The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
When it's eventually time for me to pass on, I can happily say I caught a fish. Now I just have to witness the Vancouver Canucks with the Stanley Cup! Sorry, I had to throw that in Ð it seemed appropriate. Before last weekend I was a virgin fish catcher. I was pretty tense trying to get that first one. I went out to Kississing Lake with Richard Dupre and a friend of his. I had a great time and now understand when people say that fishing is relaxing. I think it was about 30 minutes from the time we started that I finally caught my first fish, which happened to be a Jack. I was losing patience to catch a stupid Pickerel as the buggers were getting a free lunch from me. I was getting lots of bites, just not reeling them in. I can still hear Richard saying, "They're kicking your..." It went from that to a slaughtering. I went through minnows like our secretary Shannon goes through chocolate. In the new spot, though, Richard caught another two fish, and shortly after my luck changed. "I think I've got one," I said, watching my rod bend. Richard gave me tips on what to do as I was full of adrenaline and hoping to catch this. I continued reeling and there it was, my first Pickerel. It was a proud moment. Like any friend would, Richard gave me a high five. It wasn't too long after that I caught my second and last Pickerel. What made that last catch so good is the fact it was the largest we snagged. Later on Richard would catch the longest Jack he'd ever seen. I figured it was two feet long, but Richard figured it was longer. We knew it was going to be big before it came out because Richard's rod was really bending. After that trip I definitely want to go again. The only downer is that I got a bad sun burn on both legs. It has been a long time since that has happened. While the pain isn't as bad, I still have pink marks. As for my next trip, I hope lunch is on the fishes and not me.
