DES MOINES, Iowa — It'll be a whale of a tale when it's all said and done. Two friends find themselves fishing in Iowa, in the middle of a cross-country journey.
Luke Konson and Daniel Balserak were supposed to be roommates at Clemson University this year. When the school moved classes online, Luke and Daniel decided it wasn't for them.
Instead, they left on an incredible adventure, visiting every state with one mission: to catch each state's official fish. They call it a once in a lifetime opportunity that didn't come without a little hesitation, saying "right at the beginning, there was definitely a little bit of worry, like, what are we undertaking here? But you know, once we get this state will be 20 states in, we're nearing halfway, I think we're gonna finish this no question."
We caught up with the guys near Saylorville Lake in Polk City, where they had some time to reflect on what they've given up to get here, and what they've learned along the way.
Luke said "We've seen more in the past couple months than we have the past couple years probably combined. So, I think this is a really great life experience and we're learning a lot and you know I don't want to hate on the online classes but I think we might be learning more on the road than we would in college online"
They say their goal is to finish the trip by next fall so they can go back to college with this incredible life experience under their belts. The next stop: Nebraska.
And, in case you're curious, Iowa's official fish is the channel catfish.