Mountain America Jerky received this fishing story from our friend Kevin in Montana. Could it just be a coincidence, or is Jerky a lucky fishing snack!?

Small waves lazily lap the hull. A Great Blue Heron’s wings methodically flap overhead. The water is glassy. But nearby, a breezy brushstroke darkens the water with a pocket of ripples. You close your eyes, raise your head and inhale deeply as the cool air skitters past your boat. Then, stillness. The sun is washing away the fresh morning smell. You stow your hoodie and apply sunscreen. What a day.

We are in an isolated cove with grassy banks and towering ponderosa pines. We anchor close to shore we can just make out the seaweed waving from the bottom of the 10 foot deep waters. This is my favorite spot on my favorite lake and this day just reaffirms my affinity.

Planning Food for a Weekend Fishing Trip

We’ve been organizing for this trip all week. Matt, my coworker and fishing partner, stopped by my desk often for “planning” meetings. We came up with code names for everything. “Product development” meant tying flies and “human resources” meant beer. Matt offered to buy the food and human resources since I’m providing the boat. However, I pack bread, cold cuts and cheese second-guessing Matt’s choices of fare. By predawn on Saturday, planning was complete and we drove to the boat launch arriving at my favorite cove before sunup.

Now five hours into the day, I crave sandwiches. I retrieve a soggy, smashed loaf of bread from the cooler. The beer must have shifted this morning and melted ice seeped into the bag. As I peel apart the slices, they disintegrate in my hands. “Dammit.” Dejected, I shovel the remnants back into the bag and throw the loaf into the garbage. “Pretty standard,” Matt is laughing, “I have jerky in the dry bag.” I reach into the dry bag and sift through clothes, a camera, wallet and sunscreen before finally locating the jerky and pulling it from the melee. I open the bag and the smell wafts into my nostrils and I greedily inhale the contents.

Then Matt yells, “Fish on! Oooh, it feels big.” He is fly fishing and his nine foot rod bends nearly in half. The reel goes, “ZZZZ,” and the rod straightens. He reels in a few rotations and the rod tip bends to the water’s surface before the reel again whines, “ZZZZ!” He reels once more and the fish begins to tire. We see a huge flash at the surface and before long a nice Northern Pike is in the net and on the boat. I grab the camera from the dry bag and Matt presents the Pike with both hands. He gently lowers the fish overboard, releasing the tail. The pike slowly descends into the weeds and disappears.

Matt rinses his hands in the lake and sits down smiling ear to ear. He reaches into his cargo pant pocket producing a bag of jerky and chews on a morsel. As he swallows he contently sighs. “Have you been eating that all day?” I ask.

“Yeah. It’s that Mountain America Jerky from Colorado somewhere. It’s legit. How was your sandwich?”

I smile, defeated. “Let’s look at that picture.”

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Thanks for the great article, Kevin! Really makes us want to step away from this computer and get out on the lake. Jerky makes a great fishing snack because it is lean, low-carb, high-protein and will give you energy to sustain you throughout your day of fishing. It’s no wonder jerky is so popular right now.