TennesseeGuy

It's good to see you kids out on the water.

That's great news. Congratulations to your family of three.

Thanks Aaron, Nice going Chris and Nikki.

Great move.

Pete, I just visited BPS in Cincinnati and they had plenty of your rods on the rack and I'm sure there were many more in the back. I always buy mail order because clumsy customers don't get a shot at them like they do in stores. Longer rods are great. You are putting together a great combo. A good fishing tool.

Yeah, I was pretty sure what combo pulled in that giant. Got two, 8 1/2 footers myself and they sure do the job. Last one missed my trip north by a month or so because of being backordered. What's going on? Not making them fast enough or too much demand?

Mount LeConte is third highest in the Park. Clingman's Dome is a bit higher at 6643 feet. Not a hillbilly report? You should see where my son lives. In his younger days he fished Roaring River in nearby Jackson County. He later bought a bottom farm that ran along the river. There was no house so he converted the tool shed into living quarters and lived there until the farm was paid for. Then he built a house and got over being a hermit by taking a bride. They do a lot of paddling, hiking, biking, running and horse back riding. Their house is located in a valley near the river. Dogs, chickens and birds start looking for a place to bed down around 4 in the afternoon when the sun drops down over Overton Mountain. When their road is closed due to flooding, my son takes his canoe downstream to the first bridge and hitch hikes 18 miles to work. When he was converting his tool shed into a place to live, he'd walk a 200 feet to the river and catch a couple of fish to fry on his Coleman stove. Then back to work. Roaring River was also his bath tub for a couple of months. I wonder what the poor copperhead thought as he looked up?

I was 7 when I got my first .22 rifle, a Stevens singleshot that had been the first gun for about 8 family members. It stayed in the unlocked gun cabinet at my grandfather's house. We didn't even think about touching anything in there without having an adult with us. A couple of years later I was allowed to carry it alone. At 12 I'd take it and my dog along with me on my almost nightly hunt.

Congratulations Dad. Really nice fish. What rod and reel was he using?

My son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter Caroline spent part of Saturday climbing Mt. LeConte, in the Great Smoky Mountains. Their hike up was around seven miles, with a 3800 foot gain in elevation. The camp is at 6593 feet. Caroline rode up in Spencer's backpack and Lori carried diapers, toys and food for Caroline. It was hot and humid at the beginning of the hike. They went up the mountain for a private birthday party for Caroline who turns one year old September 12. Here's a break to rest and tank up on fluids. They were still drenched with perspiration when they reached the top, but the much cooler air temperature had them bringing out warmer clothing. I can walk, but don't want to until after my birthday. I'm on top of the world. Caroline is ready for her ride back down the mountain. They spent the night in camp where their meals were served. There's no road to the top. Supplies are brought in by surefooted llamas. Going down is easier. Lori crossing a creek. Either I got the photos out of order or Lori changed into lighter clothing as they neared the bottom of the mountain and ran into hot, humid air. little c feeding a squirrel near the bottom. They made it to the bottom of Mt. LeConte midafternoon on Sunday. Little c and Lori headed home to complete a work project and Spencer stayed behind to make a solo whitewater paddling trip down the Ocoee River. His canoe trip was going well until he had an urgent bathroom call while heading downstream. He found a calm stretch of water and quickly got off the water and out of sight of other paddlers. He squatted and did his business, and then did some more business. Then he noticed movement directly under his bottom and he was not causing the movement. Looking down he saw a three foot copperhead slithering away. Fortunately copperheads are not aggressive.

They're not for anything and produce nothing. Just a bunch of blood suckers against Capitalism.

Way to go Katie. That's the kind of Monday morning shooting report I like. I'd like to have you living next door to me. Is there any chance of a CCW permit becoming available to you any time soon? It helps even the odds against bad guys. and isn't the AR-15 a sweet weapon? I love it. Don't have one, but have experience with it.

Rob, it's great that you, Chris and Nicole had such a great outing with Aaron. I'm looking forward to seeing the photos. I wish the three of you many more days on the water.

JohnG, will get you a PM. Don't want DM to know my plans. Don't want him in my cabin when I'm out on the water.

Dan those are beauties. And all the photos made my day better.

Thanks for bringing us your very good report. I really enjoyed the pictures.

Hey Rich, we're at $2.52 a gallon and it's cheaper in some places. It's been holding there for about two weeks. Earlier in August I paid a lot more in Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Ontario.

Glenn, that was a good dam report. Same here on minnows at the usual spots. Last week I drove 45 miles to the Big Bait Dealer and picked up 3 pounds of large tuffies for $27. Packed them in salt, 20 Mule Team Borax, and garlic powder. After 20 hours or so spread them on a towel in the sun to dry before storing them in quart Ziplock bags and then into the freezer. I promised them a trip up north sometime in late September or early October. Fall walleyes will know what to do with them.

Canadian waterbombers sometimes make it to Tennessee prior to their fire season up north. They're down here partly to fight fires, but also to train and exercise equipment. 40 years ago my neighbor and I took his plane on a 30 mile flight from Cookeville to Crossville, TN where a waterbomber and crew were stationed. We struck up a conversation with the crew, got a tour of the aircraft and gladly accepted their offer to ride along for a 40 minute flight. We touched down on a lake several times, but didn't take on any water. Then they'd make a practice run on a stand of timber, coming close enough to have dropped water. It was a frightnening experience for farm animals that had not seen such powerful aircraft fly so low. The crew explained that they may fly for a only a limited number of hours each day while fighting fires. They had a small fishing boat with oars on board so they could test the waters during their off time. Those guys are good and they have a dangerous job.

Congratulations to your family Kirk. Good thing you had only one. Donny Maw doesn't allow two over 18.1".

Nice outing. Have your friends noticed that you've picked up a southern drawl from your stay down here?

My body is still recovering from 8 days of fishing and a 3000 mile round trip earlier this month. I stretched and did exercises this morning to loosen up enough to head for work. Next I'll hang upside down for a few minutes, ride my recumbent bike and then do a little weight work. After that I'll head in to pull the plow for a few hours. It's been 16 days since my last meal of walleyes and I miss them.

Nice catch. Way to go. If U. of L. had a fishing team you'd be captain for sure.

Donny will be the talker. douG will be the listener.

The probability of Donny entering my cabin without legal authority isn't going to keep me from making the next trip, or the one after that, or..................................................................