Red fox at night, cyclists delight.

I just got back from a leg smashing ride. Coach Mark prescribes just the right amount of hurt each time. Anyone that wants to be faster, have someone to hold them accountable, or not think about what their training should check him out here.

Riding out to the hurt zone, there were deer walking beside the road. On "what excuse can I come up with to be finished now" hill repeat number one there was an adult magpie feeding a juvenile magpie something rotting on the side of the road. It was cute. At the end of the workout, there was a fox trying to get in on the rotten carcass action. The birds were circling overhead squawking trying to get the  fox to leave their meal alone.
It was a great ride and I look forward to the rest of the weeks workouts!

Bakersfield. Don't ever go.

Leaving Kona, our first flight was delayed just long enough for us to miss our flight to LA. We would have made it if we weren’t checking three bikes! That being said, we didn’t get charged for bikes. The Aerus bike bags are amazing. 30 pounds with a bike, box, wheels, everything. They once asked if it was luggage and I said, “Yes”. That isn’t lying. I wasn’t going to offer information that it was a bike and I should be charged! Nguyen came and picked us up and let us sleep on his floor. What karma, just a few days ago, he came to Kona and slept on my floor. The following day, he took us to the North Shore for a surf. It reminded me that I haven’t surfed in a while. In fact, the last time that I surfed was with Nguyen on our way back from New Zealand. Eventually, I remembered what to do and had a lot of fun. From there, we overnighted to LA. Exhausted we had Denny’s and I shipped Moj off to Colorado. Don’t feel bad though she is in our awesome apartment while I am still slumming in the van. I can’t complain I have been “camping” (sleeping in the van without a shower) for the last few days. I rode bikes with Nguyen and I was feeling pretty bad about how out of shape I am in. He is a great cyclist, so it should have been no surprise that I couldn’t keep up with him.

 My view on the bike.

Back on my Triad, I have been having a great time riding in the mornings and fishing my brains out all afternoon. I am east of Bakersfield (a place that no one should ever go) north of the tiny town of Kernville. North of Kernville is the trailer park area called Johnsondale. I stayed near here in one of the many campgrounds. Every day I saw hunters walking down the road carrying rifles. I wore my red and white cycling outfit and tried not to look like a deer.

 At least they have a sense of humor!

I rode my bike to the Trail of 100 Giants. It was amazing. Giant Sequoias grow only on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada in California. I can't describe how big these trees are.

This is one tree.

Kernville might be the meth capital of California. I have been without phone, shower, internet, power, etc. for the last week. Who cares though because I have been fishing!

My favorite of the day.

Not the biggest fish, but I am getting good enough that I catch fish every time I go out. I saw a couple of monsters, but they weren’t eating what I had. The river is high (800 cfs) but down from what it has been (2800 cfs!) and not wuite where it should be (200 cfs), This place would be amazing with half of the water in it. I couldn’t quite get to all of the fish that I wanted to. It was frustrating seeing piles of fish hiding behind rocks on the other side of the river with no way to walk or cast to them. Now, I am on my way to Tempe to work and compete in the SOMA half iron distance triathlon. Hopefully I can shower and do some laundry as well!

Vancouver Island.

We left Seattle early Sunday morning and headed for the first of many ferries. Then someone sitting beside me realized that they forgot their passport. Luckily, it was only a four hour delay. The weather was typical Seattle weather, but that was to be expected. We traveled for about 8 hours before arriving at a campsite beside the Cowichan River. I was told that this would not be an exclusive fishing trip, but we somehow always stayed near the water.

One of many ferry rides. 

The house going to Canada.

The Cowichan River was beautiful. It was set in a semi deep gorge with steep sides. The water was a series of pools with small waterfalls. It made for tricky fishing, but saw a guy pull a big Rainbow Trout so it gave us hope. Unfortunately, we hauled out the small dumb trout. What makes it worse is that the guy with the big 20 inch trout was using "worms and weights". Weak. Us fly fisherpeople are supposed to be a bit more civilized. And maybe even, dare I say it, better anglers.

 

Cowichan River fishing.

Leaving the town of Duncan and the mighty Cowichan, we headed to Campbell River looking to kayaks to rent. Arriving at the end of summer is great. There are always campsites available, the amount of tourists is cut in at least half, and all of the kids are back to school. However, a lot of businesses close after Labour (sic) Day. We took another ferry to Quadra Island. It is an island with few people and hopefully Orcas, seals, bear, etc. The weather wasn't cooperating so couldn't go kayaking. 25 knot winds didn't sound like fun out on the water. We got in a fun, but hilly bike ride, practiced casting into the 25 knot wind, then went down to the only pub in town for dinner.

 

I noticed something funny on my saddle.

On our bike ride, we stopped at the Quadra Salmon Eco Centre. It showed us how the salmon live and die. More importantly, it showed us what they eat and where they hide. We went to bed hoping for better kayaking weather the next day. We woke up and it was pissing rain. Looked like there was nothing else to do but fish. We departed for Campbell River, grabbed some blue, pink, and green minnow pattern flies and started fishing in the rain.

Fishing in the rain.

 

We are going to need a bigger net.

It worked out well for us.

 

A female Pink Salmon.

A male pinky.

Biggest of the day.

This week,

Ben has gone to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. Before he left, we sailed his boat to a dock where it can stay for the winter. The wind was blowing the strongest it has been all week, so we had a lot of fun. Check out the two pictures. The look on everyone's face in the first pictures is great. totally not posed, we were actually a little concerned about how far over the boat was leaning. Ben knows what he is doing, but likes to push the limits and has a broken wrist. Courtenay looks scared and Moj can't see beacuse the wind is pushing her hat in her face!

A 3 hour tour.

Bury the rails!

 We went on a 3 day camping and fishing trip into the mountains of Washington. The morning that we left, I saw a Bald Eagle scoop something out of the lake right in front of the house. It was amazing.

 This is how we prepare.

Then we got ready for our trip and took off east. The mountains are beautiful and remind me a lot of Colorado. It was cloudy and rainy in Seattle, but 75 and sunny on the other side of the mountains.

 

The fishing was successful.

I caught about 40 fish over the 3 days. None of them over 10 inches. Icicle Creek is magical on small orange stimulators. The Skykomish provided lots of fun as well. I tried putting larger flies on to deter the small fish, but these trout are aggressive. The prince nymphs were a hit and the royal wulff was decent as well. Anything orange was good, but stimmies killed it. I think that my new outfit helped with my luck. Before Ben left we got dressed for the day and we were both amused.

Ben and I in our respective outfits.

I recently picked up some sweet Simms Guide Boots and Simms Headwaters Stockingfoot waders. It made my trip much more comfortable as Icicle Creek is as cold as its name implies! Here is a short video of me getting a little fish and letting him go.

Then, returning to the Collins' household, we brought a box of peaches and Ben's mom showed us how to make peach cobbler. We showed her how to eat it.

Mmmmm.

Mojdeh pickled green beans.

I made some pesto.

It has been a great week. Now we are off to work. Maybe I can get an hour in on the trainer.

Monterey.

We are in the strange town of Santa Cruz. It is nice camping in the mountains nearby. There are lots of redwoods and small streams. It would be peaceful if the 7 kids in the site next to us weren't constantly playing "war". All I hear is "Private, the Koreans are bad!" Or, "How many Vietnamese have you captured?" Someone is teaching these 10 year old kids their history. Interestingly enough, some of the kids were speaking German with their parents.

My morning view.

I thought that there would be one fancy area somewhere, but they have managed to suppress that here. We did get to see Katchafire which made us happy.

Before the show, we got to hang out and talk with the band for a minute. We hit the Monterey Bay Aquarium today with my Dad.

The jellyfish exhibit is awesome.

He is driving up the California coast by himself and happened to be here at the same time we are. This weekend, we both get to race. I have planned on looking good, no matter how the race goes!

Yosemite

As we drove into Yosemite National Park, it began snowing. This was not planned for. When we got to our camp, it was hailing. We thought we were going to sit in the van for 5 days. Towards the evening, the sun came out and the amazing sights began to emerge from behind the clouds. It made our first day more dramatic. Every time we turned around, we were pointing out high peaks, giant cliffs, waterfalls, or snow to each other. We woke up every morning and said, "Wow". We took lots of pictures, froze our butts off for 5 days, and I was constantly looking for bears at night. It was a lot of fun.
See you next week after Wildflower.

Time to say goodbye to the "Yosemite Beard".

BI

What do we do on the Big Island?

 

Eat fruit. (Lilikoi/passionfruit)

 

Go to the beach.

Stand up paddleboard. (No surf.)
 

Chase fish.

We also got to hang out with my good friend Kurt. His website FreeDivePhoto.com is under construction, but it is still worth checking out. He nevers uses any scuba gear. He dove to 70 meters the day that we saw him. And he wins speafishing tournaments.

Almost over.

I leave for Hawai'i in two days. I can't believe it. I can't believe that I have been in New Zealand for 3 1/2 months. I can't believe that I have done so much here.

Another amazing day.

I can't believe that I got a job. Everyting in the news is about how bad the economy is. Everyone is being laid off. People can't keep their homes. Obama is having trouble getting his economic stimulus package passed. I am having a great time. I have had an endless summer since... February 2008 when I was in South America. Looks like that will continue until November 2009.

 I no longer have to beg for rides with strangers.

I have learned lots of Kiwi slang. I have tested my outdoor gear in all kinds of conditions. I can survive with the gear on my back for about a week. I want very little and need even less. That being said, I love coffee shops that offer free wireless internet. I enjoy Starbucks, but not as much as Rachel. I found a new passion, fly fishing. I have amazing friends all over the world. I enjoy reading other people's blogs. The more I think that I know, the more I realize that I know nothing.

 I had a lot of fun learning about NZ wines.

My life is great when I eat a lot. Traveling has made me appreciate good food. If you can't laugh at yourself, life will be miserable.

 

Good food and good friends.

I have been traveling for over a year, but I don't feel like it is coming to an end. I have learned that I love the beach and the ocean. It is difficult to swim with seals, but easy to outrun them on land. Going home to Kona will be my first vacation in a while. I watched "Into the Wild" and "Slumdog Millionaire" recently. I liked them both. SM imressed me more, but one thing that I remember from ITW:

HAPPINESS IS ONLY REAL WHEN SHARED.

Float day.

We floated down a river with Fishy Steve and had an amazing day yesterday.

 

We had some gear with us.

Steve was a great captain.

 

He is also a great fisherman!
 

Here is some proof.

He showed me where this one was feeding.

 

Then he got this one.

What a great day!

Hare or hare?

Encompassing all aspects of fly fishing, Fishy Steve taught me how to tie a very simple fly. It took a while to get it. I felt like I was doing everything left handed (I am right handed).

We are correcting my mistakes.

Eventually he told me that these would be good ones. And Mojdeh said that this is what she caught her first fish by herself with. The Hare and Copper. Named so because it is made with hare's fur and copper wire.

Hare and Copper number one.

 

All mine.

We sat down for an hour. I made 4 flies and Steve must have made 12. It was a good learning experience and I never have to buy $2 hare and coppers again.

 

All in one night.