Monday, December 29, 2014
Munn Lake
Wandering around Oly looking for a place to cast a lure. Munn Lake, a year round fishing lake with boat ramp and internal combustion engines banned. Below: Rainbow trout. Catch and release only--they get to go home for dinner to grow bigger.
ON a diy spinner lure.
Monday, December 22, 2014
Coho or steelhead?
Ben said, "Because of the forked tail I'm calling it a coho."
To which I replied,"Either way, wild ones go back to the river!
"Forked tail? Um, the picture shows my hand grasping the tail base, which could give the appearance of a forked tail!
"Fight over 20 minutes:
"I don't have sufficient depth of fishing to say Chrome colored Coho can hide the white flag that long! Gary R. thinks not. "
The lower jaw and tongue are white: steelhead.
The tail looks forked because my hand squeezes the rays together. If it looked like that without my hand, I'd agree with a coho i.d. I cannot rely on this criterium for i.d.
1. on a trout (or steelhead, by implication) the tip of the anal fin reaches as far back as the base of the fin.
2. On coho the tip falls slightly past the middle of the base.
In the picture above, after correcting for the frame cutting off the tip of the fin, I'd place the tip of the fin well within steelhead territory.
Evidence: Mouth, anal fin, lateness in season, feistiness when hooked.
Verdict: It's a steelhead!
Tuesday, November 25, 2014
I must quit the snide remark circuit
Why do I love F-a$$book?
So who is going to Paradise on Mt. Rainier soon? I left some ski poles in the parking lot in September and the ranger has been keeping them in storage for me. Problem is, I don't see myself getting up there very soon due to injuries that will take me a while to recover from. Sure would appreciate it if someone can retrieve them for me. Let me know ahead of time so I can let the ranger know someone is picking them up. Thanks!!!!
Friday, September 12, 2014
Northwest Coast Trail, Olympic NP South section, again
Again with Ben, August 6 & 7, 2014
Pictures only.
Pictures only.
Tuesday, September 2, 2014
August fishing.
End of August
Bogachiel River 2 miles from the trailhead: a couple of tugs. Much of the trail was too far from the river to access for fishing. River is broad, warm and shallow.
Lake Sylvia: very few bugs. Absent (or shy) fish that won't go for a fly. A better lake for a spinning rod.
US 12/Satsop River boat ramp: not a place to wade and fish
East fork Satsop River in Schaefer State Park: bites, yes from small fish. I can't hook them. Technique or equipment?
Wynoochee R boat ramp on Devonshire road 2 mi N of US 12: bites, no hook.
East shore of Lake Aberdeen: Pikeminnows striking flies for a ride. Fish rising to bugs on the water. Good place to catch.
Fly tying: I tied an Ishigaka Kebari today. picture:
Bogachiel River 2 miles from the trailhead: a couple of tugs. Much of the trail was too far from the river to access for fishing. River is broad, warm and shallow.
Lake Sylvia: very few bugs. Absent (or shy) fish that won't go for a fly. A better lake for a spinning rod.
US 12/Satsop River boat ramp: not a place to wade and fish
East fork Satsop River in Schaefer State Park: bites, yes from small fish. I can't hook them. Technique or equipment?
Wynoochee R boat ramp on Devonshire road 2 mi N of US 12: bites, no hook.
East shore of Lake Aberdeen: Pikeminnows striking flies for a ride. Fish rising to bugs on the water. Good place to catch.
Fly tying: I tied an Ishigaka Kebari today. picture:
Friday, August 29, 2014
Good turn for the week
Yesterday, after scraping and planing the inside of Vern's new canoe, I took a fitness hike with my backpack. Walking back to the house, I came across a cyclist with panniers riding up the hill. He was riding to San Diego and was looking for two trees to spend the night in his hammock. I said he could hang from posts in front of my house. On the walk up to the house, he said he was from Syracuse, NY (hey! I lived there four years), graduated a year ago (Christian Bros. Academy), and was taking off a year from college. He'd taken buses from upstate NY for 4 days to Seattle, another bus to Vancouver, BC, where he stayed in a grungy hostel ($10/night) with drug dealers and other ilk, and where someone stole his bicycle. He'd taken another bus back to Seattle, where he discovered that he'd left his camping hammock at the hostel, bought another hammock at REI (Byer Moskito Kakoon), bought a nice used Jamis Aurora to replace his bike and arranged for a place to stay the night at www.warmshowers.org. From Bremerton, he rode to Aberdeen looking for Stewart Park, and found me instead.
Andrew saw my hammock stand and said, "You know Shug?" After he showered, I looked at his hammock and suspension. I upgraded his rope to whoopie slings ("Dyneema?" he asked)--he offered to pay for them, but I wouldn't have been a good host if I'd accepted. I cut his single polypropylene strap in two and sewed in loops. I gave him my wifi password so he could do what people do on their smartphones.
In the a.m., I made oatmeal with fresh blueberries and he rolled down the hill to Westport.
Andrew saw my hammock stand and said, "You know Shug?" After he showered, I looked at his hammock and suspension. I upgraded his rope to whoopie slings ("Dyneema?" he asked)--he offered to pay for them, but I wouldn't have been a good host if I'd accepted. I cut his single polypropylene strap in two and sewed in loops. I gave him my wifi password so he could do what people do on their smartphones.
In the a.m., I made oatmeal with fresh blueberries and he rolled down the hill to Westport.
Monday, August 25, 2014
More fishing
It's the last week of summer for school kids. A few made a day at Lake Aberdeen with picnics, swimming, etc. The sight of overindulgent pale people in swimsuits made me think of really cheap beer. I had taken my canoe and new fishing gear, expecting to mostly get practice casting as on earlier visits. About noon, I put into the calm water and paddled to the middle, where I extended my new Tenkara rod, put on a furled fly line and cast a fly from the box that came with the Wetfly Tenkara Package I got from Backcountry.com. Fish rose to insects all around--none went for my fly. As the wind picked up, I paddled to the west side and cast the fly into calmer water below trees, where some fish went for the fly, but not well enough to set the hook. These were strikes, not fish nudging the fly out of curiosity--the fish had moved on before I could react to set the hook myself.
I paddled to the east shore, and here the fish overcame their carelessness and bit hard, setting the hook. I pulled in a couple 10" fish and a few smaller fish, releasing all into the lake but one that I invited as a guest for dinner. The bigger fish fought well--my first dinner guest escaped when I tried to club it over the head with my paddle, so I returned to the east shore and caught another, dropping him into the foot pocket of my canoe. I put him into my shoe when I got to shore--his presence at dinner wasn't optional. Because I didn't think I'd caught a trout species, I went to John's house--he said I caught a pike minnow/squaw fish, which he'd never heard of anyone eating. Fishing these near the Columbia River brings a bounty of ~$4 per fish, because this native "junkfish" feeds on salmon and steelhead babies. I got the rice cooking and the fish in the steamer.
The fish cooked for 15 minutes--it tasted like trout, though with more than its share of tiny, colorless bones begging to choke me. A little soy sauce and sesame oil made this fish a star. These are more fun to pull in than to eat, like Jiffy Pop popcorn (back in the day).
The three hours on the lake put to death my view that fish only feed at twilight.
New rule: Fish feed when they see what looks like food and if they think they can get away with taking it.
Newer rule: If I can catch fish, anyone can.
I paddled to the east shore, and here the fish overcame their carelessness and bit hard, setting the hook. I pulled in a couple 10" fish and a few smaller fish, releasing all into the lake but one that I invited as a guest for dinner. The bigger fish fought well--my first dinner guest escaped when I tried to club it over the head with my paddle, so I returned to the east shore and caught another, dropping him into the foot pocket of my canoe. I put him into my shoe when I got to shore--his presence at dinner wasn't optional. Because I didn't think I'd caught a trout species, I went to John's house--he said I caught a pike minnow/squaw fish, which he'd never heard of anyone eating. Fishing these near the Columbia River brings a bounty of ~$4 per fish, because this native "junkfish" feeds on salmon and steelhead babies. I got the rice cooking and the fish in the steamer.
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| A cellphone photo. |
The fish cooked for 15 minutes--it tasted like trout, though with more than its share of tiny, colorless bones begging to choke me. A little soy sauce and sesame oil made this fish a star. These are more fun to pull in than to eat, like Jiffy Pop popcorn (back in the day).
The three hours on the lake put to death my view that fish only feed at twilight.
New rule: Fish feed when they see what looks like food and if they think they can get away with taking it.
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Fish cards, Tenkara fishing
From Lexi:
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I started looking for fishing gear thinking that I would fish a little bit when hiking in the backcountry. Spinning gear & fly fishing gear sit in the house gathering dust. Unable to find the fly rod I'd bought 20 years ago, I began to shop for a new one--maybe a $20 rod from Big5Sporting Goods. Then I remembered seeing something about Tenkara fishing on backpackinglight.com . I read about it online and before I could hold myself back, I had ordered a Wetfly Tenkara Backcountry Package with rod, lines, flies. I opened that package today. I'm ready to go fishing.
I went fishing. Here's my review of that fishing package:
Tenkara fishing is:
1. Japanese fly fishing: a rod, a line, a tippet and a fly. Simple and lightweight.
2. fly fishing without a reel and without the dozens of yards of fly line that would go on reel.
3. fly fishing with a fixed length line which one can quickly change out for different distances and different conditions.
4. fly fishing with a very long, light, telescoping rod with the line attached to the end segment.
I didn't know that much about using a Tenkara rod and didn't know anyone who had one, either. I put together the kit as detailed on various websites & went fishing, i.e. rod>line>tippet>fly. The rod was light, but it felt stiff. Having never cast with another Tenkara road I don't mean stiff compared to other rods, but stiff. After a couple dozen casts, it felt heavy and I switched hands. With 11' of level line, a 6' tippet and a wet fly (caddis) I had hoped the fly would hit the water at least 10' past the rod tip. After multiple casts, the fly landed not 2' beyond the rod tip. After another 30 min practice, I could cast the fly up to 10' beyond the rod tip, but against the wind the fly might land 1' past the rod tip. To do that, it took an amazing effort: an almost violent backcast to 12 o'clock (vertical) and a forceful thrust forward to 2 o'clock.
Next, I paddled my canoe on a local lake, connected the ~12' furled line to the lillian (the lillian is a short ~2" line attached to the rod tip), a tippet and a fly from the package. Casting with this line, I could, with little practice, drop the fly 10-14' away and almost as far into the wind. I could cast using overhead or sidearm techniques, the latter when trees threatened to snag my fly--I could often make the fly hit the water with a splash, attracting fish attention or land lightly on the water to keep from spooking them. I still had a few knotted lines from poor technique, but overall thoroughly enjoyed the fishing. Pikeminnows aggressively struck the fly, once I found the most favorable area to fish.
I discovered on tenkarabum the Common Cents System of measuring and comparing rod flex with other rods. The Wetfly at 41 pennies ranked among the stiffer of the rods in the Common Cents Database which explains the mismatch between the level line and the rod.
Recently, I received a Nissin Pro Square 360, which rates average (17 pennies) in flexibility and can cast a level line. I discovered that the new rod at 2.5 oz did not make my arm sore after 5 minutes as did the 3.7 oz. Wetfly rod.
and
I went fishing. Here's my review of that fishing package:
Tenkara fishing is:
1. Japanese fly fishing: a rod, a line, a tippet and a fly. Simple and lightweight.
2. fly fishing without a reel and without the dozens of yards of fly line that would go on reel.
3. fly fishing with a fixed length line which one can quickly change out for different distances and different conditions.
4. fly fishing with a very long, light, telescoping rod with the line attached to the end segment.
5. intimate fishing from 10-30' away.
6. not magic, it's just fishing.
The good: Wetfly put together a nice outfit. The package included:
- A lightweight rod at 3.7 oz. with a thin nylon sleeve with a tie-down flap closure
- A very sturdy rod tube for transporting the rod in a suitcase or duffel bag. I'd leave it at home or in the car, when going fishing.
- a level line and a furled line--these are the casting lines, intended to carry the tippet (also included) and the fly forward to land on water.
- A pretty bamboo fly box, if a bit heavy at 5.5 oz. with a dozen handsome flies. The included tippet, level line and furled line are wound on spools that can be used to hold different length lines.
- You can go fish with what the package contains.
The not so good:
1. No instructions whatsoever, not even a note indicating where on the Internet to find instructions--it loses a star for that. Simple things such as rod assembly, rod disassembly, rod care, which line attaches to what line, what knots to use and how to cast. I found good information at tenkara websites among them, tenkaratalk, tenkarabum, tenkaratimes, tenkarausa, badgertenkara. The other Tenkara sites offered information as well as the merchandise at competitive prices.
2. The included "level line" was so insubstantial that it didn't carry a fly very far. The included level line is a nylon monofilament line that is about the same weight as 4-6 lb. test--the included tippet is almost the same weight. The line is also colorless, so one could miss seeing the subtle tugs that indicate a strike. Luckily, the "furled leader" in the kit saved the day, as had enough mass to propel the fly forward. Wetfly calls this furled line a "leader"--they shouldn't. The tippet a thin fishing line that connects the fly to the casting line. The furled line is 10-12 strands of thin nylon monofilament braided to a thickness of about 1/16". I'd take away half a star for the wimpy level line.
Next, I paddled my canoe on a local lake, connected the ~12' furled line to the lillian (the lillian is a short ~2" line attached to the rod tip), a tippet and a fly from the package. Casting with this line, I could, with little practice, drop the fly 10-14' away and almost as far into the wind. I could cast using overhead or sidearm techniques, the latter when trees threatened to snag my fly--I could often make the fly hit the water with a splash, attracting fish attention or land lightly on the water to keep from spooking them. I still had a few knotted lines from poor technique, but overall thoroughly enjoyed the fishing. Pikeminnows aggressively struck the fly, once I found the most favorable area to fish.
I discovered on tenkarabum the Common Cents System of measuring and comparing rod flex with other rods. The Wetfly at 41 pennies ranked among the stiffer of the rods in the Common Cents Database which explains the mismatch between the level line and the rod.
Recently, I received a Nissin Pro Square 360, which rates average (17 pennies) in flexibility and can cast a level line. I discovered that the new rod at 2.5 oz did not make my arm sore after 5 minutes as did the 3.7 oz. Wetfly rod.
Thursday, August 14, 2014
Snowgrass Flat--Goat Ridge Loop
Thank goodness for golf, softball, soccer, etc. or we might have seen all those people on the trail to Goat Lake in the Goat Rocks Wilderness.
Ben & I left Olympia at 1700 Friday Aug 8, 2014. Trailhead start: 1930.
Having made camp just short of the Goat Creek bridge, we prepared to hang our food. Ben tossed a rock bag tied to my rope over a high branch & we used the PCT method. We set up camp: Ben, his Bear Mountain Bridge Hammock, and me, my DIY bridge hammock. After a short meal, we went to the bridge with headlights and Ben's Canon G1X camera & itty bitty tripod. Ben focused and framed, then opened the shutter, turning me loose to "paint" the dark landscape using the spotlight from my headlamp. Photo below. Delicious fun, if you ever get the chance.
Photography done, we retired to our hammocks. Not long after tucking in, I learned the downside of sleeping to the sound of a creek rushing past--I got cold. I hoped I had incorrectly attached my underquilt and checked--no such luck. My Marmot Hydrogen sleeping bag (30 degree rating) didn't keep me warm. I balanced pulling out my insulating air mattress & losing heat while doing so against doing nothing--I stayed in and stayed cold. I envied Ben with his long experience hammock camping, warm and cozy in his hammock. Morning found both of us remarking how cold we felt. Cold fingers made coffee, tea and hot meals and broke camp. We left, warming quickly with each step away from the Goat Creek drainage. People tell the truth after a cold night, but now I wish I'd said, " You were cold? I was sweating all night and had to tear off a layer. Yeah, and I'm a cold sleeper.". I have no sense of humor.
We passed very slowly through Snowgrass Flats, wildflowers doing their blooming best.
Tent camps abounded, as did mosquitoes, which homed in on Ben, biting through his shirt. I took 4 bites on exposed skin only, having treated my clothes and hat with permethrin. Impressively, many parties hiked with young children, down to 8 years old or so. We saw hikers from Nepal and Colombia. We feasted on views of Mt. Adams south of us.
Following a long lunch at Goat Lake we ascended the trail 200' to straddle the Goat Ridge, then dropped into the Jordan Basin, filling our water bottles at the last trickle on the long leg back to the trailhead. We walked on, at times seeing Mt. Rainier to the northwest, Mt. Adams south and Mt. St. Helens southwest. About 1600, dog-tired, we made camp between some trees on a moderately sloped hillside far from any natural drainage. The thick base of pine needles on the ground at our campsite forced a relocation of our kitchens to the dirt trail, where we lit our stoves and cooked. We had water enough for dinner and breakfast tea. Nightfall brought much warmer air than the evening before.
Pictures on the way out:
Notes to self,
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| Digital photography still amazes us old school shutter bugs. |
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| Tiny waterfalls along the trail. |
Photography done, we retired to our hammocks. Not long after tucking in, I learned the downside of sleeping to the sound of a creek rushing past--I got cold. I hoped I had incorrectly attached my underquilt and checked--no such luck. My Marmot Hydrogen sleeping bag (30 degree rating) didn't keep me warm. I balanced pulling out my insulating air mattress & losing heat while doing so against doing nothing--I stayed in and stayed cold. I envied Ben with his long experience hammock camping, warm and cozy in his hammock. Morning found both of us remarking how cold we felt. Cold fingers made coffee, tea and hot meals and broke camp. We left, warming quickly with each step away from the Goat Creek drainage. People tell the truth after a cold night, but now I wish I'd said, " You were cold? I was sweating all night and had to tear off a layer. Yeah, and I'm a cold sleeper.". I have no sense of humor.
We passed very slowly through Snowgrass Flats, wildflowers doing their blooming best.
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| Our hillside camp |
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| Mt. Rainier from atop a rock pile on loop trail 95/95A |
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| Mt. Adams |
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| top of the 95/95A loop |
- an underquilt with Climashield Apex 6.0 won't keep you warm below 40 degrees F.
- Cold air coming down the mountain follows stream-beds and ravines.
- Bring three liters of water capacity.
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