Topwater Chains

The CGR and Chain Pickerel

Last night I was able to visit a small pond near the house.  It is a place I tend to hit more than the rest of the local spots, but for some reason I had not been to since early spring. I threw my small shoulder bag in the truck, and grabbed the 7/8wt CGR. 

I immediately noticed the water had an odd character to it?  There were no bluegill boils to be seen, and tying on a #6 FBC brought nothing. Not even a small gill short-strike. What I did see though were a few instances of baitfish fleeing, which caught my attention. 

Switching over to a Mule Deer Diver proved to be the answer to the riddle. The pickerel were turned on! In a body of water I only tend to bring 2-3 in a season to hand, 5 fish came in a period of maybe 30 minutes.

The largest of the night

Each take was as violent as the next, hitting deer hair bug like a rocket and leaving the water completely.  In the middle of the pickerel I was able to pick up one bass, yet not a single bluegill was to be seen.

They turned off just as quickly as it began with about 15 minutes of fishable light remaining,  But it coincided with the invasion of South Jersey mosquito's so my decision to flee had already been made either way. I noticed as I was half way through de-rigging, the boils on the edges had returned. The sight made me laugh, as I wondered just what life for the pond residents was like for the past hour? Judging by the strikes I managed to get, it must have been a huge sigh of relief when the "ALL CLEAR" was finally given.