Time to Wake Up

With some extremely pleasant weather, kids, adults, and I have enjoyed waking up and soaking in the sun at camp recently:

And this may be my favorite, as some Eagle's Nest guys got creative with fishing in the sun:

And then out of nowhere for about 15 minutes comes this:

Those of you that were out in that know who you are! However, the rains and storms have been few and far between.

Water/Fishing update: the water level is now on the low side of normal. No issues getting through any areas, but water has gone down several inches since last blog. Water temps in the mid-70s now. Weeds have been slowly emerging over last several weeks, and are now almost fully developed. Mayflies that had covered parts of the system, though not all at once, are basically done now. Lake 2 bite has been improving, perch bite and smallmouth have been very strong, and those anglers fishing in the elements have fared well.

Gerry and Al, fellow southsiders, have been coming for a few years now, but decided to take advantage of the free time that retirement allows and do a two weeker this year. They targeted smallmouth usually, and Al even got to catch some on fly-rod one day:

At 10 years old Colin already hunts turkey and now can add catching a 50.5" musky to his list of outdoorskid accomplishments:

Colin's Grandpa Bob was not to be outdone- catching one of his bucketlist fish: a 30+ inch lake trout:

Look at the matching lure this perch bit on:

And Dad John got into some nice smallmouth too:

They hired Colin to do the full shorelunch experience and what a treat:

Tim and Rhonda bring up grandson Sean and they had a ball catching some nice fish and enjoying camp too:

Bob and his crew were back having a blast both on and off the water:

Mason was feeling like king of the world with this keeper northern

Blake and Mason are two brothers full of life and good times:

And after enduring a nasty thunderstorm, Zach and Spencer (yes- these are the live music entertainers) enjoyed a Bro moment with this scenic rainbow:

I'm sure our recent Eagle's Nest/cabin 7 crew went home with a lot of stories to tell. Scott, Bob, and their gang had some real tasty fish fries and cabin fun:

And you know how oftentimes after you eat too much during a fish fry, all you want to do is take a nap? Well these guys had good reason to wake up when a hungry visitor showed up late to the party:

But then more wildlife wanted to show up the the Eagle's Nest too. How fitting that Eagleman must have heard all the action, so didn't want to come empty-taloned, so she brought her own fish:

Amongst all the wildlife activity, they found time to fish Wabaskang as well as Perrault and got what they were looking for:

And here's some opener week action from Jim and some of his crew that I missed sharing in the second blog of the year:

I love it when I catch fish that are easy to handle!

But Ryan wanted a little more challenge; thus Colin replaced me as Ryan's fishing buddy. Be on the lookout for these two gingers out on the water:

Still, I was out with Ryan one recent evening and netted his 28" tie for PB walleye (sorry Rick from cabin 3 that got knocked off the leaderboard at the last hour). I posted a video on social media that shows the release:

Leaderboard Winners for the Week:

Some snippets of our camp scene, Canada Day scavenger hunt winner, potluck, and some wildlife

Potluck recently had some live music entertainment compliments of Tall Pines guests Zach and Spencer Nash. I did a Facebook Live video during their vacation week. They played quite a few cover songs and that were all quite perfect, but his one by Oasis stood out to me. Take a listen:

It's time to wake up.

Maybe you need a little time to rest your mind. Maybe you need a little extra time to wake up while on vacation. I think Zach and Spencer encapsulate that both in choosing that song as well as exuding that feeling during their recent TP potluck jam session. Each visitor is different yet Colin has observed some trends. Opener week through mid-June very few guests were sleeping in. There was a sense of urgency to get out fishing early. The 5am boat motor off in the distance acted as one's alarm clock; the early risers who wanted the lake to themself for sunrise. The light seeping in the windows as early as 4:30 am. Everyone was out by 8am and it'd be quiet at camp.

And just as our fish transition in their spring to summer bite, our guests have transitioned into July and a seemingly more slow-rolling pace. Colin has observed that each cabin is uniquely tuned into their own schedule. There are those still out at 5:30 am and back for a late breakfast, but now that is the exception and each visitor has his own sense of when its time to wake up. Just this morning, a rumble of thunder in the distance acted as a snooze button- telling many to sleep in- that it just wasn't quite time to wake up. Another morning I took to the water for a paddle around 7:15 amongst a still calm picturesque morning, fog still lifting off the water. Some of you went out during that time, some were having your morning coffees on the front deck, and some were either just waking up or had yet to wake up from the night before. As Earl would say, July is a change of pace from June.

The fish may be calling and say its time to wake up, but you gotta follow your own circadian rhythm. Maybe the fish are actually saying its time to wake up and see the beauty around you, and its time to not take opportunities like this for granted. Maybe their saying its time to wake up and truly appreciate the simple things and not care as much about the other stuff. It's time to wake up.