What could be more fun than 11 bass-fishing enthusiasts spending 3 days at the Roostercomb Ranch situated within the Henry Coe State Park. Sprawled among its nearly 6,000 acres are 8 ponds filled with bass and blue gill. Those present were Mark Traugott, Keith Munger, Michael Sherwood, Angela Johnson, Elaine and John Cook, Bill Seaman, Scott Kitayama, Dan Eaton, Jon Wolfe and Cecilia Stipes. So many fish were caught, it was one for the records. By Saturday Dan said it was the best fishing day he had ever had at the ranch. Hard to stop when it’s so good. He and Jon were the last to show up for dinner that evening! Scott was personally escorted around the ranch by Cecilia and discovered it was way too much fun sight-fishing the bass from shore to get into his float tube. He nailed a whopper (aka “toilet flush”) on his first cast at “Shadow” pond and before that, a series of aggressive large bass at “Secret” to start his day. By 3rd day, Elaine was gleefully teasing a series of bullfrogs (I believe 15) with her homemade poppers at “Buzzard”. Keith pulled out a bass measuring 20 in. (afraid no photo) from “Mustang”. Angela and I spent 5 hrs at “Harvey”, the farthest pond from ranch house driven by ATV over hill and dale to get there, where we caught countless bass with girth and weight. I found that the bigger popper I used (deer-hair mouse or frog), created a bigger incentive to encourage the largest bass to attack. My theory worked!
All in all, 3 days at the Roostercomb was a great success. Great fishing, wonderful camaraderie, delicious food, and of course, a great trip into the back country surrounded by Nature’s beauty and wildlife.
Posted on April 24th, 2025