Fishin report for Lake Iwanttobethere..

[Bobby Bass]

Been a crazy summer, we can now make that official as yet another woman was attacked by a pair of otters this week. That is the second woman who has suffered multiple wounds from an animal not known for attacking. I think the heat has even gotten to the animals. Is sure making some of the tourist think twice about jumping off the docks and taking a dip. Of course none of the attacks happen here at Lake Iwanttobethere, we do have some strange happening here but so far otter attacks are not one of them.

Today finds us with overcast skies and the red needle on the bass thermometer is pegged right on seventy. Compared to the upper eighties and low nineties we have been dealing with for the past month it is almost chilly out. Matter of fact I saw a couple of people strolling along Main Street wearing wind breakers this morning. Rain in the forecast and it looks like the afternoon will be a wet one. We can use the rain and I hope the temperature stays in the seventies as forecasted. We are going camping this weekend and going to try and get some fishing in. I have an inside tip that the current hot bait on the lake is an ice cube. So we are packing in several trays of them.

Kind of early for us to be taking a camping trip but the youngest grand daughter is starting school ahead of the others. If we went our normal time she would miss out so we moved it up a few weeks. Yesterday it was warm but not hot so I got a bunch of mowing done and out of the way. Down by the lake bank I spotted a few frogs trying to get out of the way of the mower and I managed to catch two of them. Usually in the fall I have a long handle minnow net and a plastic container strapped on to the back of the tractor just for frogs. I don't know why I had it on there yesterday but like I said it has been a strange summer. The granddaughter found out I had a couple of frogs and quickly named them Frogie and Bogie. The other grand kids came over at dinner time and as soon as they found out frogs were on the shore they headed down to look for more.

Kind of like a deer drive only this was for frogs. One waded in the water, another on the edge of the shoreline and a third on the fresh cut grass. The fourth one trailed the rest carrying the bait bucket and giving a lot of directions. Duncan trailed behind knowing something was going on but not really knowing what he was supposed to be doing. One frog was spotted but did not cooperate with the drivers. It hopped between the legs of the grandson on shore, made a hard right into the water where the other grandson missed with the net. Duncan seeing something was being swipe at jumped into the water splashing everyone on shore. Frog doubled back onto shore and was spotted by the youngest grand daughter. Boys took chase trying to catch the frog with their hands. Boys now looked like a larger version of the frog as they hopped forward with arms out stretched in front of them.

Bud on the deck joined in running down the yard barking away, Barney woken from a deep sleep hearing the barking ran towards the water's edge barking away but not having a clue as to why he was barking. Duncan came out of the water and started barking because the other dogs were barking. Kids stopped because they were trying to find out what the dogs were barking about. Kind of ended that way, dogs stopped barking, kids dripping water stood still and I am sure a frog with just his eyes showing made his escape by just drifting away in the water. Just another day here at Lake Iwanttobethere {746,750}

[Bobby Bass]

Back at the cabin for some rest, the weekend mini vacation is over with and there are no grand kids in sight. I have a sore back from sleeping on a to thin pad and bruises to show where grand kids poked me during the nights. Grandma came up with an excuse to get out of the weekend camping trip and I suspect she spent her time reading a few books and sipping wine on the deck. So this left me and my four kids, their four kids and one husband to be along with five dogs. The husband to be might be having second thoughts as he was the junior member of the expedition and got all the how should I say this, petty jobs.

Fishing was poor and even though we had some live frogs more of them escaped then were used as bait. Without going through the entire three day weekend I will just skim across parts of it. Started off bad as I went to start the Tahoe and had a dead battery, went to get the Dodge to jump the Tahoe and found it had a flat tire. I sat down on a stump and took out a cigar and directed the future son in law to drag the air compressor up from the shop. After he filled the tire he jumped the Tahoe where it was moved closer to the cabin for loading. Tahoe was loaded and we were moving on down the road only a half hour late. Duncan traveled with me as I was like the Chuck Wagon of the trip, I had all the gear and the kids had all the kids and dogs.

We headed to a hidden out of the way access to the lake that we had to drive through a pasture to get to. I open the gate and the last truck with the future son in law was to close it. As I crossed the pasture heading back on to the tote road I looked in my mirror and saw the gate still open. I called the daughter to call her future husband to tell him to go back and close the gate. I then continued on down the tote road concentrating on my driving as there were a few ruts and I was towing the Puddle Humper. I missed the entire adventure of the gate closing and the one horn bull.

Arriving at the lake the landing was a little smaller than I remember it. Might be that the water was still high or maybe it was the fallen pine tree blocking one side. Future son in law got his first lesson in chain sawing. Only an hour late now we launched boats and backed trailers off to the side. I had left Duncan in the Tahoe as we were launching and I went to open the back doors to get gear out and found Duncan standing on the sleeping bags, tail wagging and a pair of frog's legs hanging out his mouth. That is when I saw the frog bucket lying on it's side and the first frog jumped to freedom out the back doors. Grand kids were called and whooping and hollering echoed in the quiet of the backwoods. I took out another cigar and sat back to watch grand kids and dogs chase frogs.

With boats loaded with gear we set off across the lake to a island that a friend owns. Grand kids were busy checking the frog bucket and we were down a few frogs. They were now busy naming the rest of the frogs. Camp was set up, tents pitched and a fire started. The future son in law did a good job of picking up firewood. After that it was just a normal little camping trip. Number two grandson threw his entire rod and reel over the side of the boat on his first cast. Number one son brought a recording of howling wolves which sent all the grand kids into my tent for the night and someone forgot the chocolate for the smores. Which bothered the ladies more than the kids. Enough fish were caught for a fish fry and surprisingly the sketters were not that bad.

We drove out the same way we came in but now the son in law was the leader of the caravan and he ran when he open the pasture gate. I was last in line and as I went back to close the gate I patted Max the bull on his head and tossed him the apple I had been saving in my glove box. Maybe next time I will share the apple trick with the future son in law from Lake Iwanttobethere {748,649}

[Bobby Bass]

It's raining out, not supposed to be. The rain system was to stay south of the lake and miss us this morning. Another system was to develop and bring rain later this afternoon. I'm not complaining though, we need the rain. Bud and Barney are sprawled on the living room floor, they have seen the rain before. Duncan on the other hand was outside under the covered swing with me. Sitting alongside of me his nose held up high and twitching at the smells riding the rain. It is not really raining but more like a light shower. Hard to describe it just right as there are so many degrees of rainfall. Today's shower is just enough so that a pencil thick line of water pours out the end of the gutter to splatter on the ground.

But it is steady, the nice soaker kind of rain that farmers and gardeners like. The kind of rain that gets absorbed by the ground and does not run off to fill gullies and gulches. Bigger drops are mixed in with the rain and you hear them ring out as they hit the wind chime just right and it sounds off. A Frisbee floats in the kiddy pool and some bigger drops hits it and it makes that plastic smacking sound. Duncan from time to time will jump off the swing to check something out in the yard, Nose down he will follow a trail that only he can smell. He is usually back in a minute or so, hops on the swing and shakes the water off. I am pretty much dry from the rain but getting wet from Duncan.

I would call this a pretty much an excuse rain, raining just enough to give you a lot of excuses. I should be mowing, but it is raining. I should put a coat of paint on the work trailer deck, but it is raining. Tahoe is due for an oil change, but you know, it is raining. It is raining just hard enough or soft enough that if you stand out in it and raise your face skyward you will get wet. But it is a warm summer rain, not a cold duck rain. The kind of rain that you don't put a rain coat on, you take your shirt off. Sitting on the swing it takes me back to long canoe trips where when it rained like this you packed your clothes in a black plastic bag and just continued to paddle. Flat water disturbed with just the dimples of raindrops you would glide along making good time, it made for the best kind of shower.

The swing creeks as I slowly rock in it. Duncan finds a small trickle of water leaking down the side of the swing and he tries to lick it up. But the water keeps coming down from a small tear in the canopy, Duncan keeps licking and I make a wager with myself how long will it take him before he gives up. Something catches his eye and he is off stalking what ever it is off the deck and on to the grass. A zig zag course up to the apple tree around and back down to the deck. Up on to the swing and a quick shake and he is sitting alongside of me again. He eyes the trickle of water running down but ignores it. Nose held up high he samples the air and I do the same, he has the advantage.

I'm thinking when this rain does stop I will walk down to the old wood row boat and see if I can find a frog or two in the wet grass along the bank. Grass needs to dry and the trailer will still be wet. I'm thinking the water will be calm and I should row out into the bay a little bit. I'm betting I can fool something with a frog on the end of my line. If it starts to rain again, I'll just bring along a black plastic bag, from Lake Iwanttobethere{749,047}

[Bobby Bass]

I'm a happy camper, yet another day of temperatures only in the high sixties! Even though all the grand kids are here for the week, today is quiet, at least right now. All the kids are down at Doc Burriems for their school physical, I am thinking it should take them the better part of the morning. Was busy this morning as showers were being taken and number two grandson didn't understand why he could not wear the same clothes that he had on yesterday. Number one granddaughter announced she was not going to wear any shoes since her white ones were wet from wading in the lake. If you have kids you already know the story. Kids were all loaded into the Jeep and they were off to meet with their parents at Doc's office. Dogs and I stood in the driveway and waved good-bye, then headed for the swing.

A few showers came through yesterday but nothing that was so bad that it would make you stop working for long. Got a lot done around the cabin and with another good working day today it looks like I will be getting some fishing time in this weekend. Frogs have shown up early and now that the grand kids know they are around regular trips are made to the bank to look for them. Elmer buys them for a dime a piece from the kids and I am not going to get into a bidding war with him right now. I know I mentioned the spiders around the cabin and the lake but yesterday was one for the books. I went into the new shop to get an extension cord, I keep them hanging from the ceiling. A huge web was hanging between the rafters and a spider the size of a half dollar clung in the center. It must have spotted me as it spread it's legs and tripled in size.

Well I did what any 708 month old man would to, I ran, or what passes at running for my age right out of that shop. I gather the grand kids and after a contest of rock, paper, scissors the number one grandson who is seven was outfitted with a hard hat, leather gloves and a long handled hot dog fork and sent in to the shop. With the leather gloves up almost to his elbows and the hard hat riding low he marched into the shop holding the forked hot dog holder. Standing on the grass we watched the open door and listened. We could hear the grandson moving around in the shop till there was the loud clang of a paint can hitting the floor, a sharp scream and the grandson came running out of the shop, The hard hat hit the ground first followed by the right glove and then the left glove. He was all the way to the deck before he slowed to look back towards the shop. Where "Is the hot-dog fork" I yelled. "It took it" he replied.

Number one granddaughter who is ten reached down to the fallen hard hat and firmly pushed it down on her head. She marched into the cabin and reappeared in a minute or so carrying a bug bomb. She marched right past me and grabbing her brother they whispered back and forth for a few seconds. Her brother went and got a jump rope and another hard hat, together they marched back to the new shop. The daughter tied the rope to the handle of the door and handed it to her brother who was pressed up against the wall. With the other two grand kids I stood back on the lawn and watched. The granddaughter nodding to her brother popped the plastic cap off the bug bomb and broke the plastic tab. She then kicked open the door and tossed the hissing bomb into the shed. As soon as she was clear her brother pulled on the jump rope slamming the shed door closed. The two of them then marched past me heading for the deck. "Where did you learn how to do that" I asked. "Call of Duty" she replied, from Lake Iwanttobethere {750,316}

[Bobby Bass]

Middle of August and this is becoming a long summer. Even though it is not longer in the number of days or months the events that have happen make it seem long, at least to me. A few days ago Lake Iwanttobethere had it's first official tornado, you would think that a town as old as we are would have had a tornado before but there has never been a recorded one, now there is. Started off as a water spout, we have had several of those over the years but this one moved on to land then back on to the water and then back on land again. It was caught on a few cameras when it was on land and Stormy Clearweather forwarded the photos to the weather people and they declared it was officially a tornado. A very weak one mind you but still a first for us here at Lake Iwanttobethere.

Now early in the fishing season I was out fishing and experienced my very own water spout. I thought that was going to be the highlight of the summer but since then we got the ten inches of rain one night, the ensuing flood and now a tornado. Throw in more eighty plus degree days in a summer then any other recorded summer and we are having a record summer, guess there is no doubt that this is summer. Still two weeks of August left and we might even see a few more hot days in September. We are above average for rain fall but we have had just a few showers this past month with only one real good soaking rain day and no real rain in the forecast for awhile.

Frogs have shown up early and the evenings are starting to cool as the sun goes down. Crickets can be heard and the hornets and wasps are active during the day. I was working in the garden yesterday and the grasshoppers are as big as troop carrying helicopters. When they land they kick up dust they are so big. Spending more time watering as now is not the time to be cheap with the water. Tomatoes are growing big and heavy and there are still some raspberries to be had. Cucumbers are a little thin but the spuds seem to be doing fine. Apples are turning a little red already and it looks like the new apple trees Apple and Tree are rooting. The grass that gets shade is still green and lush but the grass on the hillside in the full sun is browning out.

My neighbor Chuck is hard at work, splitting wood in the evening and working on the trail system during the day. The young grouse are still in three coveys and he comes on them almost daily as he drives the trails. Duncan is still getting his evening working outs with the dummy, the throwing one not me. We have started to play the find it game and he did well the very first time. I had the daughter hold him in the shop as I dragged a dummy with scent on it out the door and up through the grass before I hid it behind a wood pile. I walked back to the shed and we let him out, his nose was to the ground and he weaved his way right to the dummy. The kid does have a nose there is no doubt about that.

Was going to go fishing this afternoon but found out the granddaughter has a soccer game, another thing that happens come the end of summer. I will be going to the soccer game to root and cheer her on and maybe do ice cream on the way back home. It is after all summer and you need to enjoy all of the things that summer brings, From Lake Iwanttobethere {752,852}

[Bobby Bass]

Watching five year olds play soccer is a lot like watching ice mites play hockey. Both teams move as a swarm in a random pattern on the ultra small field. Only one side of the field is open for parents to set up chairs or throw blankets on the ground to watch from. I stood off to the side and shot some video of the game and I must admit I received a few looks from concern parents. At half time my granddaughter ran off the field and gave me a big hug. The concern parents now saw that I was one of them and not just some stranger taking pictures.

I never have been part of the "Soccer Mom" crowd although my Tahoe did not look out of place in the parking lot. No two seaters in the lot but a lot of mini vans with car seats. I did have to park off to the side as I had the Puddle Humper hitched up to the truck. The plan was to watch some of the soccer game then slip off to get the boat wet for a few hours on the way back to the cabin. I was not the only one with that plan as there was another boat and truck parked along the road. Now there is one big difference that I noticed between youth soccer and ice mite hockey, When someone on the soccer field falls down the rest of the team remains standing, in hockey it seems to be a domino effect, and every one goes down.

At this level there are no goalies and the rules seem to be pretty relax, I would say they are at the same level of my understanding of the game. If the granddaughter gets serious about this I will have to learn something about the game. The future son in law played soccer in high school and college and still plays in some wreck league. I have always joked that soccer was for kids who can't throw or catch and if you see the wreck guys play that is true, they use their hands to hold their beer and cigars. Even my good neighbor Chuck played soccer in high school and was even drafted by a pro team as a goalie. He was traded to New York and left Lake Iwanttobethere for several years. When he came back he was wearing a cowboy hat and boots, go figure.

Of course that was years ago and now you will find Chuck with a John Deere cap and a pair of crocs on. He still wears cowboy boots from time to time but I always point out to him the town ordnance about having to own two cows before you can wear cowboy boots in town. I know that at the last town meeting he was trying to get it changed or amended to include two horses which he now does own or more than two dozen chickens which he too now owns.

My gal's team scored ten goals and the other team scored three, in my book that counts as a win but it seems they don't keep score. A lot of time was spent by the referees trying to keep the ball on the playing field as someone would kick the ball out of bounds and both teams would follow. Kind of like one of them wrestling matches where pins counted anywhere. I think one time they were two fields over celebrating a goal, the two teams there didn't have an idea where two more teams came from. The ref got the ball back and had to herd the teams back to their own field, they then had to bring two players back as they got mixed in with ours. Two games down and eight more to go, this should take me right into bird season and a reason to be out of the cabin on Monday nights, from Lake Iwanttobethere {753,749}

[Bobby Bass]

Yesterday found me mowing grass and cutting up firewood, things that are never really all done here at the cabin. From time to time I would hear the whine of the wood splitter over at Chucks only interrupted by the sound of cursing. Guy down the road from us had some Elm's that he cut down and wanted hauled away. The neighbor had cut then into fire length but never had gotten around to splitting them. He was offering them up for free to who ever would haul them away. Chuck had seen the sign along side the roadway and had driven his tractor down and scooped them up with the bucket. Only after he had made a few trips did he mention to me that he had scored on some free, dry firewood. He needle me some when I told him "Good for you, have fun splitting them."

In my younger days I too had scored on some free Elm firewood, I think it might be the worse wood to try and split and I never did get all the free stuff I got done. If I remember right I donated most of it to the high school bonfire. Now I can hear the whine of the splitter and I know Chuck has already broke the splitter twice, I can tell by the cursing and the sound of the welder firing up. I didn't walk over to offer any help, there are just times when a guy wants to be alone. I finished up my mowing and was stacking wood when the phone rang. Duncan picked the phone off the cradle and brought it outside to me, as you can see Duncan's training is coming along nicely. My friend Vic from down at the Lake Iwanttobethere Retirement Home was on the line and to make things short he had won a pontoon boat. Well not the boat but a ride on one in a raffle, the trip was good for two and he had no one to go with and wanted to know if I would be interested. I asked him if the pontoon had a lid on it and he said yes and I told him it was to rain later but I was in.

A few more minutes on the phone and I asked him if I needed to bring anything, I think Vic had a list at his side. Cheetos, snicker's candy bars, a six pack of Hamms would be a good idea and maybe two dozen minnows. I asked if he wanted the minnow's oxygen packed and he told me no, he had that covered but bring your bait bucket. O and a gas can might be a good idea too. I gave Duncan the phone back and he took it back inside the cabin. I grabbed the fishing bag from the front hall and the ever present brown bag lunch from the fridge and loaded the Tahoe. A couple of rods and I had to dig a little to find the minnow bucket. I was just closing the shop door when the wife arrived home. I pointed to the pile of stacked wood and said I was going fishing. Duncan standing next to me looked at the truck and then at the wife. I said "Mother" and Duncan ran to her side to be a pest, like I said he is learning well.

I picked up Vic at the home and we got his walker in the Tahoe and told him I already had fishing gear on board. We drove over to this rental spot on the lake that had these small pontoons, Vic traded the raffle ticket for a key and twenty minutes later we were moving away from the dock. Vic and I made some small talk and we caught up, he has been on the pontoon a few times, usually he trades his dessert to someone who has won the drawing. Vic says they count on people winning who will never use the pontoon. They never put any gas in the tank so you can't go too far away from the dock, that's why you brought the gas can. As soon as we made it out to the end of the point Vic leaned hard into the wheel turning the pontoon to the port and soon out of sight of the dock. More to come, from Lake Iwanttobethere {756,699}

[Bobby Bass]

I sat back on the ratty bench as Vic drove the pontoon, he had brought a knapsack along and it has seen some use in it's day. From the knapsack came a well-worn captain's hat and before I could make a comment he turn to me and started to tell me stories of when he was a tug captain down on the great lakes, the real ponds as he explains it. My father in law had a neighbor who sailed on the big ponds and I heard more than a few stories as we played cards on Friday nights while I was courting his daughter and was being looked over. From time to time I would add to a tale with one that I had heard at the card table. The stories came easily for Vic and he drove the pontoon like a tug, being slow was just the right speed for him.

We came to a stop at big reed point and there were clouds coming in but not the type that held any rain. I plucked a few minnows from the bucket and soon they were under floats along the edge of the reed bank. As is a common thing when fishing with bobbers or floats I watched his as he watched mine. I would have thought we were fishing at the pond behind the retirement home but I know I put a minnow on his hook. We chatted some more on a wide range of topics, never finishing one before we moved on to another. He asked if I was hungry and I told him sure I could eat. I grabbed for my brown paper bag lunch but Vic reached into the knapsack and pulled out a red and white checkered table cloth. Setting it down on the small table between us he open the ends to reveal a complete chicken dinner. Well maybe not complete but it was deep fried chicken, rolls and some pickles with two fancy napkins. As he brought the first chicken leg to his lips he just said "I know somebody in the kitchen"

I open the cooler and twisted off the top to two Hamms, I am sure I have had better snacks but I would be hard pressed to remember one. We floated along the edge of the reed bank and we even caught a few fish. A rock bass and a few crappies. A pesky northern who took Vic's hook and then was suspected of returning and doing it again. I made mention to Vic that the minnows were looking a little lazy and he reached into his knapsack and took out a small canister of O2 As he grabbed some plastic tubing from the knapsack he told me his doctor insists that he always have some air handy. Sticking the tubing into the minnow bucket he turn on the air and soon we had some pretty frisky minnows.

With just suds in the bottom of the last beers and the sun sitting low in some dark clouds we decide to call it an evening. Somehow Vic had manage to trick a walleye into biting his minnow and it was dangling at the end of a stringer that you guessed it, came from his knapsack. Starting the outboard Vic stood at the wheel not needing his walker. With a red sunset framing him from behind and wearing his captain's hat he looked a lot younger. I sat on the bench with my feet on the rail when Vic said "You ever seen what happens to an old outboard when you introduce pure O2 to it" from Lake Iwanttobethere {759,739}

[reinhard1]

i found that after a few beers some of the gals looked younger and more attractive as the night neared it's end in some bars years ago. being from Duluth and downing a few Hamm's in my days i found out that that brand and the green death [special export] usualy provided some headaches for some reason so i went to brands that didn't have the same outcome. wine did that also. i think my dad still had one of those original Hamm's lighted bar signs in his basement. it show's the bear going over a waterfall. the effects have the water looking like a real falls with the bear going over the falls. good luck.

[Bobby Bass]

One of the benefits of serving beer to fishermen is fishing tips, actually now that I think about it, it may be the only benefit. A few weeks ago a couple of tourist were in the Lodge after an afternoon on the water. They were tipping back the Hamms pretty good having just discovered the famous beer and we were out of Needabeer. So they are kind of bragging kind of loud about how good they did fishing but were having a hard time remembering exactly where they had come fishing from. They were not on Lake Iwanttobethere but were off on some tote road where they had taken a wrong turn. The talk center around all the bass they had caught and it, the fishing was so good that they even made their friend Art look like he knew what he was doing.

Well I was behind the bar wiping out beer glasses and looking just like a barkeep would on TV or in some grade B movie. You know I had the apron around the waist and I was holding a bar towel polishing shot glasses. Actually I was eavesdropping pretty hard to what they were saying as these guys were tourist and a little more believable them some of the local fishermen. The thing that caught my attention is they kept saying that they were on Wrong Lake. We don't have a Wrong Lake up here at Lake Iwanttobethere but I have heard guys talk about being on the wrong lake at the wrong time, it happens more than being on the Right Lake at the right time. Come hunting season a lot of guys swear about being at the right place at the right time but these tourists really meant they were on the Wrong Lake.

I took my little leather notebook that I always have on hand for jotting down things and I added the Wrong Lake information to the section on secret lakes. Well a week goes by and I over hear a couple of local bass guys talking about this little lake on the end of a tote road. As I drifted over in their direction they spotted me and change the subject to cucumbers. I knew right then they had found a lake. I even went so far as offering a free pitcher of beer on the house to keep them talking, but one of them was always watching me. Taking Gus into my confidence I told him of my suspicions of an unknown bass lake being found. Reaching under the bar Gus brought out our secret weapon and showing it to me I nodded my head in agreement.

Calling Bud over behind the bar we attached the small black button wireless mike to the underside of his collar. Gus strolled over to the table with the fishermen and dropped a raw chew hide from his apron on to the floor, he kicked the chew under the table and made his way back to the bar in a round about way. I brought Bud to the side of the bar and pointed at the chew. Bud walked to the chew, picked it up and looked back at me. I gave him the stay signal with my hands and he sat down and began to work on the chew. The fishermen gave him a glance and one even patted him on the head and they continued to chat, sipping on the free beer.

Back at the bar Gus and I slipped in ear buds and listened in, It took awhile but I now know the location of Wrong Lake and will be fishing it here this week, Like I said working at the Lodge does have it's advantages even if you have to work at it some time, from Lake Iwanttobethere {761,489}

[Bobby Bass]

Wrong Lake, I found it. Well first off it is not a lake but what we up here just call a big pond. About fifty acres or so and one lonely broken down cabin on it, the access road is a tight squeeze into it and the landing, well it's a good thing the Tahoe has four wheel drive. Of course the name of the lake is not Wrong Lake and I did discover the real name as there is not a pot hole big enough to float a row boat that has not been named. I can't really say the real name because like all little lakes someone will come fish it and then spread the word about the little lake. Besides it has been awhile since I have found a little bass lake where I can sneak off to and relax without anyone else on it.

Now as for referring to it as Wrong Lake, I think that is going to stick. My neighbor Chuck and I went and fished it yesterday, I can swear him to secrecy about the little lake as he helped find it's location. Gus kind of dropped the ball and got distracted when we were eavesdropping and the only way he will get to fish the lake is if I take him there blindfolded. You got to kind of watch Gus as he from time to time he will step out of the kitchen to bar tend and has been known to give out a little to much information to customers if they are buying him drinks. Funny how tourist can be, especially fishing tourists when they are trying to find some hot local waters. One time I took Gus into this little lake and we had one of them dream evenings, fished an area about as big as the Lodges parking lot. Hardly had to move the Puddle Humper around and bass were just exploding on our top water lures. On the way out I noticed Gus was working hard looking for landmarks and road crossings signs. I ended that by driving the rest of the way back without the headlights on. He was more worried about what was on the road then where he had been.

OK, so after some time on the computer looking at the Goggle maps and talking to some grouse hunters trading tote roads we took a chance and drove back on this one way tote road with no guarantee of finding a place to turn around. We found the pond, had to take the trailer off the Tahoe, back the Tahoe back up the trail, turn it around and back down to the pond hook the trailer back up then back into the water. I am sure it will be easier next time or we will bring a smaller boat. Now since I have not told you where the lake is I will tell you a little about it. The pond is ringed in them skinny floating weeds that you can't get through with your trolling motor. But the shoreline is like someone had a big aquarium and hand placed all the decorations.

Fallen trees lay in the water at very appealing casting angles and even the tops of a few rock piles can be seen. Room size spreads of Lilly pads and the shoreline has all kinds of tight little coves. A small island surrounded by reeds and some more down trees stretch out into deeper water. Of course we could get back to none of this but when the weeds die off in the fall we will be able to go back and fish it all. Meanwhile we worked around the outside edge of the big floating weed mess, and we caught fish. A couple of small ones that I am always happy to see and then we started catch two pounders one after another, well I was catching the two pounders, Chuck had tied on a weed walker and was throwing back into the slop and was getting bowling balls hits and misses. He did land one just shy of four pounds and he held it up long enough to make sure I saw it.

Now this was not all that easy, we did have to pay a little dues. We had some trouble getting the Puddle Humper into the water and then there was finding that one of my rods had the tip broken off. Chuck was working on one of his reels and dropped his handle into the lake and had the top half of his rod came off a few times as he was trying to throw deep back into the slop. The bugs stayed away while we were on the water only to attack us as soon as we got close to shore. It was almost like they knew they had us and they just had to wait by the trailer for our return. Everything is fixed now and we will be going back to Wrong Lake here this fall. I will have to find another way back to the lake as I was in the Lodge this morning and someone said they saw me and the Puddle Humper rolling down county road number ...... And here you thought I was going to name that road, from Lake Iwanttobethere {762,797}

[Bobby Bass]

Went fishing last night and I hope to be reporting that a lot this fall. After not getting out very much at all so far this summer I have warned the wife that I am going to make up for it this fall. Last night I was off to a lake that is always a good fall lake but I thought I would try it now. As soon as I mentioned the name of the lake to my youngest daughter she was in. The bass fishing in this lake can be very good and the water is so clear you just want to dip a cup into and drink. As soon as I mentioned my plans for fishing it the daughter was in the kitchen packing a cooler. I try and get the daughter to fish as much as I can, some of it is for selfish reasons. I don't have to do much of anything. She will pack the lunch, make sure the Puddle Humper is loaded and even put the trailer on the Tahoe. All I need to do is hop in the front seat, light a cigar and put it in drive.

When we arrived at the landing she was out and taking off the straps and getting rods ready. Graphs hooked up along with batteries and the lunch stored onboard. I backed the Puddle Humper down into the lake and she pushed it off the trailer. By the time I had parked the Tahoe she was holding the boat on shore waiting for me. I climbed onboard and she pushed off. I must have had about twenty casts in before she launched her first one on her second one she caught a fish, just luck I told her. The water was seventy-five and the air was eighty-five there was a little breeze but we put it at our back and let it move us on down the shoreline. We caught a couple of doubles and she held them up while I took a few pictures.

A few northerns were also landed, a couple of four pounders came to the boat ten minutes apart and made me think they were bass till they came to the top and looked up at me, my spinner trapped between smiling jaws of teeth. The daughter told me she would take care of them and I didn't even have to leave my seat as she grabbed the fish, took the lure out and measured them alongside the tape measure. Back in the water they went and I am beginning to like this not getting wet kind of fishing. Could not have asked for a better night of fishing, warm water, fish were hitting hard. Little breeze to keep bugs away which we never really did see any of. Warm tee shirt and short weather and the daughter doing all the work. I started to hit the cooler and found ham sandwiches and short bread cookies. Apple juice and soda, and none of it was diet. A big bag of jerky was tucked in their and soon I was leaning back in my chair casting quiet water with my mouth full of jerky chew.

A few hours in and the daughter was complaining of a sore back from sitting in the chair so she took it off and set it down on the deck. Shoes came off next and she was now walking around the back casting deck holding on with her toes. She had a supply of shortbread cookies in the pocket of her tee shirt and would go to them from time to time. Bass fishing slowed and she picked up another rod that I had tied a yellow ugly bug to. Flashback fifteen years and she was my little girl in shorts and barefoot going for gills. She would lean over the side and jig away trying to get the gills that were nipping on our spinner bait tails to bite. No takers but she was having fun and that is why you go fishing.

With the sun setting low in the shoreline tree tops we hit one last row of docks. I tossed a spinner bait and picked up a few pound bass still hoping to get that one real nice hit. The daughter followed along behind me still trying to entice a blue gill to take her ugly bug. A few docks away from calling it a night I heard her drag start screaming like she snagged a dock. I looked back to see line heading away and her reeling quickly but not gaining any line, she tighten the drag and the rod bowed towards the water. A minute later and she pulled a bass just under three pounds from the clear water, the yellow ugly bug hanging from a lip. I don't know who had the bigger smile, the fish or her so I took a picture of both, from Lake Iwanttobethere {763,480}

[Bobby Bass]

Went fishing again last night, that has a nice ring to it. It was after all Silent Sunday and the best place to be alone is out on the lake fishing. First off Stormy Clearweather got the sunny sky part right but the light winds, she was not even close. I asked the daughter if she would like to go fishing again but she begged off claming her shoulder was a tad sore. Must have been from catching that big fish I told her and I said I would leave her in peace if she would make me a lunch. Was going to a different lake so I took the daughter's rods out and added a few more of my own to the Puddle Humper. While I waiting for my lunch I checked out the boat and saw I needed gas and a few more cigars.

A little while later and I am at the Gas-N-Go topping off the boat tank and grabbing a soda that I am not supposed to have. The wife had already gone through my cooler and removed the one that the daughter had packed. I was heading to another little lake up the highway and would have to spend some time on blacktop. I cracked the windows some and put the Tahoe in cruise and the miles went quickly. I made my turn from blacktop to gravel to dirt road and found myself at the lake and a recently worked on landing. The low spot was gone where standing water was this Spring and now the area had been recently graded. Going to make it nice come this fall when I will come chase northerns and get some grouse hunting in on the little trail that leads off into the woods from the landing.

It takes a little longer to get the Puddle Humper ready to launch when I am alone, but I have a system. As I remove straps and put rods on the front deck I am thinking I have to be well over six hundred times that I have done the very same thing. I should have kept track, would have been a good topic to kill time at the Lodge with the guys while nursing a Hamms. Well I get on the water and I am on the calm side of the lake, at least for about the first fifty feet then the wind catches ya. I decide to run up the calm side for a ways and I start fan casting a buzzbait into the Lilly pads. Cast number five I think is greeted by a boil and I feel the buzzbait come to an abrupt stop. I set the hook and start talking to myself, I have a nice fish on!

I never remember how long the fish battles take, this one might have been but ten seconds but probably closer to thirty. I talk out loud like the fish can hear me coaxing her to stay on the line. I have a little trouble when some pads wrap around her and the line as she tries to jump and toss my lure but in the end I get her on her side and she slides across the water to my waiting thumb. As soon as I lift her I know she is a nice one. I take a few quick pictures, weigh her and then she is eased back over the side back into the water. Like all females she glares at me before flashing her tail and disappearing back into the cover. I sit back on the boat seat and let the water drip off my hands. I am thinking I should just go back to the landing and leave, not going to do better then that fish today. But I wipe my hands on my shorts and pick up a rod, there is a lot of water left to fish and a lot of time left in the day, from Lake Iwanttobethere {765,076}

[Bobby Bass]

I know this is starting to sound old, but I went fishing again! Tuesday I stepped out onto the deck with my glass of orange juice and declared in a loud voice that today looks like a good day to go fishing. The wife sitting at the table just looked up at me and smiled and said nothing. I was expecting a little reaction from her but she just looked back at the paper and said nothing. Sipping on my juice I stepped off the deck and wandered over to the Puddle Humper. The batteries are all charged and the gas tank is full. I adjusted a few rods and moved a tackle box, I peeked over my shoulder back at the wife and she continued to ignore me. Guess I am going fishing I thought to myself, but something is up.

So after doing a few chores around the cabin I checked the fishing log to see where I should fish. It might be the hardest part about going fishing is picking the right spot to go fishing. A little lake north of here was about due I figured so I announced where I was going and headed to the fridge. I plucked a couple of bottles of water from the door and I reached for the brown paper bag lunch that the wife always has ready for me on the shelf. "Bobby?" The wife said and I turned to look at her, I figured this is where the catch comes. "Yes" I answered with the bag in my hand. "I put a few extra cookies in there for you" She said with a smile. I just nodded and petted Duncan between the ears and walked out the screen door. I headed to the Tahoe and stepped over Bud and Barney who were both sleeping at the bottom steps of the deck. They each open one eye and just watched, something strange going on around here.

A few minutes later and I was on the road, CD playing and a cigar burning. Since the flood in June we still have several roads that are still closed and the little lake that I was heading to was going to make me take a few detours. I have to pass through a neighboring town that is real tourist town, Lake Iwanttobethere sure does have it's attractions but this little town has really just sprung up in the past fifty years or so. Where as Lake Iwanttobethere has pretty much one of everything maybe two of some things this little town seems to have four of everything. The detour took me right through the heart of town and right down what I guess is Main Street but it looks more like a fast food buffet lane for cars.

Burger places and Hot Dogs places, Pizza to go places, a big Super Market and signs hanging everywhere advertising ice for sale. Flags and banners hanging from street lights and painted crosswalks. Green street signs pointed you off in other directions and kids riding bikes and others pushing along on skate boards. Table's setup outside on the sidewalks in front of Sub Shops and a line at the Dairy Queen. People in shorts and tank tops in a rainbow of colors not walking but strolling along like tourists do. Dads holding little kid's hands as they try to work around a melting cone in their free hand. Cameras hanging around necks from black straps and the occasional old guy with a fanny bag. I drove through the center of town not stopping, I had my bag lunch and the Tahoe tank had enough gas to get me to the lake and back. I hit the green light at the end of town and looked back in my mirror just in time to see an older gent lowering his camera. Tourist I am thinking to myself, funny the old guy was thinking the same thing, from Lake Iwanttobethere {767,286}

[Bobby Bass]

I didn't go fishing the night of the blue moon, I was thinking about it but thought better of it. The oldest daughter was getting married the following day and it was wise to be around just in case. Not that I had anything to do, that was all being taken care of by the wife and the aunts and the girlfriends and the bride to be. Me and the dogs spent most of the evening out on the deck, they on the wood and me on the swing. I had a fire going in the pit and a phone close at hand. My job on this night was to answer the phone and answer questions. I had a yellow legal pad close at hand and would refer to it from call to call. Relaying telephone numbers and the address of the wedding and shielding the wife from questions, she is just to busy you see.

The wedding will be an outside affair with the reception right there, not at Lake Iwanttobethere but at another lake down the road. The new in laws are an unknown as I have not met them but the wife has been talking too them on the phone. It should be an interesting meeting I have been told by the wife. About the only thing I did was wash the Tahoe of the dust from the last fishing trip and empty the rear for all the food that is going down. This is the second wedding for both the daughter and her new husband and they are approaching it from a different angle. First wedding for both was the big affair with catered meal, flowers and bands and real bartenders. Now this time around it is a lot more laid back, lot easier for me although it is interrupting a good string of fishing I had going.

Thursday was baking day and dozens and dozens of cookies were made along with loafs of banana bread and muffins. I was allowed to sample but only because the wife could not do it herself anymore. Yesterday was meatball day as pounds of meatballs were made and cooked along with salads. My fridge is full along with Chucks next door, somehow she conned him into using his fridge. Being as far always as we are I had nothing to do with setup, that all falls on my counter part, the other father in law. I heard he was making progress with the tents and chairs and tables. Poor guy I thought as I sipped on a Hamms and watched it get dark. A few more calls came in asking if I could bring things down that were forgotten. More extension cords are needed and maybe I could pick up some extra fuel for the tiki torches?

With the sun setting the phone went quiet, that time of the day I think when everyone and everything takes a pause. Birds no longer flew and frogs now started croaking louder or maybe I just heard them better. Wind died as did the waves on Lake Iwanttobethere, the old wood row boat stopped squeaking against the dock and now rested quietly. The sound of the fan in the kitchen window was still there, blowing out smells like a deli into the night. Dogs lay sleeping on the deck, deep in dreams of their own. The wife came out with a glass of ice tea, the ice cubes tinkling against each other as she set the glass on the table. I said nothing and she did the same in return. I leaned back on the swing and watched as the stars came out, hard to see with the bright light coming off the blue moon. Of course it is not a blue moon but a happy moon, I am sure that is what the daughter is thinking on this night, from Lake Iwanttobethere {768,099}

[Bobby Bass]

Not a ripple on the waters of Lake Iwanttobethere this morning. The forecast had called for thunderstorms over night but they never appeared here. I was expecting to find a wet deck and damp grass when I let the dogs out. The dogs fanned out over the grass as they each took a different set of steps off the deck. I walked over to the swing and sat down after moving a toy doll and the granddaughters sandals. Cushions were a little damp from dew as we are getting into that part of late summer where it cools off at night. A few blacken chunks of wood sit cold in the fire pit from last night's fire, they will make good starter for a fire today.

Quiet out, a fishermen's quiet this morning. I have found over the years there are all kinds of quiet. A hunters quiet which can be one of several different kinds. There is the duck blind quiet which has just the sound of your breathing and the slight panting of a dog. The sound of the sun coming up over the horizon and the distant single coming in. Deer stand quiet at dawn is yet another kind of quiet as the sound of a squirrel in dry leaves can make you think there is a charging moose behind you. Fishermen's quiet, if you are lucky can happen twice a day. Once in the morning at sunrise and again at sunset. I don't know which I like better but it might be morning. This morning was a fishermen's quiet, dogs had moved out of earshot as they had walked away slow with noses down on the wet dew covered grass. They left trails in the grass like a buzz bait does on calm waters.

No sound of crows no buzz of bees no lawnmowers running or outboards idling. Not even the echo of a poodle barking, just quiet. No sound of distant cars or the train clicking on rails. Just the sound of nothing and maybe the swing as you lean back to listen. No crickets no frogs no gulls calling just quiet, for some it could be almost annoying. A fish splashes and you are tuned in, your eyes catch the rings of water where the fish had just been. Experience tells you it was just a little one but you have been tricked before by little rings. I get up from the cushions and walk towards the shore, the wet grass makes me sound as quiet as a mouse on a winter's night. I stop at the water's edge and now I can hear the water lapping at the dock. The sun is still climbing and it looks like it is pulling itself from the water's grip, I stand and wait for it to clear, I am imagining it will sound like a big wet kiss.

The screen door slams back at the cabin, the granddaughter is up and the quiet is broken. Dogs start barking and race to the deck and as I turn I can hear her laughing and giggling. A crow appears overhead and starts it's cawing and at Chucks I can now hear the horses snickering and his girlfriend calling. That little poodle from across the lake starts barking, I think he does it just to hear his echo, it makes him sound bigger. I walk up the grass and I am past by a bee no doubt off to work he buzzes past me. The quiet is gone now but with a little luck it will return tonight, I hope to be sitting on the swing when it happens. I will be watching the sun as it sinks back into my own little sea, from Lake Iwanttobethere {769,263)

[Bobby Bass]

Well the wedding went off without a hitch, the daughters new in-laws out did themselves. The new father in law fishes for bass so he can't be all that bad and he is a master cabinetmaker. He owns forty acres and harvests and mills his own maple and oak, I am already eyeing a few projects for around the cabin here. Just one more day and the grand kids will be scarce around here as school starts. I love the grand kids but now that summer is about over it is time for fall fishing and me and Duncan will be doing some bird hunting together. Bud will get some time in to but I think it will be mostly the trail behind the cabin. His age is showing and although he won't admit it he is slowing down.

Some bad news to report on Barney as he went to the vet and came back with a bad news. He is just getting over an ear infection that we did not catch early enough and he has lost his hearing. We knew something was up as he was ignoring the kids calling him but we were thinking he just wanted to be alone with his fishing on the dock. The vet said he will be OK but doubtful if his hearing will return. For now he is getting plenty of extra attention and we have to be careful around him as he sleeps sound and does not hear us comings. I know I find that I go out of my way to rub him behind his ears more and slip him an extra biscuit. We sat all the grand kids down and told them about the hearing loss and my youngest daughter told me she can teach Barney sign, she has a friend who is deaf. She might just have something to that.

Summer honey do list has been put away and the fall do list is now on top of the desk. I know I was saying how long summer has been but August just zipped by, a wedding will do that. Rain is needed, we keep getting it in the forecast but it never appears. Rain barrels are empty and it has been awhile since that has happen. With the holiday over it is as if someone hit a switch, the nights are cooling quickly as soon as the sun sets and there is the beginning of a little color in some of the trees around the lake. A few days ago I was out by the shed and came around to see a twelve point buck in full velvet sneaking towards the apple trees. I pulled back and headed to the Tahoe where I had a camera. I got the camera out and made my way quiet like around the shed to where I was thinking the buck should be. When I peeked around the corner it was in time to see a white tail. Guess I was not as quiet as I thought I was. I mentioned the buck to a neighbor who bow hunts and his eyes got wide and he started to twitch a little.

As I sit and write this a small cloud went over head and dropped a little shower, not enough to get anything really wet but wet enough that I told the wife I think I am going fishing instead of mowing. Been a week since I went fishing and I was getting out every other day for a few weeks, need to get back into that routine. Pretty dark by eight now so I need to start a little earlier, sweat pants and a jacket are now in the Puddle Humper and it won't be long before a thermos will start making the trip. Best time of year is just around the corner as far as I am concern, from Lake Iwanttobethere {770,465}

[Bobby Bass]

Not the best day for fishing but the fish were biting, just not for me, yesterday. I was debating on going as the wind was blowing but today's forecast called for more of the same, wind that is. So I went fishing and I caught some fish but just no size to them. I will mark it off on the calendar as one of them dues paying fishing days and hopefully I will collect on a later date. I did have a northern wreck one of my buzzbaits and that will be added to the wall collection and no sooner did I tied a replacement one on and change rods then a bass came and hit my spinnerbait and broke it in half. I know it was a bass because it jumped a few times with my broken spinnerbait hooked in her mouth, She had to be all of five pounds! Well maybe she might grow to be four, OK really she went maybe two and the spinner must have had a defect in it.

I had to fight the wind all day and it was in the low seventies so it was not cold. On the good side of the ledger no bugs, I saw a few flies go zipping by and I just waved at them. By eight I was ready to head to the landing and as usual no sooner did the Puddle Humper slide up on the sand then the wind died. I checked the clock in the Tahoe when I backed up the trailer and it was right at eight, getting earlier and earlier. I was back home before ten and the batteries were on the charger, summer light is slipping away quickly now. Before the wife left for work she looked at the boat and at me and asked if I was going fishing. Told her no I was going to get to work on that fall Honey Do List. I had already checked the forecast you see.

With kids in school now my schedule goes in to fall mode. No more sleeping in late so I can stay up with them. By the time they are in school and the last yellow bus drives by I am now up. This morning I was already making the rounds and I made my way over to Chucks only to find no one at home. Found that interesting as he is now dating a school teacher, maybe she took him to school for show and tell. Made my way across my yard and over to Elmers I saw him down on his dock, fishing. I almost made it up to him quiet like till he called out my name. We both said HIYA at the same time. Without saying it I almost said fishing huh but I just walked to the edge of the dock and looked out at his bobber floating with an occasional twitch from the sucker minnow underneath.

So Bobby, I would like you to take care of my burial Elmer said from out of no where. "Ok" I slowly said trying to draw Elmer out. Elmer just said nothing but continued to write in his wide spaced tattered blue covered grade school notebook. I sat down on the bench and patiently waited. Elmer looked up and just said that he and Marv were talking about getting buried and what they would want done. Of course it was discussed over a couple of Wild Turkeys and today Elmer was really giving it some thought. Handing the notebook to me he said "Here is what I got so far"

Six young pallbearers

A humidor casket

An ipod, deck of cards, cribbage board and a quart of Wild Turkey.

I looked over the list and said "let's go backwards first." Elmer putting his fingers together put them behind his head sat back in his chair and looked at a passing cloud overhead. "Cards, cribbage board and Turkey is a given, figure I will have some time to kill." I nodded, "The Ipod?" Elmer looked at me and said "Chances are they aren't going to have any music I want to listen to"

I chucked a little at that one because I don't think anyone has Elmers choice of music on their play list. "Ok, what about this, a humidor casket?" Elmer looked back at the cloud and said "There ain't a better smell then a humidor loaded with Cuban cigars, if I am going to be in a small place I want to smell them cigars not some rose petals! Besides don't you know some cabinetmaker? I looked up at the passing cloud and thought about the daughters new father in law and his reaction if I asked him to make my friend a humidor casket. I shook out of it and went to the top of the list. "Six young pallbearers ? " I asked. Elmer pulled his hands from behind his head and turned to look at me, You know Bobby I am an old man and have not ran since, well I don't remember. The last thing that I would like to do is run again so I figure if I have six young fellers carrying my casket they can run me out to the hearse. I nodded, made sense to me and then I got to thinking about this is what I have been missing by sleeping in late, from Lake Iwanttobethere {771,502}

[Bobby Bass]

Yesterday was a fishing vacation experience. You know the kind where you travel to some fishing hot spot that you made plans and travel arrangements while sitting in front of a roaring fire in the dead of winter. You waited months for the appointed time and when you arrived at your destination the weather was not the kind of weather you would even think about fishing back at home. But, you are on vacation so you go fishing. I had fishing marked down on the calendar and so with popcorn thunderstorms moving through and gusting winds I hitched the trailer to the Tahoe and went fishing.

Thirty minutes into a sixty minute drive the cell phone rang and my friend Chuck was on the line. Our conversation was brief as he told me it had started raining and a shingle just blew off his shed. My answer was good thing I am fishing on the other end of the lake. You see, I had a plan. I was going to fish a small bay of Lake Iwanttobethere that is ringed with tall pines, I figure they would block the water from the wind and I would be able to maybe not have calm water but doable fishing water, I was wrong.

I arrived at my little landing to find it empty, no surprise there. Some small waves rolled through the Lilly pads and you could hear the howling wind in the treetops. No sooner did I start to take the straps off the Puddle Humper then a few rain drops splattered on my hat. I retreated back inside the Tahoe to wait the shower out and decided to eat a sandwich and drink a pop. Bologna sandwiches on croissant bread always taste better when eaten outside, or in my case sitting in the truck waiting out a shower. I ate my sandwich, had a couple of cookies and sipped on the pop and sure enough the rain stopped and the wind appeared to die. I launched the boat and headed out through a channel in the pads. The idea about the protected bay was a good one except for the fact that the wind was still there and now I was acting like a sail for the Puddle Humper. The wind did not have enough open water to build waves but it did have enough power to sweep down over the treetops and make boat control interesting.

I would like to say I caught fish as fishing reports are supposed to be about catching fish but actually it was a Bo Didley kind of day as I caught squat. I spent two hours on the water and except for one sunfish that I caught with a little ugly bug I didn't get a single bass. I had one little northern chase a buzz bait but even he could not catch it. Rain clouds swirled around me but not another rain drop fell. I did have to add some layers of clothes as I was only on the water for ten minutes or so before I got the sweat pants out and put a sweater on under the rain gear. The water was in the high sixties which made it warmer than the air but add the wind and the air felt twenty degrees cooler. So you say why did I go out fishing in weather like that? Well I have had some pretty good days in that kind of weather but yesterday was just not one of them. I figure it will even out down the road as it always seems to.

The day was not a total loss even though I only fished for a few hours. I was back on the road by six and when I came through town I took the Puddle Humper to the car wash. A small stack of quarters later and she looked almost like one of them vacation boats going down the highway. More wind and rain in the forecast today but supposed to be warmer and less wind tomorrow. That is good because I have it on my calendar that I am going fishing, from Lake Iwanttobethere {774,095}

[Bobby Bass]

The goal of fishing one day and then working around the cabin the next day and then back to fishing so far is a success. I am making up for lost fishing days in the first half of the summer and the Honey Do List is getting widdle away at. There are a few negatives to this equation as my wallet is a little thinner. Gas is supposed to be going down this time of the year but at the Gas-N-Go it went up another dime yesterday. Granted I saved some gas money early in the summer but I am sure spending it now. The wife has not said to much about it, wait till I start bird hunting on them work days. What, I never said I was going to stop fishing when hunting starts.

Sunshine Ray is forecasting some rain later tonight so it is a good thing I can leave to go fishing a littler earlier today. Of course if it rains tomorrow, which happens to be a work around the cabin day there is not much I can do about it. Good thing it is going to be a nice Thursday which just happens to be a fishing day. I did go fishing on Sunday and I did not travel far, I figured with the football season starting everyone would be home in front of their TV's. I was wrong, there actually were five other trailers at the landing, twice as many as normal. After wind for four days it was nice to spend some time on the water not having to hold on to your hat. I caught some fish, nothing big to report but I figure today will be a better day since we have had a few days of decent sunny weather. Cold front coming through tonight so maybe there is a big girl out there looking for a date night with me.

Normally this time of the year the grand kids have caught frogs for me and I will do some serious frog fishing. The second half of the summer has been pretty dry and frogs are hard to come by, I might not be able to do that this fall. Matter of fact the grass is hardly growing, Elmer was just talking yesterday that his hair is growing faster then his lawn. I ran the mower around the cabin and down by the lake and was done in about thirty minutes. I checked off Mowing on the Honey Do List and I saw the wife frowning yesterday when she saw it checked off. The newly found extra gas for the mower went into the boat tank and I announced I had to go get mower gas. Duncan rode shotgun and we headed to the Masterbaiters Shop for some trailers for the new spinner baits that came in the mail.

Chuck has been busy next door, power washed the entire outside of his cabin. It was hard for me to sit in the lawn chair and watch him work. I need to do that with my cabin and of course stain it, don't know if there will be enough nice days to match up with the scheduled work days though. Nights have been getting cool when the sun goes down, sketters are taking a big hit which is just fine with me. Now if we can get rid of them gray flies it will be enjoyable to sit on the deck at sundown. The apples on the trees are turning a nice bright red and it won't be too much longer and the smell of apple pies cooling will be in the air. The potted tomato plants on the deck are ripening as well and the grand kids are plucking the cherry tomatoes almost as much as I am. I almost miss them being in school during the day. Peace and quiet, no barking dogs just the sound of Chuck working and Marv and Elmer on Elmers dock fishing and playing cribbage with the occasional sound of a beer being open. Getting to be fall here at Lake Iwanttobethere {776.297}

[Bobby Bass]

It's here, well tomorrow it will be anyway. Small game season opens and there will be some orange vests walking trails and tote roads around Lake Iwanttobethere. The past few days a few orange hats have appeared around town as guys are breaking in new ones or trying to get some more wear out of the old ones. At the General Store Big Earl is wearing his bright orange apron and there is a display rack of fancy orange bird vests on the front sidewalk. Inside Barb has a hand printed sign directing you back to Junior in the hunting department. I had to make the walk past patio furniture on clearance to the sound of a duck call as most of the guys in the store were now in Juniors department.

Shotgun shells were moving at a brisk pace as everyone always needs an extra box or two. Besides after handling a few new shotguns and wishing you could own one buying a box of shells is the least you can do. I was good on shells as I had been in the department shopping several times over the summer. Was in just last week buying a new throwing dummy as Duncan lost his. Actually we found it a few days later, hidden in one of Bud's hiding places. I think what happen is I tossed the dummy high over some bushes in a training session and Bud found it first. He then took it and hid it on Duncan in the same place where he takes the grand kids balls when they are annoying him. A day after I bought the new dummy I found the old one and two soccer balls hidden in Buds secret spot.

Since I am in the General Store so much I notice a new item on display, Deer Crossing signs. There were several of them in bright yellow with a deer in the center. Junior came over and we exchanged HIYA's "What is with the sign's" I asked. Junior explained to me with a big grin on his face that they are a hot item this year. I looked at him and the signs and said " I didn't know we had a deer crossing problem" "Well we don't but this order of signs came in and I had them leaning up against the salt blocks and a couple of crates of molasses, Some guys came in and bought salt blocks and the molasses and a couple of signs, asked me if the deer really do cross where the signs are, of course they do I said." Junior patted the signs and smiled, "Word has gotten out and now all the out of towners are stopping by to get signs for their deer stands" I was about to say something when a young guy in a three piece suit walked up and asked Junior if the Big Buck crossing signs had come in yet?

I made my way up the aisle where the chain saw bar oil was trying not to laugh to loud. I went right past the pink flamingo decoys wondering to myself if that season was open tomorrow to. I made my way up to Barb at the cash register and I had forgotten what I came in the store for so I bought a Kit Kat bar and made my way back to the street. I peeled the wrapper off the candy bar and watched as two trucks hauling trailers with four wheelers drove by. Getting to be that time of the year where the four wheelers will out number the boat trailers and in and a few weeks the boat trailers will be the rare thing spotted around town. I munched on the candy bar as I headed towards the Tahoe. Lot of green leafs out there, I think I will just go fishing tomorrow, from Lake Iwanttobethere {777,768}

[Bobby Bass]

Dang the mornings are getting a little crisp around here. The water in the dog bowl ain't frozen yet but I won't be surprised when it happens. Yesterday was a work day so I marked off a few more things on the Honey DO List but still managed to charge the boat batteries and cleaned out the Puddle Humper. Will be going fishing this afternoon as it might be the last really warm day for the next week or so. Day pack is now in the Tahoe with extra clothes in it. Should take the Tahoe down to the car wash as the last few fishing trips have taken me on some pretty dusty roads. Rain is needed badly as it is harvest time and the garden needs that little extra water. I did till over one of the wives flower beds and it was like tilling the driveway. Very hard and when I was done it was like I had a bed of dust not dirt. I pointed that out to the wife and explained we will have to get some rain before I can till anymore, Figure I will get another day of fishing in while we wait.

Did a little more mowing but all that really did was cut the weeds all down to the same height. Air compressor got a work out as I didn't take the hose to clean the mower off but just blew the dust off. Dragged it over to the Puddle Humper and blew the carpet off, was surprised how much dust from driving them dirt roads had settle in. After that I got distracted with the wand on the hose and started blowing spider webs of the cabin windows and just about anything else that was dusty. I added that to the Honey Do List then put a big check mark next to it.

The lazy days of summer have come to a close, no longer can you sit on the deck and watch the sun slowly sinking. Now it is more like it gets popped with a pin and drops out of sight. Friday night pontoons are still out on the lake trolling but they are not tying up together like they did in midsummer. A few of the docks have been pulled up and when you drive around the lake the blue tarps are coming out of storage. Fewer lights are showing from cabins as summer residents are staying home now. Although I expected a few new lights to be on this weekend as some of the hunters will be here with the start of bird season.

Chicken Shack has a sign by the drive thru saying they will be closing soon and there are pumpkins already on display out on the highway stand. I thought summer was moving along at a nice lazy pace this year but August just flew by and already we are halfway through September. Maybe another month of fishing left for me before I have to get serious about the Honey Do List and get ready for winter. The worst thing that could happen would be a cold damp fall but actually that would not be a bad thing.

Still to green out to bird hunt for my liking. Some trees around the lake are starting to turn a little color but the grass is too high and to many leaves to anything more then shoot at dumb young birds. So Duncan and I will wait, Bud already knows something is up and every time he goes out he heads for the back trail looking over his shoulder to see if I am coming. I ignore him and try not to meet his eye, pretending to look the other way. I might run the riding mower down the trail a ways just to make it easier for us later. The cooler weather is good for him and Barney they seem to be a little more busy. Duncan is Duncan, just constantly in motion, sometimes I think I have two of him as he is everywhere, but then this is Lake Iwanttobethere and maybe I do {779,415}

[Bobby Bass]

Forty-nine degrees on the bass thermometer hanging on the wall of the cabin. The red needle is under the fifty mark, it has been awhile since I have seen it there. Overcast sky and windy, the trees are swaying and leaves are falling, not a lot but enough so that you notice them as they blow by. Turkey vultures soar high above but they are having a little trouble with their flight plan as the wind is blowing them all over. First time in a long time that today all the cabin windows are closed. I am sure a few will get open later in the day as the sun climbs a little higher and warms things up. Today is a work day and I think there might be several of them in a row this week. The week is not looking good for fishing, I can dress for the cool but I hate the wind. Elmer is not out on the dock either this morning, the wind is blowing in so his bobber would just end up on shore.

Nice enough day yesterday, sunny and warm and a lot of boat traffic on the lake. Might be why today is so hard to adjust to. I sure am hoping that yesterday was not the last nice day of summer but today is sure making a case that fall is really here. Bud and I did take a little stroll on the back trail yesterday afternoon. The wife had taken Duncan over to the daughter's house and it was just me and the old dogs. Barney was down on the dock intently watching the water and Elmer was fishing and said he would keep an eye on him for me. With Barney now deaf we treat him like a puppy and someone is always keeping tabs on him. I find myself going out of my way to give him an extra pat on the back or slip him a biscuit.

So I went to the closet to get my hunting boots on and they were not where they should be. The wife was gone so there was no reward yelling for my boots. Bedroom closet produced nothing nor the hall closet. I checked in the den and even looked under the desk, Duncan has a thing about hiding stuff under the desk. I stood in the kitchen with a glass of juice thinking when and where is the last time I wore them. Buddy sat near the door looking at me trying to be helpful but not having a clue as to what I am looking for. I mumble something about hunting boots out loud and Buds ears perked up. I saw this and said huntin boots louder and Bud sprang up and headed for the seldom used front door. I did not make it to the archway and Bud was returning with a boot in his mouth. I found the match on the tray by the front door right where I would find out later was where the grandson had put them after trying to wear them.

I took the old huntin boots out to the back swing and Bud followed me out, tail wagging he knew what we were going to be doing. The boots are old, maybe twenty years I am guessing. I don't remember when I exactly bought them but I remember that I had some extra money from some side job and I was going to spend it on buying a pair of hunting boots. Now at my age I don't out grow anything and there is a pretty good chance that I am not going to outwear anything so that only leaves my boots being borrow out and not returned but that's not going to happen with boots, I hope. The old boots are well worn, soft and way past being broken in. I check the laces and pull the boots on tying them the same way I show the grandsons to tie their shoes. Laces tucked in the sides I stand up and walk on the deck a little, just like I am in a shoe store. Bud sits and watches and gives me that can we go now look.

Back inside the cabin I head for the gun cabinet and take out the single shot. I rest it against the side of the cabinet and I pull on the bird vest and grab the first row of shells from an old box from last year. Shells are dropped in a side pocket and I put my hat on my head and close the cabinet door. I reach for the shotgun and Bud is already at the back door. No need for the day pack this is just going to be a walk out on the back trail. I step off the deck on to the grass and the shotgun slips into it's resting place across my left forearm and I follow Bud into the woods. The boots feel good, the gun is not to heavy and Bud is working, maybe I can let summer slip away, from Lake Iwanttobethere {780,956}

[Bobby Bass]

I step from the cut grass of the lawn into the deeper dark brown tall grass of the woods. Bud is ahead of me maybe twenty feet down the trail his nose down tail up. I take a few steps along the trail and then pause to listen and take in a few deep breaths of the woods. It's dry so the moist smell of earth is not there. The knee deep grass is mostly brown with a few shafts of green growing in between. The bare spots are dry and when I drag the toe of my boot across the ground it does not change color like it would if it was damp. I shift the old single shot in my arm to where I can hit the release and it clicks open loudly in the quiet. Bud stops and looks at me over his shoulder, his tail stops till he figures out I am just loading.

My hand reaches into the vest pocket searching for a shell and I find something hard and round, I pull out an old lemon drop, I look at it and put it back in the pocket. This time I come out with a shell and I blow some crushed leaf dust off of it before I drop it into the shotgun and snap the barrel back up to lock in place with a click. I make a mental note to shake the vest out when I get back to the cabin, guess I forgot to do that the last time I wore it. Bud looks left then right then puts his head back to the ground and starts to walk the trail. I slip in behind him and we both move slow like down the trail. To some we are hunting, the old fashion way. A man and his dog working a trail together.

No four wheelers for me, not to keen on idling down the dirt roads with an open window in a truck either. I learn the old way of getting out and walking the woods and have been pretty lucky to have dogs to walk with me. Bud here walks at my pace, old and slow. The trail behind the cabin is a good match for both of us. Now Duncan is going to be another story but for now I don't think he is going to get to walk this trail, this trail I am going to save for Bud and me. No need to hang a bell on Bud's collar, he stays a few paces in front of me and we both pause a lot. Over the years we have kicked up a lot of nervous birds that way. Bud's job is to search the low and I take the high we make a good team.

To many leaves on the trees to really call this hunting, to warm to. But we walk the trail and Bud gets a little excited when we make it back to where the pine top lays on the ground. It was blown off the top of a tree by lightning a few years ago and is not looking so good anymore. Needles are long since gone from the branches and now it is just a brush pile on the ground. I do stop and watch as Bud works around the top, the shotgun in a ready position just in case. After a few minutes I tell Bud to move along like a cop at a crime scene, nothing to see here.

Bud moves back onto the trail and I just happen to look up and see a grouse sitting on a branch on the side of the trail. Bud walks right under the branch and does not see the grouse. The grouse is watching Bud and does not see me. The dang bird is leaning so far out from the branch watching Bud that I think he is going to fall off. I call out to Bud to look up, Bud stops and the bird freezes. We all, the three of us just stare at each other. The bird should have flown by now but it still just sits and watches. A young one I figure and I don't shoot young and dumb ones. I reach in my pocket for that lemon drop and toss it at the bird, I don't come close to hitting it but close enough to make him fly. The sound of a rocketing grouse echo's in the woods and Bud now seeing the bird looks at me to shoot. The bird wings away and Bud watches, I rub my arm a little, lemon drops are hard to throw, from Lake Iwanttobethere {782,043}

[Bobby Bass]

Today finds my friend the wind back, I hate my friend. Fifty degrees out and with my friend the wind it feels a lot colder. I was down on the dock for a few minutes and got hit with some spray driven by my friend the wind. I was thinking about going fishing but I think with the wind I will stay on shore. Forecast is calling for rain this afternoon anyway and with the wind it is going to feel pretty cold on the lake even if I hide out behind the island. Looking over the honey do list I have the decks to stain and they should be power washed first. With my friend the wind here I am not going to do anything with water. I spent some time standing by the wood shop, out of the wind watching the apple trees sway. I am thinking maybe I should pick some apples and talk the wife into making pie, A warm oven and some hot pie might just hit the spot this evening.

My best friend for getting out of work has always been the wind but when I want to do something my worst friend has also been the wind. I should do oil changes but I don't want to be climbing under the trucks with the wind blowing dust in my face and a draft up the back of my coat. I might spend some time in the greenhouse cleaning as it is warm in there and no wind. I am making a short list of things that I can do today and smoking a gar in the greenhouse has just made it's way into the number one position on the top of the list. I think if I made two lists side by side the bad wind list will be the longest. I could go get a last round of golf in but with the wind what kind of score would I shoot? Nothing that I would want to remember as being my last round of golf over a long winter. Painting and staining are out of the question and fixing that missing shingle might just be flat out dangerous.

On the plus side I could go take the tractor and mow down the trail behind the cabin. That would make my walk with Bud a little easier for both of us. Maybe I will see that Yote that has found Chuck's chickens. Last night right around six a yote made a grab and dash meal of one of Chuck's chickens. Now Chuck has spent the summer expanding the chicken coop and digging a pond for his ducks. Having one of his chickens being taken as a meal has Chuck up in arms. Tonight I am sure Chuck will be sitting on his porch with his rifle daring the yote to make a return visit. With Elmer on the other side of me battling the ground hogs it can be a battle zone around here. I won't get into talking about Edd and Eddie raiding my apple trees and the sneaky deer in the garden.

I suppose I should be doing something around here besides sitting here and writing about all the things I can't be doing. Time to change the band aid on my forearm and get to work. Yesterday when I was out hunting or should I say walking with Bud I got a good scratch on my arm that bleed a little. I came home and got fussed over by the wife as she cleaned it off and wrapped it up. Got me to thinking about when I was young and I would get cuts and bruises but now all the grand kids get lacerations and contusions. Old days we would get a smear of that red stuff that was good for any cut and maybe a band aid. Nowadays they get ice packs and wraps and aspirin and a sling if it is on anything that can be held up by something else. I think I could do an entire story just on the scars on my right hand from shop class, bird hunting, fish hooks and hanging from apple trees. Not to mention the rose bush hedge of Mrs Mattson that I fell into when I almost got caught seeing her daughter. But that is for another day as I am stalling here not wanting to go out and see my old friend, the wind, from Lake Iwanttobethere {783,519}