I now have flickr
I was asked recently if I have a flickr account. I didn't. I just always thought that it would be yet another thing to maintain and I have plenty of that sort of thing to contend with as it is.
But then I remembered having seen a small icon on my android phone to do with flickr. It turns out that my phone will upload and integrate seamlessly with a flickr account and so...I now have a flickr.
It's solely for the purpose of having somewhere to story the photos taken with my phone, and it works startingly well for exactly that.
On the photo note, I have started to rediscover my creativity and interest in photography.
I suppose that is healthy and my wife agress. I have started always having the camera in the car with me to and from work and find myself stopping more often than I had expected.
Took this on the way to work the other day:
Stopped in a pleasant beechforest on the way to work and played a bit.
I love forests.
Out every monday
I do actually fish every monday, but so far, I have only caught some seaweed and 1 trout below minimum size and this even unhooked itself before I managed to grab it. I've had some bites that were definitely from large trout, but haven't managed to hook them properly.
Instead, I have had some very nice evenings by the sea. I have caught the sunsets and watched porpoises play in the evening light. That calm and quiet sensation of being there, just feeling the waves and the air move around you and the sounds and smells become amplified by the feeling of being present. That feeling of being part of nature and not just a witness. That's why I go fishing.
Going again tonight and looking forward to testing my new kit.:)
New gear
My old fishing rod and reel have both seen better days. I bought them about 2 1/2 years ago and they have been with me every time I have been either at the coast or by the lake. I have cought numerous rainbow trout and 3 sea trout on it. I have alto caught 2 small cod on it and a hell of a lot of seaweed.
All this use has made the ferrule (the join between the two sections of the rod) quite worn and loose, so for a while, I have gotten used to checking that it's still put together firmly every 5-6 casts. I have been very close to loosing the tip sections several times.
The old reel has actually been excellent and it still works. Ok, it doesn't run as smoothly as it did when it was new and the break is getting slightly wobbly. The chrome on the handle is starting to chip from all the saltwater as well.
So I have ventured out to spend a little bit on a new rod and reel.
This could be a review of the new items, but it isn't. I simply have neither the experience nor the desire to review anything these days. So this is just what it is:
The Rod:
Seems like a really nice rod. A whole foot longer than my old rod and carbon fibre, which makes is significantly lighter. The cork handle is nice quality and the fastening mechanism of the reel will take a little getting used to. The rod is in 3 sections and while this is a potential disadvantage to the action of the rod, it is outweighed by the compact size of the rod in the bag. I drive a Lupo and haven't previously been able to fit neither flyrod nor spinning rod in the boot, so this is a welcome change.
The rod just feels nice. Mind you, I still haven't had the time to fish with it, but from everything I hear and my own hunch, it's gonna be really nice.
The Reel:
If not pretty, this reel is cheap. It feels like my old reel, but comes with an extra spool included. The two spools are identical. It has rear drag (old one had front drag) which is quite a sensitive thing with a small ratio, making it slightly more difficult to adjust accurately. I'm sure I can get used to that. The line placement is better than my old reel, more even. It's a fine reel. Nothing more to it.
The rod and reel in combination feel kinda strange. The reel is quite heavy compared to the rod, which means that the weight is distributed kinda strange. I hope it will be an advantage when casting, but I will find out monday.
A note on line:
I have been fishing with Fireline in 0.17mm for a while now, and while it was a huge improvement on traditional nylon lines, it has bothered me that the line is flat and not round. It also seems to fray quite easily. It's hard to tie knots with it and it feels kinda stiff.
So I have bought some Spiderwire Ultracast in 0.14mm and it feels better. Not only is it nice to have it so thin, but it actually feels more supple and round. I look forward to fishing with the whole setup to see how it works.
I had a full 1000m roll of clear 28mm nylon rolling about, so I have filled the extra spool with that. It might come in handy if fishing on a day where the air is below freezing - as this tends to make braided lines quite stiff.
Ace comment
This evening, my wife and I were discussing what to do after our daughter was put to bed. She mentioned there was a film on, but it was: "Some crap with Ben Stiller...no, worse - with Adam Sandler".
I love her.