# Pine Hill Lakes 7/7/06 (Mason, OH)



## TimJC (Apr 6, 2004)

Last night my friend Chris and I decided to get together for the Moonlight Fishing event at Pine Hill. I arrived with thoughts that our recent cold front would shut the bite down in the back of my mind. One of the park volunteers said that the bite had been slow for the whole week, which also weakened my psyche. Despite this I was determined to fish the whole night regardless, and I was rewarded early on.

The first fish took me into some heavy moss and made netting difficult, but, thanks to braided mainline, I was able to keep the fish on without worrying about a line failure. Upon netting the fish I realized how large it was, and I immediately misidentified it as the biggest mirror, that I know of, in the lake. After consulting my mirror ID photos it appeared that this fish was a recapture, but of a fish caught on 6/11/05 by Chris. This fish was named Tina thirteen months ago and she seems to have gained A LOT of weight since then. Hopefully, someone with better eye for detail can confirm that this is the same fish by looking at this picture and this picture. She weighed 13 pounds at first capture and now weighs 21 pounds 13 months later. Is it really possible for a fish to put on that much weight that quickly?

Tina and Chris at 13 pounds on 6/11/05:









And here are the pictures of her from last night:

















A couple hours later the same rod would be graced with the presence of a fish I call Feisty. I named her this because of her restlessness on the bank. I have never seen any other carp behave quite as rambunctious as she does on the bank. This is the fourth time that I have landed her, and until yesterday she was only one of two documented 20+ mirrors in the lake. This is the first time that I have been able to weigh her, and then get a picture holding her. She was first captured on 6/7/05 at an unknown weight, then again 9/7/05 at 21 pounds, and then again 4/23/06 at 26 pounds. This time she weighed 25 pounds 6 ounces, and she is the one fish responsible for my fascination with Pine Hill.

Feisty on 6/7/05 at an unknown weight:









And here are the pictures of her from last night:

















Both of these carp were caught on a double boilie rig (one 14mm pink pineapple birdseed and 14mm yellow pineapple plus) and PVA stringer using Red Demon boilies. I also used Nash Tutti Fruity on my second rod for a while, but after two channel cats I decided to change to two 14mm Pineapple Plus from RD, but this too yielded a catfish. I used PVA foam around the hook all night to void snagging on the moss that was in the area of the lake that we were fishing.

Here is a picture of the rig:









Unfortunately, Chris didn't catch any carp last night. He lost one fish to a snag, and lost another because I still had Feisty in the net at the time. Sorry  A brace shot with another fish beside Feisty would have really showcased her size, but that will have to wait for another day.

My Pine Hill mirror ID pictures.


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## truck (Apr 12, 2004)

Nice fish & pics.


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## Herkel (Feb 18, 2006)

Thats the same fish no doubt about it. [Amazing] Herkel


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## liquidsoap (Oct 22, 2005)

That is amazing how you can tell I would have never thought about it. But it is the same fish, how cool.


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## GMR_Guy (Apr 10, 2004)

Two 20+ mirrors in one night is a great night. Congratulations!


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## GMR_Guy (Apr 10, 2004)

I forgot to add that I compared the pics of Tina to one another. As hard as I find it to believe, it appears to be the same fish.


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## kennedy327 (Jul 12, 2006)

Looks to be the same fish to me, thats one nice thing about mirrors, they are easier to tell apart. I think thats really awsome, kinda like revisiting an old friend. and yes its capable for a carp to gain that much in a year, those things eat 24/7. As a koi keeper Im able to watch how koi/carp feed and well after my feeding time is done, they root around the bottom putting rocks in there mouth and spitting them out, they keep the rocks pretty clean, if that gets boring then they go for alge on the back glass or eat what is left of my live plants. If carp are anything like there beauty queen cousins, then I would say no problem.


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