Adventure of the Day: Disturbing the Aquatic Dwellers

What caused me to awaken at 6 in the morning on a Saturday? Well, they say the early bird gets the worm, and do you know what worms get you? FISH!

That's right, today's great adventure was a fishing trip with my family on the Connecticut River with our 16 ft fishing boat fondly named the U.S.S. Unchtabba (after a silly word my Dad and his brother made up as kids.)

A view of the river from the U.S.S. Unchtabba!

The waters this morning as we set off on our voyage were placid and murky, dusted with cool fog that drifted in such an eery way that the river appeared to be haunted by ghostly beings. That combined with the sky's leftover gray haziness from last night's storms made a rather chilling
scene to begin our day. It was beautiful, nonetheless.

As we neared our fishing hole, the fogginess gave way to sunlight, and the water, now choppy with the crowds of brave fisherman and their vessels, sparkled with fragments of shattered sun rays hitting the water at every angle, setting a brilliant glare off the water. It became a picture perfect fishing day after all!

The view of the Connecticut River just before heading out to fish.

Now, let me take a moment to brag. Me, an amateur fisher-woman (and even using the word amateur is far too kind a way to describe my fishing skills), who has not gone fishing more than twice in the past three years, who does not know a thing about bobbers, sinkers, lures, trolling, jigs or spinners, who takes great pride in the simple fact that I was able to cast my own line today; this fisher-woman had the most catches of the entire boat (which my father and brother greatly appreciated, I'm sure.)

Today I brought in six pumpkin seed sunfish, and two small perch. As much as I pretended I was using some kind of grand strategy, or had some magic knowledge as to what I was doing based on my hours spent watching River Monsters and Swamp People, I think today was just my lucky day. I did get a few snapshots of my own little River Monsters before setting them back into the wild, or as I used to say when my Dad would take me fishing as a toddler, "Back to their mothers."

First catch of the day! Pumpkin Seed Sunfish!

Just before my thrilling encounter with the rare and frightening River Monsters of The Connecticut!

 Now, do not be fooled by my grand accomplishments on the water today. There is another side to the story.

You see, while I was busy pretending I was some professional fisher-adventurer-one-with-nature-and-wildlife-survival expert,  my Dad and brother made my seafaring daydreams possible by doing the one terrifying and repulsive task I refuse to do: baiting the hook! Of all the insects and bugs God has put on this earth, worms are my ABSOLUTE least favorite. I wish I could explain why those atrocious squirming dirt-eaters strike me in such a way, but it is just a part of me that my fishing partners and I have learned to deal with. I blame this fact for the hindrance of my oh-so-promising fishing career.
 

Matt, exhausted after his fishing adventures

And so, after a gorgeous day on the water, we brought our boat back into the dock. The  sun now shining bright, and our family bringing in our vessel with new inside jokes in mind and fresh smiles on our faces, we all silently agreed it had been a fantastic day on the river!