Birthday Bass

Nathaniel spent his last waking minutes as an 11-year-old and his first waking minutes as a 12-year-old doing the same thing - which was, of course, fishing. He and I camped on some friends' property, next to a beaver pond, sleeping under the stars in the bed of the truck.

We caught quite a few fish on out outing, but we also got to see a night heron nest with chicks in it, to watch the sunrise through the morning fog and to hear the bullfrogs and crickets get loud in the evening. The temperature was perfect for sleeping outside, and the bug spray seemingly did its job.

One highlight came on the first afternoon. Asher, my 5-year-old, joined for a couple hours of fishing and eating grilled hot dogs before my wife picked him up and took him home for the night. While he was still with us, he hooked and landed a bass of a little less than a pound. When I went to grab the fish to unhook it, I was surprised to see a snake curled up in its throat. The snake was dead but appeared very fresh, and it was probably about 8 inches long. What amazed me was that the fish hit Asher's YUM Dinger when it hadn't even begun digesting a very large meal that was already in it's throat!