Mike and I were fishing one of our favorite striper locations and having a great day catching and releasing 18" to 25" striped bass on almost every cast.  Suddenly we noticed the Fish and Game Police boat approaching.  We thought it was odd because we maintained a good relationship with them and they had conducted a safety check of our boat two weeks earlier and because our boat is unique (a 22' Catamaran with twin Yamaha motors) we were sure that they knew who we were.  They approached our boat with a friendly greeting and Mike asked what they needed from us.  One of the officers commented, "we have been watching you catch and release stripers for 30 minutes and I need to ask a favor.  I have two nephews visiting next week and they want to catch stripers so I thought I would ask your advice on the best way I can put them on fish.  You catch more fish than anyone on this river and I need your advice."  Mike spent the next 20 minutes telling him where to fish for for stripers and for specs, what tide produced the best results and what lures to use and what colors worked best for each species.  He then casted a lure out and showed both officers how to fish the lure.  His last gesture was to reach into a tackle box and dig out packages of the lure he recommended in the colors he recommended.  Two weeks later the same boat stopped us to say thanks and tell us both boys caught and released many stripers and specs.  That was typical Mike.  By the way, both packages of the lures he gave away came from my tackle box.  That was also Mike.

If you knew Mike for just a few minutes, you either heard a story or you got started making one.  I was lucky enough to know him for the past 25 years so it is impossible to remember all the good times and the stories that were born (and grew over the years...).    One of my favorites though was just a year or two ago when Mike told me he had a friends "kaboat" (read as long, narrow, inflatable boat that really shouldn't have two guys our size in it...) and we should take it out.  So off we went, as fast as a 3 horsepower outboard could push and me laying down on the bow to help with aerodynamics!  We left the dock with 2 rods, each with one lure, no tackle box, no other tools, just 2 guys, 2 rods and 3 horsepower.  After a few test runs, we cruised down the river, stopped a one of Mike's patented "can't miss" points, and started casting.  Not sure who caught the first 24 in striper (remember the size grows a couple inches each year...)  but we each got fish in the boat and managed to NOT turn it over!  After a few more in the boat, my line broke and we headed back (at top speed of course).  Mike always had a knack for getting us on a fish.  For all my trips with him, I don't think we were ever skunked.  The picture of Mike with the fish from the Kaboat is my contact picture for Mike in my phone and now means more than ever.   

In the picture of Mike here, what you don't see is me and my youngest standing on each side of him, each of us holding large speckled trout in both hands.  Truth be told, there was one small one that Mike didn't catch we made him hold the small one anyway!  Always a great sport...

I love you like a brother Mike and will miss you immensely.

Mike was like my younger brother.  He adopted my boys as "nephews" as they had so many uncle Mikes he became Uncle "Fish" Mike as he would always take the boys out on the boat and catch some fish.  Andy's favorite memory is when Mike took them out and they chased dolphins.  Of course it was choppy and they had to fast and the boat was bouncing.  JohnD loved the campfires he would build for them and they would exchange scary stories, which usually ended up with his dad "Grumpa" jumping out of the woods and scaring the crap out of them.

The boys and I miss you dearly