Strange catch

[Flambeau dreamer]

Was just wondering what was the strangest thing you caught while fishing on the TFF?
As for me, my sister and I were fishing for walleyes a few years back. She reeled in her slip-bobber to find a salamander on it. On another trip, I caught an anchor rope, with anchor still attached. Also I caught a bucktail while fishing with a bucktail.
chris

[FlambeauFisher]

My buddy had a northern snap off his new Rapala and then the next day, caught the same northern and retreived his lure!

My step Dad and Uncle were boating along and caught an anchor rope with the prop of their motor. Both men went tumbling to the front of the boat and luckily, the rope choked off the motor before it pulled the boat under water. (the anchor was firmly wedged in the stump of an old tree)

[timk]

I have ' snagged ' a rod and reel ( Zebco ) casting Bucktails . Once my brother lost a rod and reel over the side of the boat when we were drifting ( he said it was fish that pulled it out of the Boat ) . This was in about 12 feet of water off the Island @ Lake Bastine where the Power Line used to cross to the mainland . My dad lost a rake trying to snag the line ( regular Yard Rake with a extended handle ) , we tried many drifts , etc. over the area and never snagged the line , etc. Well , two weeks later , almost to the last day of our vacation we were drifting about a 100-150 yards from where my brother lost the rod and reel when he snagged a fishing line . We pulled in the line and out came a June Bug Spinner . Started pulling in the line again ( rod end ) and out popped his Rod and Reel . The same Abu 170 reel and Heddon Spincast Rod !

[MuskieRandy]

I caught a yellow bullhead once. Ugly as all get out.....

[Loweboy]

Caught a Burbot on the flowage a few years back....now that's ugly!

[greylundman]

I caught eelpout(same as burbot i think?) on two different occaisions, also caught what looked like a Goby minnow ( I sure hope it wasn't) a long time ago. I once lost a lure at one of my favorite spots and two weeks later got snagged with a different lure and freed the 1st lure and it floated to the surface.

[DonH]

I also caught onto an anchor rope that also chocked off the motor, but still almost pulled the boat under. Took a lot of water over the back, in fact the motor was almost below water for a second. Scared the crap out of me. Had to cut the motor free, which was no easy task as it was pouring rain, windy and cold. My buddy had to stand up and pull on the motor as I went down as far as I could reach to cut the rope. We were in a small 14 footer. Not something I want to do ever again.

On a happier note, I once caught a net with a 6 pack. The beer was cold and really hit the spot.

[ToddM]

Sculpins look like gobies and are native to the area.

[muskeye]

Funny stuff these strange catches.
I have caught a burbot and a mudpuppy while ice fishing on the flowage. They were let go but burbot don't always get the release on chequamegon bay because they are delicious.
A cousin and friend from Milwaukee were with me on a hot summer day years ago with nothing going. I finally hooked into a dandy while using a shad rap that was tough to bring off bottom, whenever I gained some line on the spool it would dive back to the bottom. I got it up to the boat but couldn't get it to the surface so I had my cousin put the net deep in the water and he got it. He lifts up the net only to reveal my huge catch was a big rock!! That was the only thing we got that day and is still out there for somebody else to catch.

[The Frog caster]

Once caught an owl as my lure "jitterbug" was being casted at night. The owl snachted the lure in mid-air, landed in a tree after taking most of my line. while perched on a branch the owl flew away leaving the lure snagged on the branch. I yanked, tugged, whipped and pulled from different directions hoping to free the lure. One last desparation tug and that lure shot out like a cannon just missing my head ............. and I call myself a fisherman ??? Regards, Larry (frog caster)

[George]

A very long time ago ( I must have been 10 or so) I was fishing off the old dock or pier, or whatever it used to be at Popko's (then) Resort...aka Casey & Lu's / Tutts. Underneath this piling was the usual tangle of logs and I would crawl out there, drop my line down in amongst them and catch Rock Bass and Perch. One day I'm fishing there and I get, what I think is a snag, but then it starts to move. So I'm pulling and pulling while visions of a big walleye dance in my head. Slowly I bring it to the surface where I discover it is a huge (well huge to a kid) snapping turtle. My bait rocketed out of his mouth about the same time he surfaced after which he sat there for a minute or so an hissed at me. I then beat a rather hasty retreat off the piling. The next day, I went back to the piling to fish, but never swam on that side of the resort ever again.

[BlueRanger]

Well, it's not a TFF story, but a friend and I were steelhead fishing on the West Twin River near Shoto many years ago, and a guy was fishing right under the bridge downstream from the dam. Just as he made a cast across the river, a mallard came screaming through headed upstream, and ran right into his line. The duck tore off about 50 yards of line faster than anybody knew what had happened, then lost its momentum and cartwheeled into the water. The stunned look on the poor guy's face was priceless, and we almost laughed ourselves into convulsions.