Gear

I went fishing on sunday for fall salmon. I went dirty mcdirt style, fishing a shitty 20 dollar spinning reel on a shitty, 45 dollar, 9 foot ten weight (do I get additional dirt points for fishing dirty style with a fly rod?). Anyways, point is, there is a line that needs to be drawn which defines the point at which you shouldn't even go fishing until you get the right gear, or at least close to the right gear.

My main line on the above mentioned rig is 25 lb shitty ass braid, I was using 20 lb maxima leader and my main line broke every time I got a snag. I would have downsized leader, but I didn't have anything smaller along. Chalk up half my fishing time lost to re-rigging. Then I was pulling on one of said snags and I kept giving up line, but my drag wasn't turning. Upon closer inspection I realized that my line was free spinning on the spool, like, the spool to line knot broke and now the whole mass of it spins together. I was partially hoping I didn't hook one because I'd rather get skunked then get close and lose it due to bad gear. A stupid and self imposed paradox, to go fishing and hope to not hook a fish.

Then I hooked a fish. I was back bouncing a big ass gob of eggs, corky and 1/2 oz of lead down a current seam about 4 feet from the bank. The fish took, I set up and the fish gave a couple thrashes on top then settled into the main current, not doing much. Fearing the result of taking the fish down the chute about 60 feet below me I tried to backtrack upstream along the bank to get my net (note: don't leave your net upstream!). I went up and the fish ran out, which was fine, but then it ran straight down and in toward the bank below me, this is a bad place to be, directly upstream of a fish. I was fishing a small hook and was feeling a little worried about the hook set when the fish came to the top, its mouth pointed straight at me, and started thrashing around again. On the third head shake the line went limp. Fuck stick.

Anyone got a salmon bait caster set up they don't use anymore? Either that or I am going to Joe's this week, as I have a date with a fat salmon next weekend, and that bitch will be mine!