the big one got away

Sunday on Sunday River. Bethel. Land of covered bridges, fancy farmhouses overlooking summer ski slopes, and some huge rainbows and brookies.

My first catch of the day was a complete surprise, and unwitnessed, so you have to trust me on this. We had been casting into a shallow stretch of the river for the first hour of the morning, with not much luck. While Nelson was exploring a feeder stream, I spied a likely trout harbor: a pool several feet deep, shrouded in shade, bordered at its head by rocks and rushing water. So I cast a few times into it, trying out different spots, when wham! something landed. I jerked the rod up to set the hook, and felt the vibration of something stuck on the line, something HEAVY, moving downstream. I let out a scream as i saw the rod bending, afraid it might break. And then, as the trout swam into a shallow section of the stream, the sunlight shining down on him, i caught a glimpse of a trout about 10-12 inches long. The BIG ONE.

I admit, I was terrified and didn't want to come face to face with a huge fish, deal with the hook stuck in its lip, slightly afraid that it would bite me. "Nelson! Nelson! Holy sh@#$!" I screamed to no avail. There it was, on my line, I caught a fish! A BIG FISH. In my stunned state, I couldn't quite get a handle on reeling him in. The trout took the opportunity to swim farther away, behind a rock, and popped itself off my hook. (Not an uncommon occurence. We remove the barbs from the hook, which eases the conscience and the huge fish fear factor by allowing the trout some room to wiggle off a poorly set hook.)

This brush with the big one was a rush, a confidence booster, and kept me hungry for more. I even caught a few small ones after that! Here is a big one that didn't get away, courtesy of TJ Hooker.