An Outdoorsman’s Journal Brookies on the Buffalo
Hello friends, Ten years ago, when Reece Frase and Bret Kostka were 8 years old, I met them while they were fishing from shore in front of my cabin at Birch Point Resort on Marsh Miller Lake. My daughter Selina was on that adventure and I helped these boys, invited them in for dinner, and that was the start of a very cool friendship.
For the last 10 years, Selina and I have tied our trip to Birch Point with Bret’ and Reece’s schedules. The Frase family has a permanent campsite at Birch Point. They fish with us and we all hang together for the whole trip.
These guys, who are now seniors at Osseo-Fairchild and Fall Creek high schools, have become extremely successful outdoorsmen. Last August Reece invited me to come trout fish with them for the opener of Wisconsin’s trout season and that is what this column is about.
Friday, May 1 High 61, Low 35
We would spend the weekend at Dean Frase’s deer camp, which is in Eau Claire County between Osseo and Foster. Dean is Reece’s father and bought this property when he was a young man through labor in the construction business. Reece gave me a tour and I do not know if I have ever witnessed so much deer sign.
Tonight, before they left camp, Dean and Crystal Frase set the boys and I up with their deer camp traditional meal which is shrimp, venison and cauliflower fondue. I have never had this kind of meal and it was awesome.
After Dean and Crystal left, the boys played cribbage and it was cool to see how they verbally jab each other constantly. They showed me a million pictures on their phones of fish they had caught, a tom turkey that Bret had just shot and Reece called in, and lots of big bucks.
I could see the deep pain in both of their faces when they talked about not being able to finish their senior year, graduate or have a party.
Saturday, May 2 High 64, Low 33
The next two days would be a total go-for-it experience. We were up early, my truck was our vehicle and we fished the Buffalo River and Otter Creek. We had a bet for the big brown of the weekend, as well as brook trout. We had a blast as we fished hard and laughed a lot.
Until today, Bret was a spinner guy, but it seemed like he fell in love with the art, and it is an art, of understanding how to rig up and fish a hole with a red worm, split shot and a very small hook.
These boys are go-for-it kids, that is for sure. But they also know how to throw a spinner or a crawler in a tree and that was a steady joke for all of us. Sometimes the fish were hungry and other times we could not buy a bite.
At Otter Creek, I caught a 15.75-inch brown which would take that bet. On the Buffalo River, Bret found a honey hole that had a bunch of 11- to 13-inch brookies. We had a blast at that spot and Bret won that category. In the middle of the afternoon we went to camp for a short break and ate grilled trout.
After dark we sat outside and told stories. I listened to these guys verbally abuse each other in a kid kind of way.
In the fall Bret, who is the son of Jeanie and Barry Kostka, will attend UW-Eau Claire and major in business. Reece will join the family business, Country Septics and Trees on Wheels.
For 10 years, I hung out with these kids one weekend a year and my guess is that now we will continue to share outdoor experiences on an expanded horizon.
If I said it once, I said it 100 times. Take kids on outdoor experiences and you will have friends for life!
Sunset
