Wet 'n' Wild

GOSHAROONIE!

What I had intended to write and what you actually see here are two totally different things... I couldn't immediately locate some old photos that I thought I had on disc, so............ new idea comin' atcha!

So sorry, buddies, but my featured creatures today aren't soft, fuzzy and cuddly, but rather cold, wet and scaly. Yup!! I'm talking about FISH! And I don't mean pet guppies, either. I mean the wiggly piscean animals that live in our rivers, lakes and oceans and which occasionally can be coaxed into attaching themselves to the end of a line. Here's a not-so-deep-dark secret - I LOVE fly fishing!! If you are shaking your head in bewilderment, I'll explain...

Fly fishing is the attempt by sportsmen to catch fish (most often trout) using hand-made lures that are SUPPOSED to imitate insects.... but are actually made entirely of fur, feathers and thread that are wound and glued onto a fish-hook. Said lure is called a "fly" and is intended to be a very close imitation of an actual insect that a fish would just LOVE to devour. The fisherman (or woman, as the case may be) attempts to cast this little object onto or into the waters before him (or her) in such a manner as to perfectly imitate the actions of the real insect (very often a may fly). The said fly is usuallly very small - maybe half an inch to an inch long, and must be presented very carefully so as not to scare the intended victim, who is probably 30 to 40 feet off in fast-running water. Needless to say, this action is quite difficult.

ALL RIGHT!! Lesson over - you are all probably snoozing by now. Point is, I do this a lot, and have great fun flailing on creeks and ponds with my line and flies. Why, amazingly, I occasionally even catch a fish! and eat it for dinner!

As mentioned above, the most desired species to be tempted and caught are trout, of one sort or another. These guys can be 6-inch long brook trout or 3-foot long lake trout, and they all taste great. Maybe I ought to include my ultra-secret recipe for stuffed trout........ naah, not this time around, 'cause then I'd have to kill you. The accompanying photo is of me and the first trout I caught (circa 1955).

Next photo, flash forward 20 years or so. I learned to cast a fly, and my goodness, look what I caught! This was in the St. Lawrence River, among the Thousand Islands. Tee hee - I really didnt want to go near the slashing teeth of this bad boy pike, and husband Ted removed the hook from the jaws for me - suffering no ill effects. The fish, alas, gave his all to the frying pan.

Then the many glorious days spent casting to swift riffles on the seemingly endless sparkling streams of western Pennsylvania. Slate Run, Cedar Run, Pine Creek, the Oswayo, all yielded their share of beautiful fish. The Slate runs through a deep gorge with only occasional access points, and one has to really WANT to fish it. The Pine is another gorge that paddlers can pretend to be lost in.... Dreamy days to recollect...

Moving on to New England - I switched to fishing for bass in the ponds of Rhode Island. Not as exciting as fast running rivers in mountain gorges, but a pleasant way to spend a day. And my goodness... I am, after all, getting OLDER!! (we don't want to admit that too often) One of these days I'll have to admit to being a crotchety old broad who sits in a rocker and reminisces about the G.O.D's. (good ol'days, if you are a bit slow on the uptake) That's me in shorts standing in a pond with a smallish bass on the hook.....

And just to show that I am still having adventures now and then, here is my story for today....

I went on vacation to steamy Belize (teeny country just south of Mexico, next to Guatemala) a couple of years ago, and me and my son and family stayed in a jungle resort for a few days and an island resort for a few days. We were out for ADVENTURE! :>) Horseback riding, exploring jungle trails (never did see that jaguar), tubing through caves, watching iguanas in trees, and then....... snorkeling and watching fish We spotted skip jacks and angel fish and others, and then we moved to another section of the reef, where the animals we jumped in amongst were considerably LARGER!

Yup, that is me there with the rubber fins and mask. And, gulp, I REALLY took

that photo of the fish that I was swimming around with - another YUP! Those are REALLY SHARKS! Arent you proud of me? I survived to tell the tale! A BIG fish story (a whale of a tale to tell you, lads... a whale of a tale and true... think Kirk Douglas, on the Nautilus, I believe - oh,

you all are just too young!!) all true, and this is meant to let you know that I ain't no WUSS!! Our guide (who wisely stayed in the boat) assured us that these were a SAFE species of shark, and we all believed him and jumped giddily in amongst them. There were big rays, too - 5 or 6 feet across. But I dont have a photo of those handy.

and that calls for a couple of martinis! :>)