Hide-A-Way Hills Lakes Committee held their annual fishing contest for the HAH children including both residents and their guests yesterday. I'm not sure how long the contest has been a tradition, but for the past couple, five, ok make that at least 8 years, our family has volunteered to demonstrate how to fillet and cook the fish the little ones were in search of all morning.
The children fish any HAH lake in the morning and bring in their top 3 bluegill, although a couple bass seem to make it to the weigh-in every year. It's an honor system, but awards are given for combined weight, longest fish, and the largest single fish by age categories. There's typically a raffle of donated items which have included canoes, float boats, fishing tackle, and much more. It's always been a good time for the children, and seeing how many of the volunteers have been doing this for years, I'd say it's rewarding for those adults involved as well.
Clint Mercer and Mike Routte have been around as long as I can remember with handling the grill duties including Mike's donation of all the grill goodies.
Mike takes up the task of the nasty side of yummy fresh fish snacks while my son, Kenny, keeps an eye on the frying pan. Notice the special secret recipe of nothing but corn meal.
Sandy Vincent and the current baby hog, Jeff Nutter. It's easy to do with a cutie pie like baby Tommy! These types of community events allow members to catch up and meet new little ones who will no doubt be hauling in their own fish in a few years.
This year, many families wanted to drop off their fish and get the kiddos home before the storm. Look at the size of the fish that came out of those buckets. I always say, "If you're having trouble fishing, find you an HAH kid. They know exactly where those fish are".
While the participant's parents are often more than happy to dump the fish and mark off this activity, this year generated more fish in the bucket than usual due to the approaching storms . Mike spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning them up and preparing them for the freezer. Of course, I had to cook up just one more batch before they were frozen for another day! This batch was cooked with a beer batter rather than the basic cornmeal, but truly just as simple.
0 Comments
Post a Comment