I’VE COME TO TALK


WITH YOU AGAIN. PHOTO: BEN DUCHESNEY


HELLO, OLD FRIEND


I have a friend I fish with a few times a year, every year. Actually, I don’t fish with him, I fish for him. For the past seven years, I‘ve caught the same largemouth bass


in the lake down the road. I catch him in the same hole, using the exact same lure. I know his markings like my own face. I even use my old rod, though the fiberglass is peeling and it’s falling apart. But, it’s the same rod that got me obsessed with fishing in the first place. The last time I caught him, he weighed just shy of five pounds.


It’s been comforting to watch him grow. People fishing on shore have tried buying him from me. I decline, not because I’m above keeping fish, but because this bass is an old friend. Familiarity is comfortable, but it’s also reassuring. It makes


you think, “I know what I’m doing,” or even, “I can handle what’s next.” I usually go fishing for my friend whenever I’m about to fish in a state I’ve never been to, or for a fish I’ve never fished for. It reminds me I can sometimes trick a fish to bite using more than just dumb luck. No matter if the lake or ocean, is down the road or across the country, slipping my kayak into the water brings me that same


10 PADDLING MAGAZINE


familiar feeling. I’ve found myself floating in a river in Arkansas fishing for smallmouth bass from a kayak, as if it was in my own backyard. A pond in Western Nebraska felt familiar, even when paddling while looking for antelope. A kayak sitting in the water loaded down with rods and gear keeps me thinking, “all is right with the world.” Even strangers become familiar once the conversation turns to


kayak fishing. My kayak fishing guides became old friends once we hit the water. We’re already talking about getting them to my neck of the woods this summer to fish for stripers on the flats. I’m sure once we get the kayaks into the water, their fishing section of the brain will take over and they’ll feel at home. The average life span of a largemouth bass is 10 to 12 years,


which means my old friend is getting older. I’m not sure how many more years I will be able to catch him; considering I’ve caught him so many times with the same lure, he may not be the smartest fish in the lake. At least I’ll still be able to feel that familiar feel- ing from my other friend, my fishing kayak, wherever I may find myself next. Ben Duchesney is the web editor for Kayak Angler magazine.


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