Galena - July 19-21, 2008

We are back at Ron and Kathy's home, in Galena Il, a long anticipated visit! Our wives graciously suggest that Ron and I go out fishing, while they spend the morning site-seeing! We're on the lake by 9:30, and Ron is already catching Large Mouth bass, 14 inchers! I started out with a couple of bass, and a sunfish. We are really looking for the "big" fish that have been biting lately.

View our photos!

http://s195.photobucket.com/albums/z2/donndavidson/Galena%20July%2019%202008/

We have sandwiches on board, and a beverage or two, so we're set for the day. I catch about 10 fish total, and Ron catches many, many. It's his tecnique of slow retrieve, with a twitch here and there!

Suddenly, it's dinner time (where did the day go?), so we head back for a BBQ dinner of salmon (for me), and steak (for everyone else). After dinner, we all go out on the boat for late afternoon, and twilight fishing. We're catching fish, but lightning starts high in the clouds, so we hurry back to the dock. A lovely evening!

The next morning, Sunday, is looking cloudy. The gals suggest that Ron and I head out, so we do, grabbing some libations, a bag of cherries, and a half of a sandwich. We started out at the dam, and Ron has success with his yellow frog lure, skipping it across the weeds. I set my Cabela's rod down for a minute, and sure enough, a bass has jumped on! We are catching 12-14 inchers, but not the big ones yet. The day passes quickly! My lunch is a beer and a cherry. Too busy fishing!

Ron called our wives and suggested an on-board picnic. What a great idea! They rustle up fried chicken, fruit, chips, and more libations! After the feast, Kathy suggested that I use some of the fried chicken leftovers as bait. I baited it, and on the first cast a fish took it but not the hook! I baited some more, cast, and another fish did the same thing! Apparently, they like chicken!

We headed back toward the dam, and suddenly, the bass started biting! They were coming up to the surface catching the water bugs. We could see ripples all around us, where they were surfacing. Too bad that the other boats had just given up and left a few minutes ago! Ron started catching 18 inch Large Mouth Bass.

He prophetically said "Donn, I hope you catch the fish of your life". (I hadn't caught any big bass yet). And then I did! I caught about an 18-19 inch bass. Pat was taking pictures of us. The action was fast and furious. We were netting each others catches. At last, I caught a 20-21 inch Bass, which indeed was the largest ever for me! Ron took out the tape and measured it.

A beautiful sunset, and we headed back to their home.

For breakfast on Monday, I made my newly discovered whole wheat blueberry pancakes. Ron and I went out one more time, and again, I caught a very nice 16 inch Large Mouth.

Ron was fishing by the shore line, in the weeds, when it looked like he snagged on something. It was solidly stuck, but it also felt like a fish on the end of the line. The line was tight, and he pulled and pulled, but what was it stuck on? He backed the boat up, and the line came free, with a fish on it! The clever fish was in the weeds, maybe under a log, when he took the bait. But Ron wins again!

At that point, I took my rods apart, and we headed in to start packing.

It's always difficult to leave Galena, and this time was no exception. Thanks again to Ron and Kathy for a memorable weekend!