The things we see.

I have been fishing for a decent amount of time now and there is always something new when I go out partly the reason I love fishing, for me though there is this one event (which I was fortunate enough to document) I always find myself in and that is just staring off into the distance and fully taking in the scenery in which we all have learned to love whether it be lily-pads on a lake or a rocky shoreline of a river or beach. attached is a photo of a toad that was doing just that! and plenty of fish were caught that day ;)
why do you love fishing?

Fishing Frank pretty much the same for me....do most of my fishing by myself and had a day probably 10 years ago that is a fresh in my mind as it happened last week, lucky enough to have a stretch of a river I've fished for over 30 years pretty much to myself, was making my last trip in the fall and arrived so early had to sit in the car until it got light enough to be safe walking in the rocky river, get to the first spot and fishing away and what do I hear shortly after arriving but 2 turkey's hackling back and forth at each other from what sounded like 20 yards back in the bush from the river, fished that hole about another 1/2 hour and a deer came down about 60 yards away for a drink, back the car and down to the next spot, walking down to the river, pass a couple of racoons coming home from a feed of clams and crayfish, once down in the river get walking down the longest stretch and have a redtailed hawk flying up and down that stretch, been following me at that part for the past 5 years,,,,notice a mink running along the rocks and at the last spot I'm the middle of the river , get a bass on, it jumps and I have a snort behind me and turn around and a big buck is taking off up the hill, had been drinking in the river behind me. best day in the outdoors my whole life..and most people think we go just to catch fish, that is the bonus...

Ah! That's a great story Big Mac! That is one eventful day if I may say. Even though I like having photos of events, stories like yours are what make fishing fishing (in my opinion) I can go out on a river and catch a lot of fish but things like that are what stick in most. Thank you for sharing :)

Simple moments make the day for me and well worth getting out, when you slow down and become part of the rhythm of the environment impressive moments can occur.

Without a doubt one of the biggest factors in keeping the obsession alive is what we are fortunate enough to get a glance at. The anticipation of what you could possibly witness during the course of a trip and those big, yet often enough very small details that can get hung up in your memory. What a great shot Fishingfrank.

I hear you loud and clearly @soars and sincere thanks for both your response and compliment, tight lines and keep on adventuring!

For the QUIET! No wife, no kids, no employees, no customers, no phone calls, no stress!!!!! Just me an my pole!

Fish are bonus in my books. I often tell my wife and kids after a long day. Dads off to the irrigation pond for an hour to unwind. I grab my rod, tackle, and a cold beer out of the fridge. Usually once the beer is empty, my mind is clear and time to get back to reality.

Last October watched a guy fall off his roof while cleaning out the eaves trough. He got up and walked away, but man he looked dazed and hurt.

The camera was not on zoom. Instead of leaping up a high bank, this guy wanted to use my freighter canoe as part of the easy route.

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a1...pring09-73.jpg

Seen so much cool stuff in the outdoors during the pursuit of fish. Really, quite often it's not even the fish that make the experiences outdoors memorable.

Great thread. I have seen so many great things in my life time of fishing. The most amazing was watching my son go from a toddler with a cane pool and piece of line attached dragging small trout out of the pond to a young man working to master many kinds of fishing and creating baits\lures and fly tying. His fascination to learn and experiment inspires me, his appreciation and respect for the resource and etiquette make him the best fishing buddy a dad ever had. If you have children take them fishing it may just be the best thing you ever share with them. .... FB

PS. He's still working to perfect things and that just means more fishing time with Dad and that's fine by me.

Nice thread. I love spring-time fishing, you get to watch as nature wakes up and gets into gear. Probably my most memorable spring trip from last year, I had been hitting a road side honey hole for crappies about 4 or 5 evenings in a row while I had some time off and each night I would get a nightly visit from a fox returning home with dinner, she would come trotting by along the shoulder with rabbits or mice, no doubt to feed the little ones, not even giving me a passing glance even though I was only a couple feet away. Shortly after she passed by, there was a tom turkey off in the distance roosting up and gobbling his fool head off, and then just at dark a whipporwill would start fairly close with his serenade, and within minutes of the whipporwill song the walleye would start biting. It was just nice to share in that part of the natural rhythm, and catch a bunch of fish too:)

Several years back I was fishing a quiet weed-choked bay on Lower Buckhorn with one of my sons. We could hear some bawling that was coming closer and closer until a black bear sow and two cubs busted out of the brush right at the shoreline. Mama didn't seem to concerned with us and the family mosied on their way with the young ones still kicking up a fuss.. You don't see that from your couch.

Took the wife and youngest son to my favorite lake one time July 10th to be exact (you will all understand at the end of the story). I got up at 4 am and had to do a long walk to the back lake for speckles because I left the canoe there. Zack got up to fish the main lake at the same time as I did. So I get to the lake and can hear some commotion at the narrows but can't see it yet as it is around the bend. Paddling out I catch a glimpse of something moving down the lake and to my surprise its a cow moose and her calf in the shallows eating the weeds in the lake. As I ready my line I keep looking up to see what mom and baby are doing I notice the cow is constantly looking over her shoulder (I wonder what has her spooked). Then all of a sudden she starts nuzzling the calf along and they climb the embankment into the safety of the thick forest. So I have it in my head that I have now experienced a perfect day when I hear a crashing through the woods opposite where the cow and calf left. I look up and out comes a big bull moose not a full rack on him yet but still early in the year for that. He stopped half way across to eat and I go about fishing knowing that I may not ever experience sharing a lake like this again. After some time he moved on but I stayed as I had many a short hit from the inhabitants of the deep and knowing the lake it will turn up at least 2 or 3 good fish before breakfast. Rounding the big submerged rock at the one end of the lake I get a massive hit and the fight begins. Back and forth for 20 minutes and finally I see it is the biggest speck I have ever seen. Bringing it up to the side of the canoe I realize the net is definitely to small so I have to make a quick decision. Putting my hand in the water I slide it up the side of the fish and luckily my finger goes right in side the gills and up she goes. I placed her in the bottom of the canoe knowing that she was going on the wall. I quit fishing that day then with the long portage back to camp but feeling euphoric (no high from alcohol or drugs can match this feeling). Zack caught fish but was ecstatic when he seen the prize for fishing 40 years after this king jewel of fish.
Had the fish weighed after it was frozen and it came in at 8.25 lbs. What a beautiful fish and still the largest I have seen in person

Oh I Love to read all these different stories! all so great, thank each of You for sharing them! I look forward to having children and hopefully watch them go through similar experiences.