NUMENON |
PONDERING CORE ESSENCE
NUMENON |
Yes, this is a gratuitous exercise. I recently found some older pictures of memorable catches. I've reclaimed them here, where they might be found again. In aproximate chronological order, these extend from Spring of 2013 or 2014 through Summer, 2020. Not much else to say about these; I've had a lot of fun. A new season will arrive soon, and I hope to add to the memories. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways
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While most of my fishing effort over the recent long weekend at New Hampshire's Newfound Lake went towards chasing lake trout, my secondary, simple approach and Caveman Techniques produced the only action. Over the course of two nights with my legal allotment of six cusk sticks set each night, I captured (and released) four freshwater cod, i.e., cusk, aka lawyer, ling, burbot or eelpout. This was my first attempt at these fish, and my first use of cusk "sticks" deploying baits pinned to the bottom and soaking overnight. This was fishing at its most primitive level! It's always fun to try new techniques and catch new species. I won't admit that this was a thrilling chain of events, but it was fun and satisfying, and certainly out-shined the (very slow/non-existent) lake trout fishing! With a 4-fish-for-12-sets average of 0.333, that's worthy of some Hall of Fame. And, since several other baits (cut, dead and live shiners) had gone missing overnight, I think I was around a concentration of these mysterious fish. I left empty-handed, though, because while A likes to eat cod... she found these odd but reportedly delectable fish to be repulsive. Also, my plan to try to print a specimen for gyotaku was aborted because they are so finely scaled; I doubt my ability to get a nice print. Plus, each one I caught was hardly a trophy, so why not let them go to grow? What will be my next "new" fish? I don't know, but I am sure it will be fun to find! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways Happy New Year! In no particular order, may I offer my modest 2022 Goals and Daydreams: 1. 250 Stripers for the season 2. Catch my biggest ever striper 3. Catch a false albacore! 4. Catch a 4-pound "bass" (green, brown or sea-) 5. Catch a 20-inch trout! 6. Successfully fish new water 7. Successfully implement a new technique 8. Somebody new in the boat 9. Fishing Travel - Maine 10. Fishing Travel - Elsewhere *** 250 Stripers for the season This is my revised benchmark for a season of chasing stripers. Given enough time on the water, it's doable. Plus, if I've landed 250 stripers, I have certainly experienced many more strikes, splashes, follows and misses. I'll probably have enjoyed considerable by-catch along the way. And, I know I'll have had a lot of fun! Catch my biggest ever striper This is a standing goal for every trip and every season. If I catch it while actually hunting big fish, something I hope to do more of in 2022, that will be even more satisfying. Catch a false albacore! There's no magic to this; it's a matter of patience and opportunity. But, I will gladly accept a little good luck, too. If I stumble into good fishing for other species along the way, I am fine with that. I am seriously considering a change to my timing/calendar in this pursuit to help hedge my luck. Catch a 4-pound "bass" (green, brown or sea-) I've had to revise this goal to account for reality; time is limited, and I have no local edge. Still, a 4-pounder for any of these, while not necessarily a true trophy, is a really nice, day-capping fish. I'd like to think that I might chase freshwater bass on some quality water this season, but if I am unable to do so, the idea of landing a trophy Cape Cod sea bass (on purpose) is an appealing alternative. Catch a 20-inch trout! Whether caught through the ice, from the sea, casting or trolling, any 20-inch trout is a beautiful, worthy goal. Successfully fish new water Kaizen! The pursuit of continuous improvement and growth in my collective fishing endeavors is one reason why I like it so much. A quality experience on unfamiliar water pulls it all together and validates the effort; but it also unlocks unknown potential for the future. This positive feedback loop can be a powerful agent of beneficial change. I know I'll build on previous seasons, while staging myself for success in future seasons. Successfully implement a new technique This is always a worthwhile goal for the same arguments as presented above. Plus, it might involve fun new stuff or shiney new things, for which I am sometimes a bit of a sucker. In many ways it offers a chance to practice my model of Anticipation! Participation! and Elaboration! repeatedly, so whatever success I might encounter, I can enjoy it many times over. Plus, keeping flexible on the water can open one's eyes to potential opportunities, and sometimes these even get actualized into tangible success! Somebody new in the boat For many reasons, too much of my New England fishing has been solitary. I enjoy the freedom and flexibility of this, and I likely fish best alone, but I miss my Michigan friends and hosting others on my boat(s). It's always nice to share a good experience, and it can be a nice reminder to see familiar things through new eyes. Plus, I've got a bunch of possibilities here, it's really just a matter of execution. Fishing Travel - Maine My new home state offers unique and diverse opportunities. The Royal River is almost at my doorstep and might have fishable sea-run browns. Landlocked salmon and brook trout should be readily available, and up to true trophy size if I put in the effort and miles. Trophy trout, togue and bass are here too; I just have to carve out the time and keep trying! Fishing Travel - Elsewhere We're already talking about a Winter trip to Florida; New Jersey in the spring or fall sounds good; and maybe I should try a trip to the Connecticut River or Little Rhody. Of course, there will likely be some Cape Cod activity, but I am thinking about something beyond the familiar. Let's see how the year pans out along these lines... *** Of course, I continue to reserve the right to amend or append; I always have a number of ideas rattling around in the back of my subconscious. Regardless, here's to an Excellent 2022! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways Back on January 1 (which seems like several lifetimes ago), I offered my modest Fishing Goals for 2021. You can find them at www.numenonfunfishing.com/numenon-home/2021-fishing-goals. So, How'd I do? (First, please accept my apologies for the rampant font issues within this post!) 1. 200 Stripers for the season. In short, I crushed it. I ended up with 284 stripers landed, from three states. I missed a few along the way, too! While my best fish typically came aboard the Maritime skiff, the numbers from shore added up to just about half of my fish landed. My biggest striper of the year came from shore, too, so I have to keep plugging away, regardless of the platform. 2. Share a fresh fish meal with Uncle M This certainly could have happened, and probably should have. But pandemic visitation protocols, logistical preparation, and coordination all interfered with this. When my brief time on Cape Cod in the Spring ran out, I had to look to the Fall Run. But with just a single Woods Hole session and three hours together, this didn't materialize. I did, however, catch a pile of legal keepers this year, so it could have happened. Plus, we both prefer steak or chicken to fish, so maybe it's time to drop this idea. 3. Catch my biggest ever striper. Nope. But, did I encounter a qualifying fish? Perhaps; I sighted a single trophy in Duxbury. That bass got beaten to my bait by a quicker blue. I lost a very nice fish to seals by Clapboard Island. And I vividly recall a couple of isolated, exceptionally violent topwater, bait-stealing smashes. My largest striper was 33 inches or so, my biggest in several seasons. That's got to be big enough for 2021! Still, some truly large fish were caught in Maine this year, and perhaps I should spend more time with big(ger) fish tactics and settings. 4. Catch a false albacore! I failed in my single, short, late-September attempt at Woods Hole. I think I need to execute a late-August/early-September trip next year to change my luck. Of course, it could be difficult to leave Maine at that time of the season... 5. Catch a 6-pound "bass" (green, brown or sea-). Ugh... I didn't even try. I do need to integrate myself in some way into Maine bass fishing. The cold-water pre-spawn period might provide my most feasible window into this local fishery. 6. Catch a 20-inch trout! Yes! a beautiful brown from Cape Cod fulfilled this desire. A nice rainbow (19 inches) from Maine's Upper Range Pond capped off my fall freshwater efforts. I miss the Great Lakes trout and salmon, but fish like these, on light tackle and in uncrowded settings, still provide a lot of satisfaction. 7. Successfully fish new water. In certain ways, this was the defining aspect of my 2021 season. From my early Spring Cape Cod explorations through the end of my season in New Jersey's surf, much of my time was spent in new-to-me water. Sometimes I was on a new body of water; and sometimes I was simply stretching my boundaries on more familiar waters. I found a lot of new spots, and I caught my share of fish along the way; all without any real problems on the water. That sounds like success to me! 8. Successfully implement a new technique I did nothing radically different, but I did incorporate many variations on existing themes. Presenting a popper to stripers with the fly rod and swimming a Danny in November's New Jersey surf both qualify, and I hope to incorporate such experiences into future seasons. But I also deployed tiny spoons on very light lead-core setups for inland trout, I slow-trolled mackerel for many miles, I stemmed the tide in Vineyard Sound, and I presented a tube-and-worm on braided line in very shallow water. Finding fish on any local Maine fishery was also new-to-me, and I know I'll be confronted with the need to continue and expand such efforts in all future seasons. 9. Somebody new in the boat Again, I'll have to incorporate variations on themes, but I did lead M to her first striper aboard amybaby22. It was quick and easy, too! What a pic! That was a seasonal highlight. M was "there' , too, via live-stream for one of the last Maritime keepers of the season! 10. Launch Numenon. YES! After a couple of faltering attempts in which maintenance issues were revealed, I finally got her back afloat for a few freshwater sessions. She's aged mightily in the last couple of years, for which I feel badly, but she's certainly worth more to me than anybody else... so I guess we're stuck with each other. Informally Append as invoked on January 1 I hung my mounted walleye and brown trout in my new Maine home office and realized that any right-facing 30-incher (bass, blue, togue... whatever!) would be a cool addition. I caught that fish several times over this season, but all were released. I'll probably just save the money for other, more sensible purposes, but I'll keep half an eye out for the right combination of fish, meaning of experience, aesthetics and opportunity. By my estimation, I had a 60% achievement rate for my stated 2021 Fishing Goals. That's satisfying enough while still providing legitimate challenge. At least with fishing, I'll hereby declare 2021 to have been a success. Now, it's time to start dreaming about 2022! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways I am too tired to write; I've got a lot going on! But, I do want to celebrate this fishing season. Here's a picture from each month of 2021 (so far; I may choose to update for November and December if anything noteworthy happens). It was difficult to choose a single "best" picture to represent a given month. I tried to balance the quality of the fish, picture composition and sharpness of the memory invoked. Others might have chosen differently. Oh, well. And, it's obvious to me that too many of my pictures look too similar, and that I need to get more people out there! It was a good season; while I didn't catch any truly large fish, I did catch piles of quality fish. Much of my time was spent on new-to-me water or learning new spots and techniques. I was outside a lot, and I had many encounters with wild creatures beyond fish; seals, eagles, dolphins, coyotes, foxes and more. Thank goodness for my ability to do so; and for those who support these efforts! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways From my new home waters in Falmouth Foreside, Maine down to new water in Duxbury, Massachusetts, I enjoyed my four-day weekend! In addition to Labor Day, I'd long ago scheduled myself to be "off" on Tuesday, with my mind on catching some more stripers! Each day treated me well and had its highlights. I encountered good numbers of fish with a variety of techniques, and scored my biggest striper and bluefish of the season. I caught my largest ever fly-rod striper, and enjoyed beautiful scenery and affable company. What else could I ask for? Of course, the details for each day are available (or soon will be!) under the "NumenonFunFishing" tab, above. Enjoy! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways Almost exactly 11 years ago, we welcomed a puppy into our home. A mix of Shih Tzu and Japanese Chin breeds, Oliver was the original "Shitty Chin". He was overly territorial and stubborn, had a lot of warts, crooked teeth and bad hair days, and he certainly could be a pest underfoot. Of course, his schedule became our schedule. Despite the flaws, he ingratiated his way into our hearts, and most especially, mine. He lived to eat, sleep and walk. When awake, his primary adopted duty was to scavenge the outdoors for discarded food. He specialized in fast food, and he amazed me with his ability to (fairly consistently) find entire wild burgers and pizza slices in addition to the usual assortment of crusts and crumbs. Walk, we did. I was more than two years into my state of chronic back and leg pain, and almost a year post-surgery when he arrived. He needed to walk, and about all I could do was walk - and so we did. Thrice daily (becoming only twice a day in recent years, but for much longer, paced walks), regardless of weather; we walked. While he became King of his territory (wherever we happened to be), at least in his mind, I walked myself back into a reasonably good, functional state of health. And we continued to walk. I'll dare anybody to watch the short clip below without cracking a smile: Ollie greeted me enthusiastically every time I came home. He would remind me when it was time to walk or go to bed. He loved going out in the truck. He was just as happy to stay home and cuddle on the couch or sleep at my feet. He could be a real butt, but he could, on occasion, be adorably playful. He was really kind of unkempt and ugly, but somehow got by on his looks. He was seemingly always smiling, and that could make me truly smile. This past weekend was beautiful. It included perfect weather, unique family visits and boat rides, a concert and an actual date with A, and a comfortable and productive saltwater fishing excursion. Unfortunately, it suddenly and unexpectedly concluded with me having to choose to have Oliver euthanized. His period of pain was short; his life was long and comfortable. He was calm, and we were together, at the end. Thanks, Ollie. You really were a good boy! You did so much for me! Don't worry; I went for my walk this morning! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways 2021 has been a season of recovery... from the pandemic, the associated isolation, the generally "down" nature of 2020 and more. While virtually all of my 2021 fishing has been solo, I have gotten out a fair amount, and my recent relocation to Maine has reunited me with extended family, both boats and all my gear. I can be fishing within 15 minutes from my desk or bed; and that fishing has a lot of potential for me to unlock. I couldn't ask for more. Here, I'm just taking a breather and collecting some photos. Nothing outrageous (either good or bad) has happened in my 2021 fishing season so far, but I've had a lot of pleasant success. I've enjoyed just about every moment on the water and each and every fish I've encountered. Who knows what the second half of the season will bring; bigger stripers? Blues? Thirty-inch togue? An albie? I look forward to finding out! Enjoy! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways The entire family just spent a week or so in Maine. Folks converged from England, the Pacific Northwest, the mid-Atlantic and the Mountain West to re-unite for the first time in a couple of years or more. A new grand-niece was introduced to all for the first time, many meals were shared, and there was a fair amount of local beer and Casco Bay-side relaxation. A yellow Portland Pudgy tender ( portlandpudgy.com ) joined my fleet, and the Maritime skiff was finally moored at its very own location. Each performed their respective duties flawlessly. Nature was abundant, fishing for striped bass was better than decent, and the average fish landed (24 inches or so) was an excellent match to my light tackle. I was smart enough to pace myself, and I didn't unnecessarily burn myself out by fishing day and night. I took advantage of my easy access to the water when it made sense, and I made extra effort to invest my time in new methods, locations and techniques. I truly enjoyed my time on the water, and didn't feel as if I were trying to win an ephemeral race with access to Casco Bay stripers. With mackerel abundant for the first time in years, and these livies generally selecting for larger fish, I live-lined these baits more than I expected. My lure fishing suffered, and I was less efficient than usual. But the anticipation with each bait deployed was high, the majority of my mackerel were eaten, many of the strikes were visually dramatic, and I found success in several new areas. This was fun! Somehow, we managed to move into our new home during this same week. Since that new home is in Yarmouth, ten minutes from my mooring, I guess I'll have to get used to this. Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways As my Maritime 1480 skiff, the amybaby22, moves to Maine for the height of the season (and perhaps longer), I wanted to take just a moment to reflect on my experiences in Barnstable, Massachusetts. Over the last couple of seasons, this might have become my favorite Bay State port. I didn't visit it much (four trips in two years; not nearly enough), but it treated me well each time. Given my lack of local experience, each trip presented new challenges and experiences. The port offers a variety of accessible habitats from estuarine to open water in Cape Cod Bay. I found my own way to fish each time. I know I've only scratched the local potential, but I've still encountered some fine fish! While I never scored a truly large striper during my limited time there, my average bass encountered was certainly fat, healthy and spunky; and probably pushing 24 inches. These fish are excellent targets on light tackle, and I caught them from the surface to 30 or more feet down. Plus, the clear water offered many additional sightings and close calls, and the port threw in several bonus bluefish of nice size, too. Perhaps because I tend to gravitate to Barnstable during a period of southerly wind, each day the skies were clear and the sun was bright. And yet, I still found feeding stripers! Because each trip here poses a new set of conditions (tide, season, water temperature, etc.), I've been open to exploring new waters and trying new techniques. On a given trip, bouncing epoxy jigs along bottom with current, ripping Ben Parker Magnum Flutter Spoons, trolling deep-diving sticks, chasing birds or simply covering water with poppers and flukes could be my answer. Of course, each of these pursuits has opportunity costs and so I've barely explored live-lining Macks, open-water trolling with big baits in deep water, sight-fishing the flats, or tube-and-worming along Sandy Neck. I know that any of these techniques could be my best answer on any given day, including my next trip. I was quick to realize (actualize?) the potential for Barnstable to offer a quality experience. I simply hit the nail on the head after my first visit: "... other than the rude boating, crowds at navigation pinch points and the rather dysfunctional ramp, this was a very high-quality experience." I've learned to manage the negatives mentioned above, leaving myself open to just the positives of this port. I am not quite sure when..., but I will be back! Pondering the questions of core essence and finding meaning in unexpected ways |
Steve LachanceVia Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Michigan and now, back to New England! Archives
June 2024
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