Remembering the good old days

The DNR has issued a concerning report about how the warmer temperatures in the northern part of the country have resulted in numerous fish kills in Minnesota. This is alarming to me because of the devastation it has caused for our environment.

 

I once had a boss when I was working at the Albert Lea Tribune who would show up whenever there was a mistake in the paper. He would start every conversation with the same question, “Who do we have to blame for this?” This was while he was pointing at the mistake in the paper. That statement was used by us workers whenever we found a mistake before it went to press. I am sure the boss would not have seen the humor in it.

 

While reminiscing about years gone by, I wondered about how it is that both of my sons are now in their 50’s and where the time went.

 

Their whole childhood revolved around my love of fishing and camping. They both have a strong connection to the outdoors. It’s not necessarily about fishing, but more about appreciating the outdoors and enjoying spending time there.

 

In looking back at some of our vacations, I recall the time when we were fishing on Sand Lake, in June. Brad was pretty young, so we brought a blanket along and laid it on the floor of the boat. He had some Hot Wheel cars and a coloring book and crayons to keep him occupied. His mom, brother Brian, and I were fishing while he occupied himself playing.

 

As we were trolling the shoreline catching walleyes, some dark clouds started to appear above the tall pines in the west. Storms could appear without notice on this lake because the storms usually appeared in the sky from the west. It was hard to see the storms coming because the pines were so high that they blocked the sky until the last moment.

 

As we trolled along the shore, I always kept my eyes focused on the marks on the shore. There was a cabin on the west side of the lake south of the resort. I used that cabin and lined it up with a point that jutted out north of the resort. That was how we fished with no locator. I studied the lake map and learned the lake depth with the anchor rope.  In early June the walleye were in 14-15 foot on that sandy bottomed lake. We always caught walleye and northern. This was what is called “fishing old school.” That is what we did in those days, using landmarks to mark fishing spots.

 

As we trolled along with the imminent storm approaching, a bolt of lightning hit a tree on the shore. It shocked all of us and my wife started reeling a walleye at about the same time that I put the motor in gear. I turned the throttle wide open and headed for the resort while Jean’s walleye was water skiing behind the boat. 

 

Please take the time to remember our troops that are serving now and those that have served before them. They are the reason that we have all of the Freedoms that we enjoy today.