Graduation week means lots of celebrating!

Toasty malt taste with a fresh hoppy finish. 5.2% abv.

Go get em fat tire!

Fly Fishing, Snakes, and Beer

This morning I went out to Walnut Creek to cast at bass and bluegill. I couldn't entice any bass, but the bluegills were eager for a popper supper. It was a short trip. Hour and a half. But I had a lot of fun and caught about 15-20.

I also saw this little guy out for a swim.

Last Sunday, Sara and I went up to Boyer Chute Wildlife Refuge for a jog and morel hunt. Well, the jog was shorter than normal because the flood plane of the chute was completely flooded. The Missouri is still high up here in Nebraska. While stalking mushrooms in the woods, we saw 5 common garter snakes. All were pretty good sized. Lots of fun, but no mushrooms.

All snakes (including these two) were Common Garter Snakes - Red-sided variety

(Thamnophis sirtalis)

On Saturday, we got together with some good friends for a german feast. Kraut. Sausages. Spatzel. Potato pancakes and applesauce. Delish. Paired with a Sam Adams Summer Ale. Oh, so good. The Summer Ale is light and sweet. Perfect for a warm evening sitting on the porch.

The night is getting better

One more night in Colorado with this rich and smooth scotch ale by
Oskar Blues Brewery. Good friends and good times.

Goose island beer

Goose island 312 with the wife at the 96th floor of the hancock
building. It's a good life.

Happy new year beer!

De-lish!

Muddy Waters. Little Papillion Creek.

So last weekend I made it out to Little Papillion Creek (I think that is what it is called) by 132nd-ish and Fort-ish. It was another stunningSunday. (The weather really has been beautiful in Omaha lately.)My plan was to walk the creek upstream in search of rises and possibly catching some fish. I new it would might be a mirky creek, but I read a Papillion Creek Water resources management page that mentioned the potential for fish. I figured it was worth a shot since I haven't been catching anything at Standing Bear.

I basically walked up the stream for about 2 hours cas

ting a San Juan Worm, hoping it would catch some attention. I didn't see any top-water action, so I didn't feel the need to switch to a dry fly. Besides the pretty scenery, and occasional teaser pools, I didn't see a thing. The water was SO muddy. I stepped in a couple times and immediately slid into 4-6in of silt. Thank you Nebraska farm run-off.

I decided to take a short break and just sit for a while.

I have to admit, I was frustrated with four consecutive outings without single fish. I had one great strike weeks ago at Standing Bear and I pissed that away, no problem. Fishing is a lot better if you are catching fish. And if you aren't going to catch anything, it is at least nice to have dry feet, which I won't have until I buy new waders. Since I am, honestly, to cheap to do that any time soon, I will be soggy for years to come.

I am mostly kidding, of course. I love getting out and fishing a stream or lake. It is just wonderful to be outdoors and interact with nature in a unique way. Being that close to the water gives me peace and joy. I will keep going back no matter how few fish I catch. I probably won't return to Little Papillion Creek anytime soon, but that is only because I didn't catch fish, not because it wasn't beautiful.

Fortunately, my frustrated mood didn't last long. I picked up a four pack of Tallgrass Brewing Co. Buffalo Sweat and had a wonderful evening. It is a great stout. So refreshing in fact that I found myself craving it after a 6 mile run later in the day.

Now that is a good beer.