Memorial Weekend is the unofficial king salmon fishing opener for south central Alaska. Not being one to break tradition, I went out fishing with my neighbor’s Dan and Dave. I’m sad to report that we were unable to entice a single salmon to strike (trout don’t count).
I’m not surprised by our lack of action. The low sonar counts confirm how difficult it is to find a fish right now. Oh well, it felt good to be out on the water swapping stories with friends.
On a more serious note, Memorial Weekend is when we remember the men and women who served in our military. Today, I’m honoring a veteran who recently passed, Dave Sporrer. This gentle giant of a man meant a great deal to Jane and I.
For the first ten years we owned the cabins, Dave would come with his wife Sarah, best friend Cary, his kids Ursula, David (SIL) Chantel, Dean (SIL), Brett, Amy, Chris, grandkids, and the occasional special friends that were invited to join in. Jane and I spent a lot of time with them all and have many fond memories.
My absolute favorite memory is the day Dave joined Jane and I on a Sunday morning king trip (everyone else in the group went halibut fishing). It turned out to be the best day of king fishing that I’ve ever experienced.
Even though it was only three hours on the water, we hooked and landed 17 king salmon. The fishing was so good we actually had a triple. The photo above are the two fish that Dave and Jane ended their morning on. Truly an epic day on the World Famous Kenai River…
Dave would often tell me that “this river has been good to me.” Now that I think about, I honestly can’t remember a day when he didn’t catch a fish. Here he is with John, Kathy, Cary, and Sarah.
Another memorable day was when Sarah and Dave joined Jane and I on a red salmon trip. It was great action, and even better company. It was fun on so many levels.
Another spectacular morning limiting out on king salmon with Gary, Dave, Ken, (me), and Sarah.
As I was looking through my library of photos for this post, I came across a series completely unrelated to fishing. For some reason, Dave thought he needed a haircut and the timing couldn’t be more perfect for his daughter Amy to give him one (she is a professional).
It’s still the first and only haircut to be given on the front yard of our property.
A week before Dave passed he called me and we talked a long time about his family and all the great times we had fishing the Kenai River together. It’s a conversation I will not forget. Sadly, it was our last.
So long, my friend. You are already missed.
A celebration of Dave’s life will be held in his hometown of Klamath Falls, Oregon on June 11th. Details can be found here.
The Dock Is In!