What inspires you to get up every morning? Your kids? Coffee? First dibs on that last cheese danish in the fridge? For me, its the anticipation of one more potential adventure! Today, however, was different...
It was 2:30 in the morning. I was woken up by a sound that I can only describe as... well annoying. The call of a whippoorwill echoed through my room... after about an hour I realized trying to sleep was pointless. I get up, get dressed, and make my way to my fishing closet to ponder what fish would possibly be biting at 3:00 in the morning. Bass? No.... Carp?... Nah! Catfish?... Ehhhhhh.... NO!... My eyes drift toward my fly box, and then toward the small pouch containing what looked to me like some cut up pieces of rope. Gar flies! I grab the pouch, my 10 weight fly rod, and some braid leaders. After leaving a note, I quietly push my Rzr side by side to the driveway and make my way towards the Thompson-Ford Access Spillway!
After about 10 minutes of driving... lights from a patrol car... "@#$%!!!!!!|" I had forgotten my license! A tall officer shines his flashlight into my cab. "What are you doing out so late" he says studying me. I nod towards the fishing paraphernalia in the back. "Gar huh? I'll make you a deal, Because I am pretty sure your too young to be driving this, I'm gonna let you off with a warning. Okay?" I breathe a sigh of relief! "Thank you sir!" I say, relieved.
Once at the spillway I bait up, attach the leader, and make my first cast... ZZZZZZEEEEEEEPPPPPPPPRRRRRR! The drag on my fly reel peels off faster that I could stop it! Unable to grab the line without burning my hands, I crank the makeshift reel handle I had made with a stick a while back. After a long hard, bloody fight, I finally land the 21 pound longnose gar... I untangle to string from its teeth... I gingerly lie the fish on its stomach. I open my pocketknife and prepared to kill the gar... But I couldn't do it... I throw the fish to the water...
When I arrive home I see the police car parked in my driveway. My heart skips a beat. I slowly open the door. The cop turns my direction "Hey buddy, did ya catch anything?"... I look to my feet... "No sir I didn't..." I answered, "No I didn't" =)