Hey Hall of Fame family,
I hope this blog post finds you well on this stormy May morning. This week's blog post is about the kind of fishing I've been doing a lot of lately: pond hopping. It's the kind of fishing I grew up doing. Most days after school before we were old enough to drive, Paul, our friend Robby, and I would walk to the one, two, or all three of the lakes within walking distance from our houses. Sometimes even the creek nearby, too. We'd spend all late afternoon and evening fishing these spots. We planted our roots at these ponds and began to hone our craft. These ponds opened the door for us three midwestern kids' love of the outdoors.
When we turned 16, all of us purchased a car, meaning we no longer were stuck getting rides or walking to the fishing spots. This broadened our horizons dramatically. Living in Saint Louis, there have been times were we would jump back and forth across the Mississippi River between Illinois and Missouri. Or we'd drive to one spot, then 30 minutes to another county, then 15 to the next town, then 5 to another body of water, then 20, you get the point. We've found so many good fishing spots by doing this (Google Earth is your friend).
As I've mentioned in previous blog posts, it's been a slow start to the year for me on the water. Lately, I've been doing a lot of pond hopping, as opposed to fishing one specific river or large lake. Also lately, I've been catching more fish and gaining my confidence back. It's rejuvenating to run between 5 or 6 ponds in a day and really figure out fish at each location. Granted, we still get skunked sometimes, and we have better luck at some ponds over others. I just love the challenge of catching fish from multiple different small bodies of water. You'd be amazed at the size of some of the bass living in small, skinny creeks and retention ponds.
If you've read this far, we appreciate and thank you for your interest in Hall of Fame Outdoors! I hope you too can turn to your fishing roots, no matter where they may be, get out there, and love the adventure!
Tight Lines!
Erik Hoffman, Hall of Fame Outdoor Co