Shark!

The Reel

Last year I talked about fly fishing and let you in on my struggles to get that perfect cast. I ended the season with only one little trout but it was a huge accomplishment, to me, to be able to cast perfectly and bring in that fish all on a fly rod. This year, for a fishing adventure, I will be targeting something a little larger, sharks. As your imagination runs out of control, especially since last week was shark week on the Discovery Channel that shows great whites in the 20 foot range, let me “reel” you back in. did you see what I did there? I’ll be looking to catch a 4-6 foot black tip, fine tooth, or other species in that range. The rod and reel I’ll be using for this adventure is a complete 180 from the fly rod of last year. A thick ten foot rod housing a reel that weighs around three pounds spooled with line strong enough to, well, land a shark. The reel alone weighs more than the fly rod, reel, and line all together. To make things just a little more interesting I’ll be surf fishing, meaning I’ll be casting from the shore and pulling the behemoths onto land to, this is where the fun starts, remove the hook. Yea, I said it. Remove the hook from a shark’s mouth. The hooks are made to rotate to the corner of the mouth causing less damage to the shark and make it easier to remove with long pliers of course. You didn’t think I was going to stick my hand in the mouth did you? Now I won’t be just focusing on catching Jaws, but other fish as well such as croaker, whiting, sea trout, mullet, red drum (also known as red fish), and other less toothy fish. Some of them we will be using as bait, others will be tossed back, and some will be cooked for dinner, no sharks on the menu for us but all other is fair game. If you have ever had fresh seafood, I mean right out of the water onto the grill, you’ll know why I’m excited about that. So by the end of our week long stent in South Carolina I hope to have caught and released a shark without losing a limb, caught my own dinner, get sunburned, and actually get a chance to relax in the sun before winter comes leaving me stuck inside for another four months.  

The Target (black tip)

Found this picture on the internet and the caption read, "Flat tire in Antartica." I laughed for a solid five minutes.

My dream motorcycle with kayak, mountain bike, and dog of course. 

Ol' Boat & Bottle

Here are a couple of pics from our first trip to Mexico last November. I'm a big fan, right now, of the un-sharp mask tool and brightness/contrast adjuster when editing my photos.

Fishing with Dad

Went out on the boat with dad to do some fishing, I caught eleven fish and this is the fish he wants to take a picture of;

In case you are wondering it is a large mouth bass and the minnow I caught him on was a little smaller than him. I guess he lives by the rule, go big or go home.

Bourbon

Let’s talk bourbon. More specifically, maker’s mark Kentucky straight bourbon whisky. As you know from my last post I received a bottle for my birthday. Now (and I’m reading out loud as I write in a Kentucky accent) I’m no whisky drinker on a regular basis but I have been interested in getting more into it recently, hence the reason for the bottle as a gift, not because I’m a raging alcoholic. Back to the bourbon, I have read only a few things on how to drink it because, well, it’s a drink, how hard could it be. Much to my knowledge there is a lot that goes into a good whisky from the distilling process to aging to drinking. The distilling process makes no matter (Kentucky accent) to me because I ain’t makin’ it, I’m drankin’ it. What I have read is the true way to drink it is more of a relaxed  sip rather than a shot at the bar like I have in the past. What I learned is the proper way  to drink it is neat, which means straight out of the bottle room temp into a glass, no ice. Or you can be a little bit of a wuss and drink it with a side of ice water or a tiny splash in your drink. If you ad ice, on the rocks, that is apparently a huge no-no for true bourbon fans and that goes for all whisky no matter where its from Kentucky, Tennessee, Canada, Ireland or Scotland which is called scotch (we’ll get to that bottle later). Well I took the low road and added an ice cube because, well, I’m no whisky drinker, at least not yet. I opened the bottle and took a huge whiff and was surprised. I expected a burn just as I sniffed but instead was met by a sweet, smoky, oak aroma as they described in the ads. The smell was majestic, marvelous, manly. I wish my house smelled of it. I smiled as I poured what some would call a two finger amount added an ice cube and stared at it for what seemed an eternity. The color was a crystal clear amber. Have you ever seen the first Jurassic Park, when the old man looks at his cane with the piece of amber and the mosquito stuck in it? Yea, it was like that except in a liquid form. Speaking of Jurassic Park, there is a fourth one coming out soon. Speaking more of Jurassic park, that old man looked kind of like Colonel Sanders who was from Kentucky and I bet the Colonel drank bourbon. Actually the actor who played the old man is from Scotland so I bet he drinks scotch. Ok back the glass in hand, I was ready for my first sip. I took another sniff but this time from the glass, same aroma a little less strong, I was getting excited. I took a tiny sip and it hit my lips with a slight burn but smooth going down then a lingering burn. “Not bad,” I thought. I went for my second after a few minutes, again, a small sip with the same result but a little less burn this time. Then my third a little later but this time a bigger sip no burn and only a slight tingle to the lips. That was the way to go. Not a gulp but a normal, man size sip. Smooth, oaky, slightly sweet, the right amount of all. The last few went the same way, almost perfect. It was a good start to my whisky… challenge? Yea I said it. It’s been a while since I did one of them there challenges and I am over due. Broaden my cocktail horizons challenges. As I continue with the Makers Mark I’ll fill you in and then it will come scotch time something I’m really looking forward to. For now I’ll finish this glass and until next time… raise your glasses to whisky.

BBQ and Baseball

BBQ, baseball, blueberry pie, beer, and bourbon what could sound more American? For my birthday, the big 32, my amazing wife made, from scratch, a blueberry cheesecake. It was delicious and as I was stuffing my face she made mention that it was low in fat. A short pause, a shrug of the shoulders, and I continue to shove it down my throat like I have never eaten before. After I cleared my plate, seconds later, I was able to mutter the words, “I don’t care, it’s delicious.” Then I went and got a second helping. Along with the cheesecake, she also got me some new running gear and a sling-and-pulley system to hang my kayak in the garage. Later in the week her parents stopped by and with them came my presents of Makers Mark Bourbon and a single malt scotch from Glenmorangie distillery in Scotland. What a birthday it was.

the ruins of a full rack 

This past Saturday Columbus was hosting their annual rib and jazz fest that brings in backyard vendors from all over the country. When we arrived it was a row of massive trailers and signs as tall as a three story building showcasing their past awards. Over 300 internaitional wins, worlds best, 2013 champion and so they went on into the clouds. We chose to grab some of “Famous Dave’s” because they sounded good and the line was a bit shorter than some of the others. Seems a place with a shorter line wouldn’t be as good but they were DAMN good. A full rack of ribs, 2 pork sandwiches, a pound of beans and slaw, with a slice of cornbread is what we ordered between four of us. Washed it down with a cold beer and we were set. Earlier that week I got two free passes for a hospitality tent at the rib fest which included free parking, always a plus and the garage was only a block away. The tent, actually a building that is used for events and weddings, was guarded by event staff that gave us two drink tickets upon entering, free beer another plus. We dusted off those two Budweiser’s by the river chatting about whatever and letting the food settle.

Full of beer and BBQ we headed to Huntington Park to watch a Clippers’ game. Columbus Clippers is a minor league baseball team the next step up is the Cleveland Indians. After paying only seven bucks a pop for tickets we attempted to sit behind home plate before being shooed off by the usher. They were empty seats after all, I mean come on, but we moved anyway.  Moving on we were stopped by a co-worker working a concession stand who handed us a couple of Miller Lites on the house, another free beer for the night. We found some seats out on the right field line with a good view of home plate. After the game we called it a night so we headed home to sleep off the beer and BBQ.