CTFishTalk.com: Housatonic River - Shelton 03/05 - Connecticut River Reports ( CT River Reports ) - A Community Built for Connecticut Fisherman.

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

After a few sightseeing outings on the Connecticut River, TurtleKiss (aka Kira) made me take her down to the lower Housatonic River, so she could see what a fish looks like. We headed to the Sunnyside Boat Launch Facility in Shelton. When we arrived, a tree crew was cleaning up the trees in the park and taking up the space for trailer parking with their chipper, so I ended up having to park my jeep and trailer off to the side:

When we launched at 8:20 am, the air temperature was above freezing, but the wind was blowing out of the north at a steady 10+ miles per hour. However, since NWDarkcloud (aka Bob) wasn't around, we enjoyed full sun:

Ahhh, that feels good! Very Happy

Low tide was at 12:44 pm, so we fished both sides of it. After we left the ramp, we zig-zagged across the river as we headed upriver to the cove on the downriver side of Two Mile Island. We didn't mark many fish with the finder until we got to the cove, which we were glad to see is now totally free of ice:

We marked a few bunches of fish holding on structure or cover on the bottom with the finder, but we also marked a big school of fish that appeared to be circling around the cove near the bottom. We'd find it, then lose it, find it, then lose it. It was so thick that the finder couldn't discriminate individual fish within the school. It appeared as a 10 foot thick red wall moving across the bottom in 30 to 35 feet of water. Kira and I both threw jigs. I stuck mostly with a Pearl five inch Trigger X Minnow on a white/red eye 1/2 ounce fishhead jighead. For two hours after we launched, we got nothing. Not a bite. Not a nibble. Not a bump. Nothing. Confused

At 10:20 am, a fisherman whom I had seen on the lower Housy before pedaled up in a Hobie Pro Angler:

Hey, Sean! Or is it Shawn? Anyway, since Sean had a fish finder on his Hobie, we helped each other out spotting the school. Knowing where it was and getting the fish to bite were totally different things, though. Around 11:30 am, I finally snagged a fish when I was trying the Hard Jerk and Fall technique that I learned from mep21 (aka Mark). I was surprised when I pulled up a fat 11 inch white perch. So surprised, I guess, that I totally forgot to take a photo of it. Confused

Kira was disappointed that the school of fish we had been targeting with striper lures was probably made up of white perch. I'm fairly sure that it was an anadraomous (aka freshwater spawning saltwater fish) male, because the horny bugger milted on my hand. It was another hour before I snagged up a schoolie striped bass:

Although Kira was more impressed with the striper than the white perch, I was getting frustrated that I was snagging fish, instead of hooking them in the mouth. Only a few minutes later, I snagged up what ended up being the first of four striper scales:

Just great. . . . Rolling Eyes

While the fishing wasn't going very well, the weather was. The sun stayed out, the wind eased and the air temperature rose to the mid 40s. It got nice out there! Very Happy

At 1:10 pm, while trying the Excruciatingly Slow Drag technique that I learned from hila2006 (aka John), I finally caught a schoolie striper by hooking it in the mouth:

Whoo hoo!

On my next cast, I got another hit using the Excruciatingly Slow Drag technique, but lost it. Mad

At 2:45 pm, I got another hit I figured was a decent sized striped bass that was either hooked in the mouth or snagged near the tail. It pulled drag for a few minutes before I finally horsed it to the surface and Kira netted it:

It was a 21 inch striped bass that I snagged above the pectoral fins. Sonofab*!@# Mad

15 minutes later, Kira finally boated a fish, although she knew that she had snagged it immediately after she hooked it:

I ended up snagging one more schoolie striper:

As the sun began to drop below the treeline, I called "Just One More". I never got mine, but Kira snagged up hers:

Oh, well!

By the time that we put out from the river at 5:40 pm, the parking lot had emptied out:

Although Kira never caught a fish, technically, because she snagged both of hers, I think that she was glad to at least handle a fish. We're going to have to work on this fishing thing some more. Very Happy

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DirtyDawg10 · Joined: 27 May 2009 Posts: 2238 Location: Granby, CT

Guess you'll have to keep practicing...I know sounds horrible, right?

bassinthesalt · Joined: 05 Mar 2013 Posts: 75

the fish are turning on the lures after they go to hit them. its not like they are just getting snagged

bassinthesalt · Joined: 05 Mar 2013 Posts: 75

thats the key lure tho

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

kennethshaw · Joined: 16 Aug 2011 Posts: 60

The guy on the kayak is a regular on the Yakdawgs forum. That guy is a mad fisherman and catches loads of fish. Great guy!

NWDarkcloud · Joined: 23 Apr 2012 Posts: 474

See what happens when you dont bring clouds with ya fishing sun all day Very Happy

just a few deg. in temp and a lttle rain and poof the ice is gone .....I love soft water to hell with the ice . come on spring

well back to work on the boat....
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I Love to fish......Not a big fan of sitting in the boat alone ....the Conversation and the company make it perfect

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

hila2006 · Joined: 22 Jul 2011 Posts: 582 Location: Ellington

Hey Phil, thanks for the hila2006 reference dude. That was the only way to get them that day for me anyways Very Happy

Still, that was a blast that day. I'm going to head out in the yak this weekend on Beseck, ice is out on there. There's just a little bit by my house, 90% of the lake was open when I got home last night. I'm gonna try to slooooooow drag of a white sluggo to start of with.

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