I was "speed trolling" down a piece of shoreline this morning--thanks to that gusty SW wind at my back--when, all of a sudden, I caught movement out the corner of my left eye. As luck would have it, my course was taking me too darn close for my comfort to this roughly 4-foot moccasin, which was going about as fast as my boat in a crossing pattern. I immediately tried to alter my course, but with that stiff wind, I was helpless.
The snake ultimately crossed my path mere inches away from the boat and only paused long enough when he was past me to turn his head and steal a glance over his back at me before continuing on his way. I tipped my cap, wished him well, and continued working the shoreline.
Before my day ended at 2 o'clock, I saw two more baby moccasins in the distance but didn't have to play dodge ball with either one of them.
As for the fishing, there really isn't much to report. Within a couple dozen casts this morning, I had caught a dink on a topwater, and that was my lump-sum total until about 12 noon. I just had tossed my topwater on the lee side of a point, when a big fish sucked it down, and took off for the middle of the creek. I had a lot of reservations about what had snatched my bait and, as it turned out, for good reason. I only needed one look at this monster as he passed down the port side of my boat to know that I had hooked a big grindle.
With my "calming baton" well out of reach, I had no choice but to play the fish a while, trying to tire him enough to get my boca grips on him and remove the hooks--not an easy task, considering the fish weighed between 6 and 7 lbs. Finally, though, his eyes were looking a little glazed and he wasn't offering much resistance, so I eased the boca grips at him. Unfortunately, he jumped again and got his teeth around my braid, which was all he needed to gain his freedom. In a split-second, he was gone, and so was my topwater.
Didn't feel another fish the rest of the day, so headed back to Munden Point at 2, knowing that I'd have my hands full getting the boat back on the trailer with the wind blowing straight down on the ramp. Let's just say the wind didn't disappoint. It took about four passes to get the alignment right, but I managed to complete the evolution without tearing up anything.
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