It’s not a column week, but I had a recent experience that was too good to not share. My friend Randal and I were enjoying a day of fishing in my boat. The bass were biting, the weather was nice — it was an awesome trip.
On one cast, Randal’s spinnerbait broke loose and landed in relatively shallow water. We motored over and saw it shining about five feet down.
“It’s hot anyway,” Randal said. “I’m going to go in and get it.”
After successfully retrieving the lure, Randal had me drop him off under a tree to eat his sandwich in the shade. I trolled across the cove to throw soft plastics into some promising weed structure.
My first cast produced a bite, but I had a problem — the fish lodged itself under the weeds and refused to budge. I could feel him thrashing around, but my line was so wrapped up in the vegetation there was no way I could pull it out without breaking.
Randal saw the action unfolding from across the cove. “You need me to come noodle him out?” he hollered. I laughed at first, but he was dead serious.
“I can’t tell if it’s a big one, but if you really want to, I won’t say no.”
I’ll preface what happened next by saying Randal is a 6-foot-4 wild man who is an excellent swimmer and experienced scuba diver. Still, watching him swim across the cove, follow my line to the bottom and emerge triumphantly with a 16-inch bass was a scene I won’t soon forget.
So, here’s to never giving up on a fish, and to an all-time entry in my “there’s a first time for everything” fishing notebook. And, most of all, here’s to Randal, the Noodle Man. Tight lines!
Jordan Rodriguez has been fishing Idaho waters since he was a teen. Share your fish stories, adventures, tips and tricks with him at [email protected] or visit www.tightlines208.com.
