fishing for words

Got some pre-trout season fishing in with the club last Saturday. We headed to Kistler Ranch, which is just off Highway 108 and offers three large ponds (or small lakes if you’d like) containing bass, crappie and bluegill. The sky was clear but the wind played with us all day. Unfortunately, the water temperature was on the low end for bass and sunfish spawning or feeding.

This was my first time float tubing and I think I did well. The wind required constant adjustment, and a day later I felt sore muscles in my legs that I previously didn’t know existed. But it was fun to float around and target the weed beds from an off-shore position.

It’s said that “A bad day fishing is better than a good day at work,” and that adage applies to much of this day. I was able to encourage one strike during the morning, smack dap in the middle of some weeds. Ironically, I was fishing from the shore when this happened.

But I got the stink off in the afternoon with a solid strike and hook up with a decent largemouth bass. This time it was from the float tube, giving me the unique experience of playing a fish while floating in the water. Hope this is a good sign that I won’t see too much skunking during the coming trout season!

P.S. For the non-fishers, one refers to not catching a single fish as being “skunked,” hence the stink reference.

Want to feel more connected to the world? (In this sense, “world” means earth and her environs.) I would suggest riding a motorcycle.

After a few months of riding locally when the weather allowed, I put on my gear and left for work Monday morning. My only trepidation was the possibility of having to resort to lane splitting (not lane sharing).

Thankfully, the weather and traffic were great. It was fun taking the side roads out of Benicia and behind Vallejo. It still seems a bit odd to spool up to 5,000 RPM to keep up with traffic, but my little CB650SC easily keeps pace.

The connectedness one can feel with the outside world is pretty amazing; and it seems that motorcycling might just offer the last everyday adventure for the average Joe. Traversing Hwy 37 one can feel the temperature drop as you cross the marshes and rivers. You can smell the results of low tide as well as the recent plowing of the fields. Yes, it’s very cool.

Portland’s Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon (TriMet) denied a request from Salmon for Savings, a branch of the Bring the Salmon Home Campaign, to place an ad on TriMet buses. The ad below is aimed at prompting consumers to taking a look at the controversial Klamath River dams.

Sure, the salmon seem to be a bit sad-eyed, but it sure don’t seem that controversial to me. Maybe TriMet is somehow in cahoots with Pacific Power?