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Name: Joe	E-Mail: jss309@aol.com
Spring:	Summer:
Fall: Thursday September 22, 2005, my first day out after about 15 years. I grew up on a lake in New Jersey and fishing has been a part of me and part of my life growing up. I have no taken the time to fish in 15 years and I thought it would be healthy to get back into it. I went to wal-mart and purchased my license. I was going to lake Ralphine because I had seen it recently while at Howarth park. After checking the area out on google earth I noticed Spring Lake so I went there. I drove in. I set up and sat on the dock for a while with my second hand ebay/thrift store lures and my Shimano rod and reel I purchased in Oregon to do some trout fishing there which I never got around to. So the rod is old school 7ft graphite and the reel is a shimano fx4000 with heavy green filament that was set most likely for salmon too. While getting nothing on the lures and casts I met a gentleman who told me about the story of the legendary Paul Duclos. In Jersey I hunted largemouth bass. The story of Paul was so riveting I soon left with nothing on the day but a fish story that kept me biting untill the wee hours getting prepared for Friday. While following up online I became more focused and a strategy overcame me. The lures I was using are totally wrong. I must revert to my old school stealth tactics untill I can get the right ones. Friday morning I set forth to the bait shop in Petaluma. I purchased one dozen shiners, drove over and set up on the banks in a pre-determined area, not the dock. Upon walking up I noticed the biggest Crayfish I had ever seen, at least 12 inches! So beautiful and majestic surveying his lanscape, a good omen! I sat down and set up a shiner through the back with a #8 snelled Eagle Claw hook. Yes a #8. I have #2s but #8s ARE stealth. I dropped the bait in the water near the drop off no longer did 30 seconds go by and there she was, on my line, I counted off 10 seconds that seemed like an eternity, reeled in the slack then set the hook. Pole tip up, a mass was moving back toward the drop off then she just sat right up out of the water and spit the shiner back at me. So I try again, this time she takes the shiner. I know my problem is my hook size but I try one more time, third time is a charm. BOOM! NOT TEN FEET AWAY FROM ME IS THE BIGGEST BASS I HAVE EVER SEEN! I thought it was a turtle because it just dug in and was not moving at all. I had caught turtles before and they usually dig into the mud and you have to cut your line. With the possibility of the big one I set my drag quickly and the fight was on. She was going nowhere and neither was I. After five minutes of constant tension she gave up and came to me sideways and exhausted. I pulled her to the banks and called for a random witness. To women came over then asked me if I was going to let it go. The answer to that is always yes. Even though it would be tempting to keep it because I did not bring my camera. Then one of the women pulled out her digital. I lifted the Mama out of the water and we were digitized forever. She was at least 15 -17 pounds we all agreed. I let her go and left with a memory of that day I will never forget. Spring lake Park is AWESOME!	Winter:
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