Trailer Fail

 

Four weeks before we were supposed to leave for Quebec I was taking the boat out for a test ride when the trailer started making this awful noise.  I brought the boat back to my house and my dad had someone come over to look at it.  It took two weeks to the parts and finally fix the trailer. We took the boat out for a quick test spin and all systems were go!

Two Pike on Shepaug

Took my neighbor's son with me. He got skunked but was a good net man. 

Got these Pike on the same lure!

First Pike

With summer hours in effect at work I headed home at 2 PM, Jim met me at the house and we went out on Lake Lililonah.  The boat was running nicely, by the way.  My father took it to Cabelas and they put new spark plugs in it.

We headed up the Shepaug to Pike Alley. Jim said he saw a pretty good sized pike come out of the water near the shore.  We fished the area pretty hard but no luck.  I was casting a pike spinner when this Northern struck at the side of the boat. It was feisty and really fought back. Jim netted it and, had a quick photo op and let Free Willy go.

Boat wasn't working well but Bucky was the star of the show

Heading for the first time on Lake Lililonah there was something wrong with the boat engine and were only able to go about 10 miles an hour.  I had my son and my neighbor's son with me and just went up river for bit and started fishing.  Bucky, casted towards a rock wall at the water's edge and hooked this nice small mouth bass. He also got a nice yellow perch, too.  Brodie and I got skunked.

5 lb Bass

Bucky and I were trolling for bike through the Lover's Leap gorge but weren't catching anything.  Then my drag went off and I started fighting the fish that I thought was a big Northern Pike.  Turns out it was a Largemouth Bass, and a big one to boot. 

 

Bucky did a great job as netman and we weighed it, 5 lbs! Caught on a pike lure!

Swimming and Fishing on Lake Lillilonah

My father brought my two nieces who are visiting from Texas for a day on the boat

We initially went up the Shepaug arm but found it too scummy

So we ventured down towards the dam and found an area devoid of weeds

and great for swimming.

I was able to position the boat in 1.5 feet of water

so you could get in and out easily

We still made use of my improvised swim ladder

Need to have some swim mocks next time

All the cousins on the raft

After lunch we moved over to an inlet and did a little fishing

Elliot hooked up first with a nice White Perch

Then Brodie took over

And Brodie also go a nice White Perch as well

Catching White Perch on Lake Lillilonah

The boys and I headed out to the Lake on July 5th for a little fishing

The wind was channeling down the valleys so we tried a spot

further up the Shepaug and the boys started catching White Perch

Brodie caught the first one

Then Elliot caught one

Although this one looked more like a hybrid bass than a perch

Then Elliot caught another

We tried our other spot out of the wind but nothing was biting

So we cruised down to the Shepaug Dam

The boys had to give me Moose Antlers

Went by the beach at George C Waldo

Checked out the new boat ramp at Rt 133

And finally went under the Rt 133 Bridge honking the horn and scaring the Barn Swallows

Father's Day Fishing on Lilly

I took the boys out to Lake Lillilonah late Saturday afternoon because Sunday there would be no time to go fishing.  I can barely get a line in the water and someone hooks up!  Elliot got the first fish, a little sunny.

Or course, since he got the first fish he is all cocky now.  

Not a minute goes by and Brodie is pulling a nice perch out, too!

Then Elliot gets a nice sized Smallmouth Bass!

Elliot thought he had the Loch Ness Monster on this one but it turned out to be a snag.  I ended up having to break the line.  Then they were done.

Always time for a little tomfoolery on the way back

A nice sunset for the run back to the ramp.

Awesome day!

A "memorial day" on Lilly

The dutiful father motoring out to the fishing grounds

Elliot hooks the first Sunny

Brodie soon follows

Elliot is on for two!

Brodie get's a second and learns the value of a long distance release

I got skunked but what I really got was two boys that really liking fishing

Pulling the boat out of the water, one of the bumbers buckled causing the boat to list

There was no wind and I went on really slow

and yet this happened

I went back in and re-positioned it and it was a little better