Late Rpt: Lake Mojave Striper & Cats 5/6/08-5/8/08

[Fiish]

My grandfather, well actually step grandfather, but the only grandfather I've ever known- we call him Papa. And my love of fishing began with him.

Papa turned 72 last week and this year, I finally realized how lucky I am each year that we have him. So I rounded up my brother and my father and made the drive with my boat from Los Angeles to Bullhead, AZ.

We arrived on Sunday evening and spent the entire night listening to Papa tell us fishing stories, and other stories of his past, stories that never get old- no matter how many times he repeats them.

On Monday morning, we headed out for licenses and bait at the ol' Wally World. After his dr. apt., Papa packed his scotch and we were off to Princess Cove.

Well, I wanted to go to Cottonwood- or better yet, Willow Beach. But apparently, my aunt and uncle wanted us to meet up with them for the afternoon at Princess.

To anyone who has been to Princess Cove on Lake Mojave- if you haven't been there since the beginning of May, you'll be plesantly surprised to find a beautifully paved road where there once was an awful dirt road.

Once in the water, I talked everyone into goin up river to cottonwood and we raced up at 34mph-

We found a nice cove on the NV side about 3 miles north of Cottonwood and beached the boats for lunch.

Just after my uncle finished saying," You're not gonna catch a damn thing cept carp during the middle of the day ", my brother hooked a 2lb largemouth bass on a nightcrawler-

Late afternoon brought winds with gusts up to 30. So, Papa and my dad decided to go back with my aunt and uncle, leaving my brother and I to fish overnight for striper and catfish. Boy did they miss out!

My brother and I had read an online report on another website that recommended this: For striper fishing, find a long point that jets out into deep water. Anchor up in about 10 feet of water and cast along the point.

We followed the advice and found a nice lookin spot. After setting the anchor, we watched as the weather calmed, winds next to nothing, and the night became ideal for fishing.

We were using anchovies on sliding sinkers and those damn bells that you attach to the end o the rod. oh- and to keep the sport in it, we used 4-12 lb line on our 4 rods.

The first ring of the bell came at around 8pm with a 2lb channel cat. 3 more catfish were netted every 10 mins. until finally just after 830, "...this one feels different." a 2lb striper hits the deck. Then a load more channel cats- then my brother picks-up my rod which has no bell, sets the hook, and says,"you've got one here". As he hands me the rod he says, "...a big one". As the rod hits my hands, the line peels-off 30 yards and my brother reminds me that, "this rod only has 6 lb." F-ing Great-

After a few 30-yard runs, though, a 3 lb striper was netted. I thought forsure that it would be bigger. oh well- still my personal best for a striper.

By the next morning, we had netted a total of 11 channel cats to 5.5lbs and 2 striper. We released 6 of the cats, including the largest one and the 5 smallest.

After getting back to my grandparent's house and cuttin up a bunch of fish for the freezer, my grandfather was gettin the itch and finally agreed to tough it out on the water that night.

So exactly 24 hrs later, I found myself with my dad, and Papa, in the exact same cove where my brother and I had nailed 'em the night before. But, the wind was blowin 15-20 and nothin happend for us. After a couple hours, I checked Papa's rod- cause he was payin more attention to the scotch than his rod- and guess what!?, "Papa, you've got something!" from the looks of his rod as he pulled that thing to the boat, it looked like he had a huge tuna or something...when it came to deep color- it looked like a huge halibut or something...wtf?!!?...as it broke surface, we realized that Papa had caught a humongous Soft-shelled Turtle. 13lbs- 16 3/4'' long shell.

So Papa didn't get a catfish. Or a bass.
But I'll never forget the day that I helped Papa fill-out and submit a lake record for a soft-shelled turtle.