January 10th, 2013- Ice & Bluffs

"As the shadow of the kingfisher moved up the stream, a big trout shot upstream in a long angle, only his shadow marking the angle, then lost his shadow as he came through the surface of the water, caught the sun, and then, as he went back into the stream under the surface, his shadow seemed to float down the stream with the current, unresisting, to his post under the bridge where he tightened facing up the current.
         Nick's heart tightened as the trout moved. He felt all the old feeling.
         He turned and looked down the stream. It stretched away, pebbly-bottomed with shallows and big boulders and a deep pool as it curved away around the foot of a bluff."

-Ernest Hemingway, from  Big Two Hearted River: Part 1

Last of 2012

My apologies for the unoriginal title...

I'm not very much into making New Years resolutions, but on January 1st I decided that I had waited long enough to get my last roll of film from 2012 developed and therefore resolved to make the trek to Walgreen's and do so. I was glad I did, because it felt purposeful and was an easy enough resolution to fulfill. As for healthful revelations and steadfast promises, I will save them for when I am old and slow. 

Reflecting on the past year, I would say that 2012 was, all-in-all, pretty cool. I did some traveling, formed real friendships, caught a few trout, and made some important decisions on where I'll be living and what type of profession I will be pursuing in the foreseeable future. I also dropped out of college after four and a half years at UWEC (sorry mom and dad), but I think that even that was for the best. In fact, I can't recall another time in my life when I have been so thoroughly excited to seek out fresh experiences and move somewhere new. So cheers to 2013!

As for this winter/spring, I plan on keeping busy with fly tying, writing, and serving people coffee. 

And taking photos...I may even save my tip money to purchase a couple more film cameras this spring. I love my dad's Pentax and think it takes sweet pictures, but unfortunately the light meter is f-ed up and that sometimes makes low-light situations and appropriate exposure tricky. But regardless, it's a fun thing to experiment with and I kind of enjoy speculating whether a roll of film or a specific photo will turn out or not. 

I hope you enjoy the hodgepodge of photos I have assembled below, all of which were taken in November and December of 2012. 

Cyber-wizard Nate Wick silently cursing and writing code for our upcoming website.

I think the out-of-focusness here kind of works? 

Summit Ave. light trails.

The inside of "The Red Shed," where Loras Thier and I have had many memorable conversations.

Halloween on the Bois Brule.

A pretty gal from a deep pool. She took me through some rapids before letting me kiss her.  

Two passionate steelheaders swapping fish stories...or possibly just discussing what type of beer they will be drinking that evening. 

Eau Claire images



A regular Dean Potter.



The photos below were all taken in October, which is indeed a very fine time of year in Central Wisconsin. Taking photographs, along with fishing, writing, and hunting, has provided me a much needed respite from the urgency of school. One could say that I've hit the "fifth-year crunch," or have a case of "super-senioritis." Whatever term suits your fancy, I have it bad, and holding an old Pentax in my hands has been thoroughly therapeutic. Hope you enjoy the photos! I always enjoy sharing.







The New Glarus Brewery



"When in Brule"

One of my very favorite things about being a trout junkie is that every season presents opportunity. Whether it's in the form of hitting the summer mayfly hatches just right or brewing up an absurd amount of coffee and churning out new flies once winter settles in, there is never a time when I feel like I'm disconnected from the sport. Late fall is no exception to this seasonal fly fishing equation, and for my friends Ryan Alger, Nate Wick, and I, our trout sonars pointed north to the Bois Brule River and the opportunity for fresh fall steelhead. 

The online fishing reports prior to the trip revealed that the water was extremely low and clear and the steelhead that were there did not come without diligence. However, the sluggish report did little to quell our enthusiasm. With boxes of freshly tied nymph and egg flies, we left Eau Claire in the rear view and, after a few ceremonial nips of whiskey, made camp in the 27 degree Northern Wisconsin air. 

In the morning, I checked the USGS water data for the Brule on my iPhone, and was pleasantly surprised to see that the area had gotten rain in the past 24 hours, and the river had come up a bit. We hit the river early, and the conditions didn't disappoint. By 1:00 on Friday morning, all three of us had hooked up with fresh fish. Ryan nearly landed a 23" hen that snapped the tippet as I was trying to net it. If I were on top of things, I would have got a shot of the poor guy's face after his first ever steelie snapped off. The caption would have read, "fuuuuuuck." However, Ryan would go on to land a smaller jack, and Nate and I followed suit with fresh fish of our own, solidifying the trip's success within just a few hours. 

We spent the rest of that day and the next letting the Brule's water soak into our souls. Amid scattered snow showers, we smoked cheap cigars and sucked down hoppy craft brew. 

So that's what this time of year means to me...another opportunity to catch some kick-ass fish in a unique setting, and it never hurts to share it with some amigos. Enjoy the photos!

I reserved a roll of film for the trip, and all but the last photo (taken by Ryan) were from my Pentax. 

Good beer is photogenic.  

27 degrees and the coffee tastes alright!

24" silver stunner.

The things I would do to own that shack...

25" hen

Film- Roll #2

 I struggled with some exposure issues on this roll. While 400 ISO film is more forgiving when shooting in areas of low light than the 200 ISO film I used on the first roll, it is less so when shooting outside on sunny days. I found this out the hard way with many of the pictures being overly exposed (I think that's the correct term?). While the relativity of the ISO setting is probably an elementary rule of thumb for more experienced photographers, I've got a long ways to go in feeling completely comfortable with it all.

Nonetheless, I'm having a blast with the process. Having a camera in my hand makes me think about the world around me a little differently...more artistically maybe? I guess the same could be said for any form of expression where influences are gathered from one's surroundings.

Hope you like the below photos...they're from the Eau Claire area, during the season of flannel and hoppy beverages (though if you're like me, isn't that every season?).

Augusta Wildlife Area

Livin' on the edge. 

Mud Monster