel and hauled it in, making a mental note to actually learn how to use my equipment before next time.  I was in the zone. I had hit my stride. I was ready to spend the rest of the day out there and catch fish... until I looked down at my pink arm and realized I'd forgotten sunscreen. Ended up cutting the trip short because I'm excessively white and didn't want to be miserable for the next few days. All in all I had a good time, I can see how this can be addicting and I'm looking forward to fishing more in the future.
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Apr 23, 2022 21:47
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| # ¿ May 17, 2024 13:31 |
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Desert Bus posted:Just a couple of notes, you can buy rubberized gloves to handle fish with, and you should try to avoid dangling them by their jaw like that since it damages the soft tissues of the jaw, which the gloves will help with. I'd heard that you shouldn't hold them horizontally by the jaw without supporting the body, but this is news to me! In hindsight, it's pretty much common sense. Only held them up long enough to snap a photo, but I'll be more careful in the future. As for the gloves, I'll look into getting some but in the meantime I'll just try to stop being a baby about the whole thing. Thanks for the advice!
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Apr 23, 2022 23:08
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SeaGoatSupreme posted:Fish aren't real Just got back from my 4th fishless outing in a row, can confirm this is true.
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Jul 31, 2023 16:32
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On the one hand, I got skunked for the 4th time in a row, lost 3 lures and a decent amount of line to what I think is the same submerged tree, and could only sit there and watched as fish jumped and splashed all around me. On the other hand, it was a nice day out, I managed to clean up a bunch of tangled fishing line on the bank, and I got to see a cute turtle, so at least it wasn't a day wasted! Something something fishing not catching. Also, looking back at my last post I got skunked 4 times in a row before catching anything back then too, so maybe next time will be my lucky break.
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Mar 4, 2024 17:59
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Went out and caught 2 rock bass, the first fish I've caught in months. I'm so goddamn happy.
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May 1, 2024 18:33
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| # ¿ May 17, 2024 13:31 |
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trevorreznik posted:Does largemouth bass taste different than small mouth? Fresh caught small mouth is one of my favorite fish to eat. Largemouth has a softer texture and can taste a bit lake-y if caught in really warm water, but it's perfectly fine. If I'm going to eat a black bass I prefer spots and smallies, though.
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May 7, 2024 23:53
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