Spring Hill Fishing Club

Freshwater Fishing for Black Bass

Trip of January 17, 2015

We eased out of Crescent City, Florida onto Crescent Lake in search of big bass.  The bait was live shiners.  It was a cool January day.

Lake Crescent is a 15,000 acre lake off the St. John’s River.  I was fishing with my long-time friend from Minnesota, Jerry Hanson.  We hired Captain Mark Smith, out of Deland to guide us.  It was a good choice.  He put us on the fish around the plentiful docks along the western shore.

It was toe-to-toe fishing.  That is to say that when we set the hook on a four pound bass under the dock, it was a battle to get the bass into open water.

  

This is what the docks look like, and they do hold large bass.

The landing at Crescent City, Florida.

Jerry soon landed the first fish of the day.

Then another, with Captain Mark Smith looking on.

Soon I had my first bass.

We moved over to a large island and fished the windswept shoreline.

It was good fishing there too.

It wouldn’t be fishing if we didn’t have our Baby Ruth candy bars with us.  They bring us good luck.

Jerry shows off another nice Lake Crescent bass.

Me too!

 Here is another look at the docks we fished.

A big "tip of the hat" to Captain Mark Smith for the great job of guiding us to the fish.

Gene Estensen - Spring Hill Fishing Club

Spring Hill Fishing Club

Freshwater Fishing for Black Bass

Introduction of Blog (continued) on January 19, 2015

The birth of grandson Osten changed my fishing goals entirely.  Like my grandfather before me, I have the opportunity to pass on the love of fishing to Osten.  I am working at it. 

Osten got a tackle box the day he was born, his first tackle box.

He took to the bass boat at an early age.

 His dad, Brian, likes to fish too.

 It seemed appropriate that Osten learn to cast at Lake Minnewaska, at Starbuck and Glenwood, Minnesota.  That was another one of my grandfather’s favorite lakes.

I am behind him all the way!  Here he is at Mt. Rainier in Washington State.

Brian and I took Osten trout fishing in the shadows of Mt. Hood at Portland, Oregon.  This was at a trout farm.    Six casts, six trout!

Fishing at Flagstaff, Arizona.

And Spring Hill, Florida.

 And at Brainerd, Minnesota.

And Lake Minnewaska area again.

With Uncle Tom and Cousin Reese.

The big reward!  A big hug!

And the new fishing challenge.  Osten has a sister now, Shandiin.

But she is off to a good fishing start too.

Spring Hill Fishing Club

Freshwater Fishing for Black Bass

Introduction of Blog (continued) on January 18, 2015

We lived in Atlanta for 23 years.  The bass fishing tournaments there were on the huge reservoirs like Lake Eufaula, and Lake Lanier, and my favorite, Lake Seminole.

I fished the Red Man fishing tour but with no success.  Those Georgia reservoirs were too big for me to master, and they had few weeds.  But I did enjoy being out on the water.  Mixing fishing and the corporate life was hard to manage.

 Below is my wife Dianne on Lake Seminole.

We retired to Spring Hill eight years ago.  I picked up my bass fishing in central Florida, especially on the great bass lake name Rousseau.  Here are some pictures covering the past few years.  I found the weeds again on Lake Rousseau.

And the big Rousseau bass too!

I fished Lake Tarpon by boat, and by Kayak.

But I love the stumps and weeds of Rousseau best.

Then, along came the grandson and a whole new chapter began.  Can I pass on the love of fishing to him?  I am working on it.

Spring Hill Fishing Club

Freshwater Fishing for Black Bass

Introduction of Blog on January 16, 2015

We lived at Brainerd, Minnesota for about ten years.  It was there that I picked up the love of bass fishing.  I was a charter member of the Baxter Bass Snatchers club and fished bass tournaments all those years.  Here is an early picture of those days.

I spent a lot of time on the water with Bill Bailey, also Conrad Bye.  Brainerd was, and is, the home of the In Fisherman group, famous for their educational fishing materials and TV programs.  Al and Ron Lindner were frequent speakers at our winter bass club meetings.  Here is a picture of Bill and myself showing off a big Minnesota bass.

I won a lot of trophies in those years at Brainerd.  This one came from Pelican Lake near Ashby, Minnesota.  My grandfather loved that lake and took me there often when I was a kid.

Here are the three amigos, Bill, Gene, and Conrad.

Long-time friend Jerry Hanson and I have fished together for years.  We taught his son Brett to fish.  Here we are standing next to my Ranger Boat.  It was my second Ranger boat.

I attribute my love of fishing to my grandfather, Austin Estensen.  The trips to Canada, in particular, made a strong impression on me.  Indeed, here is the earliest picture of me with a fishing pole, with my grandfather.

 The few pictures that I have of him are generally centered on fishing.  Here is Gramps with grandmother.

 Here is Gramps with my mother (right) and aunt (Darlene).

And here we are in Canada.  Left to right in back row are Gramps, Dad, Me, and cousin Rob.  Cousins Larry and Jerry are in front row.  Thanks Gramps!

Growing up in Minnesota, surrounded by lakes, was great.  I especially like September in Minnesota when it looks like this.  Here is Mission Lake in September.

 And Crooked Lake near Garrison, Minnesota.