Shelter Cove - 8/16/24

Al and his son Luis first went out with me a few years ago.  Salmon was open at the time, and my guys went home with their limits to 20 pounds.  Since that first trip, Al brought his friend Frank back for a trip, and then he joined in on another trip of mine last year.  This year Luis would be back in the game.  At 29 years old and fresh off a 3 month stint living in Colombia, Luis is enjoying the life of a young professional, with New York as a home base for a few years now, and able to work online while he sees some of the world. 

It was nice to get reacquainted with Al and to spend more time with Luis.  Throughout the day, as we
fished and I showed things like how to quickly and efficiently bleed rockfish, Luis and I were engaged in conversation ranging across many topics.  I enjoyed hearing how Luis is looking to get into more individualized outdoor activities, like backpacking, and how he sees being in Nature as an opportunity to reset his perspective and to feed his spirit.  While talking with Luis, I was impressed with his confidence, which was always combined with a respectfulness and a conscientious vibe. 

At one point Luis asked that I give closer instruction on how to handle and secure a live rockfish, disconnect its mouth from the base of the pectoral girdle, remove all or most of its gills in one handful, clearing most of the entrails, and bleed the fish - which is basically done by the time those steps are taken.  As with showing how to hook an anchovy to a mooching slip rig, it's often the case that my hands know more than my mouth about such things!  That is to say, it's much easier to execute these skills that I've learned over decades of practice than it is to tell someone succinctly how to place their hands and fingers in and around the mouths and gills of fish and to quickly complete the process of dispatching, bleeding and stowing them away.  All of this is done with a focus on not poking yourself with any of a number of very sharp spines and armoring on the fish, as well as avoiding too much damage to your own soft tissues from holding a live animal by its mouth.  As Luis worked to open up the gill area I told him which fingers need to go where, and over the course of a few fish he gained a much better working understanding of how to use a little leverage with one hand and the proper grip with the other to get the job done.  As he struggled a little with his first or second try, Luis expressed some dismay over the fact that he was prolonging the agony for this live rockfish in his hands.  I offered consolation and tried to downplay the significance of any extra time it was taking to go through this process with the fish, but I could read in Luis's voice as he apologized to the fish, that my words weren't as strong as his feelings in that moment.  He wasn't in despair or looking to change course on his future in fishing at all, but he displayed caring and a thoughtfulness that struck me as being an example of true virtue, an ethic that a very strong and intelligent, able and accomplished young man was allowing to come through, even when no one was there to judge or dictate his actions based on their own lens.

Fishing is full of opportunities to be more conscientious, just as, on the flip side, it's ripe with occasions to disregard what others consider ethical - or even the rules themselves.  Whether it's driving down the highway, waiting in line at the grocery store, or learning the ropes of pursuing and wrangling wild animals for sport and consumption, we're all learning, developing and displaying our own understanding of and choice for the level of ethical and compassionate life we want to live.  I think it's so important to look for the times where your own choices are coming through - seen or unseen, good or bad - and to consider how allowing ourselves to move through this world with more caring and conscientiousness is about the most natural thing there is.

Thanks for attending this sermon!

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Nice entry in the 2024 chapter of Cove fishing w LE. Nice pics and report, the launch cereal did its magic again!

Thank you, sir!  I'm so glad you're a big part of my season.   

Thanks for the flash back fishing report from the Cove.  You should write a memo/book to document the good time at Shelter Cove.

Thanks for the report Eric. I’m driving up there tonight so I can fish tomorrow.

Great story telling, Eric. Keep these reports coming.

Great read and awesome outing.  Thanks Eric!
 

Great write up! I am also a serial cereal eater. I had a Chex phase years ago. Now I make a custom mix of 3 types (raw oats are always part).

Chex phase

Love my Wheat Chex, and I'll score several boxes of Rice or Corn Chex when they go on sale.

Great read and awesome outing.  Thanks Eric!
 

Thank you, sir.   

Great story telling, Eric. Keep these reports coming.

Thank you, Mel.   

Thanks for the report Eric. I’m driving up there tonight so I can fish tomorrow.

Good to chat today, Terry.  Go get it tomorrow.   

You should write a memo/book to document the good time at Shelter Cove.

It's on my list, Sonny!