With ice out and the rivers blown, I thought it would be a good time to sneak onto a local golf course. I did this last year (here), and I had a great time.

I figured this was an ideal window. The course was not yet open, and access should be easy.

Armed with my H2 #4 and some streamers and Mops, I parked at the edge of the course and nonchalantly walked on the cart path.

The course maintenance crews already were hard at work. When one drove by me, I gave a quick wave. They waved back, and no one stopped me.

So, off to the pond.

The water was low, and I didn’t see any critters swimming around. I hit some of the deeper spots.

Nothing.

With the sun shining, I thought that maybe the fish would be in more shallow water to warm up. I found a side cove and cast there.

Fish on!

I landed a few panfish, and they were bigger than my hand. I don’t know what they’re eating, but they were corpulent.

After a while, the hits stopped coming, and I reeled up.

I love “long-haul” drives to good rivers: the peaceful pre-dawn drives while listening to music and podcasts, the (usually) satisfying outings, and the drives home as I remember the fish caught.

But, “short-haul” trips are fine, too. In this case, the golf course is a 10-minute drive from the house.

Sometimes, you have a fishy itch that just needs scratchin’….