Second trip tubing down the river. Started off a bit slow but picked up nicely in the afternoon. Although I still got quite a few nice fish on the Buzz Hammer, overall the fish weren't quite as into the topwater bite as they were on Monday. We still got them great on the wacky-rigged 4 inch Salt Shaker Worms and a Texas-rigged hand-poured amber colored beavertail grub.

Brian (14) stopped right at the bottom of a little rapid area where he got a nice smallie on the Buzz Hammer yesterday - right in the moving water. After a few casts he found a spot that was holding lots of fish - mostly nice Rock Bass. He pulled a few on the Buzz Hammer then him and Jimmy proceeded to catch fish after fish on the Salt Shakers. That flurry lasted at least a half an hour and it was pretty much a fish a cast.

Just before that rapid area Jimmy pulled his biggest smallie so far. A fat 15 incher on the Salt Shaker. Utter excitement is a vast understatement of how happy he was to get that fish.

Brian's highlight of the trip was a nice 15 incher he got on my ultra-light rod with 4 lb. test. His plan was to stick with the Buzz Hammer but when we found they weren't on a topwater bite he switched. I let him have my ultra-light so he could have a little fun and fun is what he had when he tied into that one!

My hightlight came nearly at the end of our trip just as we were passing under a bridge. Not really thinking I'd get anything (first mistake) I threw the Buzz Hammer up near shore at the base of the bridge. After a couple cranks it gets slammed as I proceed to float underneath the bridge (behind one of the supports). It was a crazy (and pretty funny) fight as I hit a log lodged against the support and start spining in my tube. The fish proceeds to dart into the log pile against the support. I was able to get her loose (while still floating down stream) and landed a nice 15 incher.

Spotted three nice smallies today while floating down the river, all of which had to be at least 18 inches or more (compared to looking at the 15 inchers in the water after we release them), but didn't get the opportunity as I was hooked up to other fish each time I saw them. One of them was a follower of the fish I had hooked. It was biting at my hooked fish's face trying to steal the bait. Why do the followers always have to be bigger? aaarrrrghhhh!

Only 5 pictures left on the disposable camera!