Bill has been managing his time well, so I am only needed in the shop here and there for errands. I think tomorrow I am going 90 miles round trip to Irvington, NY. This is actually working out well because the bass fishing is pretty good right now. Last trip to Marshepaug I even caught a rainbow trout ... the caveat being that the water is so warm that any trout you catch you must kill because the water is so warm and the stress of being caught would kill the fish anyway.
That worked out fine. The trout tasted great grilled in foil and eaten with fresh sweet corn on-the-cob. Summer is a great time.
I had a fabulous time at Falcon Ridge. Since I never know who I am camping with, I have had to revamp my gear a little so I don't bring so much. I find it hard to believe that a few short years ago I went camping on a motorcycle. Now I fill my Jeep from tailgate to passenger seat with necessities. And I nearly used it all!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Tarpon Fishing
I do not know how much detail I should get into about Tarpon fishing with a fly. I will try to be informative and tell a story. Today is my Fourth day out, and for Tarpon fishing I would call it a pretty good day.
We (me and my captain) are trying to present a fly to fish we have seen. Tarpon can be caught with live bait and are, I am sure very exciting with light tackle, but that is not the same as actually seeing the fish you are presenting your fly to. Today we saw few fish, and had few opportunities to present the fly, but for those we did, we had 3 "eats". An eat is defined as a tarpon went totally ballistic when it saw what it thought was food and ate it. Since tarpon fishing is at best a low percentage sport, this is actually a good day. One of those eats might have been a caught fish if I hadn't been so enthusiastic about striking the fish and breaking the line.
Yesterday, day 3 was actually more typical. It was storming early, so we went out late, it was blowing like stink, the push pole broke, and I spent a couple of hours casting blindly in the back country waters. I wore out very quickly, so we quit early.
I really should keep better records of eats, jumps and caught fish, because Day 2 was magical. I had lots of eats, but the highlight was hooking and keeping on my line a 90 pound Tarpon. Because the Tarpon are so valuable as a sport fish, we count a fish as "caught" when we have the leader in the guides of the fishing rod.
I did that twice with this fish before we set the reel to maximum drag and it broke itself off. I feel I could have landed the fish, but it would have taken another 45 minutes and the fish would have been totally whipped before returning it to the sea. Sport fishing is called that because it is a sport to hunt and catch one of these magnificent ancient creatures on a rod and reel. We don't want to tire them unnecessarily.
Day one: I always consider my trip to be a success if I catch one fish. That i did within 20 minutes of stepping into the boat. There was something going on to excite the fish ... my Captain referred to it as a "hatch". There were lots of birds wheeling around us and dipping into the water to feed. The water was dead calm, and the sun was still below the horizon. We could see the Tarpon moving on the surface ... it is said they come up for air and actually process air for oxygen exchange. I threw my fly out, and lo and behold , the water boiled and I had a hold of 15 pounds of furious fish leaping out of the water to escape my line. This little fish I actually handled with a special pair of gloves and retrieved the fly.
A jump is defined as ..the hook went into the fish, he started screaming line off your reel and he makes a jump. This first jump is critical because when it happens, it is very early in the fight and you will find out if the fish is well hooked. So a jump is an eat with a little more excitement.
I plan to be on the water again tomorrow at 6 AM ... wish me Tight Lines.
We (me and my captain) are trying to present a fly to fish we have seen. Tarpon can be caught with live bait and are, I am sure very exciting with light tackle, but that is not the same as actually seeing the fish you are presenting your fly to. Today we saw few fish, and had few opportunities to present the fly, but for those we did, we had 3 "eats". An eat is defined as a tarpon went totally ballistic when it saw what it thought was food and ate it. Since tarpon fishing is at best a low percentage sport, this is actually a good day. One of those eats might have been a caught fish if I hadn't been so enthusiastic about striking the fish and breaking the line.
Yesterday, day 3 was actually more typical. It was storming early, so we went out late, it was blowing like stink, the push pole broke, and I spent a couple of hours casting blindly in the back country waters. I wore out very quickly, so we quit early.
I really should keep better records of eats, jumps and caught fish, because Day 2 was magical. I had lots of eats, but the highlight was hooking and keeping on my line a 90 pound Tarpon. Because the Tarpon are so valuable as a sport fish, we count a fish as "caught" when we have the leader in the guides of the fishing rod.
 |
| The Big fish ... Almost to the tippet! |
I did that twice with this fish before we set the reel to maximum drag and it broke itself off. I feel I could have landed the fish, but it would have taken another 45 minutes and the fish would have been totally whipped before returning it to the sea. Sport fishing is called that because it is a sport to hunt and catch one of these magnificent ancient creatures on a rod and reel. We don't want to tire them unnecessarily.
Day one: I always consider my trip to be a success if I catch one fish. That i did within 20 minutes of stepping into the boat. There was something going on to excite the fish ... my Captain referred to it as a "hatch". There were lots of birds wheeling around us and dipping into the water to feed. The water was dead calm, and the sun was still below the horizon. We could see the Tarpon moving on the surface ... it is said they come up for air and actually process air for oxygen exchange. I threw my fly out, and lo and behold , the water boiled and I had a hold of 15 pounds of furious fish leaping out of the water to escape my line. This little fish I actually handled with a special pair of gloves and retrieved the fly.
 |
| See the red lights on the horizon? Still before sun-up! |
A jump is defined as ..the hook went into the fish, he started screaming line off your reel and he makes a jump. This first jump is critical because when it happens, it is very early in the fight and you will find out if the fish is well hooked. So a jump is an eat with a little more excitement.
 |
| A jumped Tarpon |
I plan to be on the water again tomorrow at 6 AM ... wish me Tight Lines.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
NSAIDS day 3
For the uninformed, and NSAID is a Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, As good as I felt this morning, I quickly deteriorated at work. I felt very irritated and have a little tintinabulation. I only lasted a couple of hours before I had to call an end to the day.Actually not bad considering we are just on Day 3 and I am not compelled to protect my supply of NSAIDS like an addict hordes his drugs. I went to the Haitian Deli for lunch and I am enjoying their special of the day. I think they are callled camerons with fried yucca and yellow rice. Looked good. Tasted great. Thank heaven for antibiotics!
No headache
achy neck mostly gone
rest of me is ... ah well ... still almost 59 years old and ready for my afternoon nap.
No headache
achy neck mostly gone
rest of me is ... ah well ... still almost 59 years old and ready for my afternoon nap.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Bedtime Day 2
I have already called my boss to tell him i will be available for limited duty tomorrow. I am going back slowly, but I am already going nutso-fartso watching daytime TV.
In sum: no more headache, I can mostly turn my neck, I anticipate a good night's sleep, I don't watch the clock for my next NSAID fix. I feel much better.
I am however taking everyone's advice and continuing the Amoxicillin for the full 3 weeks.
Hugs and love and kisses to all who care enough to read about this.
In sum: no more headache, I can mostly turn my neck, I anticipate a good night's sleep, I don't watch the clock for my next NSAID fix. I feel much better.
I am however taking everyone's advice and continuing the Amoxicillin for the full 3 weeks.
Hugs and love and kisses to all who care enough to read about this.
4 hours
Its been 4 ... count them ... 4 whole hours since I took my last Motrin. My big problems that remain include sore neck and itchy nipple. I may even call Bill to see if he needs some little things done for a half day tomorrow.
One thing I am worried about is what happens the next time I get it? Will it be less virulent the next time I have it? Is that why people don't discover they have this disease ... because they had it so many times before they just don't notice the symptoms?
One thing I am worried about is what happens the next time I get it? Will it be less virulent the next time I have it? Is that why people don't discover they have this disease ... because they had it so many times before they just don't notice the symptoms?
Day Two
With (as Missy put it) speed-ball dosing of acetaminophen and ibuprofen, I think I am even with the fever and headache. I actually slept some last night and even finished my lunch about 2 AM. I figure my sleep cycles are all f***ed up because for the last few days I have been sleeping very fitfully. And I started keeping a log of meds and how I feel. The upshot is that today I am feeling hurty but much better. I am even considering keeping my standing movie date tonight. I hope I can turn my head then. I have been doing Tai Chi stretches with it
Progression of my Lyme's disease
At first, I thought I had the flu after a weekend at my fishing cabin. So I did the Zicam thing because I truly believe that Zicam helps colds end faster. So I was working hard and getting a little sore. And one of my nipples itched a little. By the end of the second week I was really sore. I was losing sleep to the headaches and body aches. On Thursday I was kvetching about my finger joints which I passed off to having worked the day before with a gel stain that required mashing it into the wormholes in the wood. I remember asking my boss if my headache could be a hangover from the volatiles in our varnishes and stains. Sunday I simply called in "sore". Monday morning i had decided that Doctor was more important than work. I could scarcely turn my head. I bought a thermometer and enough Acetaminophen and Ibuprofen for a small army.
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