FYI ~ idiots / a fish story

His first fish, ever ~ Bog River Flow / Low's Lake - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggenThe early history of the Adirondacks - post Revolutionary War through the Civil War - was marked by vast exploitation of the region's watershed woodlands and it was that exploitation that sparked a conservation movement which led to the establishment of the Adirondack Park (1892) and the addition of the "Forever Wild" amendment to the NYS Constitution (1895).

As devastating as the early exploitation was to the natural environment, an even greater "plague" swept over the Adirondacks (post Civil War) with the publishing (1869) of Adirondack Murray's book, Adventures in the Wilderness; or, Camp-Life in the Adirondacks. That runaway best seller led to an invasion of tourists who became know as "Murray's Fools". Not that there weren't an ample supply of tourists prior to that date, but the book created a new stampede of New England "city dwellers" (Murray was a Boston-based preacher) many of whom were referred to by locals, especially the guides, as "sports".

One of the nastier results of this influx, added and abetted by many locals (aka, guides), was the extirpation of many native Adirondack species - the moose, wolf, Canadian lynx, beaver, fisher, eagle, osprey and many others, all wiped out by the pressure of "sports" and their local counterparts (especially trappers) on the wildlife to be found in the region. Apparently, for either fun or profit, most thought there was a nearly unlimited "supply" of hunting, fishing, and trapping targets. Unfortunately, that was proven wrong by many of Murray's Fools and their local counterparts.

Fortunately, as a result of this "sport"ing abuse, a modern ethic of conservation and preservation came into being. One component of that ethic (fishing wise) is known as catch and release wherein fish, even those over the legal size limit, are released after being caught. And it was that ethic which I instilled in Hugo immediately after his first ever catch - I explained to Hugo that this particular fish was not only under the NYS general regulation size limit, but that it also was the sporting thing to do to return the fish to the water and let it grow and thrive for some future fisherman to catch and, hopefully, release.

Not that catching and keeping legal fish - within the size and number limits - for consumption is a bad thing. In fact, we kept and ate one 12 inch specimen for lunch but, for many fisherman it is the pursuit and, when successful, fight to land a fish which matters. That is why, in enlightened fishing competitions, especially those judged by the total length of a day's catch, each competitor is trusted to make his/her own measurements of each fish caught, after which the fish are released. That practice would be in contrast to stringing (aka, killing) the fish caught throughout a competition's time period in order for measurement to be made by a tournament official.

Like, say, these participants did in a local fishing competition (as pictured in our local newspaper).

©P-R PHOTOS/ALVIN REINERNow let me clear on one thing - the participants displaying the fish are not the idiots I refer to in this entry's heading. That moniker is reserved for those idiots at the Elizabethtown Fish & Game Club which sponsored the competition. Most likely the participants were playing by the rules laid down by the EF&GC.

That said, it might be that the tournament was held on privately owned and stocked water where no regulations apply and, therefore, no local or state fishing regulations apply. However, irrespective of time or place, many enlightened F&G clubs consider it a vital part of their mission to teach, by example, and apply modern conservation and preservation ethics. Most likely, the EF&GC does try to foster such an ethic but, IMO, and as evidenced by the published picture, they failed miserably in teaching by example during this particular event.

Update on Thursday, July 19, 2012 at 01:28PM by gravitas et nugalis

Featured Comment: John Linn wrote: "... Your photo is excellent. You obviously did not press the shutter ..."

my response: All kudos should be directed to the wife.

rain # 1 / ku # 1155-57 ~ water, in one state or another

Evening downpour ~ Au Sable Forks, NY - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggenSplash # 1 ~ Bog River Flow / Low's Lake - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggen
Splash # 2 ~ Bog River Flow / Low's Lake - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggen
Splash # 3 ~ Bog River Flow / Low's Lake - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggen
Splash # 4 ~ Bog River Flow / Low's Lake - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggenI've been spending some time thinking about starting a new body of work. A number of possible picturing referents have come to mind but none have really lit my fire.Then, purely by happenstance, as Hugo was tossing rocks into the water during our recent wilderness canoe trek, thoughts of Harold E. "Doc" Edgerton and his milk drop pictures came to mind.

Next thing I know, I've got a camera in hand and Hugo's launching rocks for my picturing pleasure (3...2...1,throw). And, on one occasion, even wife got into the act.

Upon returning home and processing the splash pictures, it occurred to me that a picture series of splashes - like snowflakes, no two splashes are alike - all made in different bodies of water and different light conditions, would make a pretty darn interesting body of work. So, there, unbidden and unplanned, is a new picturing endeavor.

Then, last evening, during a torrential downpour, I stepped out on the porch and made a few pictures. Once again, it came to me that rain and the atmospheric light which comes with it would also make an interesting picture series. So, voila, there's another picturing endeavor to tackle.

Consequently, it would seem that there's a lot of water in my picturing future. Even though some might think I'm all wet, nevertheless, one might say, "when it rains it pours" (new bodies of work wise).

FYI, no multiple frame shooting technique was used in the making of the splash pictures and that's how I'll continue to make those pictures. I think that part of the picturing surprise / mystery of a splash is to capture them one frame / one splash at a time. So, while there will be a lot of water in my picturing future, I'll also be hauling around a lot of rocks.

people ~ bass and a splash

Hugo with bass ~ Bog River Flow / Low's Lake - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggenHugo with splash ~ Bog River Flow / Low's Lake - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggenDuring our recent wilderness canoe trek, Hugo caught and released 7 bass totaling approximately 60 inches. He also hooked but did not land 3 more - all of which caused him to declare, "Fishing's not hard because it's hard not to catch a fish".

He also tried to spend as much time in the water as a fish spends in the water.

civilized ku # 2250 / ku # 1152 • civilized ku # 2251 / ku # 1153 • civilized ku 2253 • ku # 1154 ~ roughing it

After the portage ~ Bog River Flow - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggen
Canoes ~ Bog River Flow / Low's Lake - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggen
Our campsite ~ Bog River Flow / Low's Lake - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggenWhen many people think of wilderness camping, they think of "roughing it". However, except for a few hardcore purists, a multi-day trek into the wilderness isn't so roughing it anymore.

Modern lightweight back-country gear really takes the roughing it out the experience. Yes, you still sleep on the ground, but a lightweight inflatable sleeping pad and a feathery soft sleeping bag make it comfortable, well beyond the "tolerable". A compact lightweight tent keeps its occupant(s) sleeping snug and, during a downpour, dry. And very efficient cooking gear makes food prep a snap.

Canoe camping allows an additional layer of anti-roughing it stuff. For example, bringing a cooler full of fresh food (beats freeze dried, hands down) and a 2-burner stove to cook it on is no problem and a decent boxed wine fits right into the kit. We have also added a really neat set of collapsible wood / canvas sling chairs and a matching small collapsible low wood table - all made of some kind of lightweight Indonesian wood - to our gear set, and let me tell you, my 65 year old back and butt take great comfort (literally) in these pieces of gear.

Needless to state, hauling this stuff around in canoes is considerably easier on the body than is hauling a much lesser amount of gear around on your back. And, once again, modern lightweight kevlar canoes - our smallest (12ft) / lightest canoe weights in at 20lbs, our largest (16ft) / heaviest at 32lbs - makes portaging the boats much easier. Add to that fact, the incredible hull design / guide aspect of these canoes and wilderness canoeing takes on a whole new paddling pleasure.

Of course, there is a price to be paid, literally, for all of this anti-roughing it stuff. In addition to the $8,000USD worth of canoes pictured here, there is at least another couple grand tied up in the other gear. However, that said, factoring in the number of trips made in these canoes and with this gear, the cost per trip is low and getting lower with every use.

For me and mine, it's the only way to go.

ku # 1152 / people ~ pine with camera

Hugo and pine tree ~ Bog River Flow / Low's Lake, NY - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggenOur favorite primitive campsite in the Bog River Flow / Low's Lake wilderness area is a shoreline site in a grove of magnificent soaring pine trees. As a result of those trees, the forest floor is a thick soft bed of pine needles. The breeze whispers in through top of the pines, sunlight dapples the ground, and a pair of loons is in residence immediately adjacent to the site.

IMO, it just doesn't get any better than this.

BTW, Hugo, pictured here chimping, made some pictures during the trip.

ku # 1151 ~ I'm back

Reflection ~ Bog River Flow / Low's Lake, NY - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggenWell, I'm sorta back inasmuch as I am no longer in the wilderness. Instead, I'm in a hotel room in Lake Placid accompanying the wife at a conference. In any event, I'm back from my wilderness excursion, very relaxed, a little bit older and a little bit wiser (don't address your wife by your ex-wife's name).

That said, during our canoe trip, I made many more pictures than I thought I would. Having been to the wilderness area we traveled many times before, I really thought I had exhausted most of the picturing possibilities to be found in that location. Boy, was I wrong.

Over the next week or so, I'll post many of the pictures made on this wilderness trip. Referent wise, some of those pictures surprise even me. As always, I'll be curious to read your opinions.

civilized ku # 2248-49 / ku # 1150 ~ lush summer green

Mt. Hope Cemetery ~ Rochester, NY • click to embiggen
Tree and grasses ~ Au Sable Forks, NY • click to embiggen
Tree and vines ~ Eastman House - Rochester, NY • click to embiggenThe wife, Hugo, and I are off in pursuit of more lush summer green on 5 day wilderness canoe trip, each of us in his/her own solo canoe.

The weather forecast calls for absolutely perfect canoeing days, high in the mid 70s and perfect sleeping nights in the low 50s / mid 40s. It should be a perfect trip, to include my birthday - 64 on departure, 65 on return.

See you post again when we get back.

beating the summer heat on ice

Hugo shoots - rebound / breakout drill ~ Lake Placid, NY - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggen
Chalk talk ~ Lake Placid, NY - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggen
Zamboni ~ Lake Placid, NY - in the Adirondack Park • click to embiggenToday (Saturday), Hugo completed a 7 day hockey camp, 5 days of which were 14 hour days with on-ice and off-ice training (and a bit of fun stuff thrown in for good measure, not that any of kids thought the hockey stuff wasn't fun).

The kids came from all points on the North American continent - British Columbia, Florida, Virginia, and the New England area, to name just a few. Hugo, who's 7, trained / played with the 8-10 year old group - 8 was the minimum age but Hugo was allowed in because someone connected to the camp was aware of his abilities - he's playing with a 9-10 year old (Squirts) team this coming season - so he was allowed to participate.

It was a great experience for Hugo, not only hockey wise, but also making new friends from far away places wise. And, quite a few of those new friends were absolutely thrilled to be training/ playing on the Miracle On Ice ice.