It’s here! The fishing season has officially begun. It’s opening weekend and it’s Mother’s Day.

It doesn’t get any better than that, and I hope everyone gets a chance to get out and enjoy some fishing this weekend and also remember Mom.

Last weekend, I headed north with my two sons and my grandson, Trevor. We didn’t go for fishing but to clear some land and set up the camper.

We tried to get by without cutting any more trees than

necessary. It was a lot of work and a lot of laughs, but we got the job done.

On Sunday, after we had pretty much everything done, I told the boys I would show them a couple of nice lakes that were close by. On the way to the first one we came to a low spot in the roadway, and off to the side was a pretty pond with some fallen trees scattered about the water.

About the time we spotted the pond Trevor lets out a yell, &uot;Wood ducks!&uot; Sure enough, there were five drakes swimming and sitting on dead branches. Trevor had them identified and counted in about the same amount of time it took to stop the truck.

This was an unbelievable sight. It was like a scene you would see in a Terry Redlin painting. Trevor also noted there were no hens in sight. I would assume they were nesting, but Trevor probably knew that. I am always amazed at his knowledge of the outdoors.

When we got to the lake we were looking for, Trevor had to wet a line right away. After a few minutes we were ready to head back. Well, most of us anyway. Trevor had a problem with that. He was fishing and he wasn’t ready to quit fishing on this beautiful lake. We let him fish again on the next one, which was only about a quarter mile away.

Trevor, being a true outdoors spirit, can never get enough of the good stuff. Eight years old and he can identify birds in flight and distinguish between a loon and other fowl from a distance.

The outdoors is meant to be enjoyed, and I plan on doing a lot of it this year. Hopefully, I will be able to fish a few more of the area lakes this year along with a few trips north.

There is something about the woods and Northern Minnesota that have fascinated me since I was a boy. I guess there is still a little bit of that boy in me.

I can remember, as a kid, how the excitement would build when we would get ever closer to that last turn before the lake would actually come into sight. Then, when we did indeed round the last turn and I could see the lake, it was a feeling that is almost impossible to describe. It seemed like there were a thousand thoughts going through my mind. Is it windy? I wonder if they’re biting? Wonder where the big ones are? How soon until I can fish? What’s the hot bait?

The funny part about that is I still have the same kind of feeling when driving to the lake for the weekend or going for a week. Maybe not quite as many questions, but a lot of that &uot;good stuff&uot; kind of feeling.

With this in mind, I can definitely relate to Trevor never wanting to quit fishing or not wanting to leave a place like that picturesque pond. He had to make sure we stopped at that pond on the way back to our camper so he could get one more look at his favorite species of duck.

When we arrived back at the camper, Trevor and his Uncle Brad went down to the lake to do a little fishing. When Brian and I had finished cleaning up around the camper, we too headed to the lake.

Trevor can never pass up an opportunity to pass on a funny story about someone or to rub it in when he gets one up on you. I don’t know where he gets it, but that’s the way he is.

As we approached the fishermen, Trevor yelled out, &uot;Brad fell in &045; three times!&uot; It seems Brad must have thought he was Lars the Log Roller and tried walking out on this fallen log to get a better cast over the rushes lining the shore. It obviously didn’t work (three times). He confirmed what I had suspected all along. The water was cold.

Good Luck and Good Fishin.’

Even though a lot of our troops are headed home but we still should remember the ones that are still over there.

Dick Herfindal is the Tribune’s outdoors columnist. His column appears Sundays.