who's your mentor

[waterwolf]

who started the outdoors bug ? who's reponsible for the infectious disease called outdoors-itis ? my grandfather ,, then my father . oh yeah , i love them both for

 

it. thank you for the gift. one problem, you can't check out at your convenience . going to new brunswick to see my grand dad off to valhallan this week.goin' to

 

miss the big guy .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[mufasa001]

Like probably most of us, my father. However, in a weird twist, my step-father was an even bigger influence, and taught me many great things about the outdoors that I still treasure and use today.

 

Here comes the twist. Many years later, after my mom gave him the boot, I found out he abused my mom and drugs.

 

I owe a lot to a guy who was really a dirt bag.

 

Wrap you head around that!!

[Rizzo]

was my "opa" (dutch for grandfather). never even fished with my dad until the year before he died....he wasn't in to that sort of thing but we had a real nice day for the one time he did go

[ccmtcanada]

Like others here, my dad started it years ago with all us kids. Here's an early pic of him and us with a pike!! I believe this was 1973 or 1974..

 

I lost my dad back in the early 90's, but not before one last fishing trip. Here's a pic of him with his catch out on the BOQ...just 6 months before cancer took him from us....and as it turned out his last fish caught here on earth.

 

Edited February 11, 2008 by ccmtcanada

[fishindevil]

Well mine was my grandfather,he owned a fishing loge in bobcaygeon for 40yrs,and taught me very young about fishing for walleyes & muskies,and i worked there every summer,and he had me guiding when i was 14yrs old,and i did very well,he knew everything about everything to do with the lake,weather,fish,wildlife,and as usual the best die young,of cancer when i was about 20...its too bad i would love to go fishing with him now,he would sure love it !!! great thread cheers

[silveradosheriff]

Opa for me.

[Cookslav]

No doubt...Dad

 

He took me out camping & Fishing quite a bit as a kid, as well as all 4 of my brothers.

He has a lot of patience LOL!

 

Now the effort has come full circle...

He gets Fishing related Christmas, birthday, and fathers day gifts from his 5 boys, and get invited on all our trips

[Rich Clemens]

My grandfather really enjoyed his fishing and made many trips north of the border. Then when dad was old enough, he too got into the act, and now it's my turn. I still enjoy fishing with Dad when I can. He is still able to make the occassional trip north and we try to meet up with them for a week.

 

Cliff ... very nice testiment to your father. I enjoyed your post.

[Pigeontroller]

My older Brother. He's 14 years my elder, when I was a kid I loved it any time he took me fishing, or 4x4ing, or whatever...

[irishfield]

Guess I'm in the same boat as Dax... brother 7 years my senior took me fishing the odd time. Going to McDonald's Corners for brook trout stands out in my mind. Other than that I grew up with the Rideau river at my back door...and all the kids in the neighourhood fished on our docks behind our homes.

[motv8tr]

Well I guess when it comes to fishing I'd have to say my Step father, AKA Beans. As for the outdoors, it's just something I was born with. I was born and raised in the city and hated it from the beginning. The first time I went to a relatives farm when I was a wee one I knew that was the place for me. No one in my family is what I would call and "outdoors" person....another reason I'm convinced I was adopted or switched at birth

 

Maureen

[Deano]

Learn to fish on my own, fished alone as a kid, pedaled my bike 12 miles to go fishing and no one else ever wanted to go. And still to this day like to fish alone, but my son does come with me often and the dogs all the time. So I don't have a fishing mentor, but believe I was just born to fish.

[waterwolf]

i think that's how this whole love for the outrdoors sustains itself . one's love for the outdoors and the specific interests ,,, ie hunting \fishing.

 

thank god for those with the strenghth and conviction and the love of the outdoors to say to my off-spring you will know ,if nothing else, my opinion ,,, my passion.

 

hoping they will understand and utilize.

[Sinker]

Definitly the old man......but its in the blood.

 

I was born a fisherman. I'm the 4th generation, of a family of fisherman from the Northern Peninsula of NFLD.

My grandfather is 83 years old and still fishes/hunts/boats as much as he ever did. My father is my best fishing buddy in the world. He took me everywhere.....even carried me on his back for miles when I was just a little gaffer............he just retired to NFLD, so I"m out my best fishin buddy .......

 

Its in the blood.

 

Sinker

[tdotfisherman]

My mentor was both my Uncle Reggie and my Father. When I was really young I used to fish in those kids sunfish derby's, and I always used to show my dad what I caught, and be so proud of it. When I was 7 and 8 years old I used to go up to my Uncle Reggie's cottage up at Fish Lake and he always used to take me out early in the mornings and late at night, and try to teach me how to fish properly, and what techniques produced fish. Of course today I couldn't say I remember many tips, I only have a few vivid memories from that early age out fishing with my uncle, but both him and my dad got me into fishing, and I'm going to make sure to do the same to my children.

[ecxstriper]

I not sure why I love fishing , as early as I can remember and according to my Mother I was play fishing ever since I could walk . She tells a story of me filling my child's size swimming pool with leaves and sticks so I could fish for them at the age of 3 . However the one person that I can remeber always fishing with is my younger sister , Bly

[Daplumma]

I can remember fishing before I can remember remembering.Cajuns learn to swim and fish before they can read or lie about what they caught.After moving out of connass country my brother and I continued to fish every pond and mudpuddle and creek we could find so I would say my brother was my mentor and I was his.We still have been known to throw a line out together more than a few times a year.

Joe

[FISHINGNUT]

I would have to say my father and uncle they have been fishing together since they met over 45 years and when I was old enough to tag along they started taking me .To this day 35 years later there is still no one I would rather fish with than those two guys :.Its funny as they get older now its me untangling lines or tying on lures for them because they forgot there glasses back at the cottage and taking them out for a day on the water in my boat

Edited February 11, 2008 by FISHINGNUT

[mepps]

My dad for sure.

 

Edited February 11, 2008 by mepps

[waterwolf]

i had a couple of memories tucked away that i hadn't thought about in a while . mentors , good friends , early experiences . what a great site .

 

thanks guys for the reconnect. see you gramp on tuesday .

[huntervasili]

My Grandfather was the one who started me on hunting and fishing. First time I went deer hunting I was 4 years old and that was also the year I killed my first dove. He has brought me out fishing since I was that age as well for catfish, bream and crappies back then and we have been out hunting and fishing hundreds of times since. Some of my fondest memories, including my first deer, have been with him and fortunately he is still around to take me out fishing and hunting, when I am down his way.

[OhioFisherman]

Dad, don`t think Gramps fished a day in his life. He could clean them, cook them and eat them though

[bowshep]

It was my Mom. She didn't fish much but she became a cub leader so we could go camping. Every family vacation involved a tent. l did the whole scouting thing right up to Rangers.

 

Fishing Mentors ? l have two Dave and Mike who are my friends for life. They tought me alot but most of all they showed me the spirit of fishing . They both inspire me to fish and to learn as much as l can. Its amazing how you can bond with out saying a word. Great Thread.

 

Peace Ken

[danbo]

B.H."Red" Fisher & Scuttlebutt Lodge!

Edited February 11, 2008 by danbo

[lew]

I was very lucky growing up because just about everyone in my family was into the outdoors, so I had many mentors, but of course my dad was the one that taught me the most.

 

My folks took me on my 1st week long camping trip in the bush when I was only 8 months old and after that, most of my best childhood memories are of canvas tents, cedarstrip boats and campfires waaaaaaay off the beaten path.

 

One of the most memorable trips was up to the French River for a week with my dad & brother with nothing more than a tarp for a lean-to and a cast iron frying pan when I was about 10 years old. If you think the French is isolated & rough now, you should have seen it 5 decades ago. He taught us how to live in the bush with the absolute bare essentials.

 

He taught me so much about everything related to surviving in the bush & the outdoors in general and he loved to fish & hunt and was very good at both. I was one of the lucky ones and had a dad for 50 years and continued to fish with him as long as he was able.

 

He's been gone 11 years now but there's never a day goes by that I don't think about him and everything he did for me.

 

I've shown these pictures here before, but their some of my favorites memories of him and really show what he was all about.

 

Dad in his cedarstrip doing what he loved best, circa 1955....this was probably taken on the Bonnechere River near Algonquin Park which was one of his favorite spots in the country.

 

 

Here he's loading the same boat for a trip somewhere. I don't know where he was off to, but I'm sure I was included.

 

 

And this is my favorite picture of all with my dad, myself on your right and my brother Ed and it shows what my dad was all about and the way he spent his life.

 

War veteran with 5 years in the Navy 1940-45, a hard working man his entire life and without a doubt, the best man I ever knew.