Monday, July 15, 2019

Dip Netting 2019 - Fish Camp Day 2

0500 and we are all rolling out of bed. Benny, is less excited about fishing than others are.  Maybe Benny is just more honest about his feelings. We've developed more filters. "Yay - Dip Netting! I LOVE to stand in the rain, up to my armpits, in ocean water!!!! For hours on end."

Y'all are CRAZY!

Stacia slept in.  The plan was for Stacia to come with Arielle and Benny down to the beach when they did. The rest of us would get started. On the way to the beach, we lost a pair of fishing gloves.  I headed back to the RV to pick up gloves....and the rest were ready to go fishing. We diligently searched for a legal, free parking spot. We  finally gave in and paid the daily parking rate of $20. OUCH.

Izaak had sprung a giant leak in his waders. He spent the morning finding a new pair.

By the time we arrived at the beach everyone had caught at least one fish.  We knew the fishing would be slow today. Our best chance was to catch salmon which had made it to this area before the fishermen went out.

Lots of seagulls

At this point Benny seemed to be wondering why we got him out of bed to watch others stand in the water. LOL Before too long he was having great fun. 
Benny, Cory (yellow jacket), 
 The nets are long. Ones walks them out into the current, and holds them in place. The wait can be short or long. When the salmon hit, you wrestle them back to shore.
Josiah 

Cory

Alex & Michael 
This little man honestly amazed me. He is a trooper. It was wet and cold and he didn't complain. When one of us told him to stop or come to us - he did - even when we could tell he really didn't want too. By the end of this day, people were calling goodbye to Benny up and down the beach as we left. 

Because there will be many photos of Benny near the action - I want to point out - just out of camera range there was ALWAYS at least two of us watching him....sometimes more. He was never in danger near the water or with the tools.
Stacia and Benny wait for some action from the water


Me - I did NOT catch this fish 
Stacia alternated between being in the water and helping me on the shore. We played with Benny. We also ran to untangle fish so those fishing could get their nets back into the water ASAP.  The tide changes quickly. We spent a lot of time schlepping our coolers, buckets etc down the beach, then back up the beach, and down the beach again and up the beach for a final time. LOL 

Papa and Benny - with Cory, Arielle and Stacia in the background

 Arielle's first dip-netted salmon
CoRielle
 Benny is on hand to help

Stacia helps Cy with a salmon, Cory waits to hand off his salmon

Portrait of an Alaskan Family 
 Love this photo. 

I couldn't help but remember the first time we took Josiah fishing. It started a life-long habit of father/son fishing. This isn't the first time Benny has been fishing - it IS his first time being so up close with dip-netting. Last year he was not mobile. LOL


This is the day we learned, sadly, one needs to guard their equipment AND their fish. Benny seemed alert to this much sooner than the rest of us. 

Arielle guides her net back into place - this was when the beach was NOT crowded. 
Michael, Arielle, Josiah, Alex

Cory, Benny, Stacia

The guys were on the beach at bout 0600. The rest of us arrived at 0715. CoRielle came back to the RV around noon for lunch. The rest of us stayed until 2 pm or so.

Someone eventually missed this boot. LOL 
 1:27 p.m. at the cleaning station - follows every catch. LOL 
Josiah, Izaak, Michael, Cory 

Showers NEVER feel as fantastic as they do when one is covered with fish slime and blood and has been standing in water for 7 hours. A note about the rain - it was much better than predicted. It DID rain - but it wasn't windy.

Josiah was wet from the waist down when we got back - and Izaak knew just where to buy waders. ::snort:: They also discovered one can fill a cooler full of ice from a machine outside the Soldotna Sportsmen Warehouse.  Izaak was gracious enough to pick up some hot chocolate for us.
Bre sent yummy cookies - which Izaak shared

A boy and his Uncle

Most napped. We had dinner....and then....the guys headed out to fish the evening tide even though we all "knew" there wouldn't be many fish. It is a good time for them, Izaak hadn't been able to fish yet today....and I mentioned I was keeping track of the totals and we should have some sort of prize. 😛😉😀 This family does like a good competition. It is nice to have a bit of fun motivation. This is hard work. Yes, it will fill the freezer - but having a bit of fun will keep us going out early and staying out late.  I wish I'd thought to get a trophy ready - I suggested a fish carcass on a stick....but that isn't going to fly...and Arielle and I are brainstorming a few categories....most salmon, most flounders, most equipment dysfunctions....
Guys heading out again
 We gals and Benny went for a walk while the guys caught the 2nd tide.  Michael agreed it should be slow enough they wouldn't NEED me dealing with the fish and coolers on the beach. We saw baby llamas, turkeys and a pig. We noted most employees here seem to ride unicycles. We played at a playground.



The guys returned with new fish counts and tales of stolen fish. They were at the cleaning station at 10:30 pm.

This is what 10:45 p.m. looks like in the summer. 

So...on the beach at 0600.....fish cleaned and hitting the showers at 2300. It was a long - but productive - day.


Day 2 Fish Count
Group Total 39
Our Household Total 27 

Funny Fish Story - Michael

I looked across the fishermen in the current and noticed Michael was struggling. As I watched, he continued to flounder, his net was wonky, has balance was off, and he didn't seem  able to "right" himself.

I thought he was having a Parkinson's attack or something.  He was in trouble.

None of the boys were near him. I was about to yell for them when I noted the men around him take note.

It turns out Michael had been saying, "I need some help," and they just kept talking.

He finally yelled, "I need help. I'm in trouble."

The man next to him asked what was going on as he watched Michael.

Michael wasn't sure.

It turns out the hook which attaches waders to boot laces had come undone. The hook at the bottom of his waders  was tangled in his net. He couldn't stand, or walk, or move the net, without repercussions.

They managed to get him untangled and we've had a good laugh about it throughout the day.