Kids Fishing Post: Bad Bet, Good Bass

Jeremiah and his friend Ian got to talking about fishing the other day and got the fever. So for the first time this season Jeremiah asked me to take them to a bass lake. He has gone out a few times with another friend whose Dad has a big bass boat. Jeremiah likes the roostertail Jake can make when he cranks that big motor up. I can't deny it, Jake has a bigger roostertail than I do. But on this day they wanted to fish a channel where they'd heard there are BIG bass. So off we went.

They each had some money, so we made a quick stop at the local sporting goods store so they could stock up on watermelon this and salted that. In a moment of foolishness I bet them I could catch more bass on a fly than they could with all the stuff they were buying. Loser would pay for their purchases. They had confidence, I'll give them that. I'm pretty sure they ran the bill up fully expecting that I'd be paying it.

No, there's nothing wrong with him. This is just how he looks when I ask him to hold still so I can take his picture.

The lake we went to is the one I've referred to on this blog as "the early season lake." I fish for trout on the opposite end in the spring before the other lakes are open. By this time in the season, this end--and maybe that end, too--is full of bluegill and bass.

They rigged up and hit the channel.

I got first fish, but that wasn't the bet.

They worked the channel over pretty good.

I got most fish, but that wasn't the bet.

Just when I thought I was off the hook, Ian caught a bass. He had a six inch soft plastic thing on his line with a hook big enough to catch sharks! How did that little bass ever get it into his tiny little largemouth? I don't know, but I couldn't argue. That's a bass alright. Take my advice. Never make bets with your kids.

Now that the pressure was off they relaxed and let themselves go.

I kept trying for a bass, but every fish I caught was a bluegill. Did I mention I got most fish?

They finally called it quits--just before I was going to catch a bass, I'm sure--and asked me to take them to the other bass lake where they like to swim. It's right on the way home, so off we went.

They had a great time in the water. It never seems more like summer than when I'm watching them swim in the lake.

Of course I kept fishing, hoping for a bass bigger than Ian's. Not so much to ask. But it was not to be. Still, even though it turned out to be more expensive than I thought it would be, it was a great trip.

POST SCRIPT: The very next day, while I was working, Jeremiah convinced Kim to take them back to the swimming lake. He fished off the dock, right where I had been fishing the evening before, and caught a good bass. He kept it, so I could get an eyefull. "See?" he said. "When are you going to pay me?" He likes to keep to the point. That evening Ian filleted it, more or less, and they had a contest to see which one could fry up the best tasting fillet. I tried both, and I can say for sure that it was indeed a good bass.