I spent the night at Dave’s house Friday, and on Saturday morning we took the boat out for the first time this year.

It was an absolutely beautiful day in California–68 degrees, no wind, and not a cloud in the sky. Like the true dumbass that I am I forgot YET AGAIN to put on sunscreen. I fried.

The fishing was slow and tough. We both went out fully expecting to get skunked–and we did. I tried EVERYTHING. All the plastics, jigs, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits… Dave threw all his topwater baits. Nothing.

But we didn’t care. It felt sooo good to get that boat back in the water. We drank beer and relaxed, talked story, had some lunch, and basked in the sun.

Give it another six weeks and the bass bite will be back. And so will we.