I've been wanting to get my kids in on some good fish-catching action with White Bass at Saylorville this month.
So far, it hadn't happened. We had tried on a couple of occasions, but never hit the right spot at the right time.
I had an opportunity to take my daughter fishing last night. She's 14. She REALLY didn't want to go. I badgered her relentlessly until she caved. :)
We went. We got to the parking lot, and I spotted my buddy Jay, and two other guys (Dan and Don) already there. Jay and Dan were walking back to the parking lot...without fishing rods! First aid was needed on Jay's finger. No embedded hook, but the tip of his finger and fingernail had been nicely sliced by a gill plate of a thrashing fish.
Jay got quickly wrapped up, and we all got down to the business of fishing. Dan was catching fish nearly every cast. Kennedy and I tried some areas adjacent to where Jay and Dan (and Don) were fishing, but I only managed one fat Smallmouth Bass on a topwater:
I had Kennedy elbow her way between Dan and Jay (they didn't mind), and she started catching some decent fish! In fact, for probably 1/2 hour, she was catching more than ANYBODY ELSE!
Dan and Jay both helped her removed hooks from fish when she had trouble with it. She's been fishing before. Usually she did fine unhooking the fish all on her own.
It wasn't super-fast fishing, but we caught some. Kennedy had fun.
When we got back to the parking lot to head home, she THANKED ME for making her go. :)
We got home and she went upstairs to take a shower. She called down, "Uh Dad? You've GOT to come here!" She was in the bathroom (still clothed). She held up her hair (its pretty long, as you can see in the picture), and there was a
puked-up shad stuck in her hair! OMG, TOO FUNNY!!
I took the shad out of her hair, and my wife said, "Oh, we should have gotten a picture of that!" Yep...bummer. :o)))