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  Fishin' with Capt. Gus! ~ It Happened Around the Lake
September 20, 2009
Labor Day ended with a journey to the Urgent Care Center to have a fishhook removed. Getting stuck is never fun, but it comes with the job. Being a regular visitor there, I’m not asked all the normal questions at check-in - just name, address and which hand or arm.
A few weeks earlier, it wasn’t a hook, but several wasp stings on my arm that led me to the same Urgent Care Center. When asked what happened, I told them, “A big bass just jumped from the water and swallowed a wasp nest hanging from a tree branch. Still hungry, it then hit my fishing lure. In the middle of one of its jumps to escape, a swarm of wasps flew from its opened mouth and immediately attacked my left arm. Hoping not to lose the bass, I swatted the wasps away with the tip of my fishing rod, but not before I was stung multiple times.” The lady at Urgent Care’s front desk was in awe, as were the patients listening in the waiting room. In spite of the wasp attack, the bass was boated and later released. Some might find this story hard to believe... that’s understandable.
A business acquaintance recently related to me how much her son Daniel enjoys fishing, and that he spends all his free time with a rod in his hand. One day she heard him shouting loudly from the dock. At first, she thought he was in trouble, and then realized that he had hooked a big fish. When she saw how big it was, she ran to the house to find a net, but in her hurried state, the only thing she could find was a plastic bucket. She ran back to the dock, hoping the fish hadn’t escaped. Her son was still shouting for help when she arrived with the bucket. The fish flopped a few times, but was too big for the bucket and eventually broke the line and got away. You don’t catch them all, but Donna and Daniel will have a great fish story to remember and tell for a long, long time.
Over the years, one realizes that there is a parallel between fairy tales and fish stories. The only difference is the way the story is prefaced. As you know, a fairy tail begins with “Once upon a time… and a fish story with, “This is no lie…”
Tips from Gus:
Don’t try to net a fish from the tail or side. When you do, it normally darts away and pulls the hook or breaks the line. It’s best to lead the fish head first into the net.
Upcoming Events:
Thursday, September 24, 2009 - “Everything You Want to Know About Tying Fishing Knots” is a free seminar at Gander Mountain, Exit 36, Mooresville, NC. Capt. Gus will conduct this ninety minute presentation. Call 704 658 0822 for additional information.
Hot Spots of the Week:
Cooler air and water temperatures have bass and stripers locating off deep points and underwater humps. Both are feeding aggressively at the lower end of the lake near the old river channel and in Reeds and Davidson Creeks. Schools of bass are also hitting top water lures while chasing bait pods to the surface in coves and boat basins.
Lake Norman’s surface water temperature is in the low to mid-eighties and the lake level is 3.6' below full pond.
This week’s fishing forecast:
Wind, sun, some clouds and lots of fish.
Captain Gus Gustafson of Lake Norman Ventures, Inc. is licensed by the US Coast Guard, a member of the Southeastern Outdoor Press Association, and is an outdoor columnist and a full time professional fishing guide on Lake Norman, NC. Visit his web site, Fishin' With Gus! at www.FishingWithGus.com or call 704.617.6812.
For additional information e-mail Gus at Gus@LakeNorman.com
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