Monday, April 18, 2016

Natchez Trace,Little Jewel,Branch Streams

I spent last weekend in Mississippi visiting my brother and his wife. Thank goodness this trip occurred before my fall at the gym on the following Monday.
My brother wanted to spend Saturday revising some of the boyhood places we fished in Choctaw County, Mississippi which is where we were born. We find as we get older we like going back in time and reliving those moments in our lives. Our main objective this trip was to connect with some of the streams we fished years ago and hopefully find new ones that could be fished with the fly rod. Sorry to say we didn’t find any small stream that a fly rod would work well on; so on to our backup plan which enabled us to use our low-grade Tenkara rods. When I say low grade that doesn’t mean this rod is cheap in the form of performance but cheap in the wallet. We paid ten bucks each for our Little Jewel telescopic 10 ft. bream poles on clearance last year. These little light rods were the perfect match for the small streams we found throughout the afternoon.  
Fast water drops off into a nice pool here, which had numerous shiners that inhaled our wax worms. The Little Jewel was rigged with a 4lb test line tagged with a trout indicator float and a bb shot above a tiny bream hook. We were hoping to land some colorful sunfish, but none were present in this pool.
The wax worm doubles as a wasp grub; making these shiners take notice. One big drawback to using wax worms is temperature, they need to be kept in the refrigerator when not being used; they die when exposed to warm temps for 4 to 5 hours.
Some of the roadways are lined with creek channels which overflow across the gavel roads during the rainy season.
Nice hole in the bend of Hamrick Branch, which is located right off the Natchez Trace Parkway; fun using the Little Jewel in this pool. Even small shiners can put a bend in this pole.
Another scenic stream off the Natchez Trace Parkway, which probably could have been fished with the fly rod, but at the end of the day I just choose to stay with my newfound Tenkara.
This stream is located just off the parkway with easy access to its sandbars along its banks. Today’s road trip was not about landing a bunch of fish; it was more about time well spent exploring and finding future fishing streams along the beautiful Natchez Trace Parkway. As we headed back home we both agreed that today’s outing would have been an excellent field trip for young kids to get in touch with nature.   
Thanks to all you guys for giving me encouragement after my fall last week, the ankle is getting better.

17 comments:

  1. That looks like a lot of the creeks close to where I live.

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  2. Skinny water is as much fun as fast-moving channels. Beautiful photos, and I'm glad to hear a river running through your lives, too. Hope the ankle keeps improving, but on the bright side, may be you could fish a hatchery or two with your short-term disability?!

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  3. Hi Bill, I think going back in time with your brother is a wonderful idea. I'd like to do the same but mine doesn't fish any more. Looks awful green there. I'm glad to hear your ankle is getting better.

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  4. Kevin
    There are a lot of hidden warm water streams throughout the northeast. As a boy my brother and I caught numerous sun fish, redeye bass, and of course catfish. Thanks for the comment

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  5. Flyfish
    Fishing these little creeks can be a lot of fun if you match your rods to your catch. Thanks for the comment

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  6. Howard
    The weather here is close to 80 today and tomorrow---lush and green for sure. Thanks for the comment

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  7. Love the use of makeshift tenkara outfit. Small creeks and streams are perfect for that kind of fishing. Looks like a nice new memory, while reliving some old ones.

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  8. Rambling along these streams with your brother seems like a great way to revisit the past as well as to make new experience and memories for the days to come. Glad you're doing well!

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  9. A big plus on your recovery.
    Welcome to the world of Tenkara.

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  10. Bill, thanks for sharing some of the lands of your youth. I haven't seen anything quite like that before. I grew up near the cold water, but I love small creeks. And I'm trying to get something scheduled to go fishing with my one remaining brother. Looks like a great day.

    Hope your recovery goes as planned. I'd seatbelt myself into my elliptical machine if I could!

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  11. Lester
    Never landed big shiners on any of the creeks, but plenty of sun fish. Hopefully on our next outing there we can connect with some catfish, sun fish and redeye bass. Thanks for the comment

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  12. Fading Angler
    I highly recommend a road trip exploring out of the way stream like the ones we found. Thanks for the comment

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  13. Alan
    The Little Jewel that we were using is a watered down version---but will function the same way as the Tenkara--oh forgot BIG BIG difference in price. Thanks for the comment

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  14. Walt
    The ankle is much better, might be able to make a trip to the tailrace towards the end of the week. Thanks for the comment

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  15. Michael
    We are both determined to put the Little Jewel to good use on our next outing there--hopefully connect with a sun fish or two. Thanks for the comment

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  16. Glad to read the ankle is doing better! Sorry, I'm late to the party. Been busy as of late, but this post of yours about exploring is what keeps me motivated for the times I won't be busy. Great post, and there's just something special when expectations of catching fish are out the window, and exploring takes the forefront.

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  17. Justin
    Amazing how many fishing spots are overlooked because one doesn't take the time to seek out those lost streams and branches. thanks for the comment

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