NUMENON |
PONDERING CORE ESSENCE
NUMENON |
My "Muse" has been silent, most likely because of Winter's tenacious grip on Michigan. But finally, Spring seems to have actually sprung, and this Earth Day Weekend accommodated some pleasant time outside. From the frog choruses around our home, to the loons on both Reeds and Kent Lakes, not to mention the various other waterfowl, kingfishers, herons, deer and strutting turkey toms that I encountered all weekend; all natural signs pointed to the final arrival of Spring. These signs included the movements and behavior of the largemouth bass; fortunately, they were right where I expected them to be, and still vulnerable to a properly presented jerk-bait! Well, at least on Friday! I challenged myself with a new lake on Saturday. The fishing wasn't as good, but I was heavily engaged with the process of trying. In addition to the couple of smaller fish I ended up catching, I was able to anticipate the prospect of returning to Reeds Lake for a Sunday session with good fishing friend, DC; catching fish on Saturday didn't seem so important. And conditions on Sunday seemed prime! We fished with great confidence and anticipation, but after a couple of hours of virtually no action (even in my best water), I had reason to question myself and our approach. We covered a lot of water and tried many presentations, both shallow and deep. As the sun and temperatures climbed, we saw hundreds of bass staging and sunning in about 3.5 feet of water. We also witnessed hundreds of disinterested bass and many active rejections. It's hard not to continue fishing over these fish with a variety of techniques; but at a certain point, it seemed wise to target unseen potential biters, instead. By 1 PM, the lake was getting a bit busy, my bladder was full, and there seemed to better uses for the remainder of our day. It was time to go; but DC's wife was momentarily unable to pick him up. And so we continued to fish. With a radical relocation and a determination to make the most of our bonus time, DC hung a fine bass from just a few feet of water on a spy-bait. There's a tremendous difference between being skunked and converting a lone bite into a beautiful fish. While the catching wasn't as good as I'd like, it was, once again, a really nice fishing session. I don't think I like that the fishing was unexpectedly tough; but I do appreciate that it is days like this that can keep things interesting. Despite high expectations, reality is reality; and looking back through my journal entries, I do see a pattern on seemingly inexplicable skunks at this time of year. I'm still learning, and that helps me believe that I might learn enough to make even the tough days more productive. There are plenty of bass and days to look forward to; I don't to catch them all, every day. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways
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Steve LachanceVia Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Michigan and now, back to New England! Archives
June 2024
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