The Launch

Hi everyone! I'm finally getting with the 21st Century and starting a blog. I'll be talking about all my fishing adventures, people I meet, and all the great tackle I use. My fishing covers cold water, tropical beaches, salty water and fresh water...boats, paddleboards, kayaks, wading...whatever. If there are fish to be caught...count me in! The 411 part of my blog will include a combination of tackle tips and travel tips. I'm all about low budget traveling with the maximum amount of fishing fun! I'll be posting lots of photos too because I love taking pics and I think they really help illustrate my stories.

Also, check out the website my husband and I have for our fly fishing guide service in San Diego, California...if you're interested in some intensely fun fly fishing for mako sharks (yes, sharks on the fly!) check it out!

www.bowmanbluewater.com


I'll start with this little pic. This photo was taken a few years ago in Alaska at the Trophy King Lodge (ok, not low budget but we were invited to visit there) on the Kenai Peninsula. That was my first king salmon...it was chilly up there but worth the delicious fresh caught salmon. This fish was caught on conventional gear in a 18' skiff while trolling just offshore in June. If you haven't been to Alaska to fish you have to try it at least once!



Here's a shot of the gear we used provided by the lodge...heavy duty line for big fish!


Here's the big halibut I caught on the trip...still small by Alaskan standards at 73lbs but a monster compared to the smaller versions we have in San Diego.

This photo was taken from the window of our room...right on the water, the boat launches from the beach. While we were there it was June Solstice so there was 23 hours of sunlight each day. The tides were also super extreme. You can see how low it is in this pic as the tide goes out. When the tide was high it was splashing up against the lodge.

And here's one of my favorite photos from the trip. We hiked down the beach to watch the salmon start to run up a small stream. While we were there this juvenile bald eagle flew in and sat down on a branch over the water to look for lunch. I slowly walked up to it and started snapping photos. It didn't seem to mind that I was there at all. In fact, it actually walked ever to me. I clicked my camera over to video mode and even took a little video as it checked me out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCDsj2Qwo9E


That's it for now...

So, log on as I blog on and feel free to make comments and let me know what you think.