Trading Tuesday #2 - Fishing

As this blog is just starting back up, I don't have any guest posts yet.  Until then, I'll just fill in Tuesdays with posts that don't really fit well anywhere else.  If you would like to submit one, please email me at DRC@waxingplatitudinous.com. Include a picture, short bio and a post that is around 500 words of any subject. 


This last weekend, we went on an impromptu camping trip to the Uinta Mountains.  Basically, we wanted to go fishing somewhere that we would actually catch a fish.  We bought fishing licences a couple months ago and had yet to catch anything.  BigBubs needed to catch his first fish.  The problem is that neither SLou or I actually like fish.  They are gross, slimy and wiggly and don't even get me started on the whole gutting thing.  You would think after a couple of kids and all those poop incidents, cuts, bruises and getting thrown up on many times we would be better at this.  SLou likes to eat fish, but I don't.  It makes me gag to even smell it cooking.  So why go fishing?

Well, because it is freakin' awesome to reel in that fish.  There is something in our hunter-gatherer genetic makeup that relishes the accomplishment of the hunt.  So while we don't necessarily like fish, we love to go fishing.  Go figure.  The problem is, neither of us has been fishing for years.  I caught my last fish nearly 30 years ago when I was 4 and it was only my second.  All I have is a picture of me holding the Rainbow Trout with a stick because I wouldn't touch it.  It freaked me out.  Life moves on and you have kids and inherit a father-in-law that is a terrific fisherman.  So a quick lesson in trout fishing and a trip to Walmart for supplies and we started a fishing extravaganza this year.

We tried Moosehorn on Saturday night, but it had not been stocked yet. Though the campground was very nice.  It was O'henry's very first overnight camping trip and BigBubs second.  The next morning we attempted Mirror Lake, but all the fish were tiny and had just been planted.  They must have also been fed because there were no biters.

Finally, we tore down camp and went to Trial Lake. I finally understand my Dad a lot better.  Dad is the one that set up everyone's fishing pole before he even got to set up his own.  So that is now my job. I set up BigBubs' and SLou's. Then I had to fix BigBubs' because he got it tangled yet again.  After all that I sat down and set up mine.  I walked over away from SLou and BigBubs and had an awful cast. It went out into the lake, but no where near where I was aiming and closer to shore than I wanted.  I was tired and decided to live with it for a minute.  I sat down on a log to rest.  O'henry was digging in the dirt with his short pole and throwing rocks into the lake.

I hadn't felt anything on my line so I decided to reel in and recast.  I started to reel in and realized that I had caught a fish.  I was rather surprised. No one else around us was catching anything and my line had been in less than five minutes.  I called SLou over to help as we didn't have a net.  I decided to overcome my fear of slimy fish and grabbed him.  Flashback to 30 years earlier and it grossed me out. More slippery and slimy than I remembered.  The fish flopped and slipped out of my hands.  SLou tried.  You should have seen it.  Two adults that are grossed out by a fish trying to grab hold of it to dislodge the hook.  Everyone around us was laughing.  I'm sure it looked ridiculous.  I mean why on Earth would you fish if you felt about them how SLou and I do.  But, I just caught one and remembered why.  It's freakin' awesome to reel that sucker in.

Well, lesson learned.  Don't hold it over the water.  The line broke and the fish went right into the water.  It sat there for a moment while SLou and I tried to decide who was going to try to pick it up.  Then it swam off.   That was a mixed blessing because I had wanted a picture with it, but at least I didn't have to gut the poor thing.

After that, SLou and BigBubs switched to the same type of bait I was using.  BigBubs wouldn't leave his line in the water long enough to catch anything.  SLou had one steal her bait and get away, then she caught a little one.   You should have seen that.  We didn't have a "fish towel" for her so she used her shirt.  It was covered in fish scales, slime and blood for the rest of the day. We kept that fish as proof.

SLou then caught another one and called BigBubs over to reel in his first fish.  Unfortunately her pole had a problem and she couldn't get the fish in fast enough.  He was about an arms reach away and got himself off the hook.  At least BigBubs had the thrill of reeling a fish in.  He doesn't like to touch them either.  The funniest part is that O'henry realized that his pole did not have any line on it and he decided that he wanted to fish now.  So next time we'll actually have to put some line on his pole.

I still can't believe it, I caught a fish all on my own.  Yay!!!!!!  We then went to visit my father-in-law for Father's Day and I told him that he had the best fishing advice.  We were the only ones really catching anything.  We actually looked like we knew what we were doing until we actually caught one.  Next time I'll have to bring the rubber gloves though SLou made me promise not to show them to her dad.