Muskie Attack (An Up North Adventure) Read Online Free PDF Page B

information.”
    Corbett stared at his tackle box, deep in thought. Why was the DNR patrolling Lost Land Lake? And why didn’t Uncle Dell know about it? He knew everything. Maybe there was more to this monster walleye than was being told?
    “Oh, and Dell,” Vera called, interrupting Corbett’s thoughts. “That fish house needs a good cleaning. Cabin 10 had a run on crappie—must have caught over sixty of ’em down at the dam.”
    Just then a loud bang on the side of the porch startled Corbett. He and Pike jumped.
    “You hear that, boys?” Uncle Dell yelled.
    They did.

    “So, what’s jugging?” Corbett asked as the two boys made their way to the fish house.
    “It’s a lot of fun but illegal.” Pike explained: “You take fishing line and tie hooks along it.” He demonstrated with his hands. “So instead of one baited hook, you got a lot of baited hooks. Then you tie empty milk jugs to both ends and throw it in the water overnight.” He paused and looked at Corbett. “You know, so it floats?” Corbett shook his head to confirm he got it. “The next morning you pull in your line and, ta da, you’ve got fish.”
    “Why is that illegal?” It didn’t make any sense to Corbett. The object of fishing was to catch fish, after all, and jugging sounded like a great way to do it.
    Pike shrugged. “Something about the sport of it. Not being fair to the fish, I guess.”
    Corbett shrugged back. It still made no sense.
    Jill and Jenny Garfield from Cabin 10 were just leaving the fish house when the boys approached. The girls carried colanders stacked with fish fillets and swung their fillet knives as they walked. Corbett had little use for girls, but the Garfield sisters were different. Not only were they pretty and in high school but they baited their own hooks and cleaned their own fish. That was a wow in Corbett’s book. He hadn’t mastered either of those skills yet.
    “Hi, guys. Sorry,” Jill said. “The fish bins are overflowing. We’ve been cleaning fish for hours.”
    “Yeah,” Jenny chimed in. “Our dad cut and ran—went up to the cabin for a Coke and never came back.”
    The girls exchanged a look.
    “I tried to leave, too,” Jill said sheepishly.
    “But I wouldn’t let her,” Jenny finished. “No way I was going to get stuck in that smelly fish house by myself.”
    “You’ve got some nice fillets here,” Pike said, examining the contents of the colanders.
    Corbett pointed to Jenny’s cheek and grimaced. “There’s something on your face.”
    She reached up and flicked her cheek with her forefinger. “Scales,” she replied annoyed. “They get everywhere. Did I get them all?”
    Corbett nodded and then asked, “How many crappie did you catch?”
    The girls looked like they’d just performed surgery. Their sweatshirts were splattered with blood.
    “We’ve got fifty-three here,” Jenny answered. “But we caught more—started throwing them back.”
    “It was soooo much fun,” Jill gushed. “We were pulling them in left and right.” She turned to Corbett. “You should get Dell to take you to the dam, Griffy. Or you can come with us next time.”
    Pike snickered. “He doesn’t like to be called that.”
    “Called what? Griffy?”
    “Well, Grif, Griffy. Anything but Corbett.”
    “Oh, I like Griffy,” Jill said, smiling at Corbett.
    “So do I,” Jenny agreed. “It’s cute.”
    Corbett’s face felt blistering hot.
    “He doesn’t li—” An elbow in the ribs stopped Pike mid-sentence. “Ow.”
    “It’s all right.” Corbett smiled back shyly. “You can call me Griffy. I don’t mind.”
    “Good. You let us know about the dam. Both of you,” Jill said. “Our dad won’t care if you come along.”
    “See you guys,” Jenny said and gave them a quick wave.
    The girls walked away, heading toward the freezer house where they would finish packaging their catch.
    “Hey, Griffy,” Pike teased and rolled his eyes. “At least I called you Grif. Geez, a couple of