I apologize for not posting anything to the blog that was fishing related. We have been dealing with high winds for the past 6 days which has made fishing almost impossible in our area. Average wind speeds have been around 17mph with gusts up to 48mph and after this next round of storms moves through tomorrow, we are hoping that it will calm down some.
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TROOPER…2009?-22MAR2022. R.I.P
He was a good boy!
(This dog was abandoned at a campground. We have no firm idea of his actual age and the vet estimated him to be about 4 years of age, hence the question mark.) It was the end of August and temperatures were over 100F. We noticed him hanging around the bathroom facilities while the entire campground was empty except for us. We put out a bowl of water for him and hoped somebody would return for him.
My wife and I were there to do an ultralight backpacking trip and were staying one night at the campground before starting our hike. This dog wandered over to our tent and slept beside it all night. Early the next morning we didn’t see him and after putting out water for him, we started on our way. We ran into the camp host on our way to the trailhead and asked him about the dog. He said people dumped dogs there quite often and that if this one wasn’t gone by the end of the day, he’d take care of it. We knew what that meant and didn’t like it.
About 2 miles into our hike I heard something coming through the undergrowth and stopped to see what it was…it was the dog. My wife and I looked at each other because we knew we were in for a long hike and were concerned that the dog wouldn’t make it. But considering his alternatives, we opted to let him hike with us.
Needless to say, this hike turned into a disaster. All of the watering holes had dried up as we kept hiking from one to the next hoping for water. With the temperatures hovering around 105F we were burning through water faster than expected considering we were sharing with the dog. At the 18 mile mark I began to develop issues with the iliotibial bands in my legs, which made bending my knees very painful.
We had a quick pow-wow and decided to call an end to the hike. We decided to hike 2 miles up the mountain to a scenic overlook and hopefully catch a ride back to the campground. At this point, I was walking like Frankenstein and carrying the dog the last mile to the overlook. His paws were raw from the rocky trail.
My wife reached the overlook first and waited for us. As she saw us coming up the hill, it must have been a sad sight because she decided to jog the 5 miles along the highway back to the campground to retrieve the car and come back for us. Bless her! I couldn’t have done what she did.
On the ride home, the dog was curled up on the back seat sound asleep. We talked for awhile and decided to give him the name “Trooper” since he soldiered on and covered the 20 miles with me. He was a tough little dog!
When we got home, we could tell he was grateful for a meal, a bath and a soft bed. I’ve never had a dog that snored as loud as this little guy did.
He got along well with the two other stray pups that our daughter brought home, all the while, we were questioning our sanity and decisions.
As a family, we mourn his passing and take solace that we tried to give him love and a better life than his previous owners. We had 9 good years with him and know that he’s in a better place, free from infirmities and old age. He was truly a member of our family, a gift out of the wilderness. He always greeted us at the door with his tail wagging and was constantly by our side. He kept a watchful eye out the window for anything out of place and alerted us to everything unusual with a bark that was way above his weight-class. You were a good boy Trooper and we miss you, Love Mom and Dad.
Expectation Management…
This is my Kryptonite. I have failed so many times when managing my expectations. I plan something to the nth degree and nothing goes according to plan. Then I get really frustrated and sometimes angry which doesn’t do me any good.
I have made plans to recon fishing areas only to be informed that “we” have other plans for the weekend. I tend to just withdraw and stop making plans for awhile. And that’s not healthy.
I need to figure out a better way to manage my expectations. I don’t want to use the military style PACE plan. Primary, Alternate, Contingency and Emergency to where I have to develop 4 separate plans for a single outing. Obviously this isn’t a life or death scenario for me.
Perhaps I should just focus on priorities and effective communication. Maybe I should just create a “rough outline” and go with the flow. Maybe I should just step back and postpone it. Or decide to go it alone.
So many factors go into a simple scouting trip. Weather is a critical factor in my area. As an example, we were in the 50’s on Thursday but received 3-4 inches of snow on Friday with temps in the teens to 20’sF. And we will be up near 80F later in the week. These narrow windows of decent weather make you squeeze stuff in when you can.
My wife has to return to her office after 2 years for no good reason other than a ” because I said so.” I kind of figured that a road trip might do us some good only to realize she wanted to relax and hang out on her last weekend. Frustrating but understandable.
However, I do need to figure this out and get better at managing my expectations. If you have any suggestions feel free to share them and thank you for reading this.
Back to Work. Warning…graphic images ahead.
My how things have changed. At first, the company I work for would not honor any accomodations. But now, they will. So I went back to work this past Tuesday. I still feel that I have a long way to go before I’m fully healed. I am making progress and hope to be ready for Spring fishing.
It is definitely good to see my co-workers and get back into the swing of things. But on the other-hand, I could enjoy being retired!
I had so many plans to go fishing last week but the wind was really a problem. Up to 30+ mph out of the South and then switched to 35+ mph out of the North. Literally 4 days straight of high winds. And you know what that means…more limbs and branches to burn.
Anyway, this is just a quick update of what’s been happening. The wife DID decide to buy a Daiwa Iprimi Ultralight rod and I plan on doing a post about that soon. Take care out there..
Some Decisions are Easy…
I have decided to cancel my Canadian fishing trip to Ontario this summer. I have also decided to cancel ALL future fishing trips to Ontario.
There are plenty of amazing places to fish so I will choose one in the US and spend my money here as opposed to Canada. Several of my friends are doing the same thing.
I’m sure you can read between the lines and agree or disagree, that’s fine either way. But this decision is mine and I’ve made it.
Stay safe out there…
Happy Blog-versary!
I just realized that today is the One Year Anniversary of this blog. Here’s to many more…Cheers!
Deletions…
I wrote the 4th Episode of Binge Thinking this morning and deleted it shortly after posting it. In fact, I’ve deleted the other Binge Thinking Episodes as well. They don’t really fit into the scope of my blog and nobody gives a crap about what I think anyway. My apologies for any confusion regarding a notification and then not being able to find it.
Why I Don’t Own a Boat…
It’s because of the expense…pure and simple. I think the prices for boats are ridiculous. And I’d have to purchase a vehicle to tow it.
I’ve owned boats in the past and always enjoyed tinkering with them. Doing modifications and making them more efficient for my needs.
I look at my friends new boat and the new vehicle he bought to tow it and I just can’t justify that kind of expense at this point of my life. I don’t even want to go fishing with him in it. Multiple fish finders front and back and I can see him staring at the locator all day like people are glued to their cellphones. No thanks. I jokingly asked him how much that first bass was going to cost and received a death glare in response.
And since we tend to fish on the weekends, the lakes are way too crowded and it seems like there is a tournament of some sorts every weekend as well. I have no desire to do 60mph across a choppy lake or deal with the “cluster****” that we call boat ramps.
And with the unpredictable weather we have here…if I owned a boat, I’m sure it would sit unused more than I’d like.
I’ll stick to wading streams and rivers wherever I can find them. It’s less crowded, more quiet and slower paced.
Went to a Local Trout Pond Again…
Wish I had some trout pictures for you but I don’t. The pond was supposed to be restocked yesterday but I have my suspicions. I talked to two other guys who were fishing and they hadn’t caught a thing and hadn’t seen a thing either. When the resident experts aren’t catching anything, you know something is off.
The day started off at 27F with parts of the lake and shoreline covered in ice but it quickly warmed to 39F when the sun peeked over the hills. I went to test out the Daiwa Presso ST 62ML rod and the new 2021 Daiwa Presso LT 1000 reel. The rod casts very well and this reel is AMAZING. I didn’t think it was possible but it is smoother than the Daiwa Presso LTD 1025.
Also, since I received my 2 replacement sections for the Abu Garcia Troutin Marquis Nano rod, I decided to throw that rod and reel combo for an hour. The Abu Garcia REVO MGX Theta 1000S reel is really smooth. This combo is a good matchup and I like the direction Abu Garcia is heading.
And not to be left out…The Apia (Anglers Utopia) Grandage Lite 61. I received this rod yesterday and was really chomping at the bit to try it out. I wish I had tried the rod with the Daiwa Presso LT 1000 reel but stuck with the Vanford 1000 for the hour I fished with it.
I have ordered a few ceramic bearings for the Vanford 1000 hoping to make it the reel it could be. It seems odd that the Stradic FL 1000 is so much better yet the internals are practically identical. But there is a noticeable difference (slight grinding). Possibly switching from braid to nylon will make an impact…just not sure. Not quite ready to give up on this little reel. When the bearings arrive I may do a complete teardown and cleaning and reapply high grade lubricant.
So 3 hours fishing at a trout pond with zero fish caught. BUT…I gleaned a lot of important information from the rods I went to test out. Each was different in their own way, yet all were functional for my wants and type of fishing I like to do. Not surprising since all 3 were designed for completely different applications. The nod definitely goes to the Apia Grandage Lite 61…what a rod!
A Tale of Two Rods…
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…I’m being overly dramatic by quoting Dickens, but I understand the frustration occurring in his novel.
The two rods, The Daiwa Presso ST 62ML and the two replacement sections for my Abu Garcia pack rod, shipped together from Japan on the same day. Both arrived in Anchorage Alaska and both arrived at Memphis Tennessee on Friday evening. For some reason, one continued on to Tulsa where it was subsequently delivered yesterday. The Abu Garcia rod parts just disappeared in “tracking limbo.” Found out last night despite the “Scheduled Delivery January 24th by 1630” message that the rod parts were sent back to Anchorage Alaska. Nice job FedEx!!!!
This isn’t the first time FedEx has messed up a shipment going through Memphis and I may opt for shipping via DHL from this point forward. I bring this up not to complain (too much) but to highlight a very real pitfall to ordering JDM rods from Japan. Interestingly, I’ve never had an issue with reels ordered from Japan…just rods. As a sidenote…JDMTackleHeaven packages their rod shipments in PVC pipe with the ends well secured and clearly labelled as to destination. Outstanding packaging.
I am curious as to whether this will be chalked up to the usual COVID supply chain problems as opposed to the real cause…imcompetence. Time will tell. But in all honesty, I’m grateful they don’t ship through California, what with all of the mass theft and looting going on there. In fact, I do my research before ordering to absolutely avoid having anything shipped through California.
This is just a cautionary note and your mileage may vary…good luck.
Good News!!!
This morning I received confirmation that the replacement rod sections for my Abu Garcia Troutin Marquis Nano are in the air and on route to my location.
It will be good to have that rod complete again. I’m looking forward to fishing with it. Lesson learned…DON’T lift your fish with the rod vertically. I knew better, but lost focus and paid the price. And that rule generally applies for all of my JDM rods.
The other habit that was hard to break was doing the “BassMaster Classic hookset”…now I rely on super sharp hooks and/or a sweeping hookset. Sometimes just engaging the reel is enough to do the job.
Fishing is always a learning process and I am a life long student. I wouldn’t want it any other way…
I AM NOT BUILT FOR SITTING OR DOING NOTHING…
The above quote from Henry Rollins is exactly how I live my life.
The surgery has come and gone, healing is going well, but I’m having a hard time adjusting to the forced down time. I feel like I should be doing something or accomplishing a task. Maybe when I start physical therapy things will change. I am notorious for going really hard at PT and trying to recover in record time.
I did manage to tear down my Shimano Vanford 1000S and oil the gears and bearings in an effort to reduce the slight grinding noise I was experiencing. It definitely helped. And let me tell you…that was an epic task trying to do it with one hand! Zip was unimpressed by my efforts though…
I went ahead and placed a couple of orders to replenish our supply of jig heads and soft plastics. The Owner Cultiva JH-85’s and the Eurotackle Micro Finesse B-vibes that worked so well for us last year have become a staple in our tackle bags.
I have also started to round up permits and licenses for the 2022 season as well. It’s amazing how fast those expenditures add up. We are currently making trip plans and pouring over maps in an effort to seek out new waters and maybe revisit some of our favorite spots.
Keeping physically AND mentally active is important to me but patience is the order of the day…and for those who have been following my blog, you know I don’t possess much of that.
Til next time…take care out there.
Velox Seeker 