Canada 2016 continued . . .

It got hot Thursday, June 23 - miserable in the sun, hot without a breeze - during the day as the last couple days of our Canadian fishing week began to vaporize into memory.  We searched for shaded areas with breeze to be comfortable enough to fish.  Thursday was also another fish-fly-frustrated fishing day for us.  That is to say, the fishing was good, the catching not so much.  I tackled us up some beetle spins and we caught a few smallmouths during the doldrums off of rocky points, and we also tried trolling with Little Joe Spinner rigs.  Ellen hooked a smaller northern pike but I mostly just hooked stuff.  Such are the vicissitudes of fishing though and we persevered, enjoying plenty to eat and drink back at Cabin 2 with plenty of time to relax with a good book or movie, take a walk in the bush (in the case of the girls) or take a nap in the cabin (in the case of the boys).  For some variety from our fried fish, we grilled brat patties and we had grilled steaks and pork chops.  We tried the Canadian beer batter mix that Chuck had picked up when we bought our licenses in Dryden.  It was a nice alternative to our usual fare.  On Friday morning, the last day in camp, the girls made breakfast sandwiches using brat patties, fried eggs, and cheese.  Out on the lake, Ellen and I had the best time fishing AND catching of the week I think.  We found a rocky shoreline in some rough water that was on the edge of an almost protected bay where we caught many smallmouth bass and walleyes and a few perch.  We would anchor and toss in slip bobber rig tipped with a chunk of crawler and the bobbers just disappeared, almost as fast as we could present them.  The waves and wind made staying anchored difficult so we had to motor back out and then try other spots along the shore to keep the area producing fish.  If it hadn’t been the last night and we wouldn’t have had to start packing up, we could have fished there a lot longer I think.  

Anyway, our annual trip to Keystone Lodge on Cedar Lake in Ontario was once again memorable, relaxing, adventuresome enough, and fulfilling (with fish dinners and more.)  The trip south was uneventful and we were home in something like 13 hours.  

Until next time, get out - I - we - are dealing with another bout with the tick related disease ehrlichiosis, my fifth trip through the merry-go-round of Lyme’s Disease and other tick born troubles.  The doxycycline protocol requires one to cover up in the sun - that sucks.  I am recovering from the sweats and general achiness, but as I am tired all the time, so it is hard to tell if I am recovered or just my usual lazy self.  Finally, Mountain Man Mark came home from Colorado to visit last week.  We learned that he has taken a job on the island of Maui, Hawaii.  On the Fourth, we drove as far as Altoona, IA with him and we all stayed with our friends Jane and Tom Downs.  As usual they put on the dog for us, serving delicious smoked chicken, ribs, sweet corn, and more.  Anyway, Mark took off on Tuesday morning almost four hours closer to home than from Wisco for his all day drive back into the mountains.  Tom and Jane also went west that morning to visit their mountain kids Steven and Cassie, and Brad in Fort Collins.   Anyway, we have already decided to save up for our own Christmas present trip to the islands this winter to visit our soon to be newly transplanted “keiki kana” (that’s “son” in Hawaiian) and see paradise first hand.  We are told by so many friends and family who have vacationed there that they would never have come back if they could have stayed.  Aloha!  Enjoy.