My Outdoor Adventure

Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! "The sun’s not up," Brooke groaned. Fishing at the trout park was fun. Getting up early was not. Brooke wolfed down breakfast, grabbed her tackle, and followed her dad to the stream.

After fishing for a while with no luck, Brooke decided to wade to a different spot. On the way, her waders snagged a branch. Water leaked in, and within seconds, Brooke was wet, cold and really unhappy! She rushed back to camp for dry clothes and new waders.

In no time, Brooke was back fishing. She felt a tiny tug on her line. “Wait … wait,” she told herself. Then she felt another tug— stronger this time—and jerked hard to set the hook.

Fishing line screamed off her reel as the huge trout sped away. Brooke gave just enough slack to avoid snapping her line. When the fish finally tired, Brooke reeled it in. Her dad was ready with a net, and together they landed the biggest trout Brooke had ever seen.

After catching her limit, Brooke put the lunker in a cooler to take home. They fried the rest of her catch for supper. Later that night, her dad awoke to a raccoon family feasting on their leftovers. Brooke didn’t wake up. She was beat from a long— but exciting— day of fishing.

Want to catch a lunker like Brooke did? For trout fishing tips and info, visit https://huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/fishing/species/trout.