Spoon Weather

[Riley Smith]

Yay! The oaks have finally quit blooming and that means hot weather. The pecans underscore that sentiment, being the last to get started in the Spring, with a contract that includes no cold weather. It also means lots less dross on the patio, cars, and everything else that sits in the air for five minutes. Spring is very messy here, with pollen galore. Everything is yellow all over, and there has been very little rain this year. Drought conditions once again.

 Which means salinity is up in my favorite fishing spots and the sun has been shining. Maybe I should try the fish off the pier as soon as I can get a minute.  The chances of a glittering spoon in the water getting nailed have gone WAY up. Temps are up too, and it feels really nice out, with a gentle breeze here. Pleasant in the evenings and very nice at night. You'll sweat a little in the middle of the day. I dunno how it is at the beach though. Often it'll be blowing there while we'll only get a fitful breath here in the oak forest of Wolf Ridge. I've tried to save gasoline in all the kerfuffle and haven't visited in a little while.

Things are growing and blooming and we're working on commissioning the pool. I'm looking forward to the grand kids and the noise from the shenanigans that always take place. I might even take part! A considerable amount of work will be done before that happens, though. The kids have started asking when it'll be ready, so THEY know it is almost time. Sooner or later some animal will get cooked up on the grill out there, too!

The boat is ready should occasion arise, although I don't see it. Things still aren't anywhere near me feeling ok and confident enough to do all that. The difficulties persist, although there have been major changes in lifestyle and diet. O well. But at least I'm doing what I can and the rest is left up to the Physician. I found out I had been taking one of my meds wrong and maybe within a day or two things will improve. That could happen!

And if it does I'll be ready! No major trip, just a sail on Krebs Lake on the backside of the city. It'll be great when that happens. I haven't checked to see about a storage slot at the River Road Boat Club with all the intertwining chaos happening either, but it's coming. I may get a cover and just pay for a parking spot, which would lower the cost but I sure liked that covered mast-up storage last year. And it would be much gentler on the varnish and paint. I'd prolly have to make the cover to get what I wanted. Or call in a marker and get one of the seamstresses to do it for me I've never needed one until now.

Pic is a nephew fishing off the pier. That one will catch it if it is there! Yeah, that sight makes me want to oil the reel, too!

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[Riley Smith]

But the spoons are SHOT!

It sure brings the fish in from afar to have a bright, spotless spoon. But a spoon lives a rough life getting slung as far as it can go, rejected on the countertop for a shrimp lure, lugged around in a tackle box until... Until it is time for new spoons. I use a 1/2 oz  gold Johnson almost exclusively. Except when I don't have any.

And I went with a smaller, silver Johnson spoon the other day. No bites for a while as I looked over the waters and marveled at the current racing up the river. I finally nailed a small flounder but lost it at the pier. And the current got too strong.

  Fishing a spoon is like driving on cruise control. Cast, get the bouncing rhythm going, and reel. It helps if you get clear water to know exactly how the lure looks, but they're deadly in the right conditions. I put Cecily and Dwyer on the specks one morning and let 'em fish while I did chores. I finally went out on the pier after it had slowed down toting my reel with a spoon. They hadn't caught anything in 15 minutes of so and for some reason I hadn't been able to catch any to get the game started. I made a few casts, off the end and working the compass clockwise. I finally made a cast due west and a BIG shadow darted out from under the pier and nailed the spoon thirty yards away! MY daughter freaked thinking it was a shark. I didn't know what it was but I knew it didn't even know it was hooked. I tightened the line showing her the fish moving in the water in the shallows. Then I yanked on the line.

Oh yes, I had decided it was a black drum and IT had decided this locale wasn't to it's liking and headed south.To the unending sound of the reel giving line. And it spooled me. When I saw the end coming I grabbed everything really tight and pulled with all my strength. A huge swirl erupted between the pier and the bar to the south and then the line popped with a sound like a .22 rifle.

The tide ran me off the other day for a while because I know when it reaches a certain velocity, you'll not catch anything on these flats. When I went back, in homage to the flounder, I tied on a new shrimp lure my daughter bought me for Christmas. And started fishing for them. You fish for different species in different ways and for flounder, you ease the shrimp along the bottom slowly with maybe a small (6") jump once in a while to get some attention. Toward the shore because the flounder will get in very shallow water. After a 10-15 casts BAM!. And here is the secret to flounder fishing. I didn't do anything. I waited until I could feel vibrations of either a flounder eating the shrimp, or a crab clutching it. Either way, you know instantly when you set the hook and luckily this time it was a flounder. Which was soon on the deck...nice legal fish.

Johnny Stork on the bayou (Bayou Heron) cooked the best stuffed flounder you could buy. We used to go out there just for that dish, in Mosquito Heaven and outlaw country. My wife ate it enough that she can recreate it almost to a tee. Maybe even better! That woman KNOWS she can cook. So the flounder will become epic cuisine once all the spices and crab meat is acquired.