Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Walking Home From the Fishing Hole



Usually the first thing I do in the morning is get out and milk the cow(s) (depends on how many freshened cows I have) and get the calves back with their mammas, but not this morning.  With my cousin moving into my home and the new man in my life, sometimes, just sometimes, someone beats me to the punch.  This morning I woke a 4:00am to find that Amanda (my cousin) already down at the barn getting the cows ready for milking.

With nothing else pressing to do for a couple of hours I decided to head down to the fishing hole and catch some fish for breakfast.  It is a wonderful experience to bring home the food and put it on the table without ever once reaching into your wallet.  It is your own power and knowledge that puts a meal on the table.  I woke my reluctant partner, Ryan and told him he was coming fishing.

"When?" he mumbled from the depths of the pillow.

"Now," I called back, "be ready in five."

Well, I don't think he was actually ready but he was up and moving in five minutes, grumbling about falling in love with someone who liked getting up before the butt crack of dawn, or some such silliness.

We walked down through the woods through the darkness, feeling our way down the hill, across the bridge, and to the ponds.  The eastern sky was just starting to show a hint of light as we put the first lines into the water.  It was a cool morning, a promise of the changing seasons after a rough summer.  I curled up against Ryan's shoulder and waited for the tug on the line.  It wasn't long coming though the first large mouth bass was a bit small so back she went.  Just as the sun was coming up we caught our first keeper of the day, a sunfish.

We took 4 sunfish and 1 keeper large mouth bass, a good meal to go with our eggs and toast for breakfast.  I snapped a few pictures while we were out and I thought I would share them with you.



Mist rising over the fishing hole as the sun comes up


Three sandhill cranes flying over the ponds just at daybreak





Cottonwoods leaves already falling on the bridge


More cottonwood leaves in the creek, sign of a hard summer



A wild turkey feather along the path, they are moulting, getting ready for fall


This morning's breakfast for three, ready for cleaning

All of this before 6:30 am.  What a wonderful gift and what a beautiful way to start a day.


No comments:

Post a Comment