Fishing Adventure

Rarely, if ever, does a fishing trip with Gordon Sansing, Lee Gordon, and Jim Hess turnout to be simply a day at the lake. Instead, that which was first conceived as a day or two of fun and relaxation oft becomes an adventure not entirely dissimilar to that of Easterners, who, fired with the "pioneer spirit, made their way westward across the plains often pushing to the west coast of early America.

Those who migrated west sold or forsook most of their possessions in order to lighten the prairie schooners that held supplies and food-stores needed for their long journey. Groups sometimes traveled caravan-style in what was called a wagon train, and each wagon train had a wagon master who led the group to a specific destination. It was not uncommon for them to experience breakdowns such as broken axels or wheels, and even with a wagon master they sometimes made bad choices as to the best route to reach their destination. For the settlers and prospectors, once they left their homes in the east, every day was an adventure. In our case, adventure occurred almost hourly, not just daily.

For our spring fishing trip, "wagon master" Jim Hess arranged for our accommodations at Central Hills Baptist Retreat near Kosciusko, Mississippi, where we planned to fish for two days. Since our respective homes are in most every direction relative to Kosciusko, we didn’t have the opportunity to form a modern wagon train. However, Lee Gordon invited me to ride with him from West Point in a gesture aimed more toward companionship than fuel savings.

"Yeah, if you want to drop off your car at my house, we can go in my truck to Central Hills," Lee shared in a phone conversation a few days before our departure. "I’m taking my two-man boat. That way, we’ll both have somebody to talk to." Continue reading>>