Yesterday morning I went down to the water to fish while I could on the falling tide. It seemed like a perfunctory effort. I only took the pole rigged with the hot pink BuzzBomb, because if I were to catch anything, I’d need to do it before the water level dropped too low on the rocks. I didn’t really feel like fishing at that moment, but the next good tide would be well after dinner.
I saw enough action to keep me entertained; I released a small greenling, and lost a small Dolly Varden before I could release it. I fished on autopilot, giving most of my attention to the audio book playing on the MP3 player in my pocket.
Suddenly, three large, sleek fish appeared in the water right at my feet. One of them struck my lure and struggled while the other two milled around, looking for an opportunity to steal its prey away. The one that took the lure shook free, and they all disappeared.
I was paying attention now! The salmon have arrived.
A good morning’s work on the homestead (with Alaska Marine Highway ferry in the background). The smaller one broke my BuzzBomb, but I still caught the larger one with it. (Photo: Michelle Zeiger).