Tried the Stilly again near Silvana last night after pouring down rain. Arrived approx. 4:30 and fished til dark. Fish were present, rolling, jumping along near the bank. The rain let up and I had a good feeling. No one else present except me and the fish and the creepy seal who appeared out of nowhere. Don’t get me wrong, the seals are beautiful and the setting was nice but sometimes it can be startling when they make a splash out of nowhere and this faintly human looking face is staring at you. Ugh. Anyway, I threw dicknites, vibrax, and then finally a modified #3 Mepps clipped down to one hook with barb crimped. It was 6pm, getting dark and the rain was coming down a bit harder. After 8 “last” casts, I hooked something big as it jumped out of the water approx. 50 feet away. It appeared to be 20”. Fish on! My drag was screaming, my heart was pumping and then it jumped out of the water again..I adjusted my drag slightly and then – fish gone. Maybe I shouldn’t have adjusted my drag. Maybe it was that damned barbless hook. Maybe…

I took several more “last” casts and by that time it was dark. I was wet. I drove home. Woke up this am and my first thought was “damn, I wish I landed that fish last night.”

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