Fishing has been a big part of my life and my earliest memories of fishing go back to the early 1940’s. My family was living in Chicago and I was probably around six or seven years old. We were poor so my dad and my brother fished almost daily and that kept food on the table. They were Max Senior and Junior. Junior (oh how he hates that nickname) would get off from school, go home, change clothes, grab a couple of sandwiches and the fishing equipment, get on public transportation and head for Montrose Pier. Dad would follow from work and they would fish for several hours or more.
On weekends I would get the opportunity to join them occasionally and they would let me fish. I even remember the day I caught more fish than the two of them. Mostly we caught Perch and to this day a plate or two of Lake Michigan Perch is one of my favorite meals. However, nearly seventy years later I now live on the west coast in the foothills near Crater Lake National Park and only get a mess of Perch on rare occasion.
In the mid 40’s my family moved from Chicago to Wabeno, Wisconsin. Wabeno is about 90 miles north of Green Bay. When I was a kid there, it was advertised as having 60 lakes and 300 miles of trout stream. I used to sneak out of the house, grab some fishing line and and hooks. I could always cut my own pole from any little pine tree. I would wander around the local streams, crawl up on small pools and catch speckled trout. If I managed to bring home enough for dinner mom would not punish me.
Fishing has been a major recreation and relaxation escape ever since and I have lots of good fish stories to tell. Well, at least I think they are good. It is not just the fishing that interests me though. The planning, preparation and travel are important parts of the enjoyment, but probably the greatest pleasure comes from simply enjoying the great outdoors and all of the marvelous places where one can fish.
Now
What was it like growing up in Wabeno? Is there any good fishing there?
Read about Montrose Pier
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