She has her own traps, and she has fishing skills. But she’s only 7 years old.
Cora Belle Holton of South Berwick was the only child among a group of eight family and friends, including her parents Nicole and Kyle Holton, who were all ice fishing together on East Grand Lake for a long weekend.
The group had been fishing since Thursday. It was a windy day, so they had a popup shack on the lake for a place to get out of the cold and wind for a few minutes. There were only two chairs, Cora said, which meant people had to sit on ATVs outside too.
Cora’s luck showed up on Sunday. Her dad helped her bait her hooks with shiners and her uncle helped her set her ice fishing traps in 2 feet of ice. Everyone was hanging out when one of Cora’s flags went up.
They ran over to Cora’s trap. The fish put up a good fight and Cora pulled it almost through the hole before her uncle gave her a hand just at the very end.
It was her biggest landlocked salmon yet, at 24 inches long. The family did not weigh the fish.
Everyone went crazy and cheered, her mom Nicole said.
“It was big,” Cora said.
Last year, she caught an 18-inch salmon on the same lake during their ice fishing trip. She had it mounted, which is what she plans to do with this one.
Cora, who said she is not a big fan of snowsuits, had a good time fishing with her family and friends, who stayed in rented cabins on the lake. She pointed out there were bunk beds in her family’s cabin, just like she does at home.
“It was like home, only colder,” she said.
She also brought luck to her mom, who caught a 20-inch salmon near the same spot an hour later.
Cora plans to get into hunting too. Her dad says she is learning about gun safety now and he hopes she will be ready in a year or two.
The family plans to return to the lake for an ice fishing trip again next year.
“I’m going to try to get a bigger one next year,” she said.
