The big one got away... AGAIN!

Waded the creek this morning from 7:30am to noon. With the overcast conditions I really thought the smallmouth bite would have been a lot more aggressive than it was. Started out throwing Strike King Bitsy tubes (green pumpkin) with a couple nibbles but only one taker that ended up being a small rock bass. So I switched to a yellow Rebel Crickhopper. With that I had some pretty fierce topwater hits only to reel them in and find sunfish on the end of my line. I then decided to change to a Rebel Wee Craw (ditch color). Hooked a few more rock bass and then felt a huge tug on my line. Remembering my mistake from last time I quickly loosened up my drag to make sure this one wouldn't snap the line. Everything was going as planned. It went airborn a couple times and still stayed on the hook and was giving me one exciting fight. Then the worst thing happens. It swims around a laydown that I'm standing next to, gets it's self tangled up, and before I can rush over to grab it, breaks the line and swims off with some new jaw jewelry. I couldn't believe it! If this is the same fish it has gotten the best of me 3 times in the last 2 weeks. And being in the 18" range it's more and more heartbreaking everytime. So I get myself together, tie on another Rebel Wee Craw and cast to the same spot. I hook another that is considerably smaller only watch it jump twice and spit the lure out. Now I'm mad! I throw back to same spot about 5 more times and FINALLY land a fat 14 incher (see the pic below). By this time thunder is starting to roll in so I pack it up and head home. So I ended up with 1 smallmouth, 5 rock bass, and 7 sunfish all together. Not a terrible day but definitley could have been a lot better!

[url]http://i715.photobucket.com/albums/ww154/nic_sturgill/c76e5b84.jpg[/url]

That's a nice one! I only had one keeper bass today too. It was a 2.84 pound smallmouth I caught in KY River. She inhaled my soft plastic. I had to cut the line so as not to kill it.