Fat Chad's Stonecat turtle beer can early birthday fishing trip

Karen with her 18-3/4-inch smallmouth.

Expect the unexpected.  I'm sure someone has said that before in regards to fishing.  This weekend involved catching a couple things out of the ordinary, and they weren't even a fish.

Karen got me an early birthday present -- returning once again to fish the Susquehanna River with Jason Shay of Susquehanna Smallmouth Solutions.  With no crazy storms leading up to the day of the trip, the river looked to be flowing almost normal (a bit over five feet), and the weather wasn't going to be too bad after we endured mid-40s in the morning.  Those early morning rides on the jet-prop boat are C-O-L-D!

We got to the ramp early, and Jason already had his boat in the water with several other fishermen getting ready to put in.  We loaded our gear and headed first to a spot that we've fished before just below a rock formation.  The plan was to use soft plastics (tubes, Ned Rigs and Fat Chad's Stonecats) and try jerkbaits.  Jason wasn't too confident on the latter -- they had been getting some fish but plastic presentations on the bottom had seen the most action the previous few days.

Jason and I with a double of 17-inch smallmouth!  Ha ha!

First fish of the day went to me on an Undercover Baits Lil Tube, roughly a 15-inch smallmouth.  And that was the start of the inconsistency -- a fish or two here, a fish or two there.  We would watch other boats pull into an area nearby and fish for maybe 15 minutes before heading to another spot.  So while we weren't slaying the fish, others looked like they weren't boating a single fish.

We were targeting slow water just adjacent to swifter water, and it was really difficult to keep the lures in the strike zone.  Lots of snags as the lures got swept away or fishing line wrapped around a rock or something below the surface.

We did manage to find one nice spot that got us a handful of fish, then some more when we returned to the same spot a couple hours later.  I was having the best luck here with a lure I brought, an Undercover Baits Mini-O -- similar to Z-Man Finesse TRD worms -- used on a Ned Rig setup.

It seemed like there was a lone honey hole in this area that held the most fish.  I would let the worm bounce along the bottom (hopefully not getting snagged), and when it reached this spot, I kept tension on the line as the jig tick-tick-ticked on the rocky floor.  And when a fish bit, it would just barely pull tension on the rod tip, or the jig just stopped moving.  I was using my medium-light St. Croix Avid-X rod, which is perfect for presentations just like that.

Undercover Baits Mini-O after its fifth fish.

After we left and came back, I snagged the jig rigged with that "hot" color, but I caught more fish -- even on the first cast -- using another Undercover Mini-O in a totally different color.

We all managed other fish at various locations throughout the day on Lil Tubes and Fat Chad's Stonecats (good luck Googling that -- you will just end up down a rabbit hole of pictures of fat cats).  Stonecats are small members of the catfish family, and Jason said Susquehanna smallmouth bass consider them a delicacy.  He had three-inch plastics a local supplier (AKA, Fat Chad) molds that look like a stonecat, even detailed with rubbery whiskers.

This was also my first time really putting Undercover Baits plastics to the test (first time using them was last month for my first two smallmouth of the year).  I picked up a couple packets of Mini-O worms at a fishing show during the offseason, and Jason had a boatload of their Lil Tubes.  While they aren't made from super-durable elaztech material like the Z-Man plastics, they actually held up really well.  I landed seven fish with the same worm before eventually the river decided it wanted the lure more than me.

Me and my turtle.

Now for the unexpected.  The last catch of the day, just trying to get a fish or two before we called it quits, I cast a worm and bounced it along the bottom, just like 100 times before.  And then the lure stopped like a fish grabbed it.  I pulled back on the rod, and there was definitely something hooked up.  I reeled in, but it felt like ... maybe a stick?  A stick "pulling" while trying to reel  against the current sometimes gives the impression a fish is on the other end.  I stopped reeling but felt something pulling back, just not aggressive like an angry smallmouth.

I kept cranking the reel, and finally whatever it was came to the surface behind the boat -- a turtle!  It was upside down, and it took me a second to realize what it was.  Thankfully it wasn't a snapping turtle.  (Honestly, if it was a snapper, I would have cut the line ASAP rather than deal with a mean turtle.)  Jason netted it, and the hook was just under the shell above the head.  But once the turtle was in the boat, the jig just fell off.  No harm done, except a bewildered turtle.

The other unexpected catch -- a beer can.

Karen the science teacher and turtle lover wasn't sure what kind it was.  We took a few pictures as the turtle would stick its head out and tuck back in.  Tossed it back in the water, and it swam away.

On the way home, Karen searched and found it was a northern map turtle, and the yellow coloring around the mouth indicated it was a female.  They feed on mollusks, snails and crayfish, among other things.

The next unexpected thing was earlier in the day -- a beer can.  Miller High Life, the champagne of beers.  Not as impressive as the turtle, though.

So while we didn't have a day like two years ago, Jason put us on fish while everybody else on the river seemed to be struggling.  I managed 17, and I think Jason and Karen each had 10 or 12.  Karen got the biggest fish, though, a smallmouth measuring 18-3/4 inches.

It looks like the weather this week should really be warming up, so the smallmouth action around here may be heating up, too.

Karen unhooking a smallmouth bass.

Top -- Pflueger Supreme XT on a medium-light St. Croix Avid-X.
Middle: Vintage Mitchell 300 on a medium BPS Extreme.
Bottom: One of Jason's Daiwa Tatula LT on a medium Kage rod --
VERY light setup.