Another First for Joe

Yet again I missed a good day fishing. Last Saturday, a rainy day, I went to work after Joe cooked me breakfast. The rain diminished by noon, so Joe decided to give fishing a try. Someone was already at his spot, so he settled on his second choice. The whole trip up to the pool below the falls was totally fishless. Just as Joe was about to give up, he threw a night crawler.... Unexpectedly this 27" summer run Steelhead (rainbow that came up the river to spawn) materialized. In fact, this was the second one Joe hooked on after the first one broke his line (his first time ever trout fishing). Joe had heard about DNR planting summer run rainbows 30 years ago, but had never caught a full grown one. So he was probably the one most surprised with his catch. 
You can guess that next day I was all ready for a big one, and of course we almost got skunked. A handful of small rainbow trout under 6" between the two of us. Also we picked some wild raspberries on the bank. A good year for them. 

Sunday's highlights were our lunch at Big Burger Grill and afternoon beer at Blackrocks. 3 glasses each, 6 total, is our limit. 

Fishing Report This Week

I haven't been able to have a weekend day off from work, so we go fishing on weekdays, usually after Joe comes home from work. This Monday, a beautiful day, we started our adventure with a stop at Big Burger Grill. We also tried a new spot to fish, actually Joe fished there once 20 years ago with Dad. Now, its access point is a bit more visible, therefore we had been thinking of trying the spot. 
Just as we thought our highlights of this outing would be the burgers and the gorgeous scenery, Joe caught this beautiful 12" Brookie. So there are fish!
Two holes downstream I pulled out a 15" Brown, which we first thought was a snag but moved. Of course, Joe wants to point out that HE told me exactly where to cast. This fish swallowed my hook and already started bleeding, so we ended up keeping it. A freshly caught/dead fish still twitches all too randomly, which makes me squirmy. That's why I have a funny face in the picture.

We kept on exploring the stream. We came upon an OLD log cabin that had caved in a long ago. It must have been a glorious place to camp and fish once upon a time.... The river is still there, and fish to be caught. Though yesterday we had hard time proving that fish were there. We walked further downstream and could see more reasons and holes to come back for. 

Joe Got Pierced? (Yes, He Did)

Last Monday, the day after Joe missed a 20" Brown, we went back to the same spot in the evening. Joe told me how to cast, and I caught a 12" Brown on my first try! Then Joe demonstrated how exactly he casted the day before, and WHAM! the same big Brown was on his line. Joe's rod bent in half, while he carefully reeled the fish in to the rocky bank. Meanwhile, over excitement, I forgot how to operate my camera and didn't even take a picture of the fish in the water. The next moment, the lure was on Joe's forearm!? The fish shook its head just so, and the line flew toward us. The fish rolled and slowly dove underwater. For the next 15 minutes Joe fought with his pliers to release the hooks. His very first time in all his life fishing. And yes, we did go back to the spot one more time, and no luck. Partly because Joe didn't have the same exact lure. All its hooks bent, he had to retire this particular "good luck" lure.

Onto another subject, Joe stained and clear-coated the leftover butcher block piece from our kitchen island project. We put it into a good use as our yakitori table. We used it for the first time this Saturday. It looks good. More reason to have yakitori dinner.

4th of July Weekend

The 4th of July has come and gone. The weather cooperated for our fireworks at the lake. It was worth the wait. While the natural beauty is a gift, Mother Nature with lots of rain has caused grief recently. First up in the Keweenaw, and then southern Japan. It makes us appreciate to be able to do normal things.

I had to work all weekend, but Joe had a good morning fishing yesterday. The BIG fish story was that he missed 20" Brown that felt like he was pulling a salmon. The fish actually bent his hook and got away! The below photos show a respectable 12" Brookie that Joe brought home. Before and After. Yes, I (Kayo) ate most of it, not a cat.