Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum

Fishing in British Columbia => Fishing Reports => Members' Fishing Reports => Topic started by: Rosco P. COHOtrane on June 29, 2004, 12:14:34 AM

Title: Long Poling at Rice Lake June 29th
Post by: Rosco P. COHOtrane on June 29, 2004, 12:14:34 AM
I recently purchased a 7m fishing pole and tonight I met up with Otto to try it out for the first time at Rice Lake. I tied 10 ' of 6lb Maxima Ultra Green to the end of the pole, blood knotted  7' of 2lb Maxima and tied a #10 hook to the business end. No float, no reel...super simple.
After about an hour on the docks, we decided to try our luck on the island so we packed up our things and headed there. A kid with a minnow net caught a dragonfly nymph and asked if I wanted it for bait so I said sure and put it on my hook.
It was a little akward at first trying to "flick" my line out and not get tangled with the tree branches but after a couple "casts" I figured it out.
Otto was getting all kinds of hits and he commented on how sensitive his rod was.
After about 20 minutes I felt a couple sharp tugs. I immediately raised the tip of my pole, felt a quick headshake and...line went slack.  I continued lifting the tip and saw that my dragonfly nymph was gone! What amazed me the most was how sensitive the 7m pole was. It is made of graphite so I could "feel" the bottom of the lake as I pulled my offering along the bottom.
I re-baited and this time put a small split shot 4" from my hook and extended my line into the water.  After a few hits and misses and re-baiting, I realised how quick on the draw I had to be with this new fishing technique.  The sun was setting and the trouts were starting to get active!
Around 21:00 hrs I quickly set my hook in response to the little jerk at the end of my pole. I played the fish quick and was worried that my 2lb test would snap because of the fight it gave. The fight seemed to have been multiplied by the sensitiveness of my graphite pole. I got it close to shore and scooped it out of the water with my trout net.  This fish was the biggest I have ever caught in that lake! I quickly dispatched it with my brass trout priest and put it away in a plastic bag.
As Otto and I continued to fish, Otto went to the dock side of the island to try his luck. A few minutes later Otto says," We've got a bear." " Where?" I replied. Otto said something to the effect that it was getting close so I put my rod down to have a look. Then I saw it. It was heading for our island along the bank in between the docks and our isalnd. It was coming and it was coming FAST! We tried making noise but it still kept coming towards our island. Otto threw a rock at it and it disappeared into the bush. It was probably 30' from us when it went in. We quickly packed up our gear amidst the sound of twigs and leaves being treaded on by a large creature coming towrds us. In my haste to quickly collapse my 7m pole, I inadvertently jammed the sections. The bear was getting nearer again. It must've smelled my fish and he was coming for it. It made another appearance near the entrance to the island so Otto threw a huge rock into the water near it and it again disappeared into the bushes. " I should leave the fish here so it doesn't follow us," I said and Otto's response was something to the effect like it' ll make geting out of here more fun. So I took the fish with us as we hiked our way back to our trucks. I figured I could always use it like a fighter jet pilot uses chaffing flares to throw off SAMs.
Well, we made it back safely to our trucks and here is a photo of my fish:

http://www.myfishingpictures.com/showphoto.php?photo=24713&size=big&password=&sort=1&thecat=502

Thanks Otto. That was fun!        

 
 
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: Fish Assassin on June 29, 2004, 12:19:30 AM
That's quite an adventure. Your photo needs to be resized though.
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: spring_killer on June 29, 2004, 12:27:03 AM
must have been enjoyable until you saw the bear...were u frightened in some way..considering tat you were on an island with no where to run ..? ??? ??? ???
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: SC on June 29, 2004, 12:37:06 AM
Hey Rosco nice fish sounds like fun, I'm working like mad right now. I have a meeting in NewWes Wednesday now at 10 a.m. I also need to get gear as well but I'm free in the early afternoon. Email me if your still into bar fishing, I can meet you somewere and we'll go. Try calling you Tuesday at some point. Great story, you should of got the bear though I always wanted a bear rug. ;)
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: Hiker on June 29, 2004, 01:13:07 AM
That bear is most likely very accustomated to people. It can be dangerous. I would recommend to you or to anybody else who goes fishing later at night in that area to be very aware of the bear, not to go alone and to have paper spray handy (not small dog's version, full size bear spray). In case of any incident notify authorities as well.

I hike a lot, and have seen many bears but behaviour of that bear is concerning. Please follow all bear precautions (do not wipe fishy hands of your clothes, do not run away from it, be aware of your surrounding, do not have smelly foods on you, pretend dead or fight back - depends on situation - black bears eat garbage so they will eat corpses, ... find a good book or internet site about bear awareness and read it.) Bears are no monsters but you have to know what you are doing.
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: _Ivan_ on June 29, 2004, 04:20:09 AM
wow  :o wat a day hey. that bear must off scared you? ???
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: otto on June 29, 2004, 08:03:51 AM
there is a little bridge on the island, connecting it and the shore.......made things interesting as we frantically coiled up our lines and broke down the fishing poles.....that bear (a young black bear) had absolutely no fear of us....we were making noise, banging rocks etc....nothing fazed it. when the bear got onto the wooden bridge, we had about 15 feet between it and us (and ROSCO's trout  ;D ) when i chucked a softball sized rock at the water beside the bear. he grunted and took off, only to reapear 20 feet  down the trail. next time i'm bringing my (illegal and no longer produced) 95% capsium grizzly spray when i go fishing.

all in all a very fun night.  8) 8)
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: THE_ROE_SLINGER on June 29, 2004, 09:20:20 AM
how big was the trout.
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: Rosco P. COHOtrane on June 29, 2004, 02:46:03 PM
The trout was 14.5".

I have in my home library, "Bear Encounter Survival Guide"  and "Bear Attacks II " by James Gary SHELTON. Great books. After reading the books a few years ago, I summarized this...12 gauge, plug removed and w/slugs. Pepper spray is nice if the bear isn't too motivated.

QUESTION: Why is it a good idea to file the front sight of your pistol in bear country?

ANSWER IN MY NEXT POST  
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: Rosco P. COHOtrane on June 29, 2004, 02:50:43 PM
ANSWER to Previous Post:

!$$A ruoy pu lotsip ruoy sevohs RAEB eht nehw hcum sa truh t'nseod ti oS

 ;D  ;D  ;D  ;D

(Does not apply if you're packing a .454 Casull!!!!)
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: FishKid on June 29, 2004, 03:01:14 PM
That must have been frightening, seeing the bear.  When I had an encounter with a black bear at capilano my heart was pumping like crazy due to the adrenaline rush, but with my encounter I had an escape route and you guys didn't so you guys must have been frightened and shocked in a way.
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: Rosco P. COHOtrane on June 29, 2004, 03:09:15 PM
I wasn't scared. All I had to do was run or swim faster than Otto!  ;D  ;D  ;D  ;D
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: otto on June 29, 2004, 03:39:36 PM
um Rosco...i was the long distance runner champion in the kootenays.....the day you outrun me is the day i grow back the hair on my noggin............ ;D ;D
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: Rosco P. COHOtrane on June 29, 2004, 03:47:16 PM
Otto, I was just teasing. I'm not much of a runner. Last time I ran, I think was across the street.
I think if worse came to worse,  the two of us could've hctib slapped the bear with our long poles.
 ;D
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: otto on June 29, 2004, 04:03:27 PM
 ;D ;D ;D i must refrain from answering.......... ;D ;D ;D   (falls off the chair laughing.........)

but in all seriousness, having dealt with grizzly's, brown/black bears, cubs and angry mother bear, and the larger Kodiak grizzlies all my life, and having dispatched a attacking cougar by myself with a hunting knife, i was not concerned about this one. there are ways of dispatching an aggressive bear when you are alone. besides....my idea of fun is dropping into a warzone and sprinting through the chaos with the bagpipes blaring......... 8)
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: ocean_going on June 29, 2004, 10:36:02 PM
cool show,  but was it Real? i believe it,     but   scrappinn with a bear is not my kind of  fun!!! ::)
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: FishKid on June 29, 2004, 10:41:36 PM
Yeah, bears are dangerous, even the young ones.  Do Grizzly bears ever come down that far?
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: otto on June 29, 2004, 10:42:58 PM
yes the night was real  >:(  (there is a bear warning in the area for two young male bears frequenting the lake and trails).  so was the bear. so was the trout that rosco pulled out with his new longpole. (no trout for me but many bites!!!!) .  and so what if i comfortable around dangerous animals? i'd rather go out of this world happily fishing and fighting a bruin to the death than getting pasted in the crosswalk by a suv with a cell phoned driver behind the wheel or dying old with someone else cleaning me.
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: FishKid on June 29, 2004, 10:44:24 PM
Good points otto ;D
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: FlyNut on June 29, 2004, 11:10:22 PM
Wow,
I was goona go at 6AM tomorrow - by myself.  Guess I am not going at that time anymore.  I will go when there are others... probably 5 PM or so.

Thanks for the heads up. I don't wanna end up bear food.  Where do you get bear repellant? Wallmart?
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: FlyNut on June 29, 2004, 11:35:36 PM
I presume you reported this little incident to the park ranger?   They need to put a warning sign up to say "don't stay with your fish" or something like that.  I am a newbie, and this was totally news to me.
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: otto on June 30, 2004, 01:05:11 AM
yea the parks guys know about it. i also just got a shipment of seal bombs AKA "bear bangers". next bear that gets too close and doesnt leave when i make noise etc, gets a flash/bang to spook it off.
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: Lew Chater on June 30, 2004, 08:28:54 AM
Good read Rosco. I see folks using 7 meter rods in the Sumas Canal for trout and coarse fish. Interesting way to fish ! Fishing around bears is always exciting. Keeps your neck limber swiveling side to side, especially when you are fishing areas like the Atnarko River near Bella Coola amongst the grizzlies. Just a caution about your comment on using dragon fly nymphs for bait in a lake. Page 9 of Provincial Regs re "Aquatic Invertebrates"....when fishing at a lake, you may not possess or use freshwater invertebrates for bait.
I'm pretty sure dragon fly nymphs are invertebrates. Correct me if I'm wrong !  ;D
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: THE_ROE_SLINGER on June 30, 2004, 09:10:27 AM
you guys are wimps. i took down a fullgrown grissley with my bare hands and my sheer will to live.
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: Rosco P. COHOtrane on June 30, 2004, 09:34:07 AM
I think you're right Lew Chater.   :-[   :-[

Won't happen again.

Regarding the bear, I felt quite privileged having an experience like that. I do lots of hiking and am very cognizant of the fact that I may encounter bears when out on the local trails near my house. However, I have only seen a bear once when hiking and to see one at my favourite fishing hole was a real treat!
We've encroached into THEIR stompin grounds and as guests,we should give them all the space they need...unless of course he tries to maul/eat me, then that's when I pull out the lever action Marlin 1895 GS chambered for 45/70 Gov't.   ;D  ;D


 
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: rln on June 30, 2004, 12:28:49 PM
IAfter about an hour on the docks, we decided to try our luck on the island so we packed up our things and headed there. A kid with a minnow net caught a dragonfly nymph and asked if I wanted it for bait so I said sure and put it on my hook.

I re-baited and this time put a small split shot 4" from my hook and extended my line into the water.  After a few hits and misses and re-baiting, I realised how quick on the draw I had to be with this new fishing technique.  The sun was setting and the trouts were starting to get active!
fish:

http://www.myfishingpictures.com/showphoto.php?photo=24713&size=big&password=&sort=1&thecat=502

Thanks Otto. That was fun!        

 
 
Upon reading the sportfishing regs, I see that using live dragonfly nymphs for bait is illegal and considered poaching. Amazing how many people don't follow the regs when sport fishing. So with such a post talking about this, can Roscoe be charged with breaking the regs? Roscoe has admitted to breaking the law. Hmmmmmmmmmmm
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: Rosco P. COHOtrane on June 30, 2004, 01:14:48 PM
Quote
Upon reading the sportfishing regs, I see that using live dragonfly nymphs for bait is illegal and considered poaching. Amazing how many people don't follow the regs when sport fishing. So with such a post talking about this, can Roscoe be charged with breaking the regs? Roscoe has admitted to breaking the law. Hmmmmmmmmmmm

I can admit when I'm wrong and feel $hitty about breaking the law.  :-[   :-[  :-[
At the time, I didn't think much of it. Just figured it was like using a worm or another insect. I used artificial stuff after that and that is how I caught my fish that evening.
Now I know and it will not happen again. Sorry guys.

Yeah I could be charged and ignorance of the regs is no excuse.  :-[  :-[  :-[
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: lj47 on June 30, 2004, 03:02:19 PM
As a new fisherman, does flaot fishing produce any results on this lake? How about spincasting with a spoon?

Crazy story about the bear! I've heard they will keep th egate closed if there is persistent threats from bears and cougars.
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: FlyNut on June 30, 2004, 04:16:07 PM
As a new fisherman, does flaot fishing produce any results on this lake? How about spincasting with a spoon?

Crazy story about the bear! I've heard they will keep th egate closed if there is persistent threats from bears and cougars.

Spoon, I would not think so (anyone?).  Bait fishing with a float is excellent.  Close to the pier is actually productive!
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: otto on June 30, 2004, 04:17:24 PM
you guys are wimps. i took down a fullgrown grissley with my bare hands and my sheer will to live.

do tell us the story FISHER..........i too have had my share of wild animal attacks


as for ROSCO using a dragonfly nymph that a kid gave him out of his dipnet, in all honesty he used it for about 8 seconds before it was gone. He has since been informed that you can't use aqautic insects that you find at the lake. does'nt matter anyways, we both have an excellent selection of dragonfly nymph fly patterrns that look better than the real thing.

 everybody on this forum has made a mistake like this at one point or another in their fishing history. to be honest, i did not know either that this was against the regs. now i do. so does Rosco, he made a little booboo and it wont happen again.

 in any case the wrath should be directed at the guy who has systematically depleted the trout in that lake, by catching 20+ fish a day with treble hooks and set lines. too bad the bear we chased away did'nt give that guy a scare!!!!
  8)



FLYNUT.....float fishing works excellent in this lake....use light tackle (2 - 4 lb test line, tiny floats, #10 - #14 hooks)  or grab your flyrod and sink a line down to the bottom with a dragonfly nymph or leech pattern..........the weirdest fly i used in this lake was a streamer flyhook, covered in dark drab green thick wool thread, wrapped in thin copper wire....bagged loads of trout with that one in the 2002 season..... 8)
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: lj47 on June 30, 2004, 04:54:49 PM
Thanks for the tips!!

Is early morning better or evening?  

(For less bears and better fishing)
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: otto on June 30, 2004, 05:02:06 PM
Thanks for the tips!!

Is early morning better or evening?  

(For less bears and better fishing)

the lake can weird due to the feeding habits of the hatchery trout..... generally tho, early morn, or evening is the best. the best time is about half an hour after a rainstorm, when the water is dead calm and the rain has stopped.........

also carry a FOX 40 whistle with you. if you get a bear "near" you, a couple of sharp blasts will/should scare it away and alert others that someone is in need of help...........universal sign for help is 3 rifle shots or three signal fires, three flare blasts or three whistle blasts etc......you can also check the hunting regs or the RCMP office for rules on firearms carry for bear protection...............
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: FlyNut on June 30, 2004, 05:04:26 PM
Thanks for the tips!!

Is early morning better or evening?  

(For less bears and better fishing)

I have not done mornings (ask Otto), but after 6 PM is BEAUTIFUL there, and productive.

If you in the morning, the gates open at 6 AM (I asked).  Also note that gates close at 9 PM.
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: DragonSpeed on June 30, 2004, 05:10:54 PM
How far from Gate to Lake?
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: FlyNut on June 30, 2004, 05:13:40 PM
How far from Gate to Lake?

10 minutes walk, or take your bike.  Then you can stay late and not worry about gate closing (I saw a couple of youngsters doing this).
Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake
Post by: Bantam_50 on June 30, 2004, 08:49:47 PM
Good read Rosco. I see folks using 7 meter rods in the Sumas Canal for trout and coarse fish. Interesting way to fish ! Fishing around bears is always exciting. Keeps your neck limber swiveling side to side, especially when you are fishing areas like the Atnarko River near Bella Coola amongst the grizzlies. Just a caution about your comment on using dragon fly nymphs for bait in a lake. Page 9 of Provincial Regs re "Aquatic Invertebrates"....when fishing at a lake, you may not possess or use freshwater invertebrates for bait.
I'm pretty sure dragon fly nymphs are invertebrates. Correct me if I'm wrong !  ;D

Among them?...you mean feeling the hairs on the back of your neck rise, when you part the foilage on the bear trails, while hiking to the next hole and just about step on one.  :o

Title: Re:Long Poling at Rice Lake June 29th
Post by: otto on July 01, 2004, 11:14:06 AM
so if you can't use aqautic invertabrates for bait, can you use non aqautic insects such as moths, catepillars, carpenter ants etc????