First Float

Sunny, fifty-five degrees, and no wind - sounds like the perfect canoeing weather, and it was indeed. Plans fell through today for a prescribed burn out on the Cape, so I spent my morning floating around Lake Wyola in Shutesbury, about 15 minutes from me. With the exception of the picture above, the entire shoreline is lined with cottages. Regardless, it's plenty big enough to provide a sense of privacy and a workout, especially when the wind kicks up. I fished for a bit, as did a pair of majestic ospreys. Neither man nor bird caught anything for a while, but just before I left, I managed to succeed by hauling in this leviathan - a 6" pumpkinseed that hit a 3" lure. It put up one heck of a fight given its size, and besides, it's a fish, and one dinky fish is far better than no fish at all.