The Top Fishing Master

.....

"Does anyone feel uncomfortable or anything? If there are no issues, let's get ready to set off!"

After resting for a night near the airport, Brother Zhang asked all the travelers if they were feeling normal and ready to start the adventure.

"No problem!"

"All good～"

"～"

With everyone in good spirits, Brother Zhang led them to a helicopter.

"!!!"

Lin Yang was absolutely astonished!

Just for fishing, do we really need to take a helicopter? Isn't it usually by car?

"Brother Zhang, are we taking this thing over?"

"Yes, people are quite sparse here in Russia, especially in the Kamchatka Peninsula. Most areas are uninhabited, so there aren't really any roads. If we don't take a helicopter, there's simply no way to reach the destination."

Brother Zhang had evidently experienced this more than once and was quite used to it by now.

"Wow..."

Since that was how the itinerary was planned, Lin Yang accepted it calmly.

Having never been on a helicopter before, he thought it might not be a bad idea to give it a try.

After the luggage was all loaded up, everyone boarded, and the helicopter, with a loud rumble, rose into the sky and headed off into the distance.

However, when the helicopter took off, it didn't quite inspire the safety you'd feel from the ground; the rumbling noise and some random rattling sounds made Lin Yang worry that the helicopter might suddenly fall apart mid-air.

"Brother Lin, don't worry, although this helicopter is an antique from the 1960s, its performance is still quite reliable."

Noticing Lin Yang's nervous look, Brother Zhang quickly spoke up to reassure him.

A 1960s antique? Rather than feeling reassured, Lin Yang felt even more anxious.

His eyes couldn't help but drift towards the bearded pilot, fearing he might say something like "hold on tight, we're going downhill～"

If only Big Beard knew how to speak Chinese.

Fortunately, the journey was without incident, and the helicopter safely landed on a flat area on a hillside.

Next, the nine people from China, along with two Russian guides, would be divided into three groups to begin today's fishing adventure.

Lin Yang, Brother Zhang, and two others formed one group; a couple and a solo tourist along with a Russian guide formed another group; and the remaining Wang Bo and company formed the last group.

After the groups were set, the helicopter unloaded everyone along with the rafting and fishing equipment and then roared away.

What followed was assembling the rubber rafts and fishing gear.

The Fishing Club provided the gear free of charge; of course, if it was deliberately damaged, one would have to compensate for it at market price. Normal wear and tear or accidental damage wouldn't require customers to pay.

This was probably one of the reasons why their Fishing Club had always had good business.

Since it was a rafting trip, under Lin Yang's suggestion, everyone opted for lure fishing.

However, once he got his gear, Lin Yang quickly swapped the club's gear for his own without anyone noticing.

Wang Bo's group of three men prepared the fastest, setting off downstream first with their rubber raft.

The young couple wasn't slow either, following behind them.

Yue'er and Li Xiaopeng were curiously touching here and there, and by the time Lin Yang caught them to forcibly put on life jackets, they were finally fully prepared and set off downstream with their raft.

"Brother Zhang, isn't it tiring to carry that rod bag on your back? Put it on the boat, it doesn't take up space."

The raft was motorized, with Brother Zhang steering from the back. After boarding, Lin Yang noticed that he still had a rod bag on his back and asked considerately.

"No worries, I'm not fishing, it won't get in the way. Sit tight, we're ready to go～

The water here is quite rapid; let's fish when we get to slightly calmer areas,

The fishing resources here in Russia are nothing like back home; when using lures, you can catch a fish with almost every cast!

It's said that the Kamchatka Peninsula is a spawning ground for one-third of the world's salmon. It's currently November, right at the peak of the salmon migration season.

The river is full of salmon, look, those red ones are Chinook salmon.

They swim all the way upstream from the Hokkaido Fishery entrance to reproduce; the cycle of nature is truly magnificent."

The current position of the group was in the midstream section of the Kamchatka River, quite a distance from the mouth. Even though Brother Zhang had seen these spawning salmon before, he was still amazed.

"Wow, so beautiful～snap snap."

Among the four people on the raft, Brother Zhang was navigating, Lin Yang was holding his rod ready to go, while Yue'er was busy with her camera, snapping pictures here and there, her fishing rod just sitting idle as decoration.

The red Chinook salmon were swimming upstream in the current, and she captured the scene with her camera.

The raft continued to drift downstream. After passing a small waterfall with a slight gradient, the water flow slowed down a bit, and the river became wider and deeper.

Brother Zhang signaled to Lin Yang and his companion that they could start fishing, while he meticulously observed the surroundings.

This is the Far East Wilderness of Russia, where the true rulers are the various wild animals of nature. The fish in the water aren't very large and pose no danger.

But it's different on land; wild animals like gray bears, brown bears, wild boars, and wolves often roam near the river.

Brother Zhang took on the role of lookout.

"Whoosh～"

Li Xiaopeng was the first to cast his line.

He was using a spinning reel; he hadn't quite mastered the baitcasting reel yet, having experienced line tangles several times before, even when Lin Yang had set it up perfectly for him.

He wasn't great with the baitcasting reel, but he handled the spinning reel quite well, casting properly without any issues.

For a novice who's not used to lure fishing, just being able to cast the lure out is quite an achievement.

He was using a Minnow Lure, essentially a small plastic fish with two treble hooks underneath. As it is dragged through the water, the Minnow Lure wobbles like a real fish, vividly attracting other fish to attack.

Seeing that Li Xiaopeng's casting was fine, Lin Yang also started fishing.

"Whoosh～"

With a light flick of the rod, the Minnow Lure flew out twenty meters.

You could frequently see fish swimming under the raft, and the abundant resources made it unnecessary to cast too far like at home.

"Wow!"

Just as he cast his lure, Li Xiaopeng yelled out excitedly, clearly having hooked a fish.

Considering he was a novice, Brother Zhang thoughtfully activated the motor, allowing the raft to slowly move back upstream, reducing the pressure on him.

Li Xiaopeng was gritting his teeth, wrestling with the fish in the current. The fish didn't seem big, but neither was the fisherman, making it an evenly matched struggle.

"Hey～"

Soon after, Lin Yang felt a tug on his rod, indicating a fish was on the line as well.

Gently pulling the rod to set the hook, he then leisurely began reeling in the line.

Any fish caught here were meant to be brought back to the camp for food and couldn't be sold, so there was no need to worry about efficiency; the fun was the main point.

Nevertheless, a minute later, he had reeled the fish to the side of the raft and lifted it out.

"Successfully caught a Chinook salmon, points and Experience Value added....."

It was a Chinook salmon weighing about seven to eight pounds, with a body that was roughly half gray and half red.

"Quite a big Chinook salmon. As it migrates upstream, the fish gradually turns red as it expends its energy. When it turns completely red, it's near the end of its reproductive mission, which means its life is also nearing its end."

Brother Zhang conscientiously provided commentary.

The implication was that this fish might not have completed its mission yet.

After Yue'er took a beautiful photo, Lin Yang released the Chinook salmon back, allowing it to continue its unfinished journey.

Meanwhile, Li Xiaopeng was still happily battling with his fish in the water.