March 29, 2024

Back on the boat

Last summer, I wrote a few columns about my fishing excursions I went on with my boyfriend, Tim. I had loved fishing with my Grandpa Rodgers as a kid, and I was thrilled to rediscover that love last summer. Last year’s column began with “diary of a fisherwoman,” and I guess you could see this as the next installment of that sporadic series of columns that began one sunny June day last year.

Tim and I celebrated our anniversary last month, and we couldn’t think of a better way to do that than out on the water. We had attempted a little fishing one chilly evening in March, but the water and air temperatures were still a little too cold, and we didn’t get even a nibble. We only cast our lines in the Skunk River for less than an hour before calling it quits and deciding to wait for warmer temperatures.

However, on a sunny day in April, it looked like the perfect day to get the boat out for the year and head to the lake. The first step was flipping to boat over and putting all of the necessary equipment back on board — trolling motor, oars, life preservers, anchor, etcetera. Next we got the remaining fishing gear out of the shed and organized it into the boat for the trip. After all the necessary poles and tackle were secured in the boat, it was time to hitch the boat trailer up to the truck and make our way to our favorite fishing hole.

I was excited for the day, but I was also a bit nervous — scared I wouldn’t remember anything from the year before. I know, it was irrational. It’s not like I was a newbie. However, it didn’t stop my mind from freaking me out about all the things that could go wrong, including hitting Tim with another lure.

As soon as we got the boat in the water, I knew all of those fears were silly. Everything came back to me as if our last day out on a the boat was a few days ago instead of months. I definitely felt more confident in the boat, a fact Tim pointed out to me. I had never been on a fishing boat until last summer. The first time I felt the boat rock and tip to one side, I was petrified. Now I was standing up and moving around with ease, the slight rock in the boat not frightening me at all.

I had the first catch of the year between the two of us; a nice sized bass I pulled into the boat after about three casts. It was exciting to feel the tug of the line again.

There was an instant feeling of peace as I felt the sun’s rays on my face and nothing but the chirping of birds and the occasional buzz of a bee or croak of a frog filled the air. It was magical.

The water was crystal clear. You could see to the bottom, which gave the perfect view of all kinds of fish swimming beneath the boat. We even saw a nice sized catfish peek out of the bed of seaweed below. We watched it swim around a little before diving back into its weedy home.

Tim caught the biggest fish of the day. The bass was keeper size, but we don’t bass fish to keep. We just enjoy the feel of catching the fish and then letting them go to get even bigger.

While it was not our most successful fishing day, Tim and I both caught several fish, but we didn’t keep track. We were there to enjoy fishing, not compete against each other (although I’m fairly certain Tim caught more than I did).

It was great to get back in the boat, especially since Tim and I were celebrating something special. I can’t wait until we have another free weekend to get the boat out again.

Contact Pam Rodgers at
prodgers@newtondailynews.com