Good to Get Out

[Tony Buzolich]

For the last month or so I haven't gotten out on the water at all. I've been in the hospital and home recooping from a blood disorder and I've been going nuts sitting in this damn easy chair watching way too much TV and getting older by the minute. I don't sit very well doing nothing.

Last week I had enough sitting and told my wife I was leaving and going fishing. "Not by yourself you're Not" she says. So, I call my buddy Bill. "Take me down to the river. I gotta get out of this chair and do something on the water". So off we go to Boyd's and what a wonderful site and smell it is to see the river and smell the cottenwoods in the air. I really didn't care about fishing but I just had to get out and excercise and move my arms a little.

We fished a little, and after two hours of casting I got one grab. One nice little three pound striper that just about beat me to death. It was all I could do to get this little guy into the boat. Wow! That felt GOOD, and I'm shaking like crazy. But, I got out of that damn chair.

Today, another one of buddies took me out again, this time over to Tisdale. Ahhhhhh the same early morning smell of the water. There's a lot more water moving here and maybe we'll luck into a couple of fish so off we go. Right away I spot bait busting the rocks on an opposite shore. We move over and I hook up after only a couple of casts to a small schoolie. BINGO! (my favorite saying) I've already matched last week's outing, and it feels so good to get out again.

We drift down our wall with great expectations but things are slow. A few small grabs but nothing to count. I change flies to something with a little more flash as the sun has just started to touch the water.

"Let's try it over here for change" and we move to an old spot we don't often fish. I make two casts and "BINGO" a big grab. Oooh! This is a good fish. And I'm shaking from the meds I'm taking, and Bob's yelling to get up front and he'll take the motor. "Get away from the pumps" I yell, "and get us into the middle of the middle of the river". Kind of the proverbial Chinese Firedrill thing onboard until we get under control.

I'm immediately on the reel which helped a lot as we drift downstream with our fish. Still using my 8 weight this fish is all I can handle but soon enough she comes up and into the net. I'm still shaking. My arms are noodles and I can hardly lift her. Twenty-three pounds on the Boga
Tony