Skonker Paloozer Photo Essay
Thanks for reading this week’s post, Skonker Paloozer. Mike Conneen came up with the name, ‘though I doubt that’s how he’d spell it.
Mike and I just finished a fishing road trip. Although the trip was great, fishing was WAY less than stellar, thus the name.
We started at Raysville Campground, on Clarks Hill Reservoir in Thompson, Georgia.
Nice place, nearly deserted when we were there. The first evening, fish were breaking in the lake. I went down with a Clouser Minnow and got a 10-inch bass almost immediately. I took this as a good omen. It was not.
My tent on our site.
Lake at dusk.
Launch sequence initiated!
Mike and River, on the lake.
We launched our vessels the next morning. I got a 12-inch bass at my first stop on the same fly. I took this as a good omen. It was not. Neither of us had another strike all day. And, I lost my favorite pocketknife besides.
How River goes fishing.
Dawn, Hunting Beach.
Our next stop was Hunting Island State Park in South Carolina, a beautiful place. I went fishing just as a cold front arrived. I later had to use a dryer to get the water out of my clothes, including my raincoat. I did get a redfish and a flounder while fishing through the deluge, the only ones I would get the entire trip. Mike stayed ashore during the rain and launched after it stopped. His luck was identical to mine, minus getting soaking wet.
The Lone Redfish, Kimosabe.
Night sky from the beach. Mars is the brightest “star”, and you can see Taurus and the Pleiades as well as Orion.
Boardwalk through the Marsh at HISP.
Bridge to Hunting Island. The marsh is tremendous. You know there are fish there somewhere!
We tried a creek through the marsh the next day, launching on a low rising tide. Neither of us touched a fish all day.
Marsh dusk, HISP.
Fort McAllister.
River and Mike get silly.
Another day, another move. Next was Fort McAllister State Park. The fort is a well-preserved Civil War earthworks fort, with a museum, very well presented. We launched on a salt creek on a high, outgoing tide and hit it hard all day. Neither of us touched a fish, on anything we tried. We did not try bait, however.
We were camped on an island.
There was lots of wildlife!
Mike is amazing!
Dawn, Fort McAllister State Park.
Sunset, Fort McAllister State Park.
Our final stop was Crooked River State Park. We launched on the Crooked River on a high, outgoing tide and hit it hard all day. Mike got a few reds and trout at a single spot he lucked into. I got a small trout and hooked and lost one other one. The redfish habitat here looked superb- mud flats interspersed with large and plentiful oyster mounds (featuring live oysters), surrounded by thousands of acres of Spartina grass. But I did not see or touch a red all day.
Local wildlife.
There were lots of oysters.
This guy is still waiting for his first Crooked River bite.
So, in ten days, I got five small fish. Skunkapallooza, indeed! As frustrating as the fishing was, we had wonderful if chilly weather most days. The stargazing was tremendous. Sunrises and sunsets likewise, awesome. We saw plenty of wildlife. The company was awesome. And we didn’t need the first aid kit! It certainly could have gone worse.
As some clever shmuck (me) once said, “I usually have to pay a lot of money to get fishing like this!”
We got home Tuesday. Thursday I launched the kayak in Mosquito Lagoon- one snooklet, two redfish, including one about 20 pounds, and three solid trout, one on fly. And a fly-caught puffer, as a bonus I guess. It helps to know the spots, since none of them were sight-fished.
First fish. Took about 20 minutes.
A couple trout in, this red took the lure.
Attack of the snooklet!
This beast decided to play, too.
That’s the Skonker Paloozer report. Thanks for reading!
Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go fishing! Go paddling! Take a walk! Stay active!
John Kumiski
www.johnkumiski.com
www.spottedtail.com
www.spottedtail.com/blog
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