A great fish

[noodle one]

This is a true story that happen back in the late 60's. I have fished the West Branch Delaware for years, long before word got out about what a great trout fishery the west branch was and is today. I was single them and not a care in the world. All I ever thought of back then was hunting and fishing. When one season would end, I couldn't wait until the next one started.I was big into trout fishing and loved every min. of it. As I sit here writing this ,I can look up at a beautiful river run 31"in brown trout that my son caught 6 years ago out of the same hole where the great fish called home. Back then I would get out of work at 3:30pm and head for the river every day and all weekends. I was a trout fishing nut. The only other people fishing it back then were all locals, no out of towner like today. Most days I had the river to myself. I never had to buy bait because I knew someone who had horses and put all there horse manure in a pile behind the barn and in 5min. I could drig all the worms I wanted. Small red worms were my go to bait back then.The hole that I fished alot back then ran for 70 to 80 yards long with it being 4 to 5 ft. deep. I have caught many trout in that hole with many in the 5 to 6 lbs. class back then and still do to this day. Back then I would never know what the flow was doing because there was no way to find out if they were lettiing water out or not. Some days I would find the river unfishable and on others you could walk across with no worries. Most days I find away to fish it. This hole that I was fishing was and still is wide and at the top of the hole there was a big rock half in the water and it was on the far side and hard to reach with lite fishing tackle that I used.I had good fishing every time I fished there and caught many trout there every time that I fished. The fishing was like that every day until 7:00 am. and them there would be a big splash like a beaver slapping his tail on the water over by the big rock and all the fish would shut off and no more catching any fish after that for the evening. It was like they all got lock jaw at the same time. It was time for the great fish to go on his feed.and all the other fish knew it. I mean this happen every evening at 7:00am and you could set your watch by it.This went on for weeks. One day I got down to the river to find that the water was prefect to make my attack to catch the great fish. I fished like I alway had and just waited for the splash that would tell me the great one was on the hunt. Right on time there was the splash that I had been waiting for all this time. Praying that the fishing gods were with me, I worked my way up and across to were I wanted to be to show him my offering. I had picked out a nice fat juicy red worm that I knew that it would take to get him. On my first cast I put it right in the honey hole and under the big rock it went. I felt him suck it in and I counted to ten and set the hook and the hole under the rock exploded to life. He ran the full 80 yards of the hole in seconds. and just rolled like all big browns do. I had the great fish and now all I had to do would be to land him and he would be mine. I fought him for a good 5 min. all the time standing in the same spot from were I first hooked him.He then make his move and make a run right at me. I had all I could do to pick up the line with him coming fast.. Within seconds there he was three feet in front of me. A river brown trout of a life time. We spotted each other at the same time and he was as surprised as I was, he turned on a dime and was gone with my hook ,line and fat juicy red worm never to be seen again. I knew the second that it happen that I should have gotten on shore the second I hooked him and maybe he would have been mine. Sitting here now and looking at the 31"in. brown that my son took out of the same hole I wonder if maybe some where back down the line they could be connected and like father to son ,we both have seem the great fish.