First Trip - Let There Be Light

The first trip into the camp every year is one part anticipation, one part trepidation. After a rough winter there can be any amount of bad things that can happen to a camp deep in the back woods. So this year Steven F and I made small talk and made the walk. The last section of the walk is over a hill. At the top of the hill i took a look, and saw the chimney and commented to Steven it was still standing. I followed that up with an "Uh-Oh".

Our camp is built in the middle of a small nestling of trees. A couple of those trees are large. The largest, a Spruce too wide to wrap your arms around, was no longer visible. At least not the top of it. Visible over the camps roof line, was the snarled broken trunk of the giant tree. The rest of the tree was no longer visible. We were relieved when we came alongside the camp and saw the branches had hit the roof, but the trunk went two feet to the side of the building. Avoiding destruction of our roof, if only by a matter of inches.

So now we have some work to do. A large tree will have to be limbed, cut up, and hauled away into the woods. It will be a lot of work, but it beats the alternative. On the bright side (pardon the pun), the camp is wired the generator is working, and i caught my first fish of 2009, a beautifully coloured 14 inch brookie. The big trip starts on May 4th, and the timing in terms of the hatch looks dead on, and the water level and temperature is right on. If everything holds true, we are in for a hell of a fishing trip.

The First Camp Trip - In 10 Days

The preparations are being made, and on April 25, the first official trip of the season begins. Steve F and will be on the road early on that Saturday and wiring the camp for our new small generator, and doing some prep work to get things ready for the big trip on May 5th. We will christen the new generator with a hockey game on a 19 inch TV, and a few lightbulbs instead of propane lamps.

As usual, i can't wait. My wife will tell you. The word fishing comes out of my mouth far too often. I clean and re-clean rods, reels, i organize flys. Anything to keep me connected to fishing. She puts up with it, and sometimes even humours me with it. In 10 days i will spend a night in the middle of nowhere and get some of that out of my system. Then she has to look forward to me talking about a trip less than two weeks later.

In the end, she makes sure i get my trips in and i enjoy them, which is more than enough. I have said it before, i owe her may times over. Someday, i will really will pay her back. If only she ate trout.

More Than Ready

The Painful Wait For An Ice Out

It is April 7. For what seems like forever, I have been waiting for the ice out. It is the annual event that signals the real start of fishing season. Sure, fishing season has been open for a week now, but open in name only really. In the last few days though, holes in ice on the local lakes has appeared. It has helped breathe new life into me as an angler. Tonight I put new line, backing, and a braided loop on my reel. I think I found the breathable waders I am going to order.

So maybe Spring finally has sprung. My wife and I talked tonight about photography trips coming soon. Everything will be good very soon.

I think I will clean my other reel and line tomorrow. The fish are almost ready, and now so am I.