Mac's Daydream
| Mac, the lake's premier catfish guide, left his boat dock and headed to a stump filled creek. The trip upriver was uneventful, with only the noise of a few cackling crows heard over the hum of the four stroke engine. Upon arrival at his favorite fishing hole, Mac readied four rigs. Two were baited with perch filets, and the other two with bream heads. The lines were cast, and the trolling motor was on auto pilot. Mac sat back to relax and enjoy the morning, with hopes of a few nice cats for dinner. Fifteen minutes later, he brought a small channel cat to the boat. Next, he caught a small blue. One after another, he landed dozens of small whiskered catfish, which made him wonder if he would have enough bait to last the trip. Just as he was thinking about moving to a spot that might hold larger fish, a big one tugged violently on his line, and the rod bent toward the water. Mac quickly pulled the rod from its holder. The fish took line from the reel and the drag sang from the pressure. Mac said to himself, "Self, I'm glad my new outfit was filled with heavy duty line." As he said that, the fish began to really take off, and didn't stop until it had taken one hundred feet of line. It then began to slowly circle the boat. Mac didn't think it was ever going to stop. It had been hooked so long that he began to fantasize about being Santiago, the Cuban fisherman who hooked the giant marlin in Hemingway's "Old Man and The Sea". All Mac could think about was landing the fish, weighing it, and spending the rest of his life bragging about catching it! The fish finally stopped circling, made another run, and stopped. The rod was bent double, but the fish would not budge. As in the novel, it was man against beast. Mac began to wonder who "had" who. A few minutes later, a second rod had a hit. The old rod went down even more violently than the first one. "Stay with the first fish," Mac said to himself. He loosened the drag and let the second fish swim freely. Mac's restful fishing trip had turned into quite a morning. His legs were shaking; he was sweating, and becoming very tired from the fight. He even began to question himself. How could he land two fish, when one was more than he could handle? He called upon his years of experience and applied renewed pressure to the line. Thinking he might be hung on a brush pile, he motored toward the fish. When his line was straight, he felt a tug. The fish broke free from the hang up and resumed the battle. Mac saw bubbles rising to the surface, a sign that the fish was finally being defeated. He scrambled for his biggest net, and somehow the monster cat swam straight into it. The net stretched and the handle bowed from the weight, as Mac struggled to get the creature into the boat. He heaved a great sigh of relief when the battle was won. He had landed the largest catfish ever taken on a rod and reel. As he worked the big cat from the net, he noticed that there were two hooks in its mouth. Apparently, it was so big that it never realized it was hooked, when it bit the second bait. The fish was much too large to weigh on Mac's hand held scales, or to fit in the cooler or live well. Mac released the fish with no photos, no one to vouch for its size, and no one around to authenticate the catch. So how big was the fish? Mac claimed it weighed one thousand, one hundred and one pounds, plus one ounce. "How did you make that calculation?" someone asked. Mac shook his head and yawned, as he awakened from his mid-afternoon nap. Be reminded that small fish................... have large tales! Captain Gus Gustafson of Lake Norman Ventures, Inc. is a member of the Southeastern Outdoor Press Association and a full time Professional Fishing Guide on Lake Norman, NC. Visit his web site, Fishin' with Gus! at http://www.fishingwithgus.com/ or call 704 617 6812. For additional information, e-mail him at Gus@LakeNorman.com. |
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| June 2006 |