B is for Birds

Port Arthur Pelicans to be more exact. This is low tide. They are sitting on a sandbar well offshore from Port Arthur, as you can likely see. We went aground on a sandbar much like this earlier in the day. The whole bay was hardly more than ten feet deep at most, and much shallower when the tide went out.

This was part of a project we did with Native Watercraft. Jimbo Meador was the host for a three part DVD we did featuring Native Watercraft-certified guides. Port Arthur was one of the locations we visited. Quite the adventure. Speckled trout and redfish were very nice to us this day.

Kayaks and Redfish along the Gulf Coast

Like peanut butter and jelly, kayaks and fishing go great together. Whether in the Chippewa Flowage up in Wisconsin or down on the Gulf Coast, kayaks are just right for all sorts of places and conditions. People too. Pictured above is Gary Taylor bringing in a nice redfish somewhere in his spot on the far side of Lake Borgne near Slidell, LA.

To the right is Danny Wray our Grand Isle guide and one of the redfish he brought in during the day we spent with him and his wife, Kristen (who I think may have caught a few more than he did...)

Down in the near-tropics of Port Mansfield Texas,
we hooked up with Ruben Garza and two of his co-guides for yet another great day on the water, in kayaks, paddling and poling after speckled trout and redfish.

"inland waters kayak fishing" has been released

After a few months of virtual heavy lifting as well as watching some very talented people do their own heavy lifting while filming and editing, we would like to announce that Quietwater Films' fourth movie, "inland waters kayak fishing" is now available.

Jimbo Meador (front) and John Reinders (back) navigating a stream while poling their Native Watercraft Ultimate kayaks

Jimbo Meador, John Reinders, Wendy Williamson, and Larry Mann provided the paddling, poling, and fishing while we were out on the water. Damon Hennessey and Christina Smith did a wonderful job behind the scenes working the camera and editing our footage. And of course there are the boats. Even though they are inanimate pieces of plastic, those Ultimate kayaks are worthy of thanks for the wonderful job they did floating everyone around on the lakes, rivers and streams of the Chippewa Flowage, a slice of paradise in northern Wisconsin. The two muskies, numerous smallmouth bass, northern pike, along with "all the ones that got away" also made for some nice days fishing as well!

Another Great Labor Day at Lake Wazeecha

The Labor Day weekend was great this year. Again. And again we went to Lake Wazeecha up in central Wisconsin. The kids are a year older than last time,

In the middle of a wonderful
three days at Wazeecha

which made a difference. They're all strong swimmers now and they're all strong bike riders. So even though my wife and I still keep them on a short leash, they are also now self entertaining and able to mostly think for themselves. Which meant there was time for other stuff besides kids. We brought up lots of boats and bikes and used them all. Usually, half the stuff we bring we could have done without as it went unused.

Having a trailer makes (un)loading much easier

I found a fly rod in my hand which was nice. Caught nothing - but I find the motion and the concentration you need to cast a fly line to be nearly hypnotic.

Perfect evening except for lack of fish. Boats probably not helping matters.

So the lack of fish was the cost of the simple pleasure. Besides with all the boat traffic and warmth, I'm betting the fish were deep and I was fishing a grasshopper imitation near surface.

Our little shoebox dog, Banjo,

Our little shoebox warrior keeping the world safe.

enjoyed herself this time around. She usually does. She has new dirt to roll in and new smells to entice her.

Gas prices have gone down a bit, so maybe the new found meaning of a staycation has lost some of its resonance. Nevertheless, with pleasant places like Lake Wazeecha less than two hours from our door, we are all happy to stay close to home and find beaucoup enjoyment doing little things in local places. Go find one of those spots near you and start enjoying your own pleasant place!