we landed the boat at the rally campground and proceeded to set up the tent and put together a campfire.
After supper was done and cleanup completed, we ended the day watching the sun go down and treating ourselves to s’ mores. With the last of twilight, as the fire began to dance, I decided to tell the girls about the monster catfish of Yellowwood Lake. This was, I thought, a clever ploy to keep the girls close to camp during the evening before bedtime.
The basics of the story are that there is a catfish in the lake that has never been caught. He is very old and very big. He weighs more than 90 pounds and he’ s more than 9 feet long with barbels that span more than12 feet. During the day he sleeps in the deepest parts of the lake but after sundown, he wakes and he is hungry.
Now, most catfish do their hunting and feeding at the bottom of the lake, but not this monster. A fish his size has a hard time finding enough food in the lake to satisfy them, so this fish has learned to launch himself up on shore. There he uses his catfish barbels like tentacles, probing the dark beach for campers. Then, upon sensing an unwary camper, the fish would wrap one of its barbels around their legs and back into the lake dragging dinner into the depths.
Well, I’ m here to report that the story worked and the girls kept the campfire between them and the lake. I believe it must have been around two or maybe two-thirty in the morning when I was awakened by my youngest daughter saying,“ I have to go pee.” I said,“ Okay, you know where the outhouse is.” And she said,“ I can’ t go by myself.” So I said,“ Wake your sister up and she will go with you.” But the little darling said that wouldn’ t work. I asked,” Why?” And she said that her sister was not big enough to fight the catfish and she had to go right now.
There it was, I was being punished for telling a good story. Of course I had to leave my nice warm sleeping bag and trudge out into the moonlight on a mission of mercy to save my daughter from a catfish that I had invented.
And that is just one of thousands of Brown County memories that I keep in a little storage barn in the backyard of my mind. I advise folks to come on down and make some Brown County memories of your own. •
Brownie’ s
is back in business!
Featuring some of your old favorites and some tasty new ones
Dine In or Carry Out
5730 N State Rd 135 • Bean Blossom • 812-720-3743
Daily Specials • Breakfast till 2:00 7 am to 8 pm New owners Evelyn Allen Mulherin and Brian Baker
Lil Black Bear Inn B & B
Your Home away from Home
Breakfast e a f ast Daily D i y
On three acres with a pond, grill, firepit, hot tub, and large patio
Close to Nashville and Columbus • Kid and Pet Friendly 8072 State Rd 46 East • Nashville, IN • 812-988-2233
lilblackbearinn. com • lilblackbearinn @ gmail. com
ONE-OF-A-KIND MOSAIC TABLES
POSTCARD PAINTINGS SERIES
Available at Spears Pottery in Nashville, IN
( On South Van Buren Street, near the stoplight, next to the Nashville House)
Nov./ Dec. 2020 • Our Brown County 53