Example Essay

                We all hunkered down in the woods around the fire while we watched the flags. The air was bitter cold. We were all bundled up in our thickest attire, but still unprepared for the torturous weather. It was negative 40 degrees Fahrenheit, without counting the treacherous wind. That wind roar across the lake as it spit snow in our faces – daring us to walk out onto the lake. We had gone too far to turn around now. We were out here for one thing, and one thing only: fish. Once we saw a flag shoot up into the air, we ran out for our catch before the wind claimed us. Ice fishing is another outdoor activity that I love to do. Although the weather can really take a toll on you, in the end, it’s all worth it. This was one of many examples of an ice fishing story worth bragging about. Here are just a few more I would like to share. 

                One of my favorite, close-by, places to fish is at Branns Mills Pond in the Garland and Dover-Foxcroft area. It is full of small mouth bass, brook trout, pickerel, and perch. This one time that we went fishing, after we set up our traps, we went and had our fun on our four wheeler. Since we were usually the only ones out there at the time, we would start zipping up and down the lake doing donuts and skidding across the ice. Once a flag went up, we ran over to the trap, took it out, and pulled and pulled on the line. At the end of the day, we caught four small mouth bass and two brook trouts. We could only keep two, so we kept the trouts.

                Another place I loved to go fishing is this lake up near Island Falls. Island Falls is an amazing place to go during the winter; it’s where Maine got its nickname ‘Vacationland’. During this one year we went up and visited Island Falls, we spent the day at this lake. We found a cove and constructed a fire up on land. While we watched the flags, we would just sit around the fire telling stories and cooking hotdogs on sticks. All of a sudden… BAM, BAM, BAM! The flags started shooting up nearly all at the same time. Each one of us had to quickly handle one trap and then move on to another before the fish got off the hook. I ended up catching the biggest fish of the bunch. It was a 25 inch long pickerel.

                My favorite trip was the one that I mentioned earlier. It was out to Spider Lake. It took us nearly three and a half hours driving just on the back roads to the lake! A bunch of us went and rented out a lodge. The weather that year was brutal! I was just a kid, and so the weather got too much for me and I had to go back to the lodge while the other continued fishing. However, I was able to make it out at least half the time. The trip was well worth it, though. We caught a lot a fish and some pretty good sized ones, as well. It was always a treat to get back to that woodstove in the lodge and fry up some amazing fish.

                Branns Mills Pond, Spider Lake, and Island Falls are three of my top favorite places to fish at. They all have their own special memories that I will always cherish. It was always fun as a kid to finally go home and brag to my mom about the size of the fish I caught. My stepfather, at the time, would always call me the Fish Slayer – it made me feel special. There was always something about hunkering down in the woods watching over the lake that felt homely. As long as my family was with me, everything felt right.