First Salmon

I remember the first salmon I had ever caught on my own vividly. The tug on the line, followed by another, my instinct to set the hook, and finally, the sound of my drag. If you have been in a familiar situation, you probably understand where I am coming from.

The first year that I ever fished for salmon was when I was 9 years old. I remember trying so hard, but not yeilding a single bite. I was doing all the wrong things: 20lb. test line(because you "can't catch them with anything else!"), having tons of slack in the line because it was so twisted, birdsnests, never having my line in the water because I was always fixing it. Hahah. Those were the days. Fortunately, I was a fast learner. The next year I came back with a 8'6" salmon rod, instead of my 5'6" trout pole(with 20lb. line lol), and the right attitude. I watched the successful fisherman alongside my father, the people who were pulling fish in left and right, and soon, I was following suite.
After about an hour of putting together what I had learned, I was able to hook my first salmon. I will never forget the butterflies in my stomach as I was pulling the fish. After a five minute fight that seemed like an hour, the fish was finally mine. That first fish taught me a valuable lesson, that it pays to learn from people who are better than you. Simply paying attention to somebody can teach you so much. Ever since I've been at the stream every fall attempting to catch more fish. More often than not, I am successsful. Over the years I have learned the patterns of the fish, where they like to lie in the streams, what they eat, and most importantly, how to catch them. Even now I still pay attention to the other anglers, as there is always something new to learn!