CTFishTalk.com: Connecticut River - Haddam Meadows 11/19 - Connecticut River Reports ( CT River Reports ) - A Community Built for Connecticut Fisherman.

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

I wasn't planning to go fishing, today, but after my daughter made me get up early to drive her to school and I went to the UConn Health Center for a blood draw, I called NWDarkcloud (aka Bob) to see whether he felt like going. Bob had never been to Haddam Meadows, so we decided to use the ramp there. We launched The Other Woman, Too onto the Connecticut River at 10:30 am, about 15 minutes before low tide:

Bob was impressed that I had reserved the boat launch for our exclusive use. Wink

My plan was to head upriver about a mile and drift down the channel along the east bank. The weather forecast was for an air temperature in the 40s, an overcast but clearing sky and a 10 mile per hour north-northeast wind. As we headed upriver, Bob was really impressed that I had also reserved the entire river for our exclusive use. Laughing

Unfortunately, however, we ran into a stiff 15 mile per hour northwest wind that, when combined with the current, blew us quickly down the channel and sucked the heat right out of us. After trying to fight the wind for 30 minutes, we gave up and decided to run down to the shelter of the Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Plant Canal. Although we no longer had to fight the current and the full force of the wind in the canal, we were both frozen solid when we anchored up in the cove at the end. It took me three tries to tie on a wire leader with my frozen fingers. However, it didn't take Bob long to finally, finally Rolling Eyes

catch a fish from the back of my boat with a lipless crankbait:

Sorry for the lousy photos, Bob, but my fingers weren't working, yet, and I was still shivering. Wink

I'm not an expert at catfish identification, but I'm pretty sure that it was a brown bullhead. We anchored at different spots in the cove and tried throwing a lot of different lures. I started by throwing a white five inch slow sinking Sebile Magic Swimmer before switching to a black Strike King Midnight Special spinnerbait and then a Pearl White three inch Berkley Powerbait Minnow on a pink 1/8 ounce round jighead. I hooked a really nice black crappie with the minnow jig and played it slowly up to the boat. Bob offered to net it for me, but I decided to just try swinging it onto the boat. It was a lot bigger than I thought it was, probably around 14 inches and 1-1/2 pounds, and it managed to shake itself free when I lifted it from the water. Bob thought that I'd be upset about it, but I've been catching plenty of crappie, lately. Wink

We moved around the cove until 1:45 pm, when we decided to let the northwest wind push us down the canal. Bob wanted to drift from the very end, so we motored up to it before starting our drift. I wanted to drag a lure along the bottom, so I tied on a Stock Trout 5/8 ounce River2Sea Bottom Walker Shad 100, which is a soft plastic paddletail swimbait (thanks, Jed! Very Happy

). We had drifted only 50 feet before I felt a slight tug on the Bottom Walker Shad and set the hook on what I immediately knew was a northern pike. I horsed it up to the surface and Bob quickly netted it. It was 32 inches inches long, but really skinny. It didn't have much color to it and appeared to be bleeding from its anus, as if it were a larger pike's b*!@# in pike prison Laughing

:

But don't get me wrong, I was happy to have caught it:

Washing the pike slime off of my already cold hands in the 41 degree water was NOT fun. Rolling Eyes

As we drifted down the canal, I alternated between throwing the Bottom Walker Shad and a smaller minnow jig, which was a Silver Pearl 2-1/2 inch Berkley Gulp! Minnow on a black 1/16 ounce round jighead. Whenever I saw what I thought was a likely northern pike spot, I'd throw the Bottom Walker Shad, and whenever I saw what I thought was a likely black crappie spot, I'd throw the minnow jig. It wasn't until 3:30 pm that I finally boated a 14 inch, one pound, six ounce black crappie with the minnow jig:

Sorry, but I love these glamour shots Laughing

:

We headed back to the ramp at Haddam Meadows after we had drifted only halfway back down the canal, because the sun was starting to drop below the trees to the west. We got off of the water at 4:15 pm, just before high tide. As much as I want to head back out on the water, again, if the wind is forecast to be over 10 miles per hour, I'm not going. Wink

_________________
Don't forget to wear sunscreen and don't litter!

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

I forgot to mention the solitary deer we saw on both sides of the canal, the cormorants, great gray herons, ducks, cardinals, chickadees, bluebirds and red-tailed hawks, and our furry little friend, the American mink that lives somewhere nearby and outfishes us every time we see him. If you haven't been outside in the cold, lately, you're missing out. Very Happy

_________________
Don't forget to wear sunscreen and don't litter!

DCAJ · Joined: 04 Jun 2012 Posts: 76 Location: Berlin, CT

Good job guys getting out there and braving the elements.

Phil, good thinking reserving the launch and river. Idea

I'm trying to get the launch and river reserved for this Thursday. They had to put me on the waiting list. Mad

NWDarkcloud · Joined: 23 Apr 2012 Posts: 474

It was a really decent day take the wind out of the mix would make it easy to fish . The cold dont seem to bother the wildlife much its everywhere you look in the canal, but for us the slow steady drain of body heat from the wind chill is tough of the hands.
At 1 point PPPPPhil got so cold he was ttttttttypeing with a studdddder when sending a text Laughing

.

All jokeing aside If your heading out guys bring a hand towel to dry hands fast after washing them free of fish slime and a hot pack hand warmers just in case could make the differance between staying the day and leaveing early.

The hardest part of the whole day was trip back to the ramp (dam the days are getting short Sad

) but a hot meal and a good chat warms ya right up great way to round off the day.
Thanks for the call as allways Phil . I realy enjoyed the trip to your private launch
_________________
I Love to fish......Not a big fan of sitting in the boat alone ....the Conversation and the company make it perfect

Michael · Joined: 28 Jan 2012 Posts: 3823 Location: Bridgeport

Nice crappie Phil!

That's a brown bullhead