Sunday was an epic fishing day. I headed out early to hit Beaver Lake. I had been told by a good friend the stripers were schooling close to the dam.
As I rounded a corner, I could not believe my eyes, there was a wad of fish half a mile long just busting up. These were huge! They were splashing and following what had to be a bait ball.
I got my heaviest pole and dug out the monster topwater plug, tied it on, and decided to approach slowly. As I got closer, I could see some of these fish looked to be 5 to 6 feet long. I was in Heaven, the greatest fishing moment of my life.
And then…. the Coast Guard Boat sounded a horn and from a loudspeaker told me to stop. Turn around he said. What? I thought well, this must be some epic spawn protected by Game & Fish. As the law enforcement came closer, I realized they were serious.
That’s when I learned that the north end of Beaver Lake was closed to boat traffic for the OZ One Mile Swim. Yes… swimmers, hundreds of them making a race around giant inflatable buoys that stretched out from White Bass cove almost to the campground island.
And just so you know, I was right about the sizes. Most were 5 to 6 feet, well long in the water. The festival was an international swimming contest invited to our area to enjoy our lake. The challenge was to swim one mile around a course set up on the north end of the lake. The best fish made it well under the estimated 30-minute mark. I just sat there and put my pole down… stored away my giant net and thought, I know I could have got at least one of those giants if the Coast Guard hadn’t been there.
I came home and did some research and found out that the OZ One Mile Swim partnered up with Walmart for a nationwide swimming event at Beaver Lake. Last year’s swim event catered to 60 participants that ranged in experience from Division 1 swimmers and Ironman triathletes to recreational and high school swimmers.
Walmart OZ Mile Swim expanded its reach and welcome over 300 participants from all over the United States. Walmart OZ Mile Swim will donate 20 percent of registration fees to two philanthropic organizations.
I might say it was really something to just run across and glad I did.
You never know what you will see when you go out on an adventure with Custom Adventures Guide Service give me a call at (479) 363-9632 for fishing trips and sightseeing tours. And take a kid fishing.