Bowfin Bonanza

We hit the water Saturday morning at around 7:30 and headed out to one of our favorite spots for Pike fishing on Lake Champlain (I'd rather not disclose the location, you know how it is.) While the weatherman predicted winds of a mere 4-6 mph, when we got there, the wind was howling! When we finally putted through the sea of foot tall waves and arrived at our destination, I started out with my favorite Rapala. It wasn't long before I felt an aggressive hit from way back in a huge mat of millfoil. The cast after that I hooked into a 14 inch LMB. We made one drift and an assortment of different baits hit the water resulting in another 16 inch LMB and a pike. From the end of this drift, we ended up trolling planers and picked up one keeper pike that was around 26-27 inches. For the next location, we tried out a little deeper and casted jigs for bass/walleyes. I ended up snagging a monster drum twice in a row, but was unable to land the beast. I was only able to get a scale, which I guess is what I get for foul hooking it. Yet another LMB was landed in this spot as well and many big, but inactive, smallies were spotted. It’s so cool to watch them cruising in 20 feet of water.

After that, we headed in search of some Pads to do some topwater frog fishing and were able to find a shallow area that had plenty of cover for largemouths. On the first cast, a largie blew up on my frog and a couple pitches later, he got a taste of my thumb. Nothing big, but still a boatload of fun to catch on a hollow body frog. After trolling around the bay in search of some more fish, my Dad noticed a fish lying on the bottom two feet below us, concealed in a thick mat of weeds and slime. It was a bowfin, and a big one at that! I grabbed my jigging rod and danced a bladed marabou jig, that I had just tied the day before, in front of his face. The prehistoric fish didn't even move a muscle until, suddenly, he lurched out at the bait and sucked it in! I gave a hard hookset and was in for a fight. With nowhere to go but straight away from our boat, he made several impressive drag stripping runs before tiring. Once netted, he did a feisty deathroll which ended up dislodging the hook (Perfect!). Pictures were snapped, high fives exchanged, and measurements recorded, before the beautiful creature was returned to his bluegill eating duties. This particular fish was 29 inches long (Master Angler) and estimated to be around 9 or 10 pounds.

After this first fish, my Dad and I ended up catching at least six more with the largest being 27 and 3/4 inches. It was a blast! We did learn, very quickly, that if you are going to sight fish for Bowfin, you definitely need some really bulky hooks and tackle in general, as several jigs were straightened, fish threw the hook, and lines were broken. Those fish have earned my full hearted respect as one of the strongest and most beautiful creatures ever to roam the waters of Lake Champlain.

On the way to the boat launch, we were able to finish the day with a couple more jerkbait Largemouths. It was an awesome day!