Fishing a mayfly hatch this evening, catching bluegills and small crappie up near the surface. The 3-weight was staying pretty busy when all of a sudden I had some “serious” weight when I set the hook. Is it the big daddy crappie I’ve been hoping for? One big jump tells me NOPE! Largemouth! He runs to my left some, jumps again, and shakes my fly… In the fading light, he looked every bit of 3 or 4 pounds. All I could do was stand there and hang my head a little… oh well! 
I think that everyone who has ever fished for bass knows this feeling:( I only fish with de-barbed hooks and I must admit that there have been a couple of times where I wanted to kick myself for doing that. Losing a really nice fish can sure be frustrating, but I think that’s what fuels our dreams of future fishing trips.
Have a great weekend.
Jim Smith
I feel your pain. On a recent trip to the Iowa Great Lakes I was casting a pike fly in an area where I’d seen some muskies when something BIG hit the fly. It was too big to stop, he was pulling, pulling line out against the drag, I was into the running line when…Damm he can off. No doubt the biggest fish I’d ever caught on the fly and it got away without ever seeing it. It took me a little while before I fully recovered from the temporary exhilaration I felt and resumed casting normally.
Hi Kid, Hi Jim,
I’ve been in the same situation at least a couple of times every year since I restarted fly fishing exclusively again. Some of those lost fish are more painful than others but they all hurt. I feel your pain. 8T 
Zac - You won the most important part of the war - you got the fish to take your fly. If you are like a lot of us old F$rts thats about all that matters.
Tim
Zac , you canalways go back and get him again. We all loose fish.
I am not sure I loose any more with barbless hooks.
Rick
Must have been something in the air? It WAS a full moon last night, after all.
My buddy tossed out a Springbrook Wunder, and soon had a big fish on. It was FAST. I watched him fight it for awhile. He hasn’t fly-fished for a year or two…so he really wasn’t ready for this. When he should have given a little line, he tried to hold the fish, and it broke the 8lb tippet. He thinks it was a bass, but never saw it. Could have been a catfish or grass carp too, I suppose.
Dang quivira…yep, oh well, you’ll get another chance at a bigger fish soon. Like Panman though, i don’t mind the ‘llr’ because what i like is seeing the take and if it’s a fly of my creation i’m doubly rewarded even if the big’un shakes free unharmed to fight another day. On the other hand, if’n yer lookin’ to eat fish, this is not the way of it at all ! Good luck on hangin’ in there next time.
Cheers,
MontanaMoose
Rick, I was using a yellow boa leech for awhile until so many gills ate it I switched it out for something different. This place is LOADED with small 'gills. Fished a Goldie Jr last night for the first time and caught a bunch of small crappie and a few big gills.
To catch a good bass eating mayfly larva on the 3-weight would have been awesome. It’ll happen yet, I reckon…
When that happens to me,(a lot), I tell people that I use special self-releasing hooks and the nanocybernetic units were improperly adjusted.
It also happens in Ky. Last Wensday evening, I hooked a monster on a 4wt and a goldie. I am almost sure it was a bass but could have been a big Channel Cat. Thanks for the story!
Back when I was a member of a private fishing club, it was my custom to take all of my grandkids there for Fathers Day for a day of fishing. On one particular such outing, one of my granddaughters had a very substantial bass take the sunfish she had just caught and ‘run’ with it. We were all startled by this act and no one reacted fast enough to land the fish. She did get her 'gill! A short time later one of my grandsons told his dad that he needed help. With dad’s assistance, he landed a 4.3 lb bass AND his 'gill. In about 30 minutes, another of my grandsons also requested help. He and his dad landed a 4.7 lb bass and 'gill. Not long thereafter, the first grandson AGAIN asked his dad for help, and this time he had a 4.4 lb bass, plus 'gill. We were all in awe of this fete; three 4+ lb bass landed within about an hour and a half by kids catching bluegills! Needless to say, I had two very happy grandsons at the end of the day, and several more who were very disgruntled that they did not have a comparable experience that day. Somewhere among my many photos, a very proud ‘Opa’ has photos of two very excited boys displaying their ‘just-caught’ fish.
aged sage
Great stories ya’ll! We get the “willow fly” hatch (big hex’s) on a local lake here in East Tenn. If you are lucky enough to catch the spinner fall on the next morning, you might be amazed at the variety of fishes rising to take the fluttering spinners on the surface! Catfish, bream, bass…you name it! Funny how many local “non” fly fisherman get out grandpa’s old glass fly rod for such ocassions!
aa
The hexes should be starting here in a week or two. It’s amazing what all comes to the top looking for those big yellow puppies.
Just another great story to put in the book one day!
Thanks for sharing