A/N: I going to beat the midnight rush hour at FF with this one. Thank you everyone again for the reviews and alerts!
Chapter 3
Merrill expertly piloted the pontoon to the dock, cutting the motor to let it drift into position. Zach jumped off the front deck to the dock with a mooring rope in his hand to pull the boat close. He secured the front end of the boat. Aaron, using his hands jumped over the rail to secure the back end. They all grabbed the fishing poles, Merrill's tackle box and life vests, taking them to the fish cleaning shed for the night. The sun began its slow sink into the western horizon.
Sela and Jack made a run for the cabin, trying to beat the evening influx of mosquitoes. Mudg followed them while looking for the perfect spot to make his evening deposit of his dinner. When finished, he raced to the cabin as well. He barked once and Sela let him in as Jack got the water going in the shower.
With Zach now able to help Merrill and Aaron, the three made quick work of cleaning the bounty of fish. Aaron and Merrill cleaned up the shed from the filet session as Zach took the bucket of fish remains to the beach. Merrill put the cover on the Tupperware container now holding the filets Sela had brought down with her before they headed out. He handed it to Zach. "You're the athlete; you get to do the sprint up the hill with them," he smiled. Zach took the container, opened the door and made a run for it against the pesky biting insects. Merrill shut off the lights in the shack. Zach sprinted onto the screened in porch as Sela shut the front windows to cabin. "I've turned on the AC with the humidity going up," she smiled.
He and Aaron waited a minute for the mosquitoes to move away from the beckoning light source. They headed out the door, with Merrill locking it. Aaron flew around one side, pulling the covers over the screens. Merrill went to the other side to do the same. There were thunderstorms in the overnight forecast.
By the time the other two finished their sprint, Sela and Zach already had three packages of fish filets wrapped in freezer paper. Merrill joined to help them as Aaron went to help Jack, getting out of the shower. Merrill took the packages of filets to the freezer in the garage as Aaron and Jack came out of the bathroom.
Walking into the living room, Jack yawned deeply. Aaron rubbed his neck. "You've had a long day buddy."
"Yeah, I have dad. But all that fishing made me hungry," he yawned.
Sela smiled and reached into the fridge. She pulled out another Tupperware container. "How does some fresh sliced peaches with a little ice cream sound Jack?"
"Like heaven," he smiled, yawning again. Zach joined him for the delicious treat.
Sela shook her head at Aaron. "Where do they put it?"
Zach smiled. "Hit it Jack."
"We're lean, mean growing machines," he smiled, shoveling in another mouthful. Thirty minutes later, Jack was conked out.
The four gathered around the table and played a couple games of Cribbage, keeping an eye on the local weather forecast. The prediction was for garden variety thunderstorms; nothing severe. Sela and Zach won the rubber match of the three games and they all turned in for night.
The storm moved through and one large, loud boom of thunder briefly woke Jack. He snuggled up to his dad's back and fell blissfully back to sleep. Zach in his bed and Mudgie, sleeping on the rug in the room next to the bed, snored through it all.
-00CM00-
The fishing crew was up by seven with the boys powering down apple juice that Aaron had brought. The rest drank coffee and they all enjoyed a box of doughnuts to get them going. Zach and Jack polished off the first gallon of milk and opened the second. Sela and Merrill just shook their heads. Mudg, already fed by Jack, was outside prowling for his specific spot to do his thing.
A half hour later, they were out on the lake to a pristine morning. With the sun coming up and Canadian high pressure moving in behind the storm front, they all wore shorts, yet with sweatshirts for a little warmth. Mudg sprawled out for his morning nap in the sun.
They tried all their usual fishing spots with no luck. "The storm and rain can sometimes do that," Merrill explained as Jack frowned at their lack of fish in the basket. "Let's try a different spot in a deeper part of the lake and see what we can find." He got the motor running and piloted the pontoon to a new spot the Hotchner's hadn't fished before.
Hotch looked at Merrill. "There's a sandbar that runs across the entire lake. From there," he pointed to a log cabin on one side of the lake "to there," he pointed to an old farm silo. "When the water hits its ten year low cycle, the old times say someone six feet talk can walk the entire lake with the water below their chin."
"Do you believe it," Hotch asked.
Merrill shook his head. "The lake can get low in that cycle but I wouldn't try it."
"Merrill," Zach asked, "what do you mean low cycle?"
"All lakes around here seem to run on a ten year cycle. The old timers believe in it; yet it has more to do with the weather and how much rain the area gets. But, in a way it holds true. At the low cycle, we have to put out two more six foot sections of dock to moor the pontoon. You all have been here at the high end. This is the highest the lake has been in years."
"But we had more snow over the winter and a lot a rain this spring," Sela added.
"So what does that mean to where we're fishing now," Jack asked, a bit impatiently. Zach and his dad shared a look.
"That means Jack," Merrill said, "we fish a bit off the sandbar in the deeper water and see what we can hook." He opened his tackle box and pulled out jigs. "Let's try these with minnows." He showed Aaron how to attach it to Jack's line. Zach, the quick learner hooked his next, with Sela following them.
"Crappie minnows," Jack asked.
Merrill chuckled. "Jack, fish don't order off a menu. They just see breakfast." Zach pulled a minnow out of the bucket and attached it to the jig hook. Looking to his backside to make sure he wouldn't hook anyone, he let the fishing line fly with a cast. When the line finally stopped running off the reel, knowing that it hit the bottom of the lake, he gently reeled a bit of line in and waited. Merrill had the pontoon drifting in the morning breeze instead of anchored in one spot.
Aaron hooked up his line as Jack looked at Zach. "Jack, do the same thing," Merrill said. "With the pontoon floating along, it gives the jig some action in the water to attract fish. That's how it works." Sela showed Jack how to softly cast out his line and do the same.
"Zach, keep gently reeling in your line though," Merrill suggested. Zach complied; the jig surfaced a minute or two later. Zach sent it flying out again as Aaron moved to the front of the deck and did the same.
"Whoa," Zach said a few minutes later, softly reeling in his line.
"Zach," Sela asked as he further slowed down bringing in the line.
"I think I've got something taking a look." He gently reeled a bit more, and then yanked his pole a bit to set the hook. The reel, holding the fish line, buzzed with a fish trying to take more off. Zach had the safety set on the reel so that couldn't happen. The tip of his pole dipped deeply towards the water.
Merrill smiled, quickly reeling in his line. "You've got something Zach." His jig breached the water. He quickly pulled it in, set his pole down and moved to Zach's side. "Is it still there," Merrill asked. Zach nodded his head as the pole bent deeply again. "Reel it in nice and easy," Merrill whispered. Mudg woke to the excitement and stood on the other side of Zach. The rest all stopped fishing reeling in their lines to watch. "Let the fish wear itself out," he advised. "Stop reeling and let him fight a bit in his element." Zach followed his instructions and they all looked to see the pole shake sideways and then dip deeply again. "That is one unhappy fish," Merrill said. "But Zach, you've got the hook set hard; you're not going to lose it. Keep doing what I said." Zach compiled, struggling a bit to reel in line. He stopped and the pole shook again.
Zach started reeling again. Merrill noticed the tension on the line lessening. "Zach, don't reel fast; he's playing with you; slow and easy son." Zach looked intently in the water, following the advice. Jack moved to stand next to his dad. The reel whined again with the fish trying to make another run. Zach stopped reeling. "Good job," Merrill said.
The line tension lessened again. "Now Zach," Merrill said. "A little faster but easy." Zach followed his instructions. "Zach, when you feel the line go dead, reel like hell. That's when the fish is making a run for the surface to see if it can shake the hook. That's its final stand."
Two seconds later, Zach followed the instruction. "Zach, lift up your pole tip and keep reeling," Merrill said, a bit excitedly. "When the fish breaks the surface, reel harder until it plops back into the water." Zach did as he was told. The fish soon popped out of the water, shaking its head, dancing on his tail on the water top. Mudg barked loudly at it. It dove back into the water.
"Wow dad," Jack excitedly said. "Did you see the size of it?!" Aaron smiled.
The reel line whined again. "Keep reeling Zach," Merrill said. "Nice and easy; let the fight finally get out of the fish." He reached for a net on the end of a pole that was on the boat. The fish thrashed a bit more on the surface and then gave in. Zach gently reeled it to the side of the boat and Merrill scooped it up into the net, bringing it over the rail of the pontoon. He laid the net on the deck and hooked his fingers in the fish's gill, after releasing Zach's perfectly set hook in the upper lip of the fish.
He smiled at Zach. "That is one monster northern," he beamed, holding up the fish. "I've never seen one that big come out of this lake." Zach beamed as Merrill handed him the fish. "Grab the other gill Zach and hold up her tail."
"Her," Aaron asked.
"All big northerns are usually female" Merrill explained.
Zach complied as Sela and Aaron took pictures on their cell phones. Jack grabbed the family digital camera and did the same. Zach's broad shoulders didn't match the length of the fish.
Merrill pulled an instrument from his tackle box that had a soft hook on one end with a tape measure at the other. He measured the fish as the rest kept snapping pictures. "Holy shit Zach; it's almost 41 inches." Zach put the scale hook in the mouth of Merrill's instrument and let it hang. "And nearly 45 pounds," he smiled. "That's a trophy northern you hooked Zach." He paused. "What do you want to do with it?"
Zach eyed him. "I'm not into mounted trophies of animals on the mantle or wall like Uncle Dave has at the cabin." He looked at Merrill. "It has to be old." Merrill nodded. "How good would it be for eating?"
Merrill slightly shook his head. "And northerners are a bitch to filet; they have three times the backbones of crappies."
Zach looked at his dad. Aaron knew how his son felt and nodded his head. Zach reached over the side and gently put the fish back in the water. "Die a natural death my friend," Zach smiled. "Thanks for the fight." Zach released the fish and after a few seconds, it thrashed and then plunged back into the deep water.
"Really dad," Jack asked.
"Really Jack," Aaron smiled, videoing Zach releasing the fish.
Sela rubbed Jack's shoulder. "You're brother is an honorable man."
Zach rinsed his hands off in the lake water and looked at his younger brother. "We do it right Jack; just like dad." The brothers shared their homerun high five as Merrill and Sela looked at the pride in Aaron's eyes.
The brother's stomachs grumbled together for their need of more food. Sela shook her head at her husband. "Captain, request permission to get two boys fed," she smiled.
"Permission granted," Merrill smiled. He started the motor.
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A/N: I've got some explaining to do! *takes deep breath*
A sandbar is exactly that; a bar of sand that be part of a US inland lake. They can vary in width. And yes, in a low cycle of water levels, you can cross a lake with your head above water on shallower lakes. And btw, I believe in the 10 year cycle of lake levels. I've seen it when our family had a lake cabin.
"Jigs" are specifically designed fishing lures that with the slow motion of reeling the line with a minnow on the hook looks like the minnow is darting around the area. Most jigs have a brightly colored small piece of plumage on them; either yellow, orange or lime green. That is what attracts the fish to the minnow in the deep, usually darker water.
"Set the hook" for non-fishing folks is a term to make sure you have snagged the fish hitting the bait/lure. It's a quick pull of the fishing pole to hook the fish securely.
A northern or northern pike is another species of fish common to central US inland lakes as well as Europe to my surprise through my Wiki research. They are long and narrow, with a large jaw. You know where to look if you want more info. ;)
As always, temps, weights, measurements, etc. are in US versions. Sorry my international readers.
This one is for my Dutch Delight, sending Merrill Stubbing vibes her way. ;)
