I’m pretty sure my wife cheats at cards.

Sure, I was going to start this report with a line like “Travel sucks” — and after a 32 hour travel “odyssey” I might be entitled — but once I started that rant, I’d end up punching out a quick 18,000 words on the subject, and the next thing I know my name’s on an FAA “no fly” list.

Not me. Outside of thanking our kind hosts at Delta Airlines — who couldn’t get an airplane started and seemed content to let their back-of-the-plane passengers bake in 100 degree temperatures for nearly an hour while they (in the pilot’s words) “dotted the I’s and crossed the T’s on the paperwork” — there isn’t much to say. (The above is an unpaid testimonial for Delta Airlines.)

Well, OK — maybe that zany bunch at Enterprise Rent-A-Car probably shouldn’t have abandoned their late-arriving guests to the vagaries of post-midnight, hotels-all-filled-up Bangor, and having done that, you probably shouldn’t keep them waiting curbside another 1.5 hours for your “we’ll come get you right now” shuttle the next morning. (The above is not a paid commercial endorsement of Enterprise.)

Bangor Airport, 2:15 am. A great place to hang out
2:15 am, Bangor Airport. Is travel great, or what?

Not that I’m bitter or anything. Chewing up one day on travel was expected, so I guess chewing up most of a second is just a bonus. Can’t wait to see what’s in store for us on the way home.

Anyway, Back to the Cheating

I don’t think the L&T Nancy was actually cheating, but I needed a dramatic lead to this report. In truth, I won one card game and she won another, so random chance and honor have been satisfied.

Since most of today (Sunday) was chewed by travel, I have no fishing to report, dramatic landscapes to post, or animals to marvel at. At least part of tomorrow (Monday) involves setting up an Internet link, getting camp fired up, and hiking quickly into town, so any fishing will have wait until the evening. (It’s Monday and I’m doing the setup thing right now.)

Grand Lake itself is very high, which means the smallmouth might be found a little shallower than normal. As for Grand Lake Stream, I hear that some of the landlocked Atlantic Salmon remain in the river, and that an evening’s fishing might be in order.

Of course, when you’re already on vacation, looking ahead too much erodes your place in the present. Right now, it’s dark, the air is cooling, and a light drizzle is patterning the dirt.

The day is gone, but hope — the stuff that fuels every fishermen’s vacation — remains in abundance. See you on the river, Tom Chandler.

[tags]fly fishing, fly fishing travel, travel, grand lake stream, maine, delta airlines, enterprise rent-a-car[/tags]

Posted in Travel.