CTFishTalk.com: Rapala Was at It Again! - Connecticut River Reports ( CT River Reports ) - A Community Built for Connecticut Fisherman.

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

Thursday I had off from work and decided to hit the Pequonnock at the ballfields after getting stuff done around the house and hearing word from a buddy. Arrive around 2:15pm.

Played around with a number of minnow shaped Rapalas to see what the stockies were in the mood for. Lures they showed interest in were glass minnow HJ-8, yellow perch HJ-6, tennessee shad HJ-6, gold XR-6, yellow perch XR-4, and firetigeer HJ-6. The 1 lure that was getting them to hit mostly was the golf XR-6, as long as I did the traditional X-Rap slashbait retrieve.

Total was over 20 with most being brookies. Others were rainbows and 1 was a brown.

Later once the bite died, I worked my way along Bunnells Pond with a silver shad JSR-4, but didn't stay too long due to the wicked west winds.

Last stop was the Pequonnock at The Wonderland of Ice. 1 spot is where I got into trout. Total with the yellow perch HJ-6 was 2 browns and lost a trout.

Hit the road around 6:30pm.

Stockies caught at Beardsley ranged from small 9" to chunky 12.5" weighing 11 to 13 ounces. The biggest fish of the day was 1 of the browns at The Wonderland of Ice, measuring 14.5" and weighing 1 pound 6 ounces.

Saw DEEP Officer John Hey at Beardsley and witnessed him give out a ticket. He said only 2 people before I arrived were catching fish and not many people had been there yet. Site member junkie (Jose) came and was doing well with a spinner. Otherwise, everybody else who was there while I was there didn't catch a fish.

Bolygan · Joined: 13 Apr 2015 Posts: 12

Caught 5 rainbows with green-yellow powerbait, caught another with the F05 Rapala -rainbow trout color. Under just 2 hours, before I was chased away by the snow-ice-rain crap and heavy wind gusts. (Stillwater Pond)
I also caught a chain pickerel, then probably another got my blue-yellow colored suspending minnow, because it bit it the whole thing off from the line, after I set the hook.

2 of the troutsI kept, even though there is no limit on this pond and there wasn't any stocking since 2013.
I caught a few more a couple of days ago and caught a really nice one yesterday, under 20 minutes, so I'm well supplied as far as getting something for the frying pen.

Interestingly, I don't see anyone else catching fish, beside the some guys in a boat caught a variety of fish.
I'm betting, that many people are using thick lines and don't consider changing colors and/or the type of the bait, whether they are using dough or a hard lure.

For example, I get no bites on anything thicker than a 6lbs fluorocarbon, so I'm using a 4lb test line. (This is tried and tested, over many wasted hours)
Anything thicker than a 6lbs test line, and the fish are point at you and laugh. Maybe a few weeks from now, you can catch them on a rope, when they get even more active, but right now, they are pickier than a virgin princess.

Yesterday, the meal worm was the flavor of the day (I was jigging one with a 1BB shot sized weight on my ultralight), while today, they couldn't bother touching it.
Today was green-yellow powerbait, while a week ago, it was bubble gum or red.
Before that, there was an ice sheet over the entire pond.

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

Bolygan, funny how you said certain pound test lines get them to hit more than others, cause whenever I'm fishing smaller lakes, ponds, and streams, I use my ML 5'6" setup with 6 pound mono and do pretty well vs others.

Whenever I'm fishing larger lakes, rivers, and ponds that have a much better chance at getting into a number of big fish, I use my 6 footer with heavy duty 8 pound mono.

Another is how well I do in the surf with lighter and thinner 10 pound braid vs others using heavier 30 to 60 pound braid.

And as you said about lure and bait choice and colors, I've had a number of times this year at the TMA where 1 day it's 1 lure and the next day it's a total different color. But I'm noticing how well I'm doing with smaller minnow shaped lures vs people using mealies, worms, and Power Bait, as if these stockies are more in the mood for fry or something moving steadily. I can imagine how well a small live shiner would do.

Bolygan · Joined: 13 Apr 2015 Posts: 12

Water temperature plays a lot into it. Perhaps where you located Michael, the rivers and lakes are a bit warmer.I'm up in the Northwest CT and some lakes got free of ice 2 weeks ago. Water is still in the 40s and the current cold weather doesn't help at all.

stripertime · Joined: 27 Aug 2012 Posts: 69

No limit on stillwater? Limit is the statewide regs of 5 trout per day. And it has been stocked the past few years including this year

bitsy215 · Joined: 10 May 2015 Posts: 1

Every have any luck using imitation rainbow trout rapalas to catch larger rainbows I’m not sure if they are cannibals

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