First Sturgeon

I was able to go fishing for the first time this year on 3/6/10 below Ft. Loudon Dam. I fished on the side where the lock is and the water is calm. I tried several different lures with no luck, but I had a rod rigged with a 1/2 oz slip weight and a circle hook with nightcrawlers for catfish or anything else that might bite. By the end of the day, I had caught 1 perch and 2 sturgeon and my friend, Brandon, caught 1 striper, 1 white bass, and 1 sturgeon.
The sturgeon were the first either of us had ever captured and is a very neat looking fish. The first one I caught even tried to jump! They were small, measuring 21, 21.5, and 24 inches. These were stocked fish that are part of TWRA's sturgeon restoration program. They used to be common in these waters, but disappeared until the stocking program began.
I contacted TWRA and the sturgeon we caught were supposedly stocked in the French Broad and Holston Rivers. So, these fish swam all the way to Lenoir City to the dam and went through the lock, ending up in what is technically Watts Bar Reservoir. That means they passed by the University of Tennessee, paralleled Alcoa Highway, swam past Lousiville, Concord, Farragut and Friendsville and finally arrived in Lenoir City. Now that's a fish that covers alot of water!
Spring is here so get ready for the bass!