Ever since I was a little boy, I've always loved fishing. My family and I would go fishing (the catch-and-release way) off shore on the lake by our campground.

A couple of weeks ago, my dad's friend offered to take us bass fishing. He said his way of fishing was all together different than the way we were used to. So we took his pontoon boat and went fishing on Lake Wilhelm at Goddard State Park.

We were on the lake for about a half hour. Instead of using live bait like earthworms, wax worms or minnows, we needed to use a buzz bait, which is a really cool word for a lure that spins. And instead of casting and waiting for a fish to bite, I had to cast out and reel it in right when the lure hit the water.

After about four casts, I got a hit. The fish I caught was 16 inches and it weighed 2 pounds. My very first bass! I was so excited to have that fish on my line. It put up a good fight, too -- I had fun reeling it in. We had to use a net because it was really heavy to get out of the water and I was afraid the line would break.

I was the only one to catch a fish that day. Everyone was so proud of me. When I got back to camp, my dad told everyone about the huge fish I caught.

My dad's friend filleted it for me, since it was my first time. He made me watch how he cleaned and filleted it. That was something that I reeeeeally didn't care to do, but since I caught it, my dad said I had to. He also said I had to eat it or, well, at least taste it, because it's not right to kill a fish without using it.

So I tasted it. I didn't really like it, but my mom loved it! Now she wants me to catch more. Happy fishing.