I’m never the lucky one…. I have to work my butt off for everything I have, and when the sun shines, its usually on my dog’s rear…

Well, I’ll spare you all the details, but here is the jist…

My dad and I rarely have time to get together and enjoy Creation, let alone muskie fish. I asked dad to attend the 2010 SBR/M1st outing on Vermilion on a whim knowing that he rarely has time for trips, not to mention he has never spent this amount of time muskie fishing. I kinda thought it was a long shot that he would be able to go, but to my surprise, he took me up on the offer!

To say the fish were remotely cooperative is an extreme understatement…. We saw 4 good fish the first day, two the second, and not so much as a follow the past 3 days. I was pretty upset knowing that many of our previous outdoor endeavors never ended in success. BUT, I have been at this muskie game long enough to know this is how it sometimes goes.

Today I stuck a brand-new mag dawg in the rocks on one of the reefs.  (Second cast with this bait as I won it during one of the dock-sides Steve was putting on ) A 25 MPH wind made it nearly impossible and I had to cut the line….. That was it and I said screw it! Dad was tired from battling the wind all week, and chucking the lumber around, so he was ready to call it as well….. We pulled the boat out and loaded up for our 6 AM departure the following morning….

(this is getting long I know… Please bear with me for just a bit longer… )

TJ asked if I wanted to go out after dark for a few hours and I reluctantly agreed… Dad was tired and ready for bed, and I was planning on driving back to Iowa in the early AM, so I knew I was going to be tired, but what the heck. Quitters never catch muskies, so I agreed… One last hurrah!

Just before 11 PM this piggy ate my bait with 12 inches of line out between my rod tip and my leader….. Intense….

The rest is history!

I can’t thank Steve Worrall enough for the invite and support through this site and the radio show.

I can’t thank Steve Amundson enough for the tremendous accommodations, which are honestly second to none… My dad and I were both blown away! Spring Bay Resort needs to be on the top of your list!!! Fish or no fish….

I can’t thank the population of this site enough as I have learned so much through your conversations and have immensely enjoyed the new relationships I have formed because of MuskieFIRST.

I can’t thank TJ enough for the invite and sharing his rig….. and loaning me the bait, which is now mine as apart of the custom with sticking your personal best. AND for being totally prepared and diligent at taking lots of pix as I pulled her out. An experienced partner like him made all the difference when getting good photos which never overshadowed our interest in getting the fish back in the water in less than a minute….

And I can’t thank dad enough for sticking with this trip, even when times got tough. The only thing that would have made netting my new personal best muskie any better would have been to have dad with me in the boat…. but, I’ll take it anyway I can get it!

Gold CowGirl
53 3/4″
22″ girth and she swam away like a champ!

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