Wildlife Wall Decor

Do you have the desire to travel and fish for you dinner along the way?  Outdoor Life magazine, May 2008, pages 36-43, lists 12 open-road great fishing spots in the U.S. that will bring you fishing experiences you’ll remember.  The requirement is a rod and reel, assorted bait and fishing gear, and one tank of gas.  For more information in your area, refer to the magazine. 

Here is the list:  (1) Seattle to Portland, 173 miles . . . king salmon, small mouth bass, steelhead, muskies, and sturgeon;  (2) Las Vegas to San Diego, 333 miles . . . stripers, bass scallpin, calico and barracuda;  (3) Orlando to Miami, 350 miles . . . bass, crappie, tarpon;  (4) Dallas to Houston 239 miles . . . catfish, crappies, stripers, redfish, white bass;  (5) NYC to Buffalo, 396 miles . . . small mouth bass, steelhead, salmon, walleyes, pike, and trout;  (6) Phoenix, AZ to Show-Low, AZ . . . trout, bass, crappie, and walleyes;  (7) Milwaukee, Wis. to Minneapolis, Minn. . . . steelhead, bass, pike, walleyes, tiger muskies;  (8) Huntsville, Ala. to Gulf Shores, Ala. . . . smallmouth bass, crappies, blue catfish, spotted bass, redfish, king mackerel, groupers, red snapper, tarpon, and cobia;  (9) Ft. Smith, Ark. to Memphis, Tenn. . . . crappies, catfish, bass;  (10) Bismarck, N.D. to Pierre, S.D. . . . salmon, catfish, sauger, large and smallmouth bass, walleye, pike, and perch;  (11) Boise, Id. to Salt Lake City . . . crappies, bass, and catfish;  (12) Washington, D.C. to Raleigh, N.C. . . . shad, stripers, red drum and spade fish, large and smallmouth bass.

There have been times, while trekking through the woods with a topographic map in hand, that I have taken the time to learn how to read it.  Guessing was part of the thrill of getting to my destination.  However, hunters and fishermen can and should be able to understand and locate specific areas.  Their lives, or the life of a companion, might depend on it! 

Here is a scientific, quick course for reading a Topographic Map.  Read the Field & Stream magazine, June 2009, pages 41-45 . . .   With this little tool, you will learn to:  1) Decipher a Baseplate Compass,  2) Read a Topographic Map,  3) take a direct Bearing,  4) Plot a course,   and . . . 5) Triangulate a Position.

Now . . . I know why I don’t catch the big fish!  I’m not playing their favorite on-the-water tunes.  You read right!  I’m checking out an article in the Outdoor Life magazine, April 2009, pages 46-53 titled “Fish Like a Guide.”  I see a phrase that mentions playing certain songs that encourage the fish to bite . . . according to Bob McNally, the author of the article.  Could it be that the music is designed to soothe the wild beast in the fishermen, so that they might provide their spouse with a special trophy wildlife wall decor? 

Bob lists 13 top guides who share their best secrets for catching walleyes, bass, trout, and catfish, and music is one of them.  You will have to read the piece to judge for yourself.  I’m not convinced.  The music has some logic.  The choice of what to play, however, might bring down a shower of bullets from the other fishermen in the area.  Holy Boat! . .  Buying the fish at the market might be a whole lot cheaper! . . . And safer!

The northern Idaho streams in the summer months are still frigid.  Therefore, I can imagine how killing-cold the flowing streams are following winter months in the high Rocky Mountains during spring thaw.  Suppose you choose to go Trout fishing in these frigid conditions; be aware of the risks involved.  There is an article in the Outdoor Life magazine, March 2009, page 24, that spells out these risks and gives you steps in avoiding an accident while fishing in fast moving frigid waters.

Always be prepared, be strong, be careful, and be sure to bring home that trophy wall art to decorate your den or office.

When a living experience becomes only a memory, melancholy can sometimes slip into sadness.  One specific event I’m reminded of was when I took my boy on a chartered fishing boat off the Washington State coast at Westport in 1977.  It was a family outing, including my Dad and 14 other fishermen.  I caught the first Silver Salmon, at 16 pounds, around 7:30 AM.  My son caught a 17-pound Silver at mid-day.  Dad had a few bites but no fish.  I had no bites either for the rest of the day.  Approximately six fish total had been caught.  That afternoon, at 3:30 PM, while reeling in and heading for shore, I hooked a 29-pound King Salmon.  It was the largest salmon caught that trip, and a thrilling experience worthy of a book.

Today, there is a different kind of sadness.  Salmon fishing has been suspended off the shores of the Pacific States: California, Oregon, and Washington.  There is once again a recorded shortage of native Salmon making their annual run from their spawning beds in Pacific coastal rivers. 

For more current information, read the article “Farewell to the King?” by Abigail Tucker in the Smithsonian magazine, October 2008, pages 84-95. When you read this, you too will understand my sadness, especially if you’ve have caught one of these magnificient King Salmon.

I’ve had the same boss at work for several years now, and found that it’s difficult for us to relate on a personal level.  We have the same work ethic, but I felt like I was being passed up for promotion because we didn’t share a personal bond.  I decided to try to get to know my boss better by inviting him to dinner.  It took him a while to warm up to the idea, but after a few weeks I convinced him to join me for dinner on a Friday night.

My wife prepared smoked salmon, a dish I knew he liked, and we paced back and forth awaiting his arrival.  It turns out, he came a little too early.  I decided to show him around the house while my wife was making dinner, and eventually we ended up in the den.  When I entered, I realized I had never told my boss that I was an avid fisherman, further indicated by all the fishing décor on the wall.  The first words that came out of my boss when he entered were “Cool room”.  It turns out, he was a fisherman too!  I felt like we had a different relationship from then on.  When a job opened up later that year, I got it! 

I’ve fancied having a little fishing cabin on a lake all my life, and at the age of 45, my dream came to fruition.  I managed to scrape together my savings and purchase a little cabin out on an alpine lake.  Despite the lake being deep in the mountains, it’s quite sizable, and whether through natural occurrence or human intervention, the lake has a sizable bass population.  I decided to decorate my cabin with fish wall art and fishing inspired furniture.  It’s just a small cabin, only about 500 square feet, but it’s just right for a quick vacation into the wilderness. 

The location is great, the fish are biting, and I met several of the locals who live on the lake and they’re a great bunch of people.  When I go to my fishing cabin for the weekend, I find that come Sunday evening, I just can’t stand the thought of leaving!  Thankfully it’s not too long until I’ll be able to retire and spend a lot more time at the cabin.

Here is good news for Salmon fishing in the Seattle Area streams.  When NASA Engineer, Andy Batcho, retired, he saw the need to build a Salmon fish hatchery to help bring back the almost extinct supply of Salmon in the rivers near Seattle.  Congratulations are in order to Andy for his 25-year conservation efforts.  The count of Salmon is growing and has leveled off at 400.  An estimated count in 1920 was 1000 fish.  Thanks to Andy’s team and his dedication for the restoration of wild fish. 

This article is in the Field and Stream magazine, May, 2008, page 41.

Should your heart yearn for beauty, adventure, and the cunning of a rainbow trout swimming in the cool waters of a freestone river, then take a vacation fishing trip to the streams in Northern Idaho.  Chad Mason’s article in the September issue of the Outdoor Life Magazine, pages 48 & 49, took my thoughts back to the many enjoyable camping trips spent in this area.

I lived near the St Joe, Coeur d’Alene, and St Maries Rivers for thirty years.  Hiking, camping, hunting and fishing in the National Forests of North Idaho provide not only food for the family, but also a dwelling sanctuary where the stranger finds peace, solitude, fulfillment, and food for his soul.

With constantly rising fuel prices, here’s GOOD NEWS for consumers of gas and diesel off-road vehicles.

In the June 2008, Texas Fish and Game magazine, the author mentions that a tax relief is available for sportsmen operating equipment off the road.  The GOOD NEWS is Texas offers a fuel tax refund of 20 cents per gallon for use not on public roads!  The State tax form 06-106 of the Texas Claim for Refund of Gas and Diesel Fuel Taxes is available online.  For details and information, go to the Texas State Comptroller website: www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/taxforms/98-661.pdf, or contact the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, PO Box 13528, Capitol Station, Austin, Texas, 78711-3528, phone 1-800-252-5555.

You must document all purchases of fuel and list all land vehicles, motorboats, aircraft, and both moving and stationary equipment in use for hunting, fishing and mowing . . . That’s GOOD NEWS!