My two boys have been wanting to get out fishing for a while, and up until this past weekend, everyone has been way to busy to even think about it.
Sunday afternoon my wife wanted to take our daughter out to do a little shopping and spend some of her Christmas money, no doubt on shoes! So when my wife suggested that I ask to see if the boys would want to go fishing, she didn't have to twist my arm, not even the slightest little bit. The boys didn't even let me finish my sentence, once they heard "fishing" it was all over.
So off we went in search of lake run giants at a local WNY Lake Ontario tributary, even when the thermometer read 29 degrees. At least it was sunny and when we would get a little chilly, we would just stand in the sun for a few minutes.
I made sure to set the boys up first. Big streamers were tied on, instructions given, and off they went to make their first casts of the day. And boy did they do a good job. They are fast becoming great little fishermen. They are casting well, letting the fly do it's thing, and even listening to dear old Dad on occasion. But even with all their hard work, and fabulous stream conditions, the fishing was very tough. We all fished for an hour with nothing to show for it. Then the boys attention turned to other interests such as how to climb the many trees that made up the little section of woods right near the bank. They also made boats, swords, and worked on their "Man vs. Wild" skills. And we all know how important those are!!!
Another half hour passed by as I worked hard to try and find at least one willing fish to take a fly. I then put my switch rod down and grabbed the single handed eight weight. It still had a rather large white woolly bugger on it, one that my oldest son had picked out. I walked a few yards down from the pool where we were all fishing and began to swing some broken water below. Half way down the run a strong pull jolted me out of my rhythm and I was finally into a good fish. I yelled to the boys to grab the net and in seconds they were both there ready to help. I handed the rod to my oldest son and he began to work the fish into shore, as my youngest son got the net ready. A few minutes later a healthy, somewhat large, lake run female brown trout was in the net. Finally!!!!!!
As I got the camera ready for some photos and coached my oldest on how to handle the fish as we got ready for some photos, I noticed something coming out of the fishes mouth. And then as my son hoisted the fish for few quick shots, that something fell out. It was a half digested five inch long baitfish. I guess I now have a better reference for what to tie in the future!
Sundays fishing was tough. But spending time with my boys doing something we all love, and having fun in spite of the conditions was worth more than a thousand good days of fishing by myself. In the not so distant future they will be ready to leave the house, all grown up and ready to take on the world.....so I cherish every minute!
My daughter is up next. Last year we rocked it and the fishing wasn't too bad either!
