Robert Webster of Hamlet, NC invited myself and my number one Brother-in-Law, Douglas Pettigrew of Reidsville, NC for another morning of fishing on Lake Tillery with a scheduled date set for 08-03-16; depending on the weather.  The past week, we have experienced some serious thunder storms and rain but most of the thunder storms were in the late afternoon and hopefully we would dodge the bullet, weather wise.

Robert has been very busy this fishing season doing about everything but fishing; refurbishing another boat and changing out all the equipment; e.g., motor, trolling motor, finishing rod holders, fiberglass and painting.  Robert has been renovating his wife's home to turn it into a rental unit and anyone that has did any remodeling on older homes, soon realize that nothing is square, level or plumb in older homes and even some of the newer homes; just the nature of the beast!

My sister Susan aka SusieQ and Doug drove down from Reidsville, NC yesterday and arrived sometime around 5:00 PM and stopped by for a visit.  My bride and myself took a rain check on going out to eat since we both had morning appointments in Hamlet, NC to schedule a his and hers colonoscopy which tied up about half a day to get all the paperwork completed and setting up the appointment dates.  The staff at the facility were very professional and nice and we were able to crack a few jokes about "buy one get one free."  Luckily for my bride, she had the procedure done about eight (8) years ago and didn't need another one until 2018 since nothing was abnormal.  The thoughts of drinking that one gallon of whatever it is to bring about such an explosive action below the waist and multiple trips to the bathroom is definitely something I could do without but one must take preventive health measures as needed.  After the counseling and appointment date was set, it was time to go to the Pizza Inn in Rockingham, NC and enjoy their daily buffet and we definitely got our money's worth.

As is my normal mode of operation, I got side tracked a bit.  I advised Doug that I would pick him up around 5:00 A.M. and gave him a call sometime before 4:45 and my sister SusieQ answered Doug's Obamaphone and said he was ready.  It took a few minutes to drive to the Executive Inn Motel and we were on the road a little before 5:00ish.  Robert Webster has asked me several times why my Sister and Doug doesn't spend the night with us, whereas our spare bedroom is down stairs in the basement and the thirteen (13) narrow stairwell steps presents a challenge for Doug who has some mobility issues as does my bride.  Besides, they don't mind spending a few bucks to help our local economy.

The drive on highway 109 North was a little slower than normal due to some heavy fog between Wadesboro, NC and the Pee Dee River but in Montgomery County, things was fairly clear.  We spotted three Whitetail deer on the move way before daybreak and it brought back some thoughts of our annual archery season which comes in next month.  We arrived at the Lake Tillery Family Campground around 5:45 and Robert had everything ready to rock n roll.  We sat around and chatted awhile, had a cookie or two and finished off our coffee we brought along with us.

It didn't take long before we were on the water and I took a pix of Captain Robert Webster behind the wheel of his boat.  I noticed that he had the running lights on because it was an hour or more before sunrise and a beautiful morning indeed.

This morning was one of the coolest mornings we have had in over a month or more and a welcome experience for sure.  As I stated earlier, Robert hasn't did the fishing this season like he did last year and local anglers are not catching the fish like they did last year either and the water conditions appear to be the problem.  We saw very few fishing boats on the Lake in our area and a good indicator that the locals are aware that the fish are not biting.  Social media will quickly get the word out when there is good fishing on the Lake.

The finishing lines were soon in the water, whereas Robert was trolling some of his favorite and most productive areas on the Lake but the fish just were not cooperating with us.  I believe I caught the first White Perch, a small one but he went into the cooler anyway.  Robert stated, "Don't throw your luck away with the first fish caught."    It wasn't long before we started catching some small White Perch and a few small Crappie of which most of them went back into the Lake to grow a little bigger.  We hooked a couple large Catfish that got off; straightened the hooks out on the small Shad King lures and a Stripper was hooked but we were unable to land him.

Click on below thumbnail pixs for a larger screen view of some of the action:

We continued to fish until after 10ish but the fish were not biting.  There were plenty of bait fish on Robert's fish finder and fish were feeding on small shad churning the water up in many places on the Lake within our view knocking water a couple feet into the air.

This was the first fishing trip that I observed Robert using cut bait but that didn't work out either.  I hope the fish weren't biting because of the loud colored shirts that Robert and Doug had on.  With the Green Cap that Doug had on in combination with that fluorescent orange shirt, looked like the making of a new Skittles commercial or a couple of giant fireflies aka lightening bugs on steroids with fishing poles.  If either fell into the Lake, boaters would definitely dodge them thinking it was a NC Wildlife Resources Commission buoy or in Doug's case a Clemson fan; then again, they might not.  I probably will never get to fish again on Lake Tillery in Robert's boat.......grin if you must!    

We reeled our lines in and called it a day on the Lake.  We didn't catch that many fish but had a most enjoyable time.  I brought along 1/2 stalk of my venison summer sausage - Cajun blend and we enjoyed slices of it on a Ritz cracker with some French's yellow mustard while fishing.  It was overcast with a slight breeze and the weather was perfect for being on the lake with family and friends!

Below is what was caught:

Robert stated late this afternoon that he ended up with 2 quart bags of filets and catfish nuggets which will make for some good eating. 

ROBERT'S FISH FRY

Robert has the ideal set-up for frying fish at his campsite and brought out a well used cast iron Dutch oven, added cooking oil with the Dutch oven over a gas burner and the fish fry was on.  White Perch filets, Crappie filets, Catfish nuggets were soaking in salt water and ready to be breaded and dropped into the hot 350 degree F. oil.  For sides, we were going to have Stoney Gap cole slaw, baked sweet potato and fresh home grown tomato.  Robert called one of his fishing buddies Bob McLean and invited him over for lunch of which he did accept.  One thing is certain when fishing with Robert, you will be treated to a "beautimous" fish fry with the trimmings after a morning of fishing on the Lake.

Click on below thumbnails for a larger screen view:

FRUIT'S OF THE HARVEST

Captain Robert Webster definitely knows how to fry fish, prepare wild game and we both utilize the bounty that the Lord has placed on this earth for our usage and sustenance.  

Pix of my plate above and I guarantee you, I had to replenish those wonderful fish filets a couple times.  I think Robert has a good supply of those designer disposable plates which puts the manual aka two hands and the electromechanical dishwasher on short time!  All of us were tight as ticks after that outstanding meal.

Doug and Robert enjoying the meal.  Robert said he was going to have to provide a Senior Citizens Black Pepper dispenser since a couple of us flipped up the pour opening instead of the shake opening on the container and coated our fresh home grown sliced tomatoes with black pepper.......grin if you must!

Bob McLean of Mt. Gilead about ready to dig into those fantastic vittles.

VIEW FROM ROBERT'S DECK

After that wonderful meal and kicking back awhile, it was time for Doug and myself to load what gear we brought which was a cooler and a few items and head back to Wadesboro, NC.  Robert sent the left over fish filets home for our brides but they were maxed out themselves when they returned from a "Girls Day Out" and I am they had an extreme amount of fun shopping and dining out.  You can believe those "beautimous" fried fish filets will not go to waste.

Robert, Doug and myself had a great time on the Lake even if we did not fill the cooler full of fish.  The friendship and fellowship shared on the Lake and around the table enjoying the fruits of Robert's harvest and work, elevates good clean wholesome living to a higher level of enjoyment that many never have that opportunity, whether by choice or too wrapped up in Life's other things to stop and smell the roses."

Check this link what the KJV Bible says about the beauty of the earth.

To reiterate, a special thank you to Robert Webster for making it happen today.  As I say many, many times, "Two of the Greatest Ships that ever Sailed, Friendship and Fellowship."  We enjoyed one another and had a fantastic meal and it just doesn't get any better than that!

Web published by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 08-03-16.