Door County, Wisconsin is the perfect family vacation destination. Located on the upper peninsula of Wisconsin, Door County is full of history, culture, and scenic beauty. Each year our family visits Door County at two unique times, the heart of the bitter winter during the Christmas Break and the "perfect-for-water-skiing" mid-summer time.

We enjoy water skiing in Kangaroo Lake near The Rushes Resort, eating breakfast at "Al Johnson's" - home of the goats on the roof, playing golf at "The Orchards", and having the ever-popular "Blue Moon" ice cream at "The Yum Yum Tree!"

This year Dad, Andy, Norbie, Josh, EJ and I had the opportunity to go Charter Fishing on Lake Michigan. We woke up at 4:30 a.m. to beat the morning wind. At the time this was not the best thing but, as we got out on the water and cast multiple rods, things got more and more exciting. Dad had the ingenious idea of drawing cards to see who got to real in first. We all picked at the same time and I was lucky enough to pick the Ace card - which meant I would be the first to attempt the great feat of pulling in the BIG FISH!

After waiting patiently for about a half an hour, we got our first bite. Having never done this before, I was a bit nervous that I would make a fool of myself. I tried to follow what everyone said: "Pull back slow, then real in fast, Pull back slow, then real in fast!" My fish was way out there; it seemed like progress wasn't being made.

In the mean time, the next bite came. Norbie had picked the next highest card so he jumped on. Surprisingly, his fish was really close to the boat. It looked as if he would be the first to pull in the BIG FISH. I was okay with that: I was more preoccupied with keeping the line tight. Unfortunately, right before the first man netted Norbie's fish, the rascal jumbed bait and was free. There was really nothing Norbie could have done - this fish had other plans.

My King Salmon was determined to remain "king!" He kept darting back and forth, surfacing, then going back down deep. I kept the moment though, and, after about 10 minutes or so, we pulled the King (and a sucker) in! It was HUGE!! I don't know that I'd ever seen a fish so big - at least not one that I'd caught. It was really exciting!

I definitely recommend Lake Michigan Charter Fishing. We only had 6 bites, which is low, but it was really exciting - a great family bonding experience. Andy pulled in a 15 pounder, my king salmon was 17 1/2 pounds, and EJ, a cousin-to-be, pulled in the "catch of the day" - a 20 pound King Salmon.

This will now be an annual family tradition. We all had a great time in Door County, Wisconsin.

Nate M.
Springville, UT