Last night I was thinking about fishing, as I often do...

[JayKay]

I was fishing while I was thinking about fishing. Usually this gives me plenty of time to ponder. Started thinking about how and why I love it so much. Surely enjoy catching fish, at least as much as the next guy. I like eating them too, but God knows I'd starve if I only ate what I caught. It's nice to be outside in the big beautiful ND outdoors, but half the time I fish, it's dark anyhow.

I finally figured that it was a person who made me love fishing so much. A guy who took the time to show me how to do it, explained things, praised me when I got it right, and yelled just as much as me when I suckered some fish into biting my hook. This guy spent days and days with me, just sitting around on the bank (and later, in the boat) just looking around, talking about whatever.

That guy is now 80. Still going strong. I sure appreciate my dad.

Who's your fishing hero?

Here are a couple of pictures of a couple of my pals, who are doing it right, in my opinion.

 

[huffranger]

My dad split when I was 11 so I hung around with my best buddy's dad. He always included me and to this day I can't thank him enough.

 

[TheWalleye]

My dad took my brother and me fishing quite a bit when we were little. Hope to pass it onto my kids so they can enjoy it in the future!

 

[Mort]

My uncle (mom's brother) got me into fishing, dad never cared for it. Dad (now 75) quit hunting when he was in his forties, Brother never cared to hunt or fish, he tried pheasant hunting once, wasn't impressed. Sister fishes occasionally with her daughter, they've fished the WoW couple of times.

 

[Duckslayer100]

Fishing was my gateway drug to the outdoors, and dad definitely was my dealer.

I used to spend hours on Saturday mornings watching In-Fisherman, Midwest Outdoors and the like. Dad never was much into hunting at the time, so it was fishing that consumed me.

He'd strap his 70s olive-green fiberglass canoe to the top of the Baby-Blue Horizon, and we'd dig some worms from the garden and hit whatever lake tickled his fancy. It was strictly panfishing in those days, but we did make it to the BWCA a few times when I was in my early teens. Never got into the walleyes like he talked about in the good old days, but I made more memories than most kids at the time who were glued to their Nintendos and Play Stations.

When I was older, it reciprocated a bit and I got dad back into hunting. It started with some more serious ruffed grouse treks in the north woods where he grew up, but then he got into deer hunting again and I even took him on a few duck and pheasant hunts.

Now I have a son of my own. And this winter at 2.5 he got to experience his first hardwater season. This weekend, lord willing, he'll get to ride in the boat and catch a mess of bluegills and crappies.

I just hope he winds up loving it as much as I did...and do.

 

[TheWalleye]

Now I have a son of my own. And this winter at 2.5 he got to experience his first hardwater season. This weekend, lord willing, he'll get to ride in the boat and catch a mess of bluegills and crappies.

I'm excited to take my daughter this summer and this winter for her first time, she's 2.5 also.

 

[guywhofishes]

This post is sorta depressing because Dad was a boozing party doofus when we were school aged. Rarely if ever took us fishing - but he went with other men so he could drink.

My brothers, friends and I just loved to fish and made it happen. Wasn't easy figuring it all out on our own pre-internet days.

Weird thing is that now Dad loves to fish (has since cleaned up his act) but now he lives in Wisconsin so we rarely get to fish together.

That's right - my Dad is a sconi. :;:smokin

 

[Up Y'oars]

My uncle was the guy who introduced me to shore fishing, boat fishing, and ice fishing.... He knew Lake Darling and Lake Audubon like the back of his hand.

I didn't like fishing THAT much back then, because a 10yo doesn't have the patience to sit on a wood bench in an old aluminum boat for 7hrs. However, he hooked me on ice fishing because I could stand up and move, look down the hole and see the bottom structure, and have the opportunity to taste a Cloverdale summer sausage/chokecherry jelly sammich and kick a Ling around on the ice outside after going outside to pee!

Now, I chalk up all those days to the fun I enjoy these days as an adult. Nothing better....

 

[johnr]

My dad took me on some fancy trips up to the boundary waters for a 9 day canoe trip twice, and some camping trips in Itasca state park.
He hunted deer, but not really with me at all.

I had a good friend who invited me on my first pheasant hunt way back when a kid, and that started that passion, he actually still calls me a couple times a year to get together for a fishing trip, and at least one pheasant weekend a year.

I likely would only fish a little, and deer hunt if it wasn't for him introducing me into ice fishing, pheasant hunting, duck/goose hunting, antelope hunting, and really teaching me all about what I now am so found of, and what I spend most of my time and money on.

Thanks squatch.

 

[Rowdie]

The movie A River Runs Through It says it best, I'm haunted by waters. My dad took us kids fishing from shore until we got aboat when I was 9. I loved playing on shore, still do. He bought a pontoon and I loved that too, since you could get up and move around, basically play. We swam n fished a lot. When we camped, we pulled popup by the rivers edge. My brother was 8 years older so it was tough out fishing him, still is, even with 10 times better equipment. Its just not fishing, but being on or near the water, its hard to explain. Growing up fishing, playing, and in HS partying by the river is hard to shake. I'm always driving around just looking at the lake. I can just walk along the shoreline for hours, not even fishing. Lots of stuff out there to do on the shores of the lake.

 

[Riggen&Jiggen]

Well at least now I know I am not alone in my crazy addiction with fishing. I rarely go a couple hours at a time with out some sort of a fishing thought entering my mind. My old man got me into fishing and we still fish together, not on every outing but most. It does pay to give kids the opportunity to fish and have success. However now that I have my own kids (3 girls) and take my buddies kids fishing I have realized that opportunity alone does not dictate if a kid is going to catch the fever. I don't think that is all that different now a days than it was when I was young. When I think back at all the people I went through high school with which was around 530 maybe 30 fish to this day. The point I guess I am trying to make is either your born with the love for the outdoors or your not. The first memory I have of fishing is when I was 4 years old and I remember every time my Dad told me we had to go home I would throw a fit and cry. This was usually after 8 hours of fishing in 90 degree weather and if we were lucky catching a northern or 2. If we did not catch anything I would get mad but never thought of giving up. So yeah fishing is my drug. Don't know how, when or why just know I have always been hooked.

 

[JayKay]

This post is sorta depressing because Dad was a boozing party doofus when we were school aged. Rarely if ever took us fishing - but he went with other men so he could drink.

My brothers, friends and I just loved to fish and made it happen. Wasn't easy figuring it all out on our own pre-internet days.

Weird thing is that now Dad loves to fish (has since cleaned up his act) but now he lives in Wisconsin so we rarely get to fish together.

That's right - my Dad is a sconi. :;:smokin

I KNEW there was something about you...

 

[guywhofishes]

I KNEW there was something about you...

you have no idea...

 

[gonefshn]

I have to blame my mom for my spending of all my money hunting and fishing. She was an elementary school teacher who loved science and the outdoors. In the spring every nice day after school my friends and I would pile into her Chevy Kingswood station wagon at St. Joseph's school and head to Ziebach's pass on Devils Lake for some pike and walleye fishing. In the fall, on weekends we'd load up the Kingswood with decoys, drive it across the fields to our spot, and while we hunted she'd be sitting in the Kingswood correcting school papers. One of a kind mom!

I'm now looking forward to the day I can retire and fish and hunt all the time. Funny thing is all the people who are now retired constantly tell me that you think you'll do that but once you retire and can it's not that big of a deal so you'll get bored with it. I always laugh and tell them I got my first paper route in 4th grade so I could buy a fancy fishing rod my parents couldn't afford, I often came in late for school because of hunting or fishing and every day off was out doing that, I now use almost every day of my vacation time for fishing tourneys, and go out every single chance I get with most years going fishing and/or hunting over 100 days a year. And you're trying to tell me when I get the chance to go every day I'm not hardly going to go? I don't think so!!!

 

[Brian Renville]

My dad was all about telling his kids to get to work, constantly, the only exception was fishing. He talked about fishing as being a "need" to stave off insanity. I didn't need to become an adult to understand that part. He also liked to say "a guy just has to listen to the wind/water once in awhile."

 

[Captain Ahab]

My dad did an excellent job taking me on many adventures while I was growing up. The first time I took my first born out was at 13 days old. I have had my oldest(now 4) out when I know the weather is going to be nice and the fish are biting over the last two years. For some reason I don't like putting too many pics of him up on the 'net. I am impatiently waiting for both my boys to be able to go on weekend long adventures(maybe in a year or two the youngest will be out of diapers).

- - - Updated - - -

My dad was all about telling his kids to get to work, constantly, the only exception was fishing. He talked about fishing as being a "need" to stave off insanity. I didn't need to become an adult to understand that part. He also liked to say "a guy just has to listen to the wind/water once in awhile."

I live by those quotes as well. When the weather and season permit, the inside of a building is nothing but a prison.

 

[KDM]

I have my Dad, Uncle, and Oldest Cousin to thank for so much more than fishing. Each of these MEN, gave so much of themselves for my benefit when I was growing up that it's difficult to speak of as only my Dad is still with us. I think of each one of them often when sitting quietly on the river bank or in the deer stand and hope that one day my children and other youngsters that come into my life can look back on their outdoor beginnings, remember how they started, and then pass those memories on to the next set of youngsters.

 

[Captain Ahab]

I should add, my dad and I still enjoy adventures when we can. We still try to take that $1 for the first fish from each other.

 

[Kasey]

Dad started taking me fishing when I was about 6 years old. We'd cruise the shore line in a 14' boat with 10 hp Johnson up on Lake Darling, pulling mepps spinners. many moons ago. Those were some fun trips. It seems the things we do when we are young, leave the biggest impressions. I'm pretty sure I owe my passion for fishing, because of him.

 

[camoman]

I've been fishing for as long as I can remember (6-7 years old). I have my grandfather, my uncle, and my own father mostly to thank for that. All almost always willing to take me along (I was a pretty damn good fisherman at one time, my success has fallen aback as I'm becoming older). I spent more days than most kids my age fishing for 8-12 hours on Lake Sakakawea and the Missouri River. It's just what we did. When we planned to fish it was for the day, regardless. Very rarely did we cut an outing short, and in the long run I think that's helped me in building patience. It wasn't always the most fun, but we caught a hell of a lot of fish on ol' Sak back in the late 90's early 00's. Since that time I can thank a few individuals for serving to solidify my enjoyment of the outdoors and fishing especially. One of our own, KDM, taught me plenty a share about fishing rivers and I love to try out the techniques he handed down to me on new locations, often times catching fish while others look on in a bit of bewilderment. I also have a great friend from Utah, Phil, that really got me into fly fishing. Damn is that some other kind of addiction, let me tell you. I recently I had a bit of a foray from angling, had little interest for about 6-7 months, but I'm back and it's worse than ever.

- - - Updated - - -

I should add, my dad and I still enjoy adventures when we can. We still try to take that $1 for the first fish from each other.

Always "two bits" in our boats. Someone ALWAYS says two bits on the first fish and no one ever pays, haha.