Adventure Outdoors Magazine Fall 2016 | Page 15

An ethereal layer of steam hovers an inch or so above the static surface of the lake. The morning hours are rolling by, slowly, like the soft clouds overhead. The legs of my waders have long since disappeared into the murky embankment, and I can feel the mud sucking at my boots. Everything is silent, and my reflection is my only company for miles. I begin to wonder what the rest of them are up to. Are the boys practicing their aim for next month’s trip? Did the kitchen faucet start leaking again? It’s been forever since I’ve had a moment to myself, so the vast amount of free oxygen around me is almost overwhelming. As my mind was wandering in between the memories of this past summer, I almost forgot what a tug on the line felt like. Nevertheless, there it was.