"Train"ing

This morning, I awakened and walked to my 6:13am train. It was kind of an overcast morning, slightly gray with a mild temperature of 61 degrees.

As I cradled my hot cup of coffee and crossed the Beacon Falls bridge, I heard a wisp. The wisp of a fly – the sound so familiar - flowing back and forth at the end of someone’s fly rod. The river was running fast but over all of that noise, I could still hear the sound.

It is like the sound of a distant train that you could hear from your childhood bed as your lay there in the still of the night. Or the sound of peepers in the spring as the sun sets. Familiar. Real. Present.

I glanced down to the left and there was a man, standing in the river. On his back was a trout net. He wore a dark green fly fishing vest and donned a baseball cap backwards. Oh, how I wish it were a Saturday morning and I could put on my boots and join him. As my bridge crossing came to an end, I glanced back once more and there he stood with a small brown in his hand, delicately removing the hook. I stopped and watched him return the fish to the calm waters below me.

Wisp. Snap. Wisp. Snap. The sound lulled me on the train ride to work.

Dogfish Head

OK, today's entry is far more shallow than the previous entry. Dogfish head is an IPA (India Pale Ale)..a beer, not an actual anatomical component of a fish!

These IPAs come in 30 minute, 60 minute, and 90 minute varieties. Check out the Dogfish site!

This particular IPA is quite tasty and for me, it delivered quite a punch. I think that I managed to get tipsy from consuming two of these beers.
90 minute IPA

So, just when you thought that a dogfish had a tail (and a head), think twice before you go to buy beer the next time around! IPAs are more potent, similar to the bite of the bigger, stronger fish...

Catch and Release

So much of life is unexpected. Just when you're not looking, it strikes. Life, a fish or the fleeting idea you have attempted to capture for a good portion of a day.

Many thanks to Heather for sharing this beautiful Sarah Rossiter poem with me.

Catch and Release

It was once in early May, a raw day,
Bitter, on a western creek, I crouched
Beneath a weeping willing, expecting
Nothing, resting really, the black back
Eddy smooth as glass when suddenly
The rod tip bent with such great force
I almost fell, but didn't though
I couldn't move, it was that cramped
Beneath the tree nor could I even raise
My rod. I could only hold my breath,
The reel singing, line spun out,
Pulled by what I couldn't see, but
How I longed for just a glimpse,
A glimpse would be enough, I thought,
Until a glimmer showed itself, a flash
Of light deep in the dark, and then,
Of course I wanted more, the all of it
To see and hold before releasing,
Letting go. Like life, the way we're meant
To live, to let each breath be all there is,
But seldom do; it isn't easy.
Perhaps I prayed, I can't be sure, but
Inch by inch, the fish drew near, until
The moment, timeless, now, a rainbow
Like a blessing rose, shimmering,
A gift bestowed.
- Sarah Rossiter

It Just Dawned on Me

I am slowly beginning to learn and understand that not everyone likes to fish. I guess I could have taken a clue last year when I set up this site when my hit counter was 5 and no one was commenting. I don't know a lot of people who revel in tatting, but I have one friend who does it. The point is that your hobbies tend to dictate some of who you are.

Over the years, I have consistently found that fishing grounds me - centers me. Even if I don't catch anything, just the action of casting, reeling, and being with nature can do wonders for the soul. The trickling of the water, the birds, the sunshine on my shoulders that makes me happy (OK, no more bad John Denver interludes).

I find it logical that my hobbies and interests include those types of activities that one can do alone. I am very good at being alone. I always have been. I enjoy people so much more now than I ever did before (not that I am a curmudgeon-like social recluse), but I still appreciate the morning hours - when over the horizon, orange hues rise to meet the darkness of the sky, which we call dawn.

Fishing Shows Proven to Increase Cardio Vascular Activity

The other day, I was on the elliptical at the gym. I was plugged into a sports channel (via headphones) watching reviews of the Yankees and college hoops. Within about 10 minutes, an AWESOME show came on about walleye and small mouth bass. These fish were fighters and all I can say is that the small mouth bass were all fat and happy! It was by far the most realistic fishing show that I have seen in quite some time.

To me, there is nothing more misleading than a television show that portrays fishing as some totally active, always "on" type of sport. Fishing requires patience, respect for nature, serenity, and a keen eye for "spots." These guys did a great job of describing lures, showing how to properly catch and release, all of it. Problem is, I don't remember the name of the show. They were two middle-aged men who had obviously been doing this (fishing and making the show) for a while... I'll update my blog if I think of it.

And my workout? Well, it ended more rapidly than I anticipated...thanks to the awesome fishing show! Tips up!

Stepping Up in the World

I recently heard a story on the radio about the installation of a fish ladder in Carman's River, in Brookhaven, NY. A fish ladder. As if fish have feet and can climb.

The fish ladder is used to bypass an impassible waterway. The ladder allows the fish to get up the river to spawn. In the case of Carman's river, the fish could never get all they way up the river to spawn. With the installation of the fish ladder, the fish can now "climb" up the river to spawn via the ladder.

The concept of a fish ladder has been introduced in a number of aquatic environments. All I have to say is, "Dam!"

Opening Days are here again....

For many New England states, opening days are right around the corner. This means that it is time to dust off those reels, rig some poles, grab some live bait or flies, and hit a lake or river.

I recently ran across a nice fishing calendar from New York State. These are the kinds of calendars that you can keep and refer back to when you're not sure where to go or what to hit each weekend. I used to be a bit more diligent than I am now and mark goals and trips in my calendar. I have recently had some synchronizing problems, what with a blackberry, a google calendar, outlook, and then my home calendar.

Point is - organizing some time to fish this year. There are lots of events for kids (i.e., the Simsbury Take a Kid fishing day, the Take Me Fishing program, and even the state run No Child Left Behind program).

Fishing is family-oriented, fun, and easy! Some places even offer clinics - take a look around!