ONE FISH WONDERFUL

I often say fishing is fun but catching is even better.  This is especially true for youngsters with short attention spans.  Fortunately, my kids have had their fair share of good trips over the years with plenty of success.  While these big-number fish trips provide plenty of experience they may not be the most memorable.  Details are often diluted in the fast and furious action.

Don't get me wrong...we've had plenty of excursions where we never landed a fish or caught very few.  I tend to forget those.  But if something unique or unusual happens my boys tend to remember them vividly.  Such was the case last weekend on our camping trip and a single fish may very well be remembered forever.

We were bank fishing where just two weeks prior we were still catching spawning crappie.  Unfortunately, that party had ended and we basically just casted to see if we couldn't tempt something, anything really.  We moved to the end of a rock jetty near the boat ramp as both boys stood on a lone submerged rock and kept flinging jigs.  I was about to call it a night when all of a sudden I heard a giant splash and Cody hollered.  He crouched down and was holding on to his spinning rod for dear life with both hands.  The drag was singing and line was flying off his reel and he tried to panic.  I warned him not to touch the reel and just hold on.

"Whaaat issss itttt, Dad?" he said frantically trying not to get pulled off his rock.

Cody was just about to lift his jig out of the water with only 5 feet of line out when the fish hit.  His drag was set well and was doing its job as I told him it was likely a big ol' wiper or a tail-snagged carp.  He had an audience of people in boats waiting to load out as he fought the fish.  I hoped he'd at least get to see it and prayed he'd land it.  

It took several minutes but soon the big fish tired.  Both boys were going crazy as was a pontoon boat with several couples on it rooting for him.  I reached down into the water and lipped the fish and there were hoots and hollers when I lifted it out.  It was indeed a nice wiper and on light tackle it was an epic battle.

We shot some photos and released the fish as both boys were grinning ear-to-ear.  We had to send text photos to cousins, my friends and mom and sis back at camp.  Accolades poured in.  For just a brief moment, one fish made Cody a bit of a celebrity and he was proud.  I'm betting it will be decades before the details of that single fish fade from his memory.