Fishing Report: Sayers Dam, Bald Eagle State Park

What an evening on the water! I lost what was probably the bass of a lifetime (at least in Pennsylvania waters) and had a surprise catch all in two hours of fishing. It was a lot like the Clint Eastwood movie, The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.

First the good. I had a surprise catch of a nice rainbow trout on what was supposed to be a bass fishing trip. This is quite unusual in Sayers because it is mainly a warm water fishery. The fish hit a 5” Yum Dinger I was working across an underwater ledge. We had several hits but this was the only fish landed on the trip.

Now the bad. I had gotten hung up a few times on the rock bottom while fishing and managed to “shake” my bait free. I never re-tied. This would come back to haunt me a few minutes later.

The ugly. I pitched my bait into some nice looking wood and the second time I lifted my bait I felt the weight of a fish. I told my fishing partner to reel in because it felt like a really good fish. I was right. When I hit the fish, he immediately torpedoed for deep water then quickly turned back toward the wood making two absolutely beautiful leaps completely out of the water within four feet of the boat. Upon landing, after the second leap, the fish did a hard dive and broke me off. I’m not going to speculate on the exact dimensions of this monster largemouth but I will say that I’ve caught a good number of smallmouth and largemouth bass over 20 inches and this fish could have been their daddy. I’ll say it one more time. What an evening on the water!

Lesson Learned
Always, ALWAYS re-tie

Bait
We were throwing various sizes and colors of Yum Dingers. I know, I know, you are thinking “doesn’t this guy have any other baits in his bag of tricks?” The answer is yes, but very few are as “hot” as this bait is at the moment.

Pattern
We pitched our baits into all types of wood including blow downs, stumps, and other assorted submerged wood.

Water Conditions
Water temps unknown. Water level normal. Water clarity about 3 feet

Weather Conditions
Air temps in high 70’s. Sunny with some clouds.