There’s been plenty of talk about the heavy winter this year in the Sierras. Below is a picture that speaks volumes. This picture, of Mt. Dana and Tioga Lake, was taken by Steven from SierraVisions.com on June 10th.
This photo was taken during the middle of June.
On those days that you can’t get out to the water — at least those of us who aren’t yet leading the life of retirement — you might find some enjoyment in reading Fishing on the Edge by Mike Iaconelli. For those who’ve never inadvertently accidentally found themselves watching a bass tournament on ESPN during the early morning or late evening hours, the Philadelphia-born and New Jersey-raised Mr. Iaconelli (aka “Ike”) is one of the pro fisherman “blamed” for stealing the spotlight from BASS’ traditionally southern anglers. He weaves a whopper of a story about a college-educated kid with tattoos and a hip-hop soundtrack climbing through the ranks to take first place at the 2003 CITGO Bassmaster Classic. He has attracted both fan and foes for his antics, but one can’t slight his enthusiasm for fishing. While “attacking” bass is very different from stalking trout, Fishing on the Edge is a passionate, informative and often hilarious tale of a truly amazing personality.
I’ve finally taken my first big step on the way to learning about and/or how to fly fish. A big envelope arrived over the weekend, which I opened to reveal my very own and first fly rod. While the idea of fly fishing bring to my mind the possibility of great adventures and big trout, the size of this thing is a bit intimidating…it’s nine-feet long. To be more specific, it’s a nine-foot 5-wt. rod; the type recommended for beginners who might drop a fly in the steams of the Sierra Nevada. Though I am sure that I’ll try using it a few times during the early summer, now I’m truly looking forward to our basic fly fishing class in August!
After resigning myself to having a pro install the power line for my Icom IC-2720 radio (VHF/UHF amateur radio) in my 2003 Honda Accord, I spent Saturday pondering the position of the head unit and speaker. I knew where I wanted them to go, but it took a bit of pulling and prying to get some of the trim out of the way so I could pull the CD container at the base of the center console. Here’s how it ended up…
Radio close up.
The rest was pretty simple, though time consuming. I used a block of wood cut to fit the bottom the CD container, then mounted, via some bent brass straps, the radio control head, with the speaker behind it. Though it might not give me the best sound, I can throw the mic into the compartment and close the door and every thing is out of sight. I ended up running the control cable and speaker wire through the back of the compartment, then underneath it, and since I had the trim removed both wires run underneath the coin pockt/power outlet cover and the shifter cover and emerge alongside the passenger seat, where the main body of the radio will reside. Below is a close up of the radio control head and the speaker.
Radio close up.
The mic holder is, of course, made of bent coat hanger and is attached inside the glove compartment door. (Why do we call them “glove compartments” when rarely will on find actual gloves inside?) The mic holder took all of about 30 minutes to fabricate and install.
Though it didn’t turn out exactly as I had envisioned, I thnk it will work well. Particularly since I now have the control head angled towards the driver’s seat, so it should be quite visible. (The LCD on this unit doesn’t have a wide range of visibility to the side.) During the next week or so I’ll have the power line in and have to decide on an antenna mount.
Oh, also finished re-screening all the screens this weekend!
My nearly daily commute never fails to alert me to the fact that summer is just around the corner. Is it the flowering of the weeds alongside the roadway? Perhaps the blessing of sunlight during my early morning drive? The shimmering of heat waves above the highway in the afternoon?
None of the above. It’s the traffic. Near as I can figure, it’s not so much the vacationers; it seems to be the folks who work out of doors who compound my commute. The start of their day corresponds with the rising of the sun. (Making hay while the sun shines.)
This year it is especially bad. The number of big trucks — most semis towing bottom dump trailers (for hauling or moving dirt) — seems to have exploded this week. I don’t have a clue as to why, but my windshield is sure taking a beating!
I added a page with some of my custom POI files this morning. The three files cover the California state parks, the California missions (and Costcos in California, Oregon and Washington, with notes on which have gas stations. If you have some to share, drop me an e-mail. Check back for more lists and I may even share my fishing spot POI file… You can also download the files via the links below.
• Costco Stores
• California State Parks
• The California Missions
Though I didn’t spend Memorial Day weekend as expected (no cabin or fishing), I did get out and about. Saw “X-Men: The Last Stand,” “MI:III” and “Over the Hedge”…all good films. “X-Men” is great and “Over the Hedge” is hilarious. “MI:III” is definitely full of action, but seemed too polished, if you know what I mean.
Also got in some bowling with one son…I won two out of three games, but soon enough I may be on the losing end more often. Also got to Home Depot to stock up on screen material and spline. Re-screened about half the windows in the house. (One of the simpliest home-improvement projects I can think of.) As the house approaches 20 years old, just gotta do some of these things.
In between the above and video games, sat down with Chris to sketch out plans for a possible chicken run/coop. He wants a chicken or two. Zoning says it’s okay, so we shall see…
Oh, also tweaked my blog’s appearance. I’m getting better at this. A tweak here and a tweak there and there’s whole new look to my blog. Thought this was a much cleaner look. Let me know!
The good news is that Hwy 108 over Sonora Pass is open. The bad news is that Chris is sick, so we aren’t going up for the long weekend. Washed the cars yesterday, so figure we’ll do some around-the-house work, maybe go to the office, where Chris will help me plow through some old computers and prepare them for recycling. Will be nice to not to have to get up for three days.
Oh, BTW, my newest acquisition is below.
Headed out toward Half Moon Bay on Sunday with Chris, even through the horizon was hidden by clouds. We were given a hint of things to come as we passed through Hayward, where heavy rain slowed our passage. But we were given to a bit of optimism in San Mateo, where it was relatively dry. It was a bit odd to drive westbound on Highway 92 during daylight hours as we usually drove this road on the way to a day of rock fishing, at oh-dark-thirty in the a.m.
The road to nowhere…
We pulled onto Half Moon Bay’s Main Street shortly after the noon hour and walked around looking for a place to eat. Nothing struck our fancy, so it was time to head north. Soon after passing the intersection of Highways 92 and 1, we were greeting by a funny, improvised sign. We pulled off at Pillar Point and quickly decided to give the Half Moon Bay Brewing Co. a try. We enjoyed some very good fish and chips, and I drank a very good Bootlegger’s Brown Ale. (Too bad it’s not bottled!)
After lunch and after the rain had slackened, we headed south on Highway 1, taking in the dray and somewhat dreary view. Stopped briefly at the Pigeon Point Lighthouse, then headed towards Pescadero. I was going by my limited memory of a street name that might lead us to the Harley Farms Goat Dairy, and with the help of an almost-too-small sign, found the turn. Even finding the cheese shop was a bit difficult as it’s tucked behind a farm gate with no prominent sign. Luckily, we were at the gate when Dee Harley, the driving force behind the farm, passed by leading a tour and invited us to poke around the shop. Chris and I probably ate more of the cheese samples than might be considered polite, but that speaks to how good it was. I would definitely recommend that anyone who enjoys goat cheese stop here. We bought two plain chèvre logs and a small block of goat feta cheese.
Just about the time we turned on to Highway 92, headed for our reason for this trip (my nephew’s baseball game), I got a call that the game had been called due to rain. But that didn’t stop us from heading over to my sister’s for a fun visit and good food at Windy City Chicago Style Pizza, also home of “Knuckle Suckin’ BBQ.” Even got to listen to my other nephew play a bit of “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” on the piano. It was a good day.
I won’t be heading to Sacramento to server on a U.S. District Court jury afterall…seems that after reading my letter regarding the professional, personal and financial hardships that I and my family might incur, the clerk decided I wasn’t worth the trouble.
fishing for words 