Once again I was lucky enough to be able to spend some time with family in the north country.

This time it was with my oldest son, Brian, and his three boys, Trevor, Taylor and Grant. It’s funny how when a vacation is in the planning stages not everyone is excited about it. A couple of weeks prior to this I had asked Grant, my youngest grandson, if he was ready for vacation. He replied almost half-heartedly that he guessed he was, and I secretly hoped that it wouldn’t be a long week for him.

Once we were at the cabin and settled in, the boys made plans to fish on our lake. All three of the boys fished the lake in the evening for the first couple of days. I can’t really think of a better way to get a kid hooked on fishing than to catch fish of any kind, and we have an abundance of panfish in our lake that are more than willing to bite a hook. Trevor never misses a night of fishing on our lake and this week Grant was there with him and I could tell that he was enjoying every minute of it. Trevor has a small electric trolling motor that is just perfect for his boat, and he let Grant drive the boat which is a big step. I know Trevor was being nice but I also know that his thinking is that if he is not driving he has more opportunity to fish.

We fished five different lakes in four days and although the fishing wasn’t what you’d classify as great, it wasn’t all that bad and we managed to catch fish on every lake we went to. I feel that catching enough for a meal at the lake and taking some home for another meal or two can be considered a success.

I had fished on North Star Lake a couple of weeks earlier and had pretty good luck so we decided to try it this time up. The fishing wasn’t quite as good to me as the last time I was there but we did manage a few small pike and then Trevor, the fishing guru of the family, tied into the biggest northern of his young life. It was a good 10 pounds and gave him quite a battle before it was finally boated and then released. He was beaming with pride after catching that fish, and I could tell that his younger brother Grant was really excited to see a fish that size.

After we had left the lake Grant was already talking about trying to find a lure like the one his brother had caught that nice pike on. We looked at a few different places and had to stop in Grand Rapids on the way home just so he could buy some tackle with his own money. I almost couldn’t believe it at the time but I actually think that there is another Herfindahl boy who is hooked on fishing.

Taylor is usually the northern guru of the family; while he did catch his share this week it is probably that dandy bass that he caught that he’ll remember most. On the last day we did some late afternoon and evening fishing on a little lake that we like to fish. It has a pretty nice sandy shore so when the fishing is done some of us take a dip and get refreshed. We have some eco-friendly soap to bathe with and there’s nothing more refreshing that a dip in a northern lake on a warm summer evening.

That evening we caught plenty of northerns but Grant stole the show by catching five of them himself. If I had any doubts about Grant having a good time they were definitely erased. He was all business when he was fighting a fish, and when we got back to the cabin he said that he wanted to eat a quick lunch and go to bed. I told him that he must have been worn out from reeling in all of those fish, he just smiled.

Another highlight of the week was the eagles that all of a sudden have decided to make our little lakefront their new hangout. I had seen eagles soaring over the lake all summer but now they had taken a real interest in this dead birch tree that sits on the shore straight down the hill from our cabin. All week long there were at least two eagles soaring back and forth in front of our dock. The real interesting part is that there were two different eagles that seemed to be fighting over that one tree. One was a bald eagle and the other was a golden eagle. If the golden eagle got there first the other ones didn’t bother it but if a bald eagle was in the tree the golden eagle would chase it away. One afternoon a turkey buzzard flew overhead just above the tree tops and it kind of made me wonder if it was following me. We never did see that bird again and I really can’t remember having seen one around before that.

On our last day there we spotted at least two bald eagles flying back and forth across the lake and also that golden eagle. You could hear the eagles screeching in the trees by our cabin and at one time both the bald and golden eagle tried perching in that tree at the same time but eventually the golden eagle won the battle and was once again perched atop that tree. I told Brian that what we have here is our own little raptor center. I had tried to get a good picture of that golden eagle but just as I inched my way through the woods to an open spot my sleeve brushed some loose birch bark and it gave me a glance and flew off. I wondered if it would come back but didn’t have to wait too long for the answer because a couple of hours later it was back.

This is once again an example of the unexpected surprised that nature can spring on us. What a great spectacle to have observed, and I feel fortunate to have witnessed something that not everyone has the opportunity to enjoy.

Once again I have to say that it’s not always about the catching of fish but it is about the experience and the making of more precious memories. To my surprise Brian said that Grant wasn’t ready to go home yet – he wanted to stay another day.

Until next time do a little fishing, take some time to relax and get out and explore our great Minnesota outdoors.

Please remember to keep our troops in your thoughts and prayers during the coming year.

Dick Herfindahl’s column appears each Sunday in the Tribune.