Doc Marshall
08-24-2011, 10:18 AM
Hey Folks,
Two weeks ago I rented a Coosa on a Friday when I had the day off. I'd previously tried out one owned by MidTNKayakAngler, so I felt pretty confident that I'd be fine going it alone.
For someone who's only familiar with the Harpeth and few warm Tennessee lakes, the scenery and ice cold water of the Caney were a nice surprise. I brought along two poles, some rooster tails, and a sandwich made with Benton's bacon. The river seemed mostly deserted.
Standing was no problem for me, and the maneuverability of the Coosa in running water made casting a breeze. I caught my first Caney trout (a brown?) while standing. What a joy. I'd never caught anything on a rooster tail before so I was taken completely by surprise.
I did, however, have some problems with the rod stagers. At one point, I reached for a light action pole at an awkward angle and it SNAPPED. When I turned to check it out, I knocked the other pole off of a stager with my leg. "It'll float" I told myself, but it sank like a bag of nickles. Ernest Goes to the Caney.
So there I was, half way into my trip, with one broken pole. I enjoyed the remainder of the ride and resolved to continue fishing with the broken pole. I could still cast.
An hour later I landed at the pickup site and brought the Coosa to shore. The pickup van was nowhere in sight so I waded into the river and began casting. BAM! I caught trout after trout! I couldn't believe it. Almost ever other cast was fruitful. Mostly rainbows.
A fly fisherman nearby was having the same luck. "Is this normal?" I asked him. He shook his head. "I've never seen it like this."
I probably caught ten trout that day, nine on a broken pole. What a great feeling.
On a side note, I don't think I'd use rooster tails again for trout, in spite of my success. My father is a fly fisherman and he uses single hooks with no barbs. This made little sense to me until I caught my first trout. Unlike bass, they're gentle, soft fish. Their mouths are far too small to handle a nasty barbed treble hook.
Anyway, sorry for the lack of pictures. But I can guarantee my camera would have ended up on the bottom of the Caney(!). I do plan to buy a Coosa soon.
Two weeks ago I rented a Coosa on a Friday when I had the day off. I'd previously tried out one owned by MidTNKayakAngler, so I felt pretty confident that I'd be fine going it alone.
For someone who's only familiar with the Harpeth and few warm Tennessee lakes, the scenery and ice cold water of the Caney were a nice surprise. I brought along two poles, some rooster tails, and a sandwich made with Benton's bacon. The river seemed mostly deserted.
Standing was no problem for me, and the maneuverability of the Coosa in running water made casting a breeze. I caught my first Caney trout (a brown?) while standing. What a joy. I'd never caught anything on a rooster tail before so I was taken completely by surprise.
I did, however, have some problems with the rod stagers. At one point, I reached for a light action pole at an awkward angle and it SNAPPED. When I turned to check it out, I knocked the other pole off of a stager with my leg. "It'll float" I told myself, but it sank like a bag of nickles. Ernest Goes to the Caney.
So there I was, half way into my trip, with one broken pole. I enjoyed the remainder of the ride and resolved to continue fishing with the broken pole. I could still cast.
An hour later I landed at the pickup site and brought the Coosa to shore. The pickup van was nowhere in sight so I waded into the river and began casting. BAM! I caught trout after trout! I couldn't believe it. Almost ever other cast was fruitful. Mostly rainbows.
A fly fisherman nearby was having the same luck. "Is this normal?" I asked him. He shook his head. "I've never seen it like this."
I probably caught ten trout that day, nine on a broken pole. What a great feeling.
On a side note, I don't think I'd use rooster tails again for trout, in spite of my success. My father is a fly fisherman and he uses single hooks with no barbs. This made little sense to me until I caught my first trout. Unlike bass, they're gentle, soft fish. Their mouths are far too small to handle a nasty barbed treble hook.
Anyway, sorry for the lack of pictures. But I can guarantee my camera would have ended up on the bottom of the Caney(!). I do plan to buy a Coosa soon.