Fishing .vs Catching

A short disclaimer; these pictures aren’t in any particular order, nor do they represent what I am writing about at any given time in this post. They are just a few of the ones I thought best represented the days’ activities.

This past weekend I grabbed a buddy of mine and at the fantastic hour of zzzz-thirty (which approximates to 4:30am) we headed up to Mt. Hood where we would be visiting Trillium Lake in the hopes of extracting some delectable fish.

We arrived before 6am which I had thought would be early enough to beat the sun rising but as I didn’t actually consult my trusty weather app, I didn’t know when that would be and didn’t plan accordingly. Thus we arrived late. When we did get the car down to the boat ramp where we would be launching from the sun had just risen over the tops of the hills surrounding the little lake we were just about to enter. Kingfishers had amassed en force in numbers I had never seen before at any one time and were swarming the water, buzzing every which way with areal acrobatics the likes I hadn’t seen before. It was like they were performing just for me. It was magical.

I make no bones about my skill as a fisherman/sportsman; I know enough to keep me entertained and that’s about it. I can tie all my own equipment, bait a hook and remove one once I have reeled a fish in. I can clean them to finish out the days activities if I am fortunate enough to have caught anything. I can even fry them up. It doesn’t always work out that way however. Like the title of this entry says Fishing .vs Catching.

I generally feel pretty good with my chances about catching fish at Trillium Lake since several times during fishing season it is stocked with literally thousands of ravenous fish. It’s not like many or most of the lakes and reservoirs around aren’t stocked this way to help support the industry. Coupled with getting into the water when we did and away from where no one can fish unless you have a craft, I figured we were a lock for pulling a few out.

Oh how little do I really know! Truth be told, I am usually pretty cocky about catching fish at Trillium Lake…since I generally do. So it should come as a complete shock to you that not only did I not catch anything, I didn’t get a single nibble or bite! My buddy on the other hand did manage to take two 10 inch rainbow trout out of the lake for his supper.

It is kind of funny; in the week before we actually went fishing my buddy was asking if we were still on for fishing and then commented about maybe breaking his streak of not catching any fish. My snarky reply was that he could go fishing but I was going to go catching! He said he didn’t know that that was allowed and he wanted to do that too!

So at the end of the day. I managed to get some rather spectacular pics of Mt. Hood by way of Trillium Lake. I even have a few pics of the beaver lodges that do house several beavers. I also captured some pics of my gear and kayak, an overly friendly duck looking for nibbles to eat and some more beautiful pics of the water and mountain.

By the time we left around noon, literally hundreds of cars had lined every conceivable space where a car could park and people by the droves were making ready for the afternoons’ water activities. I had never seen Trillium Lake so full before, but it doesn’t surprise me with the mercury going into the 90’s that day.

I am going to wrap this up and wish everyone a great rest of your summer. Enjoy it while it lasts. Me, I am going to take a road-trip or two and maybe get some more fishing in after Labor Day. See you ’round.

Peace be with you!

More to come.