West Neck Creek Ramblings: Another Blistering Day on the Water

Saturday, August 19, 2017

Another Blistering Day on the Water

That fact, however, didn't deter 10 anglers in six boats from testing their skills against the bass today. They collectively weighed in a total of 23 fish, with a total weight of 45.43 lbs. and an average weight of 1.97 lbs.

Standing tall in the winners' circle at day's end were the following:

(From left) Al Napier and Wayne Hayes claimed 1st place with a five-fish limit that weighed 12.48 lbs. Their big fish weighed 3.11 lbs.

(From left) Gary Coderre and Chris Fretard walked away with 2nd place. They had four fish with a total weight of 9.38 lbs. Their big fish was the day's lunker prize at 4 lbs. even.

(From left) Bobby Moore and Duane Kessel captured the mystery-weight award. Their limit tipped the scales at 7.25 lbs., which was closest to the drawn weight of 4.90 lbs.

Here is how the other competitors finished the day:

* Randy Conkle and Bob Glass caught a limit, with a total weight of 9.03 lbs. Their big fish weighed 2.21 lbs.
* Jim Wilder brought four fish to the scales, for a total weight (after a 0.50 penalty for two dead fish) of 7.29 lbs. His big fish weighed 3.06 lbs. Unfortunately, the scales already had closed when Jim found a fish he had dropped en route to the weigh-in site. Accordingly, that fish could not be counted.
* Once again, yours truly did not weigh a fish. My day was limited to four hours due to the fact I was forced to operate with only one of two trolling-motor batteries. It looks as though one bank of my onboard charger may have died.

One more angler became eligible to fish in our season-ending two-day Classic as the result of his participation in today's contest. That brings the total to 15, with four more qualifying tournaments still remaining.

Congrats to all the winners and thanks to everyone who showed up to participate. For planning purposes, our next scheduled event is Saturday, Sept. 9, from safe light to about 2:30 p.m. Hope you can join us.

While frustrated that yet another day came and went without my being able to complete it, I have to admit my frustration was somewhat tempered by the fact it already was pretty miserable at 10 o'clock when I had to quit and head for the dock. I used the rest of the fishing day to clean up my boat, put it away in the storage shed, and sit around sipping on a couple of cold sodas.

When 2 o'clock rolled around, and the other anglers were heading up the channel for weigh-in, I was ready for them, and once that was completed, I was on the road home for a visit with one of my granddaughters, her husband, son and daughter who were passing through my neck of the woods on the way back home from a wedding they had attended. It was a short but most pleasant get-together, and I enjoyed every minute of it. Fishing is fun, but family reunions are even more fun.