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I went fishing yesterday with my Dad, Raine, and Elanya. For the first half of the day, we drove around in a fruitless attempt to find a particular fishing hole. When we thought we finally may have found it, we clambered out of the car. As I stood on the road and looked at the stream, I heard my sister yell, "Bear!"
My heart jumped up into my throat, and I immediately ran back to the car while looking around quickly to see where it was. I was the only one who didn't catch a glimpse. It was a yearling cub, and it had just darted across the road about fifteen feet away from us. So we all got back into the car and drove away. We didn't want to tangle with a protective momma bear. Nuh-uh.
We ended up in the same place where I'd fished last time: Shin Creek. Elanya and I, in our short gum boots, stayed close to the road, and Raine and Dad put on hip waders and gallumphed their ways way, way out into the swampy waters. I jealously listened to them announce every now and then that they'd caught one, and that it was a biggun.
Elanya and I weren't getting so much as a nibble. And then Elanya had rod issues, when her line tangled horribly and frequently. I had my own problems. I hooked a deadhead, and couldn't get my lure back. When I finally decided I'd sacrifice the lure and go get a new one, the tip of my rod decided to come off and slide way out into the water, far beyond my reach. So I wedged the rest of the rod in a place where it wouldn't get lost, and went back to the car for the spare.
It was pretty hot and sunny, but remarkably bug-free. I stripped off my big jeans and longsleeved shirt and stood their in all my mismatched gym clothes glory. My cycling shorts were red and black. My sports bra was purple and fluorescent green. I was wearing a beige fishing hat, and my legs poked out of black gum boots. Oh yeah, I was one sexy mama.
I put more bug dope and sunscreen on, and wondered what sort of chemical reaction was happening with the mixture. Then I decided to meander my way out into the marsh. Elanya and I agreed to share the spare rod.
I felt like Frodo making his way through the Dead Marshes. It was tricky going, but I found a moose trail, and that helped a bit. Miraculously, neither Elanya or I got drenched. My sister didn't fare so well, though. She ended up falling in, and getting soaked to her waist in brown water.
Dad and Raine were still catching fish. Raine screamed and squawked a lot, for all sorts of reasons. She cheered whenever she caught a fish, or finally squished a horsefly that had been pestering her. She especially squealed when she put the fish she caught in her hip waders and they swam and squirmed around her legs.
Finally, I caught a fish, too: an ittybitty trout. And then I caught the same chub two or three times. Elanya didn't have any luck at all.
Well, she did sort of catch something.
At one point, while we were still close to the road, she tried to cast, and the line went straight down in front of her. That's when I noticed a cute little green frog right by the end of her rod. "You're right by a frog," I said.
"Where?"
"Tip your rod a little to the left. No, back a little bit. Down. There? See it?"
And that's when the weirdness happened. The frog jumped straight up and bit the worm right off her hook.
We both yelped in surprise. Her hook was bare.
And then the frog made a really loud and highpitched squeak before jumping up again. Astonishingly enough, it had rebaited the hook. The worm was back! And then the frog just swam away. Woah....
My heart jumped up into my throat, and I immediately ran back to the car while looking around quickly to see where it was. I was the only one who didn't catch a glimpse. It was a yearling cub, and it had just darted across the road about fifteen feet away from us. So we all got back into the car and drove away. We didn't want to tangle with a protective momma bear. Nuh-uh.
We ended up in the same place where I'd fished last time: Shin Creek. Elanya and I, in our short gum boots, stayed close to the road, and Raine and Dad put on hip waders and gallumphed their ways way, way out into the swampy waters. I jealously listened to them announce every now and then that they'd caught one, and that it was a biggun.
Elanya and I weren't getting so much as a nibble. And then Elanya had rod issues, when her line tangled horribly and frequently. I had my own problems. I hooked a deadhead, and couldn't get my lure back. When I finally decided I'd sacrifice the lure and go get a new one, the tip of my rod decided to come off and slide way out into the water, far beyond my reach. So I wedged the rest of the rod in a place where it wouldn't get lost, and went back to the car for the spare.
It was pretty hot and sunny, but remarkably bug-free. I stripped off my big jeans and longsleeved shirt and stood their in all my mismatched gym clothes glory. My cycling shorts were red and black. My sports bra was purple and fluorescent green. I was wearing a beige fishing hat, and my legs poked out of black gum boots. Oh yeah, I was one sexy mama.
I put more bug dope and sunscreen on, and wondered what sort of chemical reaction was happening with the mixture. Then I decided to meander my way out into the marsh. Elanya and I agreed to share the spare rod.
I felt like Frodo making his way through the Dead Marshes. It was tricky going, but I found a moose trail, and that helped a bit. Miraculously, neither Elanya or I got drenched. My sister didn't fare so well, though. She ended up falling in, and getting soaked to her waist in brown water.
Dad and Raine were still catching fish. Raine screamed and squawked a lot, for all sorts of reasons. She cheered whenever she caught a fish, or finally squished a horsefly that had been pestering her. She especially squealed when she put the fish she caught in her hip waders and they swam and squirmed around her legs.
Finally, I caught a fish, too: an ittybitty trout. And then I caught the same chub two or three times. Elanya didn't have any luck at all.
Well, she did sort of catch something.
At one point, while we were still close to the road, she tried to cast, and the line went straight down in front of her. That's when I noticed a cute little green frog right by the end of her rod. "You're right by a frog," I said.
"Where?"
"Tip your rod a little to the left. No, back a little bit. Down. There? See it?"
And that's when the weirdness happened. The frog jumped straight up and bit the worm right off her hook.
We both yelped in surprise. Her hook was bare.
And then the frog made a really loud and highpitched squeak before jumping up again. Astonishingly enough, it had rebaited the hook. The worm was back! And then the frog just swam away. Woah....
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no subject
Date: 2003-06-17 09:10 am (UTC)From:Maybe it was the equivalent of you throwing a fish back? Maybe it wasn't ripe enough? *laughs*
no subject
Date: 2003-06-18 03:13 pm (UTC)From:A bit before it started on the news though, my grandfather met up with a pair. A mother and a cub, back in the woods behind my late great-grandmother's house.
He saw the cub, and figured he'd better not hang around, so he walked back to the jeep and sat in it, then watched the mother and the cub climb a big tree and go to sleep. He could have left anytime, but he hung around for more than an hour before he drove off.
My grandfather's a nature nut that way. I'm not sure I'd have stayed a whole hour to watch a sleeping bear. But I wouldn't have driven off immediately either.
If I had a book, maybe :p