First thing I noticed when I got there was how many long nosed gar there were! They were everywhere and they were surfacing constantly. I was able to get them to bite and chase but setting a hook into a real narrow mouth that is boney and full of teeth is hard to do. I had one on that looked like it belonged in a tank at Bass Pro shop or Cabelas. It must have been 3.5 to 4 feet long. Like many other gar over the years, it followed the spinner and nipped at it but as soon as I though I had him, he saw my legs and bolted. This happens almost every time I go out on the Little Miami even though I am usually never targeting them. I was however targeting white bass. Using white rooster tails and silver spinners, I waould cast along the banks near the sides of currents and under trees and root systems. There seemed to be a descent number of smaller white bass in the river that I could see. I caught a couple that were just under 14 inch regulation. I also caught a few that were only about 10 inches.
I did however cast under a particular small tree right in a small back eddy that looked promising. Right when I started retrieving, I saw a flash of silver that must have been 20 inches long! He bolted out into the current and bounced on the line for a few seconds before he was gone. How disappointing. I could have cried. I decided to keep at this particular spot. I few minutes later I hooked another one that wasn't quite as big as the first. He too though was off almost as fast as he was on. I was very disappointed because not only did I miss two great fish but the spring run was virtually over and I was realizing what I had missed this year. I can't wait to try white bass again next year, in fact I think I'll try it on a fly next year.
