Try, Try again and look for the silver lining

With a title like that, it’ll be no surprise that my last fishing trip was less successful than hoped for.  Truth be told, I didn't catch a fish.  But, there was success.

The trip started to take shape when my nephew, James Hook sent me an email telling me he was going to the Toronto Film Festival and the premier of “Blood Ties” staring Clive Owen and was able to stop on the way to visit and do some fishing.  

James Hook

James is an actor and had a role in the film so I can understand why he used the Toronto Film Festival as an excuse to go fishing – he really loves fishing!

Scene from "Blood Ties" with James Hook

James on the river

While he loves fishing, he doesn't have a lot of time on the water.  He also hasn't collected tons of fishing equipment, so I planned to let him use some of mine.  My eldest daughter Kristin also wanted to go fishing so Saturday night I pulled a few rods and tied a few flies in preparation.

Pick a rod, any rod!

We decided to hit some trout streams in the southern tier.  We started with the upper Cattaraugus.

The trout were hiding.  Even the chubs were hiding.  The only fish caught was a minnow foul hooked by Kristin.

The picture of concentration - my daughter Kristin using a rod I built for her.

We moved on to plan “B” - Clear Creek, a tributary of the Cat.  The water was very clear, but very low, so we came up with plan “C” - Lime Lake.

Kristin testing the action on Lime Lake

Kristin strikes again – a lonely little bluegill.   

Prospects were getting dim and James was thinking football, so we headed for plans “D” and “F” for Fantasy Football.

Kristin and I dropped James at home to check the football scores and we headed for Green Lake.  

There were two other fishermen there who said they caught a few Largemouth Bass and White Bass. 

Dylan (left) and Kyle with a nice bass - sorry but my cell phone doesn't have a telephoto lens

After a few casts, Kristin – of course – connected with a Largemouth Bass. 

Kristin 3, me 0

While Kristin and I kept at it with no further luck, the two other anglers, Dylan and Kyle, seemed to catch a fish on every cast.  And, along with being excellent anglers, they were exceptional young men – polite, respectful and helpful – their parents should be quite proud of them.

Kyle - fish on, again!

Dylan with another nice Bass

After watching Dylan and Kyle for a while, Kristin and I decided it was time to call it a day.  

And, while I caught zero fish, I was able to catch up on some quality time with my daughter Kristin and nephew James, and I meet Dylan and Kyle.  Success by any standards.

Thanks for stopping by!

See you on the water.

Dave