Cousin's Fishing Camp

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 20  (May 17-23)
Prompt: Cousin Bait
#52ancestors

Cousins and bait go hand in hand when you are an Evans. Ira Lee Evans’ children and his brother, Bill’s children have spent many hours together fishing. Some of their earliest memories include the old home place on the Sunflower river fishing for catfish. Even the grandchildren fished with Grandpa Ira off the dock. Once they were grown, Uncle Bill’s family bought a fishing camp together on a slough in the Delta wildlife area in Mississippi and Uncle Ira’s family were always welcome. There was always plenty of things to do and fun to be had. 

Fishing was just a part of going to the camp. Everyone fished and then gathered in the evenings for story telling and visiting. Then there were the fish frys. The cousins knew the secret way to prepare the fish which involved soaking them in milk to have the absolute best flavor.  There were big pots for deep fat frying the fish and the hush puppies. That was just one of the reasons that reunions were epic when the cousins got together. 

Asa “Smoky” Evans became an avid fisherman when she came to the states. When she fished, she spit on the worms because she was sure that it attracted the fish.  She was willing to sit in a boat all day fishing even when the fish weren’t biting, but most of the time she had the most fish at the end of the day.  

We always claim that everything is bigger in Texas but were willing to concede the biggest mosquitoes to Mississippi after one trip to the fishing camp. Bob took Grandpa (Uncle Son), Noah and Bo to the camp one year during the Summer break. Uncle Max took Noah with him to check the trot lines. They paddled the boat away from the camp at a leisurely pace. When the sun started to sink, they came paddling back as fast as they could from around the bend. They were doing their best to outrun the swarm of mosquitoes that surrounded them.  It was worth it though to watch the preteenagers, Bo and Noah, learn how to fillet fish. 

Over the years, the fishing camp flooded several times. Each of the cousin’s families built a cabin which were eventually raised on stilts. In the last flood the water was high enough to go halfway up the walls even though the cabins were high enough to walk under them.  But that hasn’t stopped the memories.