A Golden Stone
In early October, a golden opportunity presented itself to three close friends. Time on the water. Not just any time on the water, but time together on the water. I decided to take Dan and Ben out fishing on a local river. With Ben working his butt off and having a family in Middletown, Delaware we don't get to see each other as much as we want. Dan recently relocated back to Pennsylvania and bought a house in Emmaus. In addition to the big move, he has a son on the way with his wonderful wife, Jessica. With such a rare occasion presenting itself, Ben, Dan, and I made sure to make it happen.
We decided on a local float for smallmouth bass and hopefully the occasional trout. The day ended up being hot and humid and the fishing was slow. It ended up producing two memorable fish. Dan hooked a good smallie (for the waterway) on a topwater popper. The fish moved off a log jam in less than a foot of water. It was splashy take, the kind that makes the person on the oars turn around to see what all the commotion was about.
The next memorable fish found us anchored up in a nice hole that I knew held some nice trout. Having told my compatriots about this spot, I could tell they were hesitant to believe me. Nonetheless, I let them fish the spot for a little bit, before I grabbed the switch rod from Ben and made a cast. The indicator slowed, but did not drop. I set anyway into a 22 inch wild brown trout. Even I was surprised when I saw the size of the brown trout emerging from the depths.
The second day needed to be shorter than the first. We decided to float a stretch of the river that has some cold water influence for a greater chance at catching some local trout. After the morning rains settled, we found several pods of rising trout in the 5-8 inch range that we had a lot of fun targeting from an anchored position. The larger fish came on an indicator rig.
The fishing definitely wasn't on fire but that didn't matter. The time on the water was what this trip was all about. With Ben and Dan in full "adulting" mode, chances like this one don't come around that often. We shot the shit, drank beer, and busted each other's balls. Towards the end of the float, Ben fell onto and broke three rods in half. It didn't help that they were not his rods. Even so, we laughed this moment off because it ensured that we could make fun of Ben for his clumsiness for the rest of our days...
Good times.
The smile says it all...
A beautiful smallmouth bass
A good one...
Teamwork
@danimalgrr
A soaking wet bald eagle...
Heading downriver...
"Nymphed Up"
Another bald eagle surveying the river and its many opportunities...
