Lots of H2O!

So, here's how it went.

I left work at about 2:30 on Friday and drove directly to the Poudre to do some scouting for the weekend.  We've had our first few days of real heat here in northern Colorado, and I arrived at the river to find a blown out, muddy flood of mocha-colored torrent.  The river reports suggested flows of nearly 1900 cfs, and I'd believe every bit of it at this point.

I know I previously spouted some nonsense about "hell or high water," but it's just too high for my tastes, not to mention the low visibility and lack of clarity.

I did some more tying instead, and focused on some gardening.  Pheasant tails, Stoneflies, and a new garden berm.

 

Temperatures are dropping into the low 70s for a high today, so I'm hoping it will slow some of the snow melt up the canyon and give the water a chance to drop a bit and clear up a little.  If everything cooperates, I'll swing back down tomorrow and give the high water a shot.  If not, I'll keep playing the waiting game with Arnie.

In the words of George Costanza....

"....THESE PRETZELS ARE MAKING ME THIRSTY!!!"  For you Seinfeld fans out there, you'll understand the reference.

It was 79 degrees yesterday.  Gardens were planted.  Lands were scaped.  Bass were safe from the simulated "bass crack" that I was "persuaded" to buy.  Arnie frolicked on a thick green lawn to his heart's content.

All just in time for an April 29 Colorado snow.

UN-BE-LIEVE-A-BLE.

Never a dull moment here.

I had at least a small measure of good sense, enough to cover the strawberries and tomato plants.  Hopefully the cold won't stifle the seeds in the other places.

Ugh.

A flywriting slumber and a gardening frenzy.

God famously provided fishes and loaves, one of his many miracles for a world he loves. As for me, I prefer to catch and release fish, and bread is something I take at communion and pack full of peanut butter and jam.

As much as I absolutely hate it, I can't simply fish from dawn to dusk. Believe me, if I were filthy rich or as enterprising and skilled as this gal, I'd do just that. At this point, however, I have neither the talent nor the money to travel around and find the right water at the right time.

The water level on the Poudre has risen substantially this past week. I still don't fully understand what constitutes a "runoff," but based on my experience yesterday, my favorite stretch of water has become less than fishable. What just one week ago was a calm pool with fish rising to the surface like Jiffy-Pop is now a fast-moving torrent, complete with tree branches jetting by on a surface too turbulent for my aging eyes to keep a dry fly in sight. I briefly - very briefly - ran a nymph through the stretch before promptly casting it into an overhanging tree branch. Frustrated by the change in conditions and stuck on the river with no additional leader material, I called it a day. I'll try and get motivated to explore some new water this weekend, but yesterday brought none of the familiar joys of "wetting a line."

I did spend a couple of hours on the bench to replenish some BWOs. Doggone it, they're still ugly, but they seem to catch fish.

With the fishing being slow, at least for me, I got "Garden 2010" operational. I won't bore you with the details of what was planted, other than to proudly state that I learned a few lessons from last year and avoided things like mini-canteloupe and rhubarb swiss chard this year. We also took a slightly different approach, planting fewer squash plants and putting a number of things in some elevated containers built with cheap lumber from Home Depot.

I also added some "conversation pieces" and a sign outlining the requirements for access to the garden.  The garden will generally be open for viewing, but a few unwanted guests will be barred from entry, and certain other guests will have to pass a rigorous background investigation prior to being admitted.  The foreman of the whole operation, Arnie, will of course have free reign, since he knows the rules and supervised the construction.

Sorry Chris and Heather, but Brooke, Kyra, Ezra, and Aspen will have to go through the clearance procedures.   

 We'll see what it produces this year.  With any luck, and absent a repeat of last June's ridiculous hailstorm, I'll have food growing by June and be largely done with it by the time the "runoff" ends, free to once again focus my free time on pulling fat rainbows out of fishable water.

Who knows?  Maybe I'll even be able to tie a decent BWO by then.

Wishing all you fishermen a bountiful harvest this summer!

Two Week Update

Yep, those are Jalapeno peppers. The first food I've grown in my life! It's amazing what a good combination of sunlight and rain can do for an amateur gardener. While the rain does nothing to calm the rushing waters of the Poudre or enhance the fishing thereupon, I can rest easy in the knowledge that the trout will still be there in a month or so when the brutal runoff eases up. In the meantime, I'm having some success in another outdoor venture.

My scarecrow is so intimidating, I'm almost afraid to step over the fence myself. The only wildlife I've seen venture in so far are a few fearless blackbirds. If you were a rabbit, would you feel welcome here?



Neither would I!

After planting and waiting for about a week for something green to burst through the soil, a few days of intense sun and more than a few days of rain and careful watering started yielding results. I started to see zuchinni and cucumbers make their way out of the ground. Two weeks in, I'm optimistic.



And who says a rookie can't make corn grow?





Tomatoes and peppers? No problem!





OK, OK. So America's farmers aren't in any danger of losing market share. But doggone it, I'm at least going to throw a decent dinner party!

The Great Garden Experiment

OK, so Christel has her ducks and chickens. Quite an undertaking. Not to be outdone, I'm going back to a simpler time myself - I'm growing my own food.

It started out simple enough - a few tomato plants and various peppers:



Whiskey barrels filled with topsoil and a few plants just seemed too easy. A patch of uncultivated ground in the corner of the backyard began calling to me. So off we went!

After scouring the Internet for tips on vegetable gardens and learning about things like "compost" and "mulch" and "manure" and the like, I laid out my plan on paper. "15 feet X 10 feet ought to do it," I thought to myself without any actual clue. In any event, 10 X 15 is about all I want to try and conquer. Dad fired up the rototiller and I learned how to actually use one!



Rows. Everything in rows. I only had room for seven, and frankly that might be crowding things a bit. Two rows of corn, and one each of zuchinni, summer squash, green onions, lettuce, cucumbers. And a quick prayer! I had a typical supervisor (Arnie The Terrible), lounging in the shade yelling at me to work harder.



And what good is a garden without a scarecrow? Mine looks menacing. Even Arnie wasn't quite
sure what to make of him:









Lastly, I'm sure this endeavor will require some divine intervention in order to succeed. Never hurts to have some inspiration from God.



God Bless!