I haven't done much posting about it, but while the weather has been nice I
have been making several sampling trips to previously untried
locations. It's temping to go back to spots where I know I can get nice
fishes like welaka and such, but this year I wanted to spend a significant
amount of time scouting out new sites. I was browsing Steve Ross' new book
this morning and I found myself turning back to a picture of Little Sand
Creek (if you have the book it's on page 127). I looked at my atlas and
discovered that it was only an hour away via the Natchez Trace, and in the
same direction I needed to take in order to drop off my wife's force dryer
(repaired) at the grooming shop. I was worried about the water level since
we had torrential rains yesterday, but when I got to the site my fears
vanished. This is the fish collector's dream site: easy access, shallow
with a firm substrate, next to a campground (my camping experience on the
Okefenokee trip was so enjoyable I have resolved to camp whenever possible
on my collecting trips), and full of neat fishes. I loaded up on
Campostoma and redfin darters, and also found Notropis longirostris (common
in MS), F. olivacous, and an unidentified minner (I'm working on it - It's
NOT chrysocephalus).
When I was packing up, a fellow on a bicycle stopped by my truck to find
out if there were any grocery stores not too far down the road. I said no,
and gave him a MRE I keep in my truck for emergencies. He said he had
almost caught an armadillo but missed so he was without a meal! Turns out
this fellow snacks on the creatures fairly regularly. Anyway, he was
noticing my dipnet and became so entranced with it he insisted on buying
it. I didn't want to sell it, but I relented because it was getting holes
in the bag anyway, and he offered more than I paid for it. He also offered
to give me a "Tilley Hat", which I examined with great interest. This is a
really neat hat - kind of like the one I'm wearing in my photo on the NANFA
site, but it has snaps to hold the sides up in nice weather, and a pocket
in the top. Also, the fellow told me that the company would replace the
hat for the life of the owner under any circumstances (e.g. dog chewed it
to shreds). It's billed as "The World's Greatest Outdoor Hat" and I'm
inclined to agree - I'm gonna have one! I didn't accept his generous offer
because the hat was too small. He also had a really neat chair called a
Sling-Lite or some such. Very light and VERY comfortable.
...are the topic of an article in the latest issue of Seiche, available at:
http://www.seagrant.umn.edu/seiche/mar.02/art03.html
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