Saturday started the opening of catch and release in MI. Needless to say I was really excited. So at 9 am my best friend Josh and I headed to the river to fish the spot I had found 5 months ago and to see if it was still holding fish.
When we pulled up on it I was determined to not hammer the spot with crankbaits, because I had pounded that spot last Nov/Dec with them. I wanted to see what else I could pull them off the spot with. I also wanted to field test the Atomic Tackle Company Ball and Chain (read review here).
Within 10 minutes I had a 2lb in the boat. The fish came steadily here and there for 2 or 3 hours. I finally changed to a crankbait because I could not resist the temptation of throwing one. I began to feel bad for Josh, as I was bringing in fish after fish he struggled and did not bring one in. I do half to share a funny moment with you. I was bringing in the largest fish I (and Josh) caught Saturday as the MSU crew team was practicing behind us. As I swung the 3 lb (maybe more) on to the boat and unhooked it I hear out of nowhere “Nice Fish” clear as day. In my head I thought “Yes God it is thanks for allowing me to catch it”, but it was the guy giving directions to the crew team saying it over the bull horn. I laughed about that with Josh for the rest of the day.
Like I said I had been fishing this same spot last Nov/Dec because it stayed warmer than the rest of the river. It is near the dam and there are some cooling towers right by the spot that I figured kept the spot warmer. I had not seen the towers run since last summer but I knew they played a part in why this spot produced.
I experienced a rude awakening Saturday as they turned on the cooling tower. When that happened I expected the fishing to get better, with the current moving more and I also expected the water temp to rise. When we first pulled up on it the spot was holding around 60 degrees where the rest of the river was about 53 degrees. Not only did the water temp drop to 53 in that spot but the fishing died. I could not catch a fish after that (Josh did land 3 after the cooling tower began running).
The day was an eye opener for me. I kept saying it to josh the movement of water caused the fish to reposition but I could not figure out where. The same is true as a Christian, when we start to really dig into the Bible and read history of the Church and Bible we begin to see and learn things that we may not have realized. I can tell you I have learned a lot of things I never knew studying at Great Lakes Christian College.
These things could shake our faith and cause us to question what we believe. Much like that spot did to me yesterday. I could question whether or not there are fish there or if I could even catch them. Instead it has made me think and wonder what I need to change when the cooling tower is on. Where have the fish repositioned? That’s what we as Christians need to do when we come across things that could rock our faith. We need to stop and look at them, think about them and dissect the issue at hand.
In both our faith and in fishing we need to not let little setbacks rock us but instead work thru them and learn because it will make us stronger in our faith and better fishermen.
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