I went back to Halfmoon Lake instead, on this, the longest day of the year. This is it - the pinnacle - the most daylight we're going to see - 16 hours at this latitude. The summer solstice happened at 12:38 p.m. this afternoon.
Now, the days get shorter.
It's all downhill from here, you might say, but tonight I didn't. Tonight, I didn't distract myself with long thoughts, I just stepped into the moment. That's what fishing is about for me, what it's really good for; the moment at hand. And there was a hell of a moment to step into this evening. I couldn't have custom ordered better conditions. Temperatures in the mid-70s, no wind, low humidity. And being the longest of the year meant the day lingered a while, eased its way slowly, a little reluctantly, or at least cautiously, into night. The further north you are, the more protracted this phenomenon is. Beautiful.
Other people had the same idea; the lake was pretty crowded, both on the water and along the shoreline. But with no motors allowed on Halfmoon (other than trolling), a certain peace and quiet is preserved. Specific things going on in the city of 65,000 surrounding the lake are audible - distant rock music from some open air bar, the occasional clangs and pounds of industry, the ever-present whine of highway traffic - but for the most, you hear only the bucolic sounds of nature and people's absorption of it, and into it. Everyone was catching fish tonight - myself included.
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| PICTURE PERFECT - Conditions were ideal on Halfmoon Lake tonight; the longest day of the year seemed to linger around, reluctant to go. I couldn't blame it. |
I landed a northern, and that really made my night, totally brightened my mood. I love northerns; far and away, FAR and AWAY, they are my favorite fish to hunt and catch. Ever since that Big Missy business two years ago, the bulk of my angling time has been devoted to the species. They're listed only as 'present' in Halfmoon Lake (as opposed to 'abundant') so catching one there leans toward unusual.
But the fish I brought in was itself not unusual in the least. He was smallish, but a true blue northern pike nevertheless: aggressive on the hook, and ferocious in my hand, thrashing wildly, making hook extraction a tricky business, looking for any opportunity to get hold of a finger. You really have to be careful with northerns, even the small ones; they have teeth, not to mention a coat of protective slime on their bodies that shouldn't be handled, if at all possible, for their sake.
Pike are known for their bursts of speed, and this guy had that on lock. When I placed him back in the water, he didn't just swim away. Instead, he seemed to disappear in an instant, vanishing like a puff of smoke.
With the same crawfish crank, I caught a few decent bass tonight as well. They're aggressive too, of course, but not like the northern pike. Northerns are definitely my fish of choice. Someday I'm gonna plan a trip up north, way up north, where the trophies live. Hunting for northerns in northern latitudes.
