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Edited by Mark Daul
(Outdoors Niagara Webmaster)
Edited by Mark Daul
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THE ORANGE SKY
Everything takes a drastic change in time. The one
thing that will not change with time is memories. When an event occurs, it is an
ever-lasting memory that never changes, and a dream enhances it. Your experience
is now a memory like the orange sky that shows up during your memorable fishing
outing. It is one of those days where you thank your lucky
stars there is a breeze to help you fight the scolding heat of the day. In any
event, I wanted to go fishing this particular day and I was just excessively
tired to walk down the Lower River Gorge. I was working at my fathers tackle
store on Hyde Park Blvd. With a quick thank you as the last customer of the day
went out the door with his half dozen egg sacks, and a dozen worms. While
closing up, thoughts of an air-conditioned building for dinner would help me
escape the scorching heat. I had a commitment to meet the boys at the Friendly
Tavern for some healthy grub. The sweat poured out my body as I entered the
cooled down building of the Friendly. I finally met up with the boys at a corner
booth where I gulped down a tall glass of ice water. There we ordered our dinner
from a very tall attractive girl with short reddish hair who answered by the
name of Sheila. As we were indulging in our meal, I could not help to notice an
elderly semi bald man keeping cool with an interest in our conversation about
our fish we lost on a previous trip and how it was too hot to go fishing. A long
time friend, Jack, chewing on his cheeseburger, lost a huge crappie because the
net he had was too big a few days before. We were all sharing our experiences.
Now I recognized the face of the ragged looking old
man as he stood up to leave. He was the one who rushed out the door with his
half dozen egg sacks and the dozen worms in a hurry to go fishing on a day
hotter than the fourth of July. My eyes followed him to his old yellow car after
he paid for his meal. The following day was even hotter and the same
balding old man come in but only purchased a dozen worms. I just had to ask the
question, "Where were you headed on that unbearably hot day yesterday?
""Behind the Ramada above the Falls", he explained. "I like
to fish where the smooth current turns to rapids, there are a lot of Rainbow
trout laying in there." He went on explaining about a rock he would cast
to. Then the man went on telling me about how the rock in the water made a
"V" as it marks the spot to start fishing the easy shore. As soon as I
heard "easy shore access", I quickly asked him "how close is the
parking?" In this heat, the walking distance is necessary to calculate. The
questioning continued as the man walked out the door to go fishing.
The old man said the best times for fishing is in
the early morning or late evening. The next evening I decided to fish behind the
Ramada Inn. I parked my van behind the Ramada where a section of the parkway is
closed to traffic. Being close to fall, the unbearable heat of the day was
finally cooling off. I walked over to the spot
that was described by that man who drove the old yellow car. The man said to
cast up river in the smooth current until it met the mighty rapids, where a rock
made A 'V' appearance on the surface of the fast moving water. It is that 'V'
where the baited hook had to be, because the Rainbow Trout laid, and waited for
a healthy dinner to rest there. Just as soon as the bait drifted to the rapids,
I made another cast. After several casts without a hit, a quick change
over were made from, an egg sack to a worm. The sky turned orange when the sun
set in a horizon surrounded by land, water, and a silhouette of buildings. All
of a sudden, under an orange sky a fish is being fought. This will be a dream of
mine, catching a fish under a clear and beautiful orange sky. Two more Rainbows were fought in this scene, and the
thought crossed my mind, "no wonder that man showed interest in our
conversation. What a perfect spot on a hot day, or any day!" Weeks of fishing this spot went by, with most of the
action occurring under the orange sky. "The weather stayed cool." THE END
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