With a summer full of non-fishing related posts I can finally post something fishing related. As my brother asked me, "Why do you have to post everything you do?". And that made me think. Am I just an attention seeker? Does any body really care? It made me think. While yes, it is about me, it really falls in line with the average angler. It's really just a story about a guy who loves to fish, or is just seeking something from fishing. As Henry David Thoreau wrote, "Many go fishing all their lives without knowing it is not fish they are after".
This blog, now 15 years in the making, could be the story of any angler and their journey and how fishing parallels and intersects life. For me fishing has been the one constant, and friend, that has been there through the ups and downs, job changes, family dynamics, and relocations that I've done. And in a way fishing has been injected into every change that my life has brought, and there are more to come until the day I can fish no more.
So with the feeling of fall arriving I took a ride down to the beach. I got there just as the sun was rising looking for signs of bait and fish in the hunt. The surface was calm and I didn't find anything showing. I went with a fly Abe Pieciak had given when I stopped by his house in Martha's Vineyard this past June. With reports of lots of white bait around I thought it was a good choice.
It was the start of the incoming after the post-Super Moon dead low and it wasn't easy finding good fish holding lies. I thought there might be some cruisers on the outside of the bar but 100 casts and a steady survey of the water left me blanked. Not a touch. I did more waiting and watching and soon the
fleet from Shark River started to arrive out front. There must have been some albies, or Spanish Mackerel, or bluefish out there because the boats were quick on the move. I didn't bring my binoculars, which is something I carry during the fall, so I couldn't see what the action was.
I have heard of good boat reports of bonito, fat alberts, and Spanish around and that will only get better over the next few weeks. Hopefully we'll have a good mullet run in less then a month.
There was a chair on the landing heading down to the beach so I grabbed it and had a seat for a bit. It was nice taking in the salty air and warmth of the sun watching the boats zip-zag around. Sometimes you just have to stop and smell the coffee and appreciate everyday we have while we have a pulse.
It was then off to my family's shop to work on the pickup. I really wish I could just go and drop $60,000 on a new truck but I can't. I refuse to spend $45,000 on a truck with 37,000 miles so I'll just continue to buy the oldies but goodies and get every bit of life out of them that I can.
This truck comes in a long line of pickups I have owned. It's a 2003 Chevy Silverado with just 265,000 miles. I pulled the bed because it had some rust and a bunch of dings in it. At the shop were a stack
of used OSHA plank so I'll make my own flatbed with them. Of course plans are always easier than actually carrying them out. When I pulled the bed Lauren said, "Now's the time to replace the fuel pump", so that we did first. And before I complete the bed I'll scrap and paint the frame, which is pretty solid, with that rust encapsulator Pro-15.
While working with wood is pretty easy I'll need a helping hand from my brother when it comes to the bumper. I thought about just getting an aftermarket one but the idea of a channel seemed better.
It took some work but the old one finally came off and we laid out what will be the new bumper. Ryan will take short work of welding it up but the light installation may be a little tough. The only thing they sell are LED lights and we'll have to drill some holes in the steel to mount them.
If I have my way this truck will last me another 10 years and will end its life down in Hilton Head free from the brine and salt that wreaks havoc on steel frames. This morning I got a new set, well new to me thanks to Facebook Marketplace, of tires which replaced the bologna skins that were on it.