The Perfect Present

Today was a real treat for David and his father Paul as they experienced their best day of fishing, ever! We launched shortly after 7:30 and with no wind were able to get to our first location effortlessly. Bluebird skies and warm temps were forecasted so there would be plenty of other boats on the water soon. I knew I had to get into fish and fast! With miserable weather scheduled for tomorrow the fleet of cruisers would be taking advantage of this weather too. After 10:00 it would become a living hell on the water! Fortunately the fishing was to be phenomenal and it took only a couple of minutes to hook into their first fish. David reeled in a decent northern and we were on our way. His father was up next and not long after was into something really big. I cleared the other lines and gave him room to battle what turned out to be a musky. On walleye tackle, it’s always a challenge and Paul was ready for the fight. Eventually the fish came to the boat and I locked the Boga Grip on his prize. He had always wanted to land one and at 64 years of age, finally accomplished it. A few quick picks later, it was released and swam off unharmed. We reset the lines and started pounding on fish after fish. Walleye & pike were coming in hand over fist with plenty of doubles and several triples. Whenever we hooked into one you could almost bet another reel would fire within seconds. They landed high numbers and many were photo worthy. They weren’t interested in taking anything home with them, so all fish were released. As the morning went on I was right in my prediction and the cruisers started. Most were courteous, but not all. Paul was fighting yet another large walleye when a giant cruiser drove by less than 20 feet away and threw 4 footers our way. I had to steer the boat sideways in order not to eat the waves. Paul even had to sit down for fear of falling. This guy was a real idiot! It got so bad after a while that I had to relocate to another area for fear of being run over. They were also muddying up the water pretty bad and I was losing my bite. We slid over to a secondary spot not far away and it started all over once again. Doubles and triple headers were the norm and plenty more fish were coming to net. David even landed a small musky and although not as big as his dad’s, he was thrilled with his prize. Eventually this area got muddy too and I had to make a longer run to find cleaner water. With the sun high and the temps hot, it sure was nice to be under the comfort of the bimini. I don’t know if we could have taken the heat for as long without it! There was already talk of cutting the day short just because of all the fish they had caught until we dropped the lines in again. This area was also on fire and the fish just kept coming. There’s no way to tell exactly how many the landed but the action was nonstop. David’s father even tried to nap but the screaming reels kept him awake! After several more fish they decided to call it a day. Although only 2:30 it was way more than they had expected and Paul was done. This had been a birthday gift from his son and he couldn’t have asked for a better present. The fish were active and cooperated completely today. We packed everything up and headed back to the ramp. I was a little worried what it would be like and hoped for the best. Unfortunately there were boats all over it and nowhere to tie up. After waiting five minutes and nobody moving I just pulled up on the cement and went for the trailer. Weekend warriors are unbelievable and never have any consideration for anybody other than themselves! It only took me a couple of minutes and still nobody had moved. In fact long after I had pulled out of the way and packed everything up, these three boats were still tied up. No etiquette ever with weekend traffic, both on & off the water! Despite this inconvenience David & his dad were thrilled with today’s outcome. Never in their wildest dreams could they have imagined such a day. They both left tired but fulfilled. Hopefully the next time they decide to give gifts, I’ll see them again! Great day of fishing despite all the headaches!!