The L&T Nancy and I rolled back into town around midnight on Monday, my fly fishing vacation in Maine now behind me. After what amounted to two days of travel, you can be sure I looked and felt my best yesterday, which was a fire drill of epic proportions.
Sure, the sun’s set on Maine, but there’s plenty to do.
Still, it’s time to get back to the keyboard, flinging words against the wall to see what might stick.
First, a Bona Fide FREE Contest
Keep the peepers peeled for the Trout Underground’s First Ever, World-Changing Giveaway Contest of American Idol Proportions. I’ll be giving away a piece of Genuine Maine Kitsch, and all you have to do is be here.
This prize — worth upwards of $15 to someone utterly lacking in taste — is yet one more demonstration of my considerable generosity. Stay tuned.
Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On
The world is awash in a frenzy of comings and goings. What’s been happening while I was gone?
The California Water Wars are well and truly heating up, half of the West is on fire, new river closures are slamming the door on some rivers in Montana, and the Upper Sacramento River is apparently falling into its late summer patterns.
There’s more, of course. The world is an untidy place.
Where You Been Fishin’?
You’ll recall I spent a lot of time in the backcountry before leaving for Maine, and the ugly truth is I’ve been fishing a lot — but I haven’t fished the Upper Sacramento for a month.
It’s time for me to hit the river, yet I’m also ride director for this Sunday’s Shasta Summit Century (a large organized bike ride that raises money to support local youth sports).
Naturally, that means a busy, busy week, but I hope to sneak in one day of fishing before the doors of opportunity slam shut entirely. Plus, I’ve got some interesting leftover material from Maine. Stick around.
See you on the river, Tom Chandler.
[tags]fly fishing, california water wars[/tags]
So the obvious question … bolstered by 34 unwanted pounds of pure suet, caused by overindulgance of Maine pie, lobster, steak, buttered onions, and corn – you are going to ride a bike up Shasta?
I was hoping for 6 weeks worth of articles on how the South Beach Diet is a crime against humanity, followed by the revelation that Nestle owns the South Beach product line.
Instead, you are going to dump all of that weight in one cataclysmic cycling effort?
Not near enough suffering, not fair.
kbarton10(Quote)
And you call us nuts?!
Running any sort of charity has got to be the most nuts thing a person can do. Haven’t you ever heard the proverb, “No good deed goes unpunished?” The stories I could tell about good deeds gone wrong…
Glad to have you back. Take care,
hawgdaddy
hawgdaddy(Quote)
Sadly, I run the ride instead of riding it myself (though I did so four years ago — before taking over the directorship).
And yes, the road to hell is clearly paved with good intentions, but there it is; I just can’t hide all the good inside me.
It’s a burden to be sure. It’s good to be back.
Tom Chandler(Quote)
Welcome Back Tom.
How was last night? Heard you went upriver.
I have been over on the Mac lately.
Good late afternoon dry fly fishing over there.
Steven(Quote)
Good to have you back Tom, and the call from the river was great. How did you do in that lille unnamed strech? I hit some great steam X’s up here last Monday and got a grand slam on one. Bow’s, Brown’s, Brook’s,& Cutt’s
David
David Roberts(Quote)
So-so night (no hatch to speak of, only four landed, lots of takes and misses), but damned nice to be back on my “home” water. More in the post.
Tom Chandler(Quote)
Maine “kitsch?” The funny thing is that what people think of as typical Maine “kitsch” is usually stuff created by people from away (i.e. non-Mainers) to sell to people from away (though a few crafty locals will do anything to swindle someone from Massachusetts). For example, the only people with things like little red, white, and blue wooden lobsters on their lawns are the summer folk. A true Mainer is more likely to have a car up on blocks in their front yard with a NASCAR sticker. Of course, I’m not a true Mainer (though my brother-in-law is as is my daughter – true Mainers are only people born within the state’s boundaries regardless of how long they have lived here) since I hate NASCAR and don’t have a car up on blocks in my yard. On the other hand, I have driven a minivan almost a mile down an ATV trail (without getting stuck) and I’m sarcastic and cranky. So I’m almost a Mainer… Now, where was I headed with this comment?
Ian Durham(Quote)
Etiquette violation detected…
Offense: Veiled references to secret locations, code use to throw off the casual reader.
On Article X, I must disagree,the secret little unnamed paragraph had badly flawed logic. Corporation Y may be entitled to all of the water it wants from SpringCreek X – but due to us not knowing who or what we are talking about, we cannot contact our congressman.
kbarton10(Quote)
C’mon Ian — scratch any Mainer and you’ll discover a plastic lobster in there somewhere… 8-)
I love the state, both for the strong sense of identity and for the sheer number of boats in front yards (a large number of them canoes). And frankly, I find the brevity of Mainer conversation to be hugely refreshing, though some have called it other, less flattering things.
As for Stream X references, the last time I revealed what was mistakenly believed to be a “local secret,” the resulting comments suggested I needed to check my brake lines on a daily basis. In other words, I gotta live here, and while I can always tell the assholes to bite me, it’s a bit tougher to do so to my friends…
Tom Chandler(Quote)
See, real Mainer don’t need plastic lobsters we have an abundance of the real thing. A real Mainer is more likely to take a real lobster to the local taxidermist and then plant that in his yard.
On the other hand, the brevity around here is perfect. Outside of blogging and teaching, I don’t say much. But Mainers communicate in other ways (usually a gesture if its with someone from Massachusetts).
As for boats, well, we’ve got a lot of water around here as you know. Plus, they come in handy when the wife kicks you out of bed for not washing off the all the sweat and DEET from the summer.
Ian Durham(Quote)