Glen Lake fishing — Patience is the virtue.
Patience is the virtue when fishing at Glen Lake, or just about any other place.
“Jennie Alice Shaver is closing her vacation with a ‘lucky strike.’ Determined to furnish her grandparents with a fish dinner, she fished diligently, and, to her astonishment, she felt something tug at her line,” the Glen Lake correspondent reported in The Glens Falls Times and Messenger on Aug. 28, 1916. “She pulled several minutes until she felt equal to landing her prize. She was astonished to find she had a two-pound bass. Now she wants to stay another week.”
Knowing the Missouri state nickname will bring full enjoyment to this fishing story published Aug. 25, 1922 in The Post-Star.
“One has to be from Missouri in these days of vivid imaginations when the subject of brilliant and large catches of the Glen Lake members of the finny tribe have been substantiated or verified with as good authority as exists in the ranks of Isaac Walton’s disciples,” the Glen Lake correspondent reported. “Harry W. Levy, of the Liberty cottage, leader of the Glen Lake wireless activities, has made several catches of bass, pickerel and bullhead.
Levy’s favorite spot to fish was on the northern side of the small island.
“Royal ‘Good’ Droulette of Glens Falls, who is stopping at the Bide-A-Wee camp, carried away the laurels for size,” a five and three-quarter pound pickerel.
The catch of Glen Lake fishing stories from back in the day is limited only by how much time one has to spend browsing archives of historic newspapers.
C.W. Matthews store at Saratoga displayed in its show window a “big bass” that George W. Martelle caught at Glen Lake, The Morning Star of Glens Falls reported on Oct.3, 1888.
“It weighed six pounds and twelve ounces.”
The Glen Lake correspondent reported three fishing stories in The Morning Star on Aug. 19, 1889.
“Michael Landers, the well-known harness maker of South Street (in Glens Falls), captured a bass weighing eight pounds in the lake yesterday. The gamey fish was weighed by A.B. Abbott, who was also luring the finny tribe.”
Another bass was almost as large.
“On Wednesday, a gentleman from Sandy Hill, whose name we were unable to learn, captured a bass weighing seven-and-a-half pounds.”
Fishing success was not limited to grown ups.
“Miss Gertrude, the eleven-year-old daughter of J. L. Wait, who has charge of Brown’s Cottages this summer, yesterday morning captured, unassisted, a bass weighing four pounds.”
Miss Getrude’s father was busy caring for an overflow of guests.
“Landlord Wait is entertaining about twenty guests at his cottages and has numerous transients. In fact, so many have called there that he was oblidged to lodge some in the hay now.”
