The magic of fishing memories is inside all of us. When we take the time to step back and see what the sport of fishing really brings to each and everyone of us passionate about the sport we understand why we keep doing it over and over again...and for as long as God will allow us to do it!
I remember June 1990...over 20 years ago!...My dad, godfather and friends where heading to Duval lake 65 km from Fort Coulonge. This lake was opened back then from June 1 till June 9 and I believe it is still like this today.
1990 was my first year up at Duval lake and we where all set to sleep the night before @ Jims lake less than 20km away from our target lake . I remember not being able to sleep that night ...I just couldn't!!...I remember repeating over and over again in my head what might happened the next day on the lake and what I could do to be successful against those lakers.
I guess I was also stressed with the fact that I would be fishing with my godfather in the same boat.It's important here to mention that my godfather was running a business at the time...the severe type that you would never really see smile in fact ....basically the type of guy you didn't want to mess with!!
Last thing I wanted to do was to mess up in the boat the next day with a bird's nest, a tangle or something while trolling with those famous "gang trolls or Christmas trees ...I was a little stress with this to be honest!
Comes the next day and we all went fishing as planed. After a few hours of fishing in the boat with only a few small lakers on the score board, my godfather didn't seems to appreciate the outcomes of this outing so far! I remember not saying much.
Suddenly, something happened!!...something different....my godfather had something on and it was pulling drag out of his famous "Pen" reel!.....he turned to me and said; Son! you better grab that net now and don't miss this!"....I though @ the time that my heart would just burst out of my chest!
For five long minutes I was waiting,waiting, and watching my godfather fight that laker with the fishing net in my hands. I remember watching my hands shaking as I was holding that net firmly like there was no tomorrow!
Then out of the deeps came this 12 pounds laker and my godfather yells; "It's here get it!..get it Yan!!!.....without waisting an instant I reached out and with God in my corner "Bingo!!!" laker in the basket and in the boat!!!!
At the same precise moment my godfather yells; Wooooooooohoooooo!!!!!!...in high pitch voice just like a kid would do!!!!
Today I can still hear this scream of joy.It was so unique!..I think about this all the time when I 'm on the water catching a good fish. I know this was his personal best and that it was probably one of his best moment in life....I was there with him in support!...I was there to help him achieve this special moment!... it was also to me (and still is) one of my best fishing moment in time. A miracle happen that day....thanks to the sport of fishing and this is why I love it so much!
it's always a treat for me to think or to talk about it!
what is your story?
Yan
A special fishing moment in time for you ...care to share?
-
Big Bass 444
- Silver Participant
- Posts: 943
- Joined: Fri Dec 12, 2003 1:25 pm
- Location: Masson-Anger
-
Moosebunk
- Diamond Participant
- Posts: 3306
- Joined: Wed Mar 03, 2004 3:29 am
- Location: A Superfishery Near You.
Your right Yan with what you said in opening your post...
for me their are a good many great memories and any one could have come to mind when you made me think of them just now, but the first one that popped into my head was this one which comes from a place I still think about probably every week since my visit there...
I'll take a piece from an old report...
Bren had been fishing hard all day, probably harder than me. Trev had been great with her, staying close and sometimes helping her out with snags. The Tree was a tough fish in that manner. Many of the eddies needed to be quite accurately cast into because they were so narrow. Where the river would cut at the seams was often a rocky ledge of which the lure had to get into the deep side, get down quick in the current and char's face, then somehow pop up from the depths and jump over the shallow step without getting caught up on the rocks. I had jigged walleye in a number of river places just like this over the years, but still, it was a challenge, for Bren it was totally new. Funny thing was, she had no quit in her and just accepted the likely 100 times she got snagged. She always managed to somehow pop off, most times on her own, sometimes with Trevor's help. After six hours of fishing she still had the same lure on she chose at the beginning of the day, and she still had the same determination to catch her first char.
The last pool on the way back to camp it happened for her. "I got a fish," she says with her reserved quiet excitement. And a helluva fish it was too, for when it breached the surface and thrashed we caught sight of a large char.
It was one of the bigger pools and Bren had plenty room to play. It may as well have been a fresh river chinook that instead of using it's power on the runs, used up it's energy dogging, thrashing and taking short but very hard bursts. But the fish at home in his river tired quickly of the confines of the pool and drove fast to the current. Trev and I went after it downriver with the net, hoping it would cut out of the rushing stream and tight to shore in a narrow eddy.
The fish did this, but we couldn't quite reach it safely with the net. Bren was still trying to hold the fish from all the way back at the pool. The drop from where she was to where the fish was now put her line directly across a small rocky peninsula jutting out from the river bank. I was a little panicked. I could not see her lose this fish, but the braided line was actually rubbing the rocks right at my feet as I stood between her and the fish on the point. I went to Bren who was concentrating hard on keeping the line tight and her single barbless hook firmly embedded in the fishes yap.
I grabbed her shoulders and began walking her down the slippery stoned river bank to her char. She kept the rod tip high, the pressure on, and reeled up as we neared the fish. Bren can't swim, and in a few spots had she lost her step there could have been consequence. I watched her footing but peered often at the line still occassionally rubbing the rocks ahead of her, the closer we got, the less frequent our worry. As she finally arrived on the peninsula Bren was able to steer the tired fish closer to the shore in front of her. Trevor acted quick and saved the day.
In this very moment Bren joined a pretty elite group of people in this world, she caught a 21 pound arctic char. And the cool thing was, we had been so oblivious in the chaos we didn't even notice the three other anglers who had come along and watched the whole thing go down. My girl rocks.
A happy but tired expression, and then the release...
It wasn't even supper yet and already I felt as though we had done so much. Heck, it had probably been a couple years since bushwhacking for brookies that I'd walked five miles in an afternoon.
For me, that right there was a tough one to beat Yan.
for me their are a good many great memories and any one could have come to mind when you made me think of them just now, but the first one that popped into my head was this one which comes from a place I still think about probably every week since my visit there...
I'll take a piece from an old report...
Bren had been fishing hard all day, probably harder than me. Trev had been great with her, staying close and sometimes helping her out with snags. The Tree was a tough fish in that manner. Many of the eddies needed to be quite accurately cast into because they were so narrow. Where the river would cut at the seams was often a rocky ledge of which the lure had to get into the deep side, get down quick in the current and char's face, then somehow pop up from the depths and jump over the shallow step without getting caught up on the rocks. I had jigged walleye in a number of river places just like this over the years, but still, it was a challenge, for Bren it was totally new. Funny thing was, she had no quit in her and just accepted the likely 100 times she got snagged. She always managed to somehow pop off, most times on her own, sometimes with Trevor's help. After six hours of fishing she still had the same lure on she chose at the beginning of the day, and she still had the same determination to catch her first char.
The last pool on the way back to camp it happened for her. "I got a fish," she says with her reserved quiet excitement. And a helluva fish it was too, for when it breached the surface and thrashed we caught sight of a large char.
It was one of the bigger pools and Bren had plenty room to play. It may as well have been a fresh river chinook that instead of using it's power on the runs, used up it's energy dogging, thrashing and taking short but very hard bursts. But the fish at home in his river tired quickly of the confines of the pool and drove fast to the current. Trev and I went after it downriver with the net, hoping it would cut out of the rushing stream and tight to shore in a narrow eddy.
The fish did this, but we couldn't quite reach it safely with the net. Bren was still trying to hold the fish from all the way back at the pool. The drop from where she was to where the fish was now put her line directly across a small rocky peninsula jutting out from the river bank. I was a little panicked. I could not see her lose this fish, but the braided line was actually rubbing the rocks right at my feet as I stood between her and the fish on the point. I went to Bren who was concentrating hard on keeping the line tight and her single barbless hook firmly embedded in the fishes yap.
I grabbed her shoulders and began walking her down the slippery stoned river bank to her char. She kept the rod tip high, the pressure on, and reeled up as we neared the fish. Bren can't swim, and in a few spots had she lost her step there could have been consequence. I watched her footing but peered often at the line still occassionally rubbing the rocks ahead of her, the closer we got, the less frequent our worry. As she finally arrived on the peninsula Bren was able to steer the tired fish closer to the shore in front of her. Trevor acted quick and saved the day.
In this very moment Bren joined a pretty elite group of people in this world, she caught a 21 pound arctic char. And the cool thing was, we had been so oblivious in the chaos we didn't even notice the three other anglers who had come along and watched the whole thing go down. My girl rocks.
A happy but tired expression, and then the release...
It wasn't even supper yet and already I felt as though we had done so much. Heck, it had probably been a couple years since bushwhacking for brookies that I'd walked five miles in an afternoon.
For me, that right there was a tough one to beat Yan.
Great post 444!
My favorite time fishing was when I caught my giant bass! It was the best time I had fishing, and still and will always remember it as it had happened!
I throw a jig into some slop, (dont ask my why
) and then my rod just bends over. My drag peels out, so mom rushes over and is like, "here tighten your drag it is probably too lose" but then we see it jump......twice. I tohught it was a beaver! It is a giant largemouth bass! At the same time, everyone is silent......followed by a "holy crap that is huge"!!!!!The bass runs down into the weeds, and buries itself.......We dont know if it is still on, so we play it safe and assume it is.......we put down the trolling motor and start moving around, to losen the weeds up. After about five minutes, the weeds come up, and whatever is inside them. We net it, and we dont see it. Finally, Mikey, our dog, sticks paws the weeds, and we see the beast! Me and Mom hoist it up and notice the line broke.......I was like "darn, I wanted to save the bait, because it got me this!" Right at that moment, there goes Mikey again, he starts chewing on the jiig! We all say good boy and take it from him. Mom gives the bass to me, we take a few pics, (with the cell phone and disposable camera becuase we forget the digital) and measure it....22-23" long, and a guess of high 5s to 6 lbs! We revive it for a long time, then it finally pushes off!
That was a fishing memory I will never forget, and to top it off, we got a replica mount for it, done by Joe Fittante, he did an OUTSTANDING job on it!
TT
TY
My favorite time fishing was when I caught my giant bass! It was the best time I had fishing, and still and will always remember it as it had happened!
I throw a jig into some slop, (dont ask my why
) and then my rod just bends over. My drag peels out, so mom rushes over and is like, "here tighten your drag it is probably too lose" but then we see it jump......twice. I tohught it was a beaver! It is a giant largemouth bass! At the same time, everyone is silent......followed by a "holy crap that is huge"!!!!!The bass runs down into the weeds, and buries itself.......We dont know if it is still on, so we play it safe and assume it is.......we put down the trolling motor and start moving around, to losen the weeds up. After about five minutes, the weeds come up, and whatever is inside them. We net it, and we dont see it. Finally, Mikey, our dog, sticks paws the weeds, and we see the beast! Me and Mom hoist it up and notice the line broke.......I was like "darn, I wanted to save the bait, because it got me this!" Right at that moment, there goes Mikey again, he starts chewing on the jiig! We all say good boy and take it from him. Mom gives the bass to me, we take a few pics, (with the cell phone and disposable camera becuase we forget the digital) and measure it....22-23" long, and a guess of high 5s to 6 lbs! We revive it for a long time, then it finally pushes off!That was a fishing memory I will never forget, and to top it off, we got a replica mount for it, done by Joe Fittante, he did an OUTSTANDING job on it!
TT
TY
Formerly known as "The Torpedo"
-
Fishing 24/7
- Diamond Participant
- Posts: 3243
- Joined: Sat Aug 04, 2007 11:47 am
- Location: In Your Lake
-
wolfe
- Diamond Participant
- Posts: 7588
- Joined: Sat Feb 14, 2004 11:04 am
- Location: Marietta, NY & Wolfe Lake, Ont.
Hands down, Ty's trophy bass comes to mind. Everything about that day, as so finely recapped by Ty himself, is so clear in my mind and seems almost magical, like it could only have happened in a dream or storybook.
Another magical time was when I was around or 11 years old, fishing with my Dad...just him and I. We had on those giant sized bobbers and nightcrawlers, and were pulling dinner plate bluegills out of Farrington Lake (New Jersey). We were sitting under giant trees, which were keeping us more or less dry in a summer rain. I even remember what I was wearing: my Lee overalls!
Any time fishing with my brother will always be special, too. We've had some good times, good fish and good laughs together on the water.
W.
Another magical time was when I was around or 11 years old, fishing with my Dad...just him and I. We had on those giant sized bobbers and nightcrawlers, and were pulling dinner plate bluegills out of Farrington Lake (New Jersey). We were sitting under giant trees, which were keeping us more or less dry in a summer rain. I even remember what I was wearing: my Lee overalls!
Any time fishing with my brother will always be special, too. We've had some good times, good fish and good laughs together on the water.
W.
Thanks, Dad, for taking me fishing when I was a kid.
Great topic Yan....
All my fondest memories have come on the water!
In the last year I've had 3 gooduns....
My trip to Lake Ontario with RJ Sr. was tops....
He's already talking about next June!...
A few hours Markus and I slid out for gar.....
And being on board with Big Jim when he landed this chunk of a walleye.....
Prior to that....Trips with Birdee, Phil, Markus, Bunk, Gordo and countless other people have all become awesome memories to me....More to come!
RJ
All my fondest memories have come on the water!
In the last year I've had 3 gooduns....
My trip to Lake Ontario with RJ Sr. was tops....
He's already talking about next June!...
A few hours Markus and I slid out for gar.....
And being on board with Big Jim when he landed this chunk of a walleye.....
Prior to that....Trips with Birdee, Phil, Markus, Bunk, Gordo and countless other people have all become awesome memories to me....More to come!
RJ
-
Chevy Champagne
- Gold Participant
- Posts: 1838
- Joined: Sat Feb 16, 2008 8:00 am
- Location: ottawa river
well mine would deffininitly be catching my first musky
we were trolling and i thew on this lure i had tones of confidence in,
after no more then 5 minutes of trolling i look over to mickey and say
"why did i eaven throw this thing on iv never had a fallow on it or a swipe nothing 3 seconds later my rod doubles over and i hook up mickey didnt belive it but there it was up at the surface and slid into the net i hoissted that beast up and it was deffinitly a special moment look over at mickey and just smile
and watching that thing swim away was absolutly something elce
thats something i know i will never forget
deffinitly a special moment
cant wait till we can get another in the boat
we were trolling and i thew on this lure i had tones of confidence in,
after no more then 5 minutes of trolling i look over to mickey and say
"why did i eaven throw this thing on iv never had a fallow on it or a swipe nothing 3 seconds later my rod doubles over and i hook up mickey didnt belive it but there it was up at the surface and slid into the net i hoissted that beast up and it was deffinitly a special moment look over at mickey and just smile
and watching that thing swim away was absolutly something elce
thats something i know i will never forget
deffinitly a special moment
cant wait till we can get another in the boat
-
cprince
- Diamond Participant
- Posts: 2612
- Joined: Sat Sep 13, 2008 7:43 pm
- Location: Québabwe
- Contact:
Nice topic.... I feel a little shy posting to this thread as I did not have the single outing or money shot that could convey anything singularly "Special".
But what I do have is a moment that did capture exactly how "Special" one person who I have fished with this year really is.
We were trying to annoy some muskie and it was a little on the chilly side of the mercury. Paul, once again, forgot his gloves. He was cursing and swearing a blue streak about it. I suggested he use his extra socks as a joke.
I turn around a short time later to see this:
I do realize that this might provoke Paul to post a pic of me wearing a jacket as pants... but that is a chance I am willing to take!!
Craig
But what I do have is a moment that did capture exactly how "Special" one person who I have fished with this year really is.
We were trying to annoy some muskie and it was a little on the chilly side of the mercury. Paul, once again, forgot his gloves. He was cursing and swearing a blue streak about it. I suggested he use his extra socks as a joke.
I turn around a short time later to see this:
I do realize that this might provoke Paul to post a pic of me wearing a jacket as pants... but that is a chance I am willing to take!!
Craig
-
Joisey Joe
- Diamond Participant
- Posts: 2000
- Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2002 7:25 am
- Location: Landing, NJ
- Contact:
Great thread! Boy, there is that one moment in time that hooks you on this sport, and for me makes it a lifetime adventure! It was the first fish I ever caught that got this unbelievable mesh of people and emotions into my blood.
I was about 8 and with my dad and his boss, that was in a time when the boss came to dinner and BBQ's, parties and such, guess you could call it pre-historic networking. We had fished half the day and the 2 other guys were doing well but nothin much for yours truley. The boss says, "Joe, see that log out there", I didn't but not wanting to look bad I said"yep"! There is a bass right under that log, see if you can cast anywhere near it, well I reared back and let fly in the general direction. Good one, right on top, talk about beginner's luck I think, just then my bobber plummets under and I feel the pull of a fish. The boss man is laughing now cause I'm reeling in as fast i can not wanting to lose whatever is at the end of my line. Slow down son, but I ignore the request and in what seems like hours but was probably seconds my prize pops out of the lake, a nice largie, and from that moment on it's part of my being. I remember it like it was yesterday, and I feel almost the same whenever I land one.
I was about 8 and with my dad and his boss, that was in a time when the boss came to dinner and BBQ's, parties and such, guess you could call it pre-historic networking. We had fished half the day and the 2 other guys were doing well but nothin much for yours truley. The boss says, "Joe, see that log out there", I didn't but not wanting to look bad I said"yep"! There is a bass right under that log, see if you can cast anywhere near it, well I reared back and let fly in the general direction. Good one, right on top, talk about beginner's luck I think, just then my bobber plummets under and I feel the pull of a fish. The boss man is laughing now cause I'm reeling in as fast i can not wanting to lose whatever is at the end of my line. Slow down son, but I ignore the request and in what seems like hours but was probably seconds my prize pops out of the lake, a nice largie, and from that moment on it's part of my being. I remember it like it was yesterday, and I feel almost the same whenever I land one.
-
Spezza_Fan
- Bronze Participant
- Posts: 232
- Joined: Thu Feb 07, 2008 5:15 pm
- Location: Aylmer, Quebec
I have many fond memories of fishing from the same lake but a couple of them come to mind. The the one that got me hooked was whe I must have been 8-9 years old. You know the age where you are impatient and you just want to catch a fish or go home? Well that was me. Fishing with my dad. We hadn't had a bite all night and I wanted to go in. I was sitting there on the side of the boat with my minnow on top of the water. Tapping it louder and louder so my dad really got annoyed. As I'm tapping away, I'm probably telling my dad "Can we go now?" when suddenly my biggest pike ever jolts me to my feet. I couldn't believe it. The fish bit on my tapping minnow and was leaving with my spool. I tighten the drag and there I was. Battling the biggest fish I had ever witnessed. Tearing up all the weeds in the weed bed and pulling our boat around. 15 minutes later, my dad netted my fish and there I was. Hooked on fishing for life because of that one exhilirating battle. I couldn't believe my eyes. Since then, everytime I fish for pike, on my "last cast" as I always say out loud. I tap my minnow for good luck for about a minute before bringing it in. I've never had a fish come up but I'll keep on doing it until the day I leave this earth.
-
dead_weight
- Bronze Participant
- Posts: 239
- Joined: Tue Jul 27, 2010 9:09 am
Mine involved my niece .. my sister had her when she was really young so she was raised with us ... we were much more like older brothers than uncles (I was an uncle at the age of 11) .. anyway since we fished a lot she fished a lot but she always wanted to go with us "smelting" but could not since it was done after dark ... for those who don't know, on the east coast smelts come into the bras d'or lake and then up the brooks at night ... as a kid if you hit it right you could not see the bottom of the pools with so many fish.
So we decided to take my niece ... I can still see her (she was about 5) with rubber boots 4 sizes too big for her ... my bro and I walked with her down to the shore and along to the brook and it was still a little bit light outside ... we all sat on a log and waited ... you could see the school of smelts coming along the shore and eventually up the brook ... there were so many they actually produced little waves on the side of the brook ... you have never seen such a look of excitement as there was on her right at that moment ... we waited for the sun to go totally down and then went up to see where they were at ... when we found then we started to grab them and put into a bag .. my nieces eyes were like saucers and for once she couldn't speak ... she tried to catch some but was just too slow ... so I crept over along the bank, built a little pool and put a couple in it so that she'd be able to grab them .. I yelled for her to come over, she reached in and finally grabbed one .. she turned to me and said "Holy sh!T uncle Paul !!! " ... she had never cursed before ... my brother and I still laugh to this day at that one ... really fond memories of taking her out with us. I could go on and on with the stories but i've gone on enough ... great thread ...
So we decided to take my niece ... I can still see her (she was about 5) with rubber boots 4 sizes too big for her ... my bro and I walked with her down to the shore and along to the brook and it was still a little bit light outside ... we all sat on a log and waited ... you could see the school of smelts coming along the shore and eventually up the brook ... there were so many they actually produced little waves on the side of the brook ... you have never seen such a look of excitement as there was on her right at that moment ... we waited for the sun to go totally down and then went up to see where they were at ... when we found then we started to grab them and put into a bag .. my nieces eyes were like saucers and for once she couldn't speak ... she tried to catch some but was just too slow ... so I crept over along the bank, built a little pool and put a couple in it so that she'd be able to grab them .. I yelled for her to come over, she reached in and finally grabbed one .. she turned to me and said "Holy sh!T uncle Paul !!! " ... she had never cursed before ... my brother and I still laugh to this day at that one ... really fond memories of taking her out with us. I could go on and on with the stories but i've gone on enough ... great thread ...
-
almontefisher
- Diamond Participant
- Posts: 2971
- Joined: Tue Oct 17, 2006 3:08 pm
- Location: Carleton Place
Easy one for me. My first fishing trip with my dad to Bennett Lake for walleye. I swear we caught 50 of those things in under an hour. And the last fishing trip with him before he passed away. It was up at the cottage fishing for bow's and we both landed nice 2lber's. To this day I think he knew it was our last trip because he took his time getting back to the cottage and he also told me a bunch of things we never talked about before. I also remember a tear in his eye which he never did...he was a man of course!!
Fishing isn't a matter of life and death....
It's much more important.
ORWL
It's much more important.
ORWL
Highlight for me this last year was teaching my bro how to fish...damn he is a quick learner, his instincts developed fast. Most memorable fish caught in a while was his first solid muskie.
Caught in extreme conditions..
Actually, this fish was also special. Been fishing with Buck all my life and seeing him destroy his PB walleye on our childhood stomping grounds was perfect. We lowballed a guesstimate at 31" but I don't think we will top this size on the Ottawa.
Manny
Caught in extreme conditions..
Actually, this fish was also special. Been fishing with Buck all my life and seeing him destroy his PB walleye on our childhood stomping grounds was perfect. We lowballed a guesstimate at 31" but I don't think we will top this size on the Ottawa.
Manny
-
Yannick Loranger
- Gold Participant
- Posts: 1046
- Joined: Thu Aug 07, 2008 11:40 am
- Location: Rockland
Almost all the moments I can think of involve fishing with someone relatively new to fishing.
A great fall smallmouth trip up north with my Little Brother (I was very active with the Big Brothers organization while I lived in Sudbury). http://www.youtube.com/user/fisherguy33 ... N5lVNAjlUU
Having my actual little brother figure out the exact walleye pattern one day and then having 8 of us on a pontoon limit out (48 walleye) in 2 hours jigging 1/4oz pink jigs 3 times up then letting it drop. I remember my dad having 3 walleye in the net and swinging around to land another. Somehow that pêche miraculeuse didn't get my brother hooked on fishing.
Being there to see the cottage neighbor's kids catch their first smallies off the dock after I taught them to fish was great too.
Bring a kid fishing! Great memories are unavoidable!
A great fall smallmouth trip up north with my Little Brother (I was very active with the Big Brothers organization while I lived in Sudbury). http://www.youtube.com/user/fisherguy33 ... N5lVNAjlUU
Having my actual little brother figure out the exact walleye pattern one day and then having 8 of us on a pontoon limit out (48 walleye) in 2 hours jigging 1/4oz pink jigs 3 times up then letting it drop. I remember my dad having 3 walleye in the net and swinging around to land another. Somehow that pêche miraculeuse didn't get my brother hooked on fishing.
Being there to see the cottage neighbor's kids catch their first smallies off the dock after I taught them to fish was great too.
Bring a kid fishing! Great memories are unavoidable!