Have you noticed lately how high tech has invaded the world
of fishing? Is my bias showing? As I have paddled through stretches of
Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa I have seen lots of “gear” on fishing boats that
helps anglers find and catch fish.
There is some good news to report, however, as I hear of
lots of “catch and release” fishing. Perhaps I am “old school” but I thought fishing was about learning where
the “holes" were by years of studying their habits, trial and error on the
water, and fish tales from old-timers. Satellites that can follow my movements from space scare me and give me
some compassion for my brothers and sisters underwater trying to elude
“fish-finders” from above. One of my
dad’s 10 sibs was Lester. Uncle Les was
the family fish guru.
Picture a round, rosey-cheeked, white haired man with a
straw hat and bib overalls. Lester was a
rural mail-carrier primarily so he could fish after delivering the mail. Two of his sons became college professors, so
he was a smart fellow. But his “applied”
study was the life and habits of fish within 50 miles of Decorah, Iowa. As I paddled through that stretch of water
recently, the spirit of Uncle Lester and I communed. Really!
He knew where the crappies, walleye, and striped bass all
lived because he spent time on the Mississippi. The river and its creatures had been his
teachers. I took my son, Erik, to visit
Decorah one summer to meet Uncle Les. I
knew this master fisherman would deliver
the goods where his father had generally failed. So off we went to the river. He asked, “Erik, what do you want to catch?”
Erik said, “Anything!”
So off we went to one “hole" after another and in every case caught a lot of
fish. Erik was amazed. But I wasn’t because I knew that my uncle was
a real fisherman who did it the “old-fashioned” way...
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