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Date: May 12, 2024 Body of Water: Hancock Pond - Denmark, Maine Boat: amybaby22 With: Alone Target: Brown Trout Time: 8 AM - 12:15 PM Moon Phase: Waxing crescent moon Conditions: Starting cool, clear and bright, but with clouds developing; flat calm with a weak, intermittent northwesterly breeze developing at 10; 45 - 60 degrees. Water temperatures 54 - 57 degrees F (+/-); thick midge hatch! With stripers on their way, I knew this could be the end of my Spring Trout Season. It's been a good one, and I accepted the challenge of a difficult pond on what looked to be a difficult day; there was always the chance that I'd learn something, or connect with another fine (or finer!) brown or two. Lines were in by 8 AM; I went with a pair of "Old Faithfuls" including a top-lined Thomas Eel (200 feet back!) and an orange DB Smelt off two colors of lead. I chose to troll with the main motor and cover water at 2.0-2.5 mph in search of that first, elusive bite. I concentrated on major structural elements and depths between 15 and 30 feet of water. It took 45 minutes for the first strike. The DB Smelt got ripped over 25 feet of water. The hit was violent, but the hooks did not find flesh. Still, I was glad to see that I remained in a zone where something good could happen. The same presentation got hammered about 45 minutes later, this time in the same area but a little shallower, perhaps 16 feet of water. This fish pulled some drag before the hooks pulled, before I could even get to the rod. With two solid strikes in 90 minutes, I couldn't really complain, and I still had plenty of time make something happen. All the while, I varied the top-line presentation. I introduced another "Old Faithful", an F9 Rapala in gold/black (a stealthy 200 feet back) and also swam an orange Arctic Fox tube fly behind an action disk, top-lined 150 feet back. I was seeing plenty of trout feeding on the midges just sub-surface; I had quite a bit of faith that a surface-feeding trout might fall for the top-line. At 10 AM, I made a move to the "reef" area that had produced a trout the previous weekend. A mild breeze had started, and I wanted to cover some new water. In 45 minutes, this area showed nothing, although I did learn that last week's trout may have been associated with a hidden hump topping out at 3 feet and dropping off quickly into 30. I switched tactics to Gulp! and electric trolling; and when the first couple of passes in this reef area produced just a couple of "taps" (perch?), I moved back to the main point where I'd encountered my two biters earlier in the day. On my first pass here, moving at 1.7 mph over about 21 feet of water, a heavy fish simply pulled back the Gulp! rod. It seemed to be moving the same speed as the boat, with the rod just slightly loaded. I held the rod and wound down; I half expected the dead weight of weeds, but a few long head-shakes belied the presence of a fish. And just as I settled in for the fight, the hook pulled. Now 0-for-3, I continued the search for another 45 minutes. The breeze died and the midges became insufferable. I thought I could outlast the trout, but I'd struck out. What do I have to say about this? I hate striking out, but it does happen. And I'd been so close to something good! Foul balls and missed swings are just part of the game. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways
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