Skunks, snakes, bass, kid's and wild brookies.

Been funky.  Back to busy, and likely will be through the summer as I wrap up my Masters degree... But I've been working hard to sustain a bit of balance here... and that means a bit of fishing and family.

This past weekend, my wife was called into work on Monday afternoon, and thus the kids and I needed something fun to do.  We shot out and fished for blue gills... and threw rocks, and hunted snakes, and drew pictures, and told passers by on the rail trail that we saw a "4 eyed chipmunk who eat's walrus"... Dont ask me about that last one, the brain of an almost 5 year old girl came up with that :)!  Below my son is reeling in a nice sunny - "It's pulling! Why is it doing that?" was what he said between giggles.

I've been playing with some sort of new ideas.  One is a picket pin with a zlon wing v squirrel tail - so far it's worked about the same as the squirrel...  the other is a simple emerger with a synthetic quill body... That's most of what decorates the dunks cup below...

I got out once last week to fish the big local freestone again.  Last trip was epic... this trip, on a hot afternoon... I missed a few and was broken off once.  But left a bit skunky - having had a blast non the less.  This watersnake is a nice, muscular specimen... but, was on a rock in the middle of a 50-60 yard wide section of stream.  Not sure I've ever seen one mid river like that before.

This past weekend I hit Wachusett Reservoir here in central MA.  It's nice water... but despite living near by, I feel like I've never really figured it out.  I catch fish, but not with the feeling of reckless abandon that I have at the Quabbin - which is the reservoir to the west of Wachusett - both of which are part of Boston's water provisions.

I missed one nice smallie that took several swipes at my deer hair bug, but that was it.  Even swapping to a kinky muddler (below) I couldn't raise a fish.  Ill try again soon.  Feeling itchy for bass for some reason this year.

Finally, today I was going to help my folks out between various work tasks.  That put me going straight past a little wild trout stream I like.  I only fished the road pool - since I had 30' flat to fish.  But I caught several and saw one that had to push a foot.  He kept checkout out my micro bugger but, per a previous president, he wouldn't inhale :).

Oh well, several of his buddies took the bugger, and several others a dry.  I couldnt tell what they were rising to, but fish were nailing the surface of this pool repeatedly, and happily were taking a stimmi or other surface fly.

This pool always surprises me.  it's very deep given most of this stream is quite small.  it's bottom is scoured, but both sides do have some undercuts, and the steep bank to the road offers surprising shade.  Add in the springs which feed this stream and you have a very good brookie hole.

I took this pic, because while it is what this pool looks like... it's nothing like the rest of the stream! Almost looks like a pond here :)

Enjoy the outdoors!
Will