wildwoodstream: Freestyling at Long Hunter

Last night, I told C that I was going to fish and hike over at the lake early this morning and that if he wanted to go, he would need to get up and get ready. Surprise, surprise: the chronic bed hugger beat me up and was dressed before I even hit the shower. For a change, we got an early start. After stopping for a bite of breakfast, we drove to the southern trailhead of the Bryant Grove Trail and hiked north. From satellite views of the area, I had picked out a point where I wanted to fish, and getting there involved leaving the main trail and angling over to the lake. But by the time we arrived, winds were gusting out of the west and producing white caps on the water. The fishing stunk, and about all I managed to do was lose one of my new spoons. Lake, 1. Me, 0.

However, we still had a great time wandering around the shoreline, and we wound up over at the point I fished a couple of weeks ago. Along the way, we spotted numerous animal tracks—from small birds and turkey to deer and raccoons. And since the lake recently dropped to winter pool, we kept an eye out for lost fishing lures. On the hike back to the truck, I found a spinnerbait, C found a crankbait, and we squeaked out a slim victory. Lake, 1. Me & C, 2. We also cleaned up a stretch of shore and packed the refuse out to the park trash cans. All told, I think C really liked "freestyling," exploring, and making our own trail. When time and weather permit, we will definitely head back out that way.