An Epic Battle

Light was just sneaking through the fog as I arrived at my favorite salmon stream. I had managed to get kids and dogs taken care of early enough to catch the first hour of good fishing, but I certainly wasn’t the first one on the creek!

“Hey Bob, you’re late!” laughed a local fisherman perched at the top end of my hole. To punctuate his success he held up a bright 15-pound silver he had already banked. “Don’t worry,” he assured me with a smile. “There are enough here so even you can catch one!”

Well, I guess there is nothing like having a good reputation! As you might guess, I hustled to get my line in the water. The other fisherman gave me a little space, there wasn’t a big crowd, and we were all friends, so it promised to be a good day.

In my haste, I got my rods all tangled. Most anglers in my neck of the woods carry two. The first is usually rigged with a bobber and egg loop outfit. The second generally is rigged with a spinner or a plug. Most fishermen who travel any distance like to have a backup anyway. Nothing like driving four hours and breaking your rod or reel! The bobber outfit usually takes awhile to rig up, so having another handy to work your spinner or flatfish is a good idea.

The only problem is I usually get them tangled together! Today was no exception. As my old eyes tried to focus on which line was which, I could hear splashing from upstream. Someone had nailed a nice fish. Then my buddy next to me had a strike. “Are you going to fish TODAY?” he asked me, smiling broadly, even as the fish threw his hook!

Big Bite
Finally, I got the lines untangled, dug out a clump of eggs, and cast into the high murky water. I managed to get the cast into a pretty good drift and was playing with my line when my yellow bobber went under. Frantically I tried to get in the slack. The bobber took off upstream just as I got the line retrieved. Wham! I set the hook, off screamed my line as the fish bolted across the rising river. This was going to be a good fish!

In a heartbeat, the great beast had hauled my line some 40 yards to the far shore. This fish had some shoulders; I’d better hunker in! Not willing to stay and fight, the fish headed downstream. I might be in big trouble, the shoreline below me was covered in brush and trees, and I couldn’t follow far.

As I raised my rod tip and put as much pressure as I dared on my 15-pound test line, the fish started to turn. He wasn’t taking line now, but I wasn’t gaining either. I tried pumping and reeling, but I couldn’t gain an inch. We stayed stalemated for several minutes. My forearm was starting to ache; this was going to be a battle.

The fishermen above me were enjoying the show. “Why don’t you just bust it off?” suggested one of the anglers. “You know you are slowing down the fishing for all of us, and that looked like a really dark, old fish.” Nothing like getting support. “Why don’t you jump in and net it for me?” I countered. “I may not land this thing for most of the morning, and you really should go fish somewhere else!” We all laughed, and I got back to work.

I was starting to get a little worried when I finally started to gain a little. Foot by foot the fish gave ground. In a few minutes I could make out my bobber just a few feet underwater, getting closer. Then the fish saw the bank. Whirrrr. Off he went and there went all the line I had recovered, plus a few yards! But at least he was moving, hopefully getting tired.

Having gained some downstream yardage, the critter headed back across and started upstream. This was a relief. Downstream was trouble, but I could chase him up. One further bonus was that all the wise guys upstream would have to reel in and wait! “Coming up; haul in those lines,” I yelled, laughing as I worked my way up.

Into the Net
By now, folks were starting to get the feeling that this might be a really good fish. My line wasn’t real light, and we were now into a half hour of fight. True, the water was high and moving, but they had landed some nice fish already with a lot less effort.

After a few more minutes, the fish started moving toward shore. One of the anglers grabbed a net and moved in to help. “Let me know what you want me to do,” he said. That is the best way to go; a lot of fish are lost at the net. I told him to wait till the fish was on its side and then net it head down. Fortunately, this was a long net. A fish this big would use it all. Here came the bobber, followed by a bright, thick body. In went the net, filling the mesh with bright silver. The whole bank cheered! This was a big deal, and I’d even remembered to bring my digital camera!

This was the biggest silver I had ever caught, or even seen! On two different scales it pulled 23 pounds and stretched the tape at 38 inches, 22 around its girth! I was able to add another 16-pound fish that morning and lost a really nice hen (naturally I threw a fit over that one!), and so it marked a really special day.

As you faithful readers know, I don’t often brag of my successes (rare as they are!), but I thought I’d share this one with you!