An Outing To Remember...
Travis Frank
Some days on the water come and go and we hardly even remember the hours we spent chasing our favorite fish. Some days are left stuck in our memories for a lifetime, and that is exactly what keeps us coming back day after day. Last night was one of those Outings that won't soon be forgotten. I sat at the access for about 30 minutes waiting for Matt Hennen to show up, and trust me, I almost left without him. I could just feel the muskie smell in the air and I could hardly control myself at the access. I can't explain that feeling of knowing a fish is ready to be caught, but if you have been there, you know what I mean. With the motor running as he pulled into the parking lot, he pretty much jumped in while I was driving away. With a quick fist pump, we were on our way. We grabbed our lucky lures, and as we pulled up he said..."why are we fishing here?" I just told him to cast, and as always he laughed and agreed. What he didn't know, was that I boated two muskies on this particular spot the day before, and he has never seen me fish it before.
Well, on his first cast he brought nothing back but his lure. Cast number two however was the cast of the night, as his bait stopped dead in its tracks. Instantly we saw the fish surface and realized that we were dealing with another giant. Hennen's other two muskies for the year were 49 and 49.5 inches and all he could think of was here comes Mr. 50 incher! The battle was intense, as the large girth seemed to give this big girl extra power. As I scooped it up in the net, the hooks flew out and the fist pumping and high fives began. I get to experience this feat quite often, and I would be lieing if I said that it gets old. As he struggled to hoist his largest fish to date, we snapped some quick photos and got her measurement. While 50 was the goal, it just didn't quite reach, and we had to settle for 49.75 inches. Not quite the 50 club, but I told him he can't be dissapointed with his three fish this year being all 49 or better. "What a rush" he said as we went to for cast number 3. Our night was made, and nothing else needed to be caught to make it successful. Still on cloud 9, and spot number two, He does it again. Yep, Mr. Hennen was on for battle number two. While it was clear that this fish wasn't quite as large, he has never had 2 fish in one outing, and boy oh boy was he excited. The only problem was that he forgot to check his line, and the fish had ideas that didn't have anything to do with getting its picture taken. The line broke, Matt hollered bloody murder, and the fish swam away. Still a great night for this guy, and I am yet again able to write about the one that got away, and the one that didn't get away. That's why I love this sport so much. Until next time, Keep on Livin the Dream!