On my "best" day fishing ever, I only hooked one fish.

I just got my driver's license, and my buddy bagged on me so I decided to go alone to a nearby river. I fished hard for several hours without a bite........and walked a long ways.

I was enjoying the day but wishing I could hunt up a fish. I was looking over a nice piece of water, and saw a gray ghost cruising the tailout. I put on a fresh egg bait and casted in the slot. As soon as my bait lifted up off the bottom in the tailout, that fish clobbered it and blazed upstream so fast the line made a ripping sound through the water.

That fish had me running the river bank like a tennis player.....back and forth. After a phenomenal fight I brough the native hen up to the shore. It was a perfect fish. About 10 lbs of chrome and black, without a scale out of place. And no camera, and no buddy to take the picture.

For some reason, I let that fish go. I hadn't done that before, and didn't have any particular reason for doing it then. Except that fish was so awesome, and fought so hard, that I figured it was better to let it swim. I think about that day all the time when I'm fishing today.

I headed home fishless..........