Fisherman’s Day Fishing: Great Bites Despite Flooded Ponds Today!

Okay, let’s cut to the chase—today was supposed to be a chill Fisherman’s Day, but holy cow, the ponds were flooded like crazy! I mean, my dad said yesterday the water level blew up so much it burst a dam, and they had to patch it this morning. But hey, you don’t let a little water stop a angler, right? I bailed on my morning plans, grabbed my gear, and bolted to the pond behind my house. Let’s break this wild day down.

The Backyard Pond: From 0.5m to 2m Deep Overnight!

First off, let’s talk about the backyard pond. Ten days ago, it was barely 0.5 meters deep—you could see the mud at the bottom. But today? Two meters! That’s a huge jump. I stood there staring, thinking, “Did someone fill this with a fire hose?” But no, it was just the crazy flooding from the past few days. My dad was right—they’d patched that dam breach at dawn, so the water was still settling, but it was already a whole new pond.

Catching the First Fish: A Small Grass Carp on the Third Cast!

I rigged up my rod with my usual morning bait (a mix of corn and bread, don’t judge—simple works sometimes) and started casting. Third cast, boom—black float! That’s a classic “fish-on” sign. I reeled in, and it was a small grass carp—maybe 30cm long, but hey, a bite is a bite! I was stoked, especially after seeing how flooded everything was. Thought maybe the fish were hiding, but nope—they were hungry.

Then the Dinks Started: Skinny Dace But Still Fun!

After that grass carp, the dace started hitting. You know those tiny, skinny dace? Yeah, these guys were everywhere. Each cast brought a little tug, and I pulled in one after another. They weren’t big—maybe 10-12cm—but they were active! I took a few pics because, let’s be real, even small fish are cute when they’re fighting.

Two hours in, I had 3 small grass carp and dozens of dace. They were skinny, though—probably because the water rose so fast, they hadn’t eaten much lately. But hey, I was having a blast. Then my dad yelled from the house: “Quit hogging the pond! Let’s go to the village pond—guys are catching 10-20kg there!” Wait, what? 20kg? I dropped my rod, grabbed a sandwich, and bolted.

The Village Pond: Flooded, Crowded, and… No Bites? Wait, No—I Got Bites!

The village pond is a big one—collective for the village, everyone pays into it. It’s supposed to have big fish: silver carp, bighead carp, grass carp, even some black carp. But today, when I got there, 3 guys were sitting there looking bored. “No bites all morning,” one said. “Water’s too high, fish are spooked.” I thought, “Great, I just left a pond with bites to come here for nothing.” But I found a spot far from them—those guys were loud, yelling and slapping the water. No way fish would come near that.

The village pond was also 2m deep—same as the backyard. I didn’t bring new bait, so I used the same corn-bread mix. I decided to “chum” with my cast—just keep casting, no fancy chum bucket. Some anglers swear by chum, but I’ve found that casting frequently (like every 30 seconds) does the same thing: it draws fish in by creating a food trail. Let’s see if that worked.

Almost a Big One… Then It Got Away!

I cast, reeled, cast, reeled—for 45 minutes. Nothing. I was thinking, “I should’ve stayed home.” Then—tiny tap on the float. I set the hook, and whoa—that was a big one! It pulled my rod down, I fought it for 10 seconds, and then… snap—it got away. Probably a big grass carp or silver carp. I was so mad! I switched to a smaller hook (size 3, since the big one got away) and cast again.

First cast with the small hook—bite! Pulled in a tiny yellow catfish (yellow bullhead, if you’re picky). Cute little guy, maybe 15cm long. I took a pic, then thought, “Yellow catfish love worms… why didn’t I think of that earlier?”

Worms = Dace Explosion (Again!)

I dug up a handful of worms from my bag (always carry worms, folks) and rigged one on the hook. First cast—dace. Second cast—dace. Third cast—bigger dace. I was on a roll! The dace were going crazy. I didn’t even have time to take pics because I was reeling them in so fast. The guys next to me? Still staring at their floats. One even moved closer to me, but he still didn’t get a bite. “What’s your secret?” he asked. I laughed and said, “No secret—just cast a lot, then switch to worms when you see a catfish.”

By 3pm, the wind picked up and it started raining. The dace stopped biting—typical. I packed up, and counted my catch: 4 tiny yellow catfish, 1 tiny silver perch, and tons of dace (I lost count after 20). But here’s the thing: I’m a catch-and-release guy for small fish. I threw back all the tiny dace and the ones with big bellies (probably pregnant). The rest? I gave to the guys who didn’t catch anything. They were so happy—win-win!

Lessons Learned (and a Rant About Loud Anglers)

Let’s be real—today taught me a few things:

• Flooded water doesn’t always mean no bites. Sometimes fish are hungry because they’re displaced!
• Casting frequently (instead of chumming) works. It’s like a free food buffet for fish.
• Worms are magic for small fish. Duh, but I forgot that earlier—oops.
• Loud anglers ruin everything. Those guys at the village pond were yelling so loud, I’m surprised any fish were there. If you want bites, be quiet!

Oh, and one more thing: I’m leaving for Wuhan tomorrow morning, so I’m waking up at 5am to fish one more time before I go. Gotta make the most of it—who knows when I’ll get to fish these ponds again? Maybe I’ll catch a big one tomorrow… fingers crossed!

Anyway, that’s my Fisherman’s Day. Crazy, wet, but totally worth it. If you’re a angler, have you ever fished flooded water? What’s your go-to bait? Drop a comment (if you’re reading this on my blog) and let’s chat. Until next time—tight lines!