Smallfry
Riffle Club
Trophy Sunfish Hunter
Posts: 436
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Post by Smallfry on Feb 3, 2021 12:44:40 GMT -6
A while back I was out for the day wonderin around Spillway Creek. Fish, hike, fish, hike, have a little break and repeat. So I was feelin pretty good about everything when I came up to a big pool. I was up the bank a ways looking down so I figured I'd have a little orange and see if I could spot any fish activity. Sure enough half way through my snack I saw a long fishy shadow dart across a light area, then another, bingo. Orange gone, I started making my way down trying to come up with an attack plan. I stopped to see what vantage points were available on the bank, as I looked up I saw a strange shape in the deeper part of the water. I though maybe it was a log then it started rising, clearly not a log but still a strange shape. Gar, maybe, big gar, here??? It got closer to the surface, I notice limbs and begin freaking out. The brain raced to the right to body and I got a little panicky, then the mystery shape started gliding just under the surface. An oval head poked out of the water, followed by a long neck. Now my brain was at the other end of guessing, mini loch ness monster??? All of a sudden another shape swam past, the original dove and popped up onto a rock fully revealing itself to be an otter. In the end it turned out to be a merry band of four fat and happy river otters. Relieved and slightly annoyed at my imagination I left, without bothering to fish that pool. Not sure how well my elementary school taekwondo skills would hold up in case I had to battle it out for the territory anyway. Attachments:
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Post by golferjeff on Feb 3, 2021 14:18:05 GMT -6
Awesome pic! We ran into a family of them during our hike when the water was high. Our dogs scared them off though, before we could get a pic. You need Magick to clear space for you??
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Post by jonbo on Feb 3, 2021 17:15:48 GMT -6
The end of December when I fished for a half day in the Great Smokies a group of otters swam past. That was the high point, period. It was out of season for trout fishing, really, too cold believe it or not.
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Smallfry
Riffle Club
Trophy Sunfish Hunter
Posts: 436
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Post by Smallfry on Feb 3, 2021 20:47:25 GMT -6
golferjeff that's okay, till I get mauled by one at least!
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Post by Fenwick on Feb 3, 2021 21:12:25 GMT -6
Nice observation!
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Post by darrelln09 on Feb 4, 2021 0:20:28 GMT -6
That is a great pic and story! They seem to be everywhere. I've even seen a few at tiny Crane Creek in Missouri.
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Post by dannys on Feb 4, 2021 3:28:08 GMT -6
Love the Loch Ness reference Smallfry and nice family portrait! I remember fishing just below Old Park Dam right before dawn several years ago and had that "feeling" something was behind me. The moonlight was just right to make out a swimming figure heading right at me. Heart skipped a beat and then the figure made a a hard right turn before bumping into me. For all these years, I figured it to be a beaver but now I wonder if it might have been an otter.
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