Opt Outside

Have a safe journey home little buddy

The last few years REI has been closed  on Black Friday. Instead of crazy deals to lure in customers, they do not open up. Best of all, they pay the employees anyway. They do this as their Opt Outside initiative. The plan is to get the employees (who are mostly adventurers anyway) to go do something outdoors. I think this is a pretty cool thing for a big company to do. Especially considering Black Friday is one of the biggest shopping days of the year. The original plan was to get a million people to follow suit. Instead of shopping, the hope was they would also go outside.

Since I have Fridays off from work anyway, I usually plan to be outside on Black Friday. I won't pretend I didn't make a quick run to Bass Pro Shops to buy a reel and a fleece. But that was well after the early bird shoppers were back in bed. After going to BPS, I went fishing.

On Thanksgiving, I went for a hike at Parker Woodlands in Coventry, RI. I planned on doing all seven miles of trail. However, Laurie wanted to come over after eating dinner with her family. I cut my hike down to four miles so I could be home when Laurie came over. I was rewarded with hot chocolate, a turkey plate (turkey, cranberry sauce, and stuffing) and a piece of apple pie. Didn't I say she was a great friend!

Hickory Shad

So today, I went fishing. I think this will be my last hurrah for migrating stripers. I wanted one more chance to catch them before they all head down south. I went to one of the South County beaches. There were about seven other guys fishing when I got there. I fished for two hours and landed six schoolies and one shad. I saw quite a few others caught. Two guys that I know got a combined twenty. These were all smaller fish. The biggest I caught was twenty inches. Still it beat sitting home.

The temp was in the high forties and the sun was bright. The light breeze was coming over my right shoulder so it was fairly comfortable out. After dark I tried a tidal river for a few minutes. Although I didn't get any in my twenty minutes, I did see a couple caught.

All in all going fishing sure as hell beat fighting traffic, crowds, and long lines.
Opt Outside! 

I couldn't tell if this logjam was man made, an act of god
or the work of a beaver at Parker Woodlands. 

Things I am Thankful For 2017

Right about now, this turkey is thankful it lives in a Providence
Cemetery where hunting is not allowed

Every year I write a blogpost about outdoor things I am thankful for (I also write an opening paragraph eerily similar to this one...every year). These posts allow me to look back on what are usually some great memories. I know how lucky I am to see and do so many fun things throughout the year.  It only seems I give thanks for the people and the memories I was privileged to have experienced this year

1. I say it every year, but I am thankful for stripers. They may not be the reason I get out of bed each morning, but they are certainly the reason I don't go straight home after work during the warmer months.

2. I am thankful that Laurie and I are so compatible as vacation buddies.  I know very few woman that enjoy history and museums. I know even fewer that would spend the night backpacking in the White Mountains. I doubt there are many woman at all that enjoy history AND are willing to spend a night in the woods. Even after a week of being together 24/7 in Philly, I never get sick of being with her. She is a great friend.

3. I am thankful that I (mostly with Laurie) experienced many different things this year I had never done. Among them were Newport Polo, going to a Drive In Movie, Rhode Island Philharmonic Summer Concert, Dropkick Murphys,  Waterfire, and many more.

4. I am thankful for my friendship with Dave. I enjoy the nights we don't catch many fish almost as much as the good nights because I still ask him a lot of questions. We cover the spectrum of conversation from sports, politics, our kids and of course fishing.

5. Although foot pain derailed my plan to finish the New Hampshire 4000 footers, I am grateful that it subsided enough in the fall that I could get two hikes out of the way. This leaves me with only two more to go. Both Carrigan and the Widcats have exceptional views and the days I went the weather was great.

6.  I love New Hampshire. I am glad that it is within distance to do overnight weekends. I probably daydream about hiking in New Hampshire more than everything else I daydream about combined. I love the mountains, lakes, waterfalls, brookies, and smallmouth and the blueberries.  If I ever lost my job in late spring or early summer, I know I'd be in New Hampshire for the summer before my last check was mailed to me!.

7. I am thankful I got to see the Beach Boys at Bold Point, East Providence and Brian Wilson at Foxwoods a month later. There are not a lot of true living legends, but these guys are.

8. I am thankful for a new friend. He made me feel comfortable right away at my fishing club. He went out of his way to tell me about a new fishing spot this spring. This fall we have gone hiking a couple times. His generosity is much appreciated.

9.  I am thankful we were successful when I took Eric fishing for golden trout. It was nice to repay him for taking me on his boat for sea bass every year.

10. I'm thankful I got to go to Philadelphia. Seeing Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, Rodin statues, Valley Forge, and Monet's were all awe inspiring.  To think that I walked right where Washington, Adams, Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson stood is truly humbling

11. Some of my favorite memories this spring were seeing Right Whales at Race Point, a King Eider at the Cape Cod Canal, catching lake trout and salmon at the Chu. I'm just glad I got to see these animals.

12. I am thankful I saw Peter Noone and the Hermin's Hermits at the Topsfield Fair. That guy is a true showman and as funny as any stand up comic on the planet.

13. My last thankful thought every year is appreciation for living in the greatest country on earth. Looking back at all the bad things that happened to this country this year  it is hard to feel grateful. It is tough to write about the places I've visited when Washington wants to raise the entrance fee at National Parks from $30 to seventy dollars.  So let me tell you what I am grateful for-

Flag in front of Betsy Ross house,
Philadelphia, PA
August 2017

I am thankful for the Forth of July, fireworks, and the Declaration of Independence. Waiting for fireworks, everyone is happy, brings me back to an innocent time. When you go to an event celebrating July 4th whether it be fireworks, parades, or a reading of the Declaration of Independence everyone is celebrating America. No one is talking politics. Dems aren't sitting on one side and Repubs on the other. Everyone is there celebrating patriotism. There is no thought of mass shootings, crooked politicians, or biased news stations. It is people wearing flag clothes, spinning pin wheels and eating cotton candy. For that short weekend you can feel THAT AMERICA. If for only a brief moment, you feel the gushing of pride from America herself. Not a white man, not my political party, not disliking a celebrity because of their political views. Just a flag waving son of a World War veteran that used to proudly watch his father march in the parade. The 4th of July weekend and that nostalgic feeling is why I'm thankful to be an American. I get the same feeling when I visited Washington D.C., Philadelphia, and Mt Rushmore.  Which of course, is why I wanted to go those places in the first place.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

Proving Outdoor Myths Wrong

If you read about your favorite hobbies you will pick up useful pieces of information. whether that hobby is fishing, antique cars, or cooking there is a lot of good info out there. Of course, not all of the stuff you read will be of use to you. However, sometimes you read something that you may totally disagree with. Other times you will read something and try it, but it doesn't work for you.  Here are some examples for me-

Fluorocarbon

Fluorocarbon line is a clear line that is supposed to be invisible underwater. So, in theory since the fish can't see it, they will not be spooked by it.

When fluorocarbon line first came out everybody said it improved their catch rates. Guides, charter boat captains, and outdoor writers were insisting they were catching more fish. So, I bought a roll to use as leader material. Fluoro is twice as much more expensive than mono leader material. The price has recently came down and a roll would run me $25 or more for 30-40 pound fluoro. 

You know what I noticed? Nothing. I seemed to get the same amount of hits slinging eels as I did with mono. I used fluoro for a couple years but when my second roll ran out, I switched back to monofilament.  My catch rates didn't go down. 

HOWEVER-  I also tried using 6 pound fluorocarbon as my leader for casting bubble and fly combo. Without question it catches way more fish than if I make a leader out of my 6 pound line on my reel. This makes absolutely no sense to me since I am fishing for hatchery raised trout. These aren't wiley wild browns in some famous western river. They are fish dumped into a lake. To make things even more intersting, my catch rate drops DRAMATICALLY if my leader gets below five and a half feet. If I have a six foot leader and I change flies a couple of times my leader gets shorter, I'm positive I catch way less fish with a shorter leader. I can't explain why, but I know it does happen.

Short People and Long Rods

I used to be heavy into largemouth bass. I bought all the magazines from B.A.S.S. to Outdoor life and Field and Stream.  I watched all the Saturday morning fishing shows and I took notes. I would write down where they were fishing and what lures were catching fish. I was very into the colors, size, and shape. Consequently I spent a lot of money on gear. Remember this- MOST LURES ARE MEANT TO HOOK FISHERMAN INTO BUYING THEM NOT TO CATCH FISH. 

One thing I read was that part of matching the rod length  to a new reel was taking into consideration an anglers height. Shorter guys have a harder time being accurate with longer rods. It is more difficult for them to cast. 

Huh?

When the Bass Pro Shops in Foxboro opened I was there four or five days a week for a month . For a while there were Bass pros walking around willing to answer questions. It was cool having them in there. I decided a needed a new rod. I wanted a seven foot or a six,/six rod for my baitcasting reel. I saw the pro there who was only my height and I started asking him questions about the different rods, quality of the guides and the best value for the price. He was a really nice guy and was very helpful. 

A minute in he said to me " you and I aren't the tallest guys..." I stopped him there and said I can sling a seven foot rod with no problem. Which he was cool with and showed me the rods. 

The point is, where did this myth start and why? I would love to be taller (I'm 5'6" at best). But never once did I wish I was taller because I'd cast better ( stand further out in the surf, yes, being taller would be great for that!).  I use rods from six foot to my ten foot surf rod.  I really don't like using those shorter rods like a five foot ultralight because you lose so much casting distance. But at the tall end of the spectrum, I have never had a problem casting a long rod because I'm short. 

The rods I use the most (not including carp fishing-which are eight footers) are

6 foot trout rod

8 foot Mojo Surf rod

7 foot light saltwater

7 foot medium freshwater

The seven foot medium freshwater rod is my most versitale rod. I use it for largemouth, smallmouth and schoolie stripers. Everytime I use it in the bay for schoolies, I seem to hook a monster bluefish. The rod is not designed to fight twelve pound blues but it always holds up. The point is, I have absolutely no trouble casting a seven or eight foot rod. So don't believe everything you read.

Cotton-

If you read any article about hiking gear, you will read that cotton is bad. Cotton will kill you. The reason- when cotton gets wet (like from sweat) it loses its insulating ability and you will chill.  If you hike, you will see almost everyone wearing synthetic shirts (usually polyester). No one wears cotton.

The truth is cotton will lose its insulating ability if wet. I won't argue that. However, if you hike in the summer and it is eighty degrees does it matter? I own plenty of hiking shirts but I no longer worry what I'm wearing in warm weather.  Usually I take a spare shirt anyway and change it at the top whether cotton or synthetic, it is nice to have a dry back on the downhill.

Another difference between cotton an d the synthetics is the synthetics are supposedly quick drying. I challenge you to experiment with this. Hike a mountain and when you get to the top take off your polyester shirt and hang it on a tree branch in the sun. You know what it will feel like a half hour later? Wet. It will still be wet from sweat. I know this from multiple times doing this. I do not believe that they dry any faster than cotton.  So like I said, during warm weather, I just wear what I want. If another hiker sees me wearing a cotton tee shirt and thinks I'm a greenhorn than so be it.

What about cold weather?

A few years ago I did a couple snowshoe hikes in New Hampshire. The weather was brutally cold. The temp was between 5-10 degrees and the wind was whipping. I dressed very appropriately. I wore layers and everything was synthetic. I hiked to Bridal Veil Falls. A distance of 2.5 miles. There is a hut there where I had lunch. You know what happened when I stopped moving? I got cold. Despite bringing another layer to wear when I stopped, despite wearing layers and trying not to sweat, I got cold. You know why? Because it was five degrees!!! So I ate a quick lunch and started moving again. 

Maybe the difference of life and death is synthetics on a muti-day backpacking trip in January. I don't know. However I know this, if I put on a cotton sweatshirt on over a cotton tee shirt on a November hike, I'm going to be just fine. 

Conclusion-

Don't take my word for it.  It is important to experiment on your own. Some guys may actually catch more fish using fluoro than they did using mono. On the other hand, I have questioned how many were paid to say that?   Maybe other shorter people do have a problem casting seven foot rods from a boat. I don't know. 

Just because something works for me  does not mean it will work for you. It might not even mean I am right, but I have my system. Some things I do because I find them productive or useful. You may come to your own conclusions. I only brought up three topics out of the hundreds in the outdoor world. Take advice, read what you can, but in the end it is up to you to prove whether something works for you or not. 

 

Farmington River

For the last six months I planned on trying for Kokanee Salmon (landlocked Sockeye salmon) the first weekend of November in Connecticut. From all the little bit of info I could gather, they seem to spawn (and come close to shore) that week. I had Nov 3 and 4 off from work but I assumed the fish would be late because of the extremely warm October. Since the lake is two hours and twenty minutes away from my house, I placed my bet that the fish would instead be spawning today. I was wrong. After over two hours of driving I knew almost instantly that the fish weren't spawning. I fished anyway. The best I could do was get a couple of trout to follow my lures and flies.

Needless to say, I didn't take a two and a half hour gamble on a fish I'd never caught before without a backup plan. After fishing the lake for a couple hours I went to explore the Farmington River. The Farmington is probably the most famous trout river in New England (you could probably make a case for the Upper Connecticut and Batten Kill but they are far from major population centers) I've never fished it before, so I thought I'd give it a try.

The Farmington is a dam controlled river. The cold water comes from the bottom of the dam. Because of this, the trout have a fairly consistent year round temperature.  The river, which is actually the West Branch of the Farmington is heavily stocked but also supports wild browns. I don't have any real experience fishing fast moving rivers. I know this might sound like blasphemy to true trout guys, but I'd rather catch trout in a high mountain lake. However, I had to drive right by the Farmington so I tried for half the day to learn its secrets.

I fished the Peoples State Park area of the river. This is a TMA (trout management area). Fishing is allowed year round. There are other rules such as, only barbless hooks can be used. It is catch and release only for part of the year.

I only caught one trout. It was a brown that was about 11-12 inches. I got it within twenty minutes and thought this river fishing was easy. Then...crickets. Nothing. I still enjoyed my time on the Farmington. It is a really pretty river. It was nice to fish such a famous river loaded with trout. Just because they did not want to hit did not take away from my experience. To the contrary, fishing the river really opened my eyes. I'm going to research it some more and find spots that aren't as heavily fished as a state park. I don't know when I will go back again, I just know that I will.

Exploring Napatree

One of the schoolies

Yesterday was one of the nicest November days in recent memory. I had planned on an adventure in Connecticut, but the weather had been "too nice" for my plans to be successful. So I decided to fish the Rhode Island oceanfront all day, and take a walk out to Napatree for some birding at low tide.

I hit Narragansett on my way to South County. I stopped at three places and made a few casts. I didn't fish hard consequently I did not find fish (they were there). Next I hit a South County beach before going to Westerly. I saw some fish breaking so I stuck around for a bit. There were eight guys fishing, however,
all the fish were right in front of one guy. He caught seven fish while I was there, and no one else caught a thing. The fish were tiny, in the 8-15 inch range.

I have a habit of staying in a spot "too long" when I have other plans. Many times I'd have a plan for the day and I "ruin" them by fishing a spot too long. Today, I have no doubt the fish I saw would spread out or being joined by other migrating schools. I'm sure if I slugged it out at this spot, I would have caught some. However, I stuck with my plan and left for Napatree. Low tide was at 1:30 and I wanted to see if any late shorebirds were around. It wasn't difficult leaving the micro stripers anyway.

When I got to the parking in Watch Hill I brought my binoculars, camera, a bag of lures and my rod. My plan was to bird and fish if I saw anything. I knew if I left my rod in the car, I'd be sure to regret it even if birding was my top priority.

I made the long walk out to the outflow making some casts along the way. I was walking fast and not expecting to catch anything. However, I was pleasantly surprised to land a decent schoolie. After twenty minutes of walking, I thought I saw birds in the distance. I looked through my binoculars. Sure enough a huge blitz was going on with fish splashing and birds working. I was at least fifteen minutes away.

I went past my birding spot and walked all the way to the point. The blitz I saw was multiple blitzes. It was crazy, I could see at least four blitzes going on in Little Narragansett Bay. There were schooles of nervous menhaden around also. The catch; none of this was withing casting range. I fished the area hoping the fish would come in but they never did. While I was hoping the blitz would come close I fished the point. I tried to discover how the current and tide was affected by all the structure. At least I could be productive in that way.

After an hour the blitzes died down. I started walking back to the outflow where the birds congregate. There really wasn't much there. So I fished the shoreline again hoping to pick off a fish on the way back to my car and then back to Narragansett. I started to catch fish. Nothing was showing but I  caught five decent schoolies just walking the shoreline. I decided to stay at Napatree till dark and beyond.

I did walk back to my car and unloaded my SLR and binoculars. I wrapped a swimmer up and stuffed it into my pocket. Then I trudged back over the sand to where I caught the schoolies. They were no longer there. So I walked to the ocean side and worked that shoreline. I picked up two more. When it got dark, I made a few casts but I was tired and hungry. I just wanted to get the 90 minute ride home over with.

While I was working for these fish, my friend Dave was 30 minutes further north. He, like me, was working hard to catch fish. He didn't have huge blitzes in front of him, and had to pick them off one at a time like I did on the beach ( he did end up with more than me). The point is, there are a lot of schoolies around right now. With some effort, they will be found and caught, but you can't expect them in every spot. You might walk into them at your first stop, but if they are not there try another.

All in all, not a  bad day. I caught fish at a spot that I had never fished. I wish all the fish that were blitzing would have came in. However, watching all those blitzes was still a lot of fun to see.