[Life's A Beach]

Started fishing for sunnys at Beachwood Swim Club (lake) in Boonton; age 4. We used hotdog skins and caterpillers.

My father took me fishing on Lake Hopatcong renting wooden rowboats from Art Bush @ Woodport. We troll CP Swings for bass and pickerel, set up shiners for same then end up for perch and catfish on worms to finish the day. Taylor ham sandwiches and chocolate milk for lunch and stopping to eat always got us a bite. Dad bought a 3hp motor and we were all over the lake. When he graduated to a 14' Larson with a 40hp, we hit spots we'd never made it to before. age 5-13

My Grandfather lived in Neptune so we fished alot in Shark River and on the jettys. Caught some fluke, many blowfish and a TON of flounder; age 5-13 Dad spent endless nights surf fishing for stripers back then and catching a 15#er was his best. MANY nights on the Coast Guard Jetty by Avon or on IBSP working bucktails or sandworms with no fish. Biggest bass he saw was a 40# that he gaffed for a guy who had foul hooked it on a fluke rig!

In Boy Scouts (Troop 78 Pine Brook), we went camping (another word for fishing) every month and fished all over the state: Sandy Hook, Camp Allamuchy, Bear Pond. age 14-17

Moved to Lake Hopatcong and fished almost every day. Snagging perch during their spawn run to lunker catfish "jug fishing" at night. Spent many days and nights camping on Pete's Island, staying up all night fishing. age 13-18

Gotta get back up there and try for some hybrids and walleye......non-existant when we lived up north in the lake.

Started my kids fishing on Lakes Mohawk and Hopatcong. Took my son to Gouin Reservoir on fly-in walleye/pike trips for a couple years when he was 12-14. Outpost cabin in pic!