Fish Tales

Teamwork : By Mike and Jacob Piechocki

Today we learned a little about teamwork. My brother and I fished on our dad's boat Retriever. We left dock bright and early just before 6AM. We didn't care about how early it was because we were so excited! We set lines and before they were all set, someone yelled "FISH ON", and the battle was on! After about 5 minutes, Sara boated our first fish. It was a nice 3-4lb. king salmon. After another 10 minutes the cry went out for the next fish and it was our turn! The king hit a leadcore and was very difficult to reel in. My brother and I took turns reeling it in because our arms got soooo sore! Over the next 2 hours we boated another 10 fish, most of which came on the cores. My brother and I had to work together with all of that reeling. Without each others help, we couldn't have reeled in all of those fish and had such a perfect day on the water! (and Mommy was awesome on the net too!)

Spoon Time

7:04 we got one on lead core! We reeled it in until muscles were sore. Amid the thunder, King caught on Blue Balls – no wonder. Following close behind Another of the same kind. Super Froggin' it in To catch another of the same kin. Amid skies of light Trout was on the bite. Steer to the left, no to the right The crew was starting to fight. Thunder & Lightening The cells were frightening! Monkey Puke or pouring rain It doesn't matter, it's all the same. Steelhead, Trout & King A cooler full will make us sing Dancing Anchovy, salad tosser About as useful as bikini flosser. 8 crew members dripping wet And only 8 fish in the cooler yet. Green lipped intern thrown away, Might be useful another day. As morning wore on, the waves started to grow The crew screamed at the captain "We're losing our troll." Fob Wobbler, Blueberry, Jaw Breaker to go It all must come in if were to find the flow. At our new coordinates; 40 50 60 West The fish should surely bite the best! Throwing fish box and Deadweight out This is what fishing is all about. Plenty of little fish to be had, We spent hours looking for the Dad. 12 fish in the cooler, were cold but not bitter Because we're the girls of the In Pursuit, we're surely the winners.

Led core line, spin doctor and spoons galore I can assure you this chore Not the laundry or washing dirty dishes But bringing in the biggest of fishes. We're missing out on our shopping But who cares the fish are hopping With a fish on the line we hear "reel, reel, reel" If you've done this before you know how my arms feel. We're bringing in a Big King, don't break a nail Do we have time to write a fishing tale? The led core line is out so far We may have time to stop at the bar. Bud, Miller and Coors is the choice We're yelling so much we've lost our voice We drank too much and we're going to pee our pants It makes us want to do the fishing dance. Our Captain has brought us to the best fishing spot No wonder the fishing today has been so hot. With the pole in our hand there is no time for dusting We're catching the fish and our cooler is busting!

It's a Wonderful Life by Sal Salmon

It seemed so long ago that I was just a fryling. One day I was chosen to be part of a project called "Salmon in the Classroom". I was so proud - they picked me! I was one of 300 other salmon chosen. We got to see kids everyday. They would feed us, talk to us and watch us swim around. We did this for about 2 months. Out of all of the students, one little boy was my favorite. De didn't come around when all the other kids were here; he came around by himself and just watched us. Sometimes he would talk to us - he even named some of us. I'm Sal and whenever I see my boy, I swim right in front. He's my friend. One day, the students took us to a new place. It was this area surrounded by water. I had never seen so much water. My friend looked sad. I couldn't figure out why. Then all of a sudden I went flyin' out of my container and into another unknown body of water. After gaining my composure, I looked up and saw my little boy.

Read more: 2006 Winner - Tammy Too

Fishing with the Best Chance girls team this year was more about color and less about beer. We began selecting lures that matched our painted toes, Passion Pink, Mango Mist, Watermelon and Rose. Dave, please find a dipsey diver in Chad Chi ng Cherry, and then a rubber snubber in tutti fruity or red raspberry. It must be our luck, no omen or curse, that the best colors today matched our shoes & purse. Soon we were loaded and pointed toward shore, when our last big salmon hit our hot pink board. Bill said, leave it to our girls to rely on a hunch, a little Jimmy Buffett and some tropical fruit punch. The point of the day is not winning or losing, its so much more fun when we do the choosing. Being with friends, no phones and just chillin' our lips painted red and our toes a fresh melon we broke through the piers only minutes to spare. Just enough time to fix makeup and hair!

The boat was dead still, you could hear a hook drop. It was officially a lull and we ladies began to chatter about the phenominal bargains at the Lakes Mall. Then, like thunder, the center rigger went off. Was it a big greaser headed for the bottom or maybe the King of Kings, come to fulfill our dreams? All four of us ladies grabbed the rod and began a fight reminiscent of Thrilla in Manilla! After much blood, sweat, tears and cursing the fight neared it's end. With our eyes on the prize, we reeled in the beast. I'll be a "Monkey's Uncle" we were sure we had the largest of species - DRIFTWOOD. Easily weighing in at 20 lbs and 10 feet. Oh well- back to fishing!

We arrived in Grand Haven expecting the worst, for the weather of past had made us cursed. Equipped with some beer, some pretzels, and pucker, a few shots later, we're yelling, "Let's get those suckers". Out on the lake we all placed our bets, the rods were all set and we readied our nets. The reels began screaming, the poles were on fire, the fish were a jumping. It was down to the wire, soon loaded with fish, we set bow for the pier. It was a darn good thing, we were near out of beer. Captain Dave was a pacing, can't repeat what he's saying. So we all grabbed our cooler and went down to the weigh in. As sisters we agree "win or lose we could care less". Whether fishing or working the comradaree is priceless.