Sage, that reminds me of a story my great uncle told me when I was just a kid starting to fish in the south carolina low country. We were sitting around a family gathering and the old men were telling tall tales about fishing and hunting an the younger boys were sitting around wide eyed listening.

Uncle Johnny told of the time he was fishing for LM bass with a cane pole and popper bug in black river and Uncle Warren was paddling. A huge bass came up and engulfed the bug and Uncle Johnny realizing he would never land the fish with the cane pole figured the only way to land him was to just tire him out. Well hell, as he said he just proceeded to jump out the boat with the cane pole and float a mile down the river fighting that bass with Uncle Warren fast behind in the boat. Well he finally nudged that bass up on a sandbar and he and Uncle Warren took it to get it weighted, 11.5 lbs.

Man Uncle Johnny was never so big in my eyes until fifteen years later I was told it was a fish tale, I guess those are the kind of things that give fishermen the good natured liar reputation.