Wherin I'm back from Fishing

There have been years at Trout Openers where it has snowed so hard you could not see you friends 100 feet downstream. Years where it was so cold that you shivered in the stream and tried to keep your hands warm while you fished and after you got out of the stream you could barely feel your feet. Then theres years like this one.

You would have thought it was early summer.

Wednesday and Thursday were warm with blue skies and sun all day. We were out and about in short sleeves and shorts. We sat by the camp fire at night in short sleeves til after 10:30pm. Friday was cloudy all day and cooler. Saturday was windy. Not breezy, but gusty take down large trees in the forest windy. In all of our years of fishing opening weekend we have about seen it all and sometimes all in one day!

Wednesday I got my brand spanking new 1973 Jayco camper set up on the property. We had brought it up the weekend before and backed it into position. I was not too keen on having the door face the road so I decided to turn it around. This entailed driving it straight into position...which I did driving the 'ol Jeep in between 2 trees with barely 2 inches to spare on either side and then jockeying it around and backing it out of the woods. The end result was very pleasing though with he door to the camper facing the property and the river:

Home-Sweet-Home

Once camp was set up it was time to tend to matters at hand....FISHING! Now trout fishing is not like Bass fishing of any other types of fishing. Observation of the section of stream you are about to fish is key in gaining intimate knowledge of where the fish are hiding. Besides, fishing on opening weekend is not really about catching fish. It's about relaxing and enjoying the peace and quiet:

 
Relaxing by the Stream having a Cigar

Sometimes, while walking through the forest on the way to secluded sections of stream, you see some great wild life which is jst another part of the overall experience. Occasionally you see something wandering through the woods with a really nice rack:

 
Nice rack!

Then there are the fish...The Trout...some of the greatest trout fishing to be had in the world is right here in Michigan.

Unlike the rivers of the West, these are technical streams whose banks are closely guarded by low hanging cedar branches and other scrub brush and grasses. Folks that have only fished large river basins and who are used to wide open waters would do best to steer clear of these waters. They do not possess the necessary casting skill for the close quarters these Michigan streams! Did I mention the trout? Remember what I said about watching the stream? If one is patient and watchful you'll see where the trout hide and even be treated to a show of their prowess as hunters of insects:

 
Brown trout finning in the current

Once you see 'em, as in the photo above, and once you know what type of bug is on the stream that the trout are eating, you can try and catch 'em or, as in my case, catch what ends up being a beautiful, huggable trophy 20 inch brown trout:

 
Yours truly with a caught & released Trophy 20 inch Brown Trout

This opening season, for me, was on of the best on record...all things being relative any-way...after all, I think I said the same thing last year.

Wherin it's T minus 1 and counting

It's hard to believe that a few short weeks ago we were all bemoaning the cold and snowy weather we were experiencing. Most, if not all of us, were suffering from cabin fever. Lack of exposure to sunlight and outdoor fresh aire sure made everyone edgy. You could see it on a daily basis in how people were driving like raving lunatics. It made the daily commute quite the adventure.

I commenced upon my spring/summertime chores last night. I think I was the first in the neighborhood to fire up the 'ol lawn mower and actually have to mow the grass. I had just changed out the oil on Sunday and sharpened the blades in preparation of the aforementioned. I edged the drive and walkways, I reset/repaired the landscape edging. Whilst mowing and driving the tractor past the hot tub deck I caught a whiff of something that was not quite natural or alive anymore. Something, apparently, decided to make it's final resting place a barely accessible portion of the hot tub deck. To say it smelled bad is an understatement.

I shoulda taken a picture of it to post here but in the interest of keeping everyones food down, I did not. It took a bit of digging and maneuvering with a long pole but the offending odor was found and removed. It was a dead possum. Now, my neighbor had told me about a Possum he had found in the alcove by his front door this winter. An attempt I reckon, by the doomed creature to find shelter from the bitter cold we were experiencing that day. Said neighbor had whacked the trespassing Possum with a shovel and tossed it into the field behind our houses. It was stunned but, apparently, not quite dead. I was gonna cap it with my .22 pistol but a half hour or so later the Possum had staggered off and was gone. We tried to track it in the snow to no avail. Now, in hindsight, we figure it crawled under my hot tub deck to die. Now possums are rather ugly creatures. Dead, bloated and rotting, infected and full of maggots, their even uglier....and did I mention the smell?? Thank goodness for bleach!

I enjoyed the winter, I really did. I can only attribute that to a defective gene. That being said it sure is nice to see all the activity in the neighborhood. Kids running around, riding bikes, roller blading falling down, skinning their knees. People are out and about in force doing yard work, prepping thier campers, jogging in their skimpy jogging outfits...not that I would notice....the world has come alive once again.

Tomorrow I leave for "Gods Country" to pursue trout. It's an annual rite of spring for my brothers and I. We gather together at our northern lower Michigan property to camp, eat good food, drink good drinks, smoke fine cigars and celebrate Michigan's Traditional Trout Openers. It's kinda like Deer Camp for Trout lovers. Oh, and no girls are allowed. It's not that we're sexist...far from it. It's just that Openers at camp, with a bunch of unruly guys, is no place for a woman or girl. Trust me on this one.

Trout openers, or Trout Camp, is not so much about the fishing as it is the camaraderie Sure, we fish allot when were there. However springtime conditions are sporadic at best. Sometime you hit it and catch fish up the ying-yang. Other times the weather interferes. This is Michigan after all. We've had snow, rain, freezing rain, fog and sunshine all in one day. It's crazy.

The cool thing is that we, and our experiences, are the memories and fish stories of tomorrow and it don't really get any better than that.

Wherin I see dumb people

HEADLINE: Calvin College students march to protest gun plan

My daughter is considering attending Calvin College. I'd rather have her attend a college where the security personell carry weapons for the protection of the students. This is precisely what this "use of force" initiative is all about. (Another sound reason may be one of liability?)

I hate to say it, but these protesting college students are idiots...abosolute friggen idiots. Protesting campus security carrying weapons...security personell that are retired law enforcement officers to boot.

One of the signs in opposition to the new campus "use of force" carry policy said "No violence! No Guns!" The idiot that created that sign has to be one of those feel-gooder, do-gooder, Utopian hippie types full of piercings who clearly does not have a complete grasp on reality. Campus security does not initiate violence...they are there to prevent violence and, if needed, stop it. Now, if faced with a crazed individual with a weapon, like what happened at Virginia Tech, the security personell will have the tools needed to effectively eliminate the threat instead of helplessly cowering and sitting idly by while students are eliminated. That's why it's called SECURITY people!

The very fact that these college dolts believe they are more secure without campus security carrying weapons overwhelmingly shows how naive and completely ignorant they are of the world today.

In a post Virginia Tech and post Columbine world, and the very fact that most campus' and schools are known "soft targets" and so-called "gun free zones" with no armed security personell for protection...that should scare the bejeezus out of them. But, No, they are scared, no terrified, of the campus security personell carrying weapons for their protection.

These protesters are the so called future leaders of the world....now that scares the bejeezus outta me!

Additional Story: Calvin students protest new "Force of Arms" policy

Wherin all is Pink

Being the Dad of three daughters is rife with challenges the main one being that none of them are boys. There was a time...well, 3 times, once for each birth, that I wanted to have a son. I guess my Mom and Dad used up most of the boy genes allotted to our family line as they used up 6 of those boy genes on their 8 kids.

If my 3 daughters had been born in the late 50's to Early 60's they would most likely be much more girly than they are. Think along the lines of June Cleaver...But I guess one of the good things about being born a girl these days is not being lumped in or stereotyped that way. One of the bad things, for me, is being immersed in a world of pink...granted, I do look real good in a pink dress shirt, but pink is a prevelant theme in my house. It's everywhere...not that I'm saying it's so bad but, c'mon, there are other colors in the spectrum.

As much a I would try it looks as though there is really no escape from it now and manufacturers of all types of products have latched on to all things pink and have, through this slick marketing, made all things which were manly, girly cool. Check these out:

Taurus 9mm semiautomatic pistol

Hell-Kitten Womens AR-15 Semiautomatic Rifle

Elkhorn Ladies Pink Fly Rod

Islander Pink Fly Reel

It's a great day and age for women. These are just a few of the hot, pink, girly products that are out there. It's nice to see other things pink besides womens lingerie....not that I would complain about that.

Nuff Said