AFTERMATH OF " ARTHUR "

    This past month has been a wild and woolly one here at home on Salmon River. Hurricane Arthur hit the Maritimes with a vengeance and the Fredericton - Grand Lake areas were hit particularly hard. A storm of this magnitude has the capacity to stagger local economies and inflict untold damage to the lives of the people suffer through it. People who live in this day and age are not used to going for days on end without power or land lines for communication. I personally was without power for eleven days and had no computer or home phone for three weeks. Needless to say, it's times like this that stretch ones patience and resources to the limit. I literally had to cut my way out of my yard to reach the highway. On the day of the storm I travelled to Fredericton and it was one of the wildest rides I have taken in my life! There were leaves and branches flying everywhere and trees, large and small, were falling like matchsticks in the wake of the hurricane force winds. Make no mistake about it, this was a very destructive storm.
    This storm pretty much shut down our fishing and boating activities on Salmon River this month because of high water and dangerous conditions for travelling. I made a short video clip of the conditions we faced the day after the storm and as you can see the water was very high and flooding was widespread.

We never did get rolling after this huge storm but my son Curtis was up this past week-end and wanted to see if any fish were around and he managed to catch a few nice white perch that were still here. Here is a photo of Curt with a nice sized perch he caught while fishing off of my shore.

 We had a nice fire later on and Curt cooked up the fillets on the coals in tin foil. Very tasty! This is quite late in the year to be catching white perch but this has been a very unusual year in many ways because of weather events and many folks are saying this is likely to become the norm as we move forward into the future. Hopefully, those people are wrong but I fear there is an element of truth to that statement. This is going to be a short post this month because of all the havoc caused by " Arthur " but next month I will get up to speed,  barring another act of God.

 

    I did manage to pick up some outdoor related items in my travels around Grand Lake and the first photo shows a unique painting done on velvet. This painting depicts a duck in flight and is signed by the artist. These paintings are usually done on black velvet but this one is done on gold colored velvet which makes it unusual.

 This painting is likely Mexican in origin and I'm guessing it was done in the 70's.

    The next item shown here is a very nice picture done with different inlaid wood made to depict a mallard in flight. This item is a commemorative Ducks Unlimited piece and was done with over a dozen different species of wood from many different countries.

 This beautiful piece of art work was done by Hudson River Inlay and dates to the 80's.

    Lastly, I have a nice scroll carved piece of a jumping fish with a small clock inserted for function. There is a lot of detail in this piece and while it isn't very old, it's still a very nice little item.

 

    Although this post is quite short, I hope to have a much more comprehensive report next month if Mother Nature co-operates. 

 

Until then, this is Dale Bauer saying " Happy Trails to You.....Until we Meet Again "

SWEET SUMMERTIME, THE BITE AND VINTAGE OUTDOOR STUFF

    We are finally getting some nice weather here at home on Salmon River and the water is slowly getting down to a good level for fishing. It's been a while coming this year and the general consensus is things are running about 7-10 days late. Good fishing for most of the early species was disappointing at best but most sports can take a little pain as long as there's a promise of better day's ahead.
    Even if the bite is off, our little part of New Brunswick is a beautiful place to be in the summertime. Having Grand Lake and Salmon River just minutes away is a big plus for visiting tourists because of all the beautiful areas to explore. A drive along Grand Lake west and the Saint John River will provide visitors with many photo opportunities at every turn. The fertile flood plain provides nutrients for a backdrop of lush vegetation teeming with fish and wildlife. Simple sunsets become a thing of beauty in this country so often, locals just take it for granted.

 In my last post I mentioned a few specific places to visit but the whole area surrounding Grand Lake is very scenic and is often overlooked as a destination. The main reason this area is often overlooked is because of a lack of infrastructure and touristy things to do. I don't really see this as a negative because it speaks to the areas raw, undeveloped natural beauty that is becoming more desirable to tourists as time goes on. Do your homework, come up with a game plan and discuss your wants with your guide or outfitter and your visit to Grand Lake will be a memorable one.

    As I mentioned, the fishing has been slow coming around this year and the salmon are just getting started on the Miramichi and her tributaries. Reports of very few fish in the system and even fewer hook -ups had some anglers worried but a fresh report had around seventy fish in one day in a trap near Chatam. This seems to indicate the fish are coming in but are a little late this year. Lets all keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best. The larger sea trout have made their journey to the headwaters but there are still lots of 10-14 inch trout around. Many times these sea trout will provide some action on a slow day of salmon fishing and sometimes end up in the frying pan. At least the ones I catch do.
    We have been fishing white perch for the past week or so and have just started to catch some of the bigger ones. Jamie and Brooke were over and caught enough for a feed one evening.

 In this photo, Jamie is showing a good sized white perch for filleting.

 We have found that evenings and dark, cloudy days provide the best action but if they are running hard, decent catches can be made at anytime of the day. I fished a couple of evenings this past week and caught a nice feed with little difficulty. Although I was targeting white perch, I was catching a lot of other species along with the white perch. The next photo shows a few nice perch along the shore.

 I usually don't keep any yellow perch I catch but if I get any good sized ones I'll sometimes keep some and put them on the stick with their white cousins. The next photo shows the size of white perch that makes a nice fillet and it doesn't take a lot of them to get a feed.

 I was down one evening and caught a feed of white perch and a nice pickerel that I kept and I made a short video clip while I was fishing from shore. The white perch will be around for a while yet and we will be getting some for the freezer. They keep well if the fillets are pre-cooked and frozen. The fillets are easily heated up in the micro-wave or conventional oven and served alone or with whatever accessories you prefer. We all like them here at home so they don't last very long.

 This photo shows a plate full of fillets ready for the pan.

 

    The Chipman fish and game club held their fishing derby again this year at McLeans Campground on Salmon River and forty participants braved very wet weather and caught over two hundred fish of many different species. The two big winners were Bailey Herbert of Fredericton who caught the most fish and registered twenty fish and little Tyson Sypher won the prize for the biggest fish caught with a forty-seven cm. pickerel. There were other categories and all the kids got prizes and a lunch. This is a fun tournament for the kids and is usually very well attended but the weather can play havoc with outdoor activities and angler numbers were down a little from other years. This is a photo of the winners of the derby.

 

     The rain also played a role in keeping anglers at home for the annual Monte Farrell shad tournament on Salmon River. The tournament had to be cancelled because of heavy rainfall and a three foot raise of water and when it was finally held the rain arrived again. I was talking to Ralph Goodwin, one of the tournament organizers and he expressed his frustration in having to deal with such poor weather conditions. He told me that many anglers from away had planned specifically for the date and could only come on that week-end but Ralph said around seventeen die-hard anglers hooked nine fish and the tournament was a success in spite of the conditions. I took a photo that Sam Daigle, another tourney organizer,  had posted on a forum that shows the winners with some of the shad they caught.

 As usual, anglers from Minto were well represented in this tournament and as you can see from the photo the winners circle had Minto anglers at the forefront. Good job boys!

 

    We have been seeing good numbers of ducks and geese with their young and it looks like it was a successful nesting season for these species in our area. The high water this spring actually helped waterfowl numbers because it hampers the predators ability to reach vulnerable ducks and geese on their nests.

 

    Although many sports were fearful the wet, cold spring would hamper the nesting abilities of the grouse and woodcock, reports to the contrary have been coming in. Drumming numbers appear to be up this year and we have been seeing some nice broods of grouse chicks during our travels. Grouse have the ability to nest a second time if they have been unsuccessful the first time and I'm guessing this helps sustain their numbers during a difficult spring.

 

    The bucks and bulls are sprouting soft horns and it always amazes me how quickly their horns will grow throughout the summer months. We had a brutal winter and a long cold spring but we were pleasantly surprised how many deer survived that crucial time of the year. It's a real struggle for our white-tails in this part of the country because we are on the northern fringe of their range and winter mortality can be high on bad years. Our crown lands are managed almost entirely for production of wood fibre for saw mills and pulp mills and this usually spells bad news for white-tails and most of the deer we saw on crown land this spring were in rough shape. The number of available doe tags have been reduced and we expect to see lower kill numbers overall this year.

    Moose numbers remain high and the provincial government is looking at extending the hunt to five days from three. This is generally being welcomed by the hunting fraternity but this change isn't official yet so we will just have to wait and see how this all plays out. Many hunters believe this is an election plumb that is being held out as an offering for the coming election this fall. I say it will take a lot more than that to keep the Tories in office after this election.

 

    The spring bear hunt has just ended and although the season got off to a slow start, overall it was a good season with some very nice bears taken. The biggest one I heard of was taken by a well known hunter from the Zealand area near Fredericton. This bear was an old bruiser that weighed in at four hundred and twenty-four lbs. and had a twenty inch skull. That's a big spring bear in any country. Another sport took a bear with his bow that dressed out at four hundred and five lbs. This hunter was using an outfitter from the western part of the province and its quite evident that you can take a trophy sized bear just about anywhere in the province. New Brunswick's bear population remains high but I see more and more locals pursuing spring bears and they are taking some nice ones. It's also encouraging to see women hunting bears or filming the hunt. I find that many women love to participate and watch the animals and the hunt even if they don't pull the trigger. This is a photo of the Zealand bear.

 Ken took a nice boar last month and I posted pictures of it in my last blog entry. The bear that Ken took was just one of the nice ones that we had at our baits this spring. We've been running some of our baits for several years and over time these baits will be hit by multiple bears of different age classes. It's not hard to tell when you have one of those big boys hanging around. He will leave his signs and an experienced guide will know right off just how big the bruin is. The next photo shows a cam picture of one of the nice bears at our bait sites.

 This site had a couple of big boars and a nice sized sow with one cub. This isn't at all unusual especially if your bait sites are chosen with care and tended regularly.

 We have lots of nice bears in our hunting area in New Brunswick and the population has been increasing in recent years. The DNR has been wrestling with the idea of giving two tags per year but that is still being looked at. I'm hoping it stays the way it is because we have it good right now and I fear if we tinker with the numbers, it could come back to bite us in the behind.

 

    I have been picking up lots of vintage outdoor related items all winter and I have selected some to show my readers. The first photo shows a couple of nice prints of a pair of red-winged blackbirds and what I think is a flycatcher. The males have very striking colors and their lyrical song is a joy to hear. I have lots of them around home and I enjoy watching them every summer.

 These two prints are dated 1958&1959 but I don't think they were produced until the early 1960's.

    The next item is a very nice piece of chalkware depicting a white-tail buck. This item is marked Wade and I believe it is an English manufacturer who produced this type of ware for the tourist trade as souvenirs  because this one still has a tag that says Moonlight Inn, New Brunswick.

 I would date this item to the 1940's.

    The last item I have to show is a piece of folk art carving by maritime artist Marty Ladds. Marty does very nice work in a variety of mediums and I picked this up a few months ago from a picker friend.

 

 

    Summer is here and the fishing is starting to get good so I'm urging everyone to grab your fishing rod and head for some of the great fishing to be had in the Grand Lake area!

 

    Until next time, this is Dale Bauer saying ''Happy Trails to You......Until we Meet Again''

   

SPECIAL PLACES, THE BITE AND VINTAGE OUTDOOR STUFF

    Is it ever going to warm up? I'm starting to wonder after the weather we've had this past month. Normally, things are warming up nicely and summer is just around the corner but not this year. It has been cold and rainy with just a few nice days and that spells trouble for the grouse and woodcock that have been starting to nest and hatch out young ones. This is a critical time frame for these two species because nesting conditions dictate how many birds will be found when fall rolls around. Lets hope for some warmer weather in the coming weeks.
    This spring has been a poor one for sports wanting to get out and catch a few fish and enjoy what Mother Nature has to offer. The spring salmon fishery was the worst in a long time because of severe flooding and poor weather conditions. It was one of those springs that got off to a late start and the salmon fishing was very erratic and it was hit or miss for most of the season. When the fish were taking, there were more salmon hooked than grilse. The reports I got told of salmon that were in great shape and fighting hard. I guess that would be the silver lining in a season like the one just passed. For my part, I never wet a line! It's been a long time since that has happened but I had flood issues of my own that persisted for a month and I don't relish the thought of fighting high water and running ice just to get on the water. It has to warm up sometime and when it does,  I'll be there. Here at home the water is still unusually high and Moon Island is still covered with water. All the meadows are still flooded and it will be another 2-3 weeks before the water levels are down to a good fishable level. The local eel fishermen have their pots set already but I don't know how many they have been getting. I hope to get a report for next month.

    Here at home on Salmon River, the water is still quite high and this has delayed the runs of most of the species we get at this time of year. The gaspereau have only been running for a short time and that also stalled the trout run which is just starting. Shad are just barely getting started and the white perch haven't arrived as of this writing. Prime time for white perch is around June 1st and we will be fishing for them sometime after that date.
    Most years if we get the itch early for some brook trout fishing, we will head to one of the many beaver dams that dot the countryside around Grand Lake. Many of these spots have been fished for 2-3 generations of the Bauer and Hargrove families and we can still get a mess of trout and and a feed of fiddleheads to go with them. My son Curt has been showing his girlfriend Erica some of the spots we fish and she has really been enjoying her outings.

 These trout were caught quite early on May 11th of this year. They were nicely colored and lacked the silver hue of run trout. This pond happened to be an active one with a beaver house in the background of this photo but many are not but they can still hold lots of nice trout. Compare these trout with the ones in the following photo.

 The larger trout have a silvery hue to them while the others are quite a bit darker and have spent the winter in their native habitat. It isn't unusual to get a mix of trout like this in the same habitat when the pond you are fishing feeds into a larger stream or river. The next photo shows the trout all ready for the pan with the fiddleheads on the side.

 We have many locations near home that we can hike in to and catch a limit of trout. Some of these places I was shown by my father and uncles and some I found on my own. In turn, Curt has a few spots of his own that he hikes in to and can usually catch some trout. Erica loves going on these hikes and she always brings her camera with her to record the days events. Sometimes Curt and Erica take along a friend on their excursions like they did the other day when they hiked in to a small falls in Midland. The next photo shows Erica and her friend with the falls in the background.

 This falls is also the location of a swimming hole that is popular with the younger crowd. The next photo shows Erica hiking along the edge of the pond.

 This is just one of the many special spots that exist in our beautiful area surrounding Grand Lake. Many of these spots are very good hunting or fishing spots but there is more to it than that. These places stir the soul when you pause to take in your surroundings. There are places on the Gaspereau River and Pleasant Brook that take you back to another time when you stand among their dark, cool,  moss covered rock cliffs. On Grand Lake at the Key-hole, Princess Park, Indian Point and on the Grand Lake Meadows sometimes you feel like you are the only soul within a thousand miles. The next photo is one of my favorite pools on the Newcastle Stream where I did a lot of trout fishing when I was a kid.

 Some other special spots on the Newcastle Stream are the Devils Oven, the Coal Banks and MacDonald's Meadows.

 There is a tranquil rhythm that you can tap into if you pause long enough to see and listen. This is feeling the spirit of each of these places and it is something that stays with you long after your visit has ended. I like to think these places are good medicine for the soul. Here is a photo of some angry waves we took while touring Grand Lake West last week-end.

 This is just a sampling of the dozens of picturesque places that are within easy reach of visitors to our area. If you DO visit our area, be sure to bring your camera along because we live up to the claim of being the "Picture Province".

    As I've said, things are running a couple of weeks late this year and the stripers weren't co-operating in the lower Miramichi River so DFO extended the retention period and doubled the possession to two per day in the slot. There are a lot of bass running during the spring and after a meeting with concerned anglers DFO made the right decision on the extension of the season this year. Bass numbers are getting so high many anglers and outfitters fear they will negatively impact salmon numbers by gorging on smolt heading out to sea. It's nice to see a government agency actually consulting AND making the appropriate decisions in this case. Most people agree it is time to trim the bass numbers back a bit before things get out of hand.

    The sea trout are just starting to get going and it will be another week or so before they make their way up the streams and rivers. The gaspereau and shad runs are also late and this probably slowed down the trout. I have heard one soul from the Saint John area preach the same mantra each spring about the trout running before the gaspereau  and I just don't buy it. I have always held to the belief that the gaspereau run first and the trout follow based on personal observations over the years. Maybe this fellows water world is different than mine and I would welcome others observations in this area.

    The white perch run is just getting started and the pickerel bite should heat up as soon as the water drops a bit and starts to warm up.

    This prolonged cool spell has also stalled our bear baits this spring and we aren't seeing a lot of bears grazing like we usually do while making our rounds. The baits just started to get hit consistently this past week and we have some nice bears coming in. Ken loves baiting bears and hunting them and he can't resist taking one when he gets the itch. I'm usually trying to dissuade him from killing one because I want him to save them for future hunters but I know by now he's got to scratch that itch so I don't push him too hard on the issue. Ken started a new bait in an area just opened up and was actually just testing the area to see what was around. He had crossed a nice track and had opened a new bait up and placed a camera the day before and was driving in to check things out the next day when he spotted a bear near the bait about two hundred yards ahead. It looked like a good bear so Ken stopped up and started a stalk through the woods to the bait. When he got handy to the bait the bear had moved off. As Ken was standing there listening, the bear slowly made its way back to the bait to sample some of Kens special concoction he had smeared on a big pine tree. Ken said that's what led to the bears downfall. Ken took a bead and dropped that bear right in its tracks! No tracking job and a snap to load the bear in the truck for the drive back to town. Here are a couple of photos of Kens bear.

 This is a photo of Ken and I with his 2014 bear.

 This next photo will give you some idea of the size of this nice boar. This bear had a big head and will make the New Brunswick record book with ease.

 Although we didn't weigh this bear, I would say it was over 300 lbs. That is a nice New Brunswick spring bear and we have lots of them in our area. Ken is a very good guide and woodsman and you can't go wrong with him looking after you on the water or in the bush. He's also a bit of an artist when the mood strikes him.

    The following photo shows Ken with a nice piece he did last year. This large plaque is made of flaming yellow birch and was etched and burned by him over the course of a couple of evenings. Ken has made many such artifacts over the past few years but he says he only does a piece when the mood strikes him. That's too bad because he does beautiful work.

 The next photo is one of a chip carved bear done in St. Jean, Quebec. This type of folksy carving is becoming much harder to find but every now and then I come across a piece to add to my collection.

 The next photo shows an old zippo lighter I acquired from a picker friend of mine who gets outdoor stuff for me whenever he comes across it. This is a sportsman's lighter depicting a hunter afield shooting birds. This lighter is dated 1953 which also happens to be the year I was born.

 

Summer is just around the corner and if you are vacationing in beautiful New Brunswick and would like to visit any of the special places I've mentioned in this blog, please contact me through the channels provided to arrange a guided adventure you are sure to enjoy.

    This is Dale Bauer saying "Happy Trails to You....Until we Meet Again!"