Summer is here!

Yes, it is indeed here. Not because yesterday was Memorial Day, a day to remember and honor those who have sacrificed their lives for our country, and not because the heat and humidity have finally descended upon us leaving my shirt to cling to my back in a moist grip. No, summer has finally arrived because this past weekend marked my first trip to my family's summer camp in Central Maine.

The camp has been in my mom's family for many years. After my grandparents passed away, they left to camp to my mom and my uncle Tony. Together, they sold the camp and bought a new property that is right on the water of a deep, clean, spring fed lake. I was born in April of 1987 and in June of that year I started coming to camp. This is a such an important part of my life and it holds a special place in my heart. I will be posting quite a bit about my adventures in this great land for the next few months.

I went to camp this past Saturday with my dad and my sister. My mom was in Michigan with her Odyssey of the Mind team and was unable to come. We arrived around 6 PM Saturday evening. After unloading the groceries and helping my dad and my sister unload their bags and settle into the camp, I set forth with one of my favorite hobbies- fishing.

I used the canoe to paddle out from our shore about 20 feet. The water was quite calm, with scattered clouds and little wind. I paddled to our neighbor's dock (ours isn't in the water yet), and faced their dock from about 20 feet away. With a home-tied black wooly bugger, I began casting right in front of their dock. While slowly stripping in the line, after 5 or 6 casts, whack! A really nice small mouth bass, maybe 10 inches long. Great, healthy looking fish. I started to drift to another neighbor's dock and after no more than 5 casts- whack!- I had another fish on! This one fought for about a minute. It turned out to be another small mouth bass. It was probably in the 12 to 14 inch range and was probably 2 pounds. What a great fish!! Great girth and it had a nice, healthy color.

It was beginning to get dark so I paddled in and called it a night. Two fish on the first night! It was a great start to the summer!! Meghan made a great spaghetti pie which the three of us heartily ate. I shared a micro-brew with my dad- Shipyard's summer ale. It was a great wheat ale with a nice malt body and just the slightest hint of lemon- a great way to enjoy the sun setting on the lake and the yodeling of the loons echoing off the water.

Although a short trip, it was worth every mile. Rain or shine, this is my favorite place in the world. I love being up there, knowing the history of the camp and the memories I have from spending time with family and friends.