Mardi gras in the swamp

It’s difficult for my son and me to coordinate days off for fishing, but we got away Monday afternoon and headed toward Butte La Rose for an overnighter. The water was very clear, but high, and the wind was howling. We only brought our fly rods and they were too much of a battle in that wind. We set a trotline and found an inlet that was quiet enough to make a few casts… no fish, though. It was a pretty drive across the Atchafalaya Basin; the trees were bare and the dominant color was a wintry shade of grey. There were occasional sprigs of green, but against all of that drab background were great flames of red- purple color where the swamp maples were coming to life again. I have always been impressed by that vivid swamp- maple display in the early spring. Simple pleasures…. We were prepared to camp in the swamp, but I didn’t relish fighting a canoe against that wind or listening to a tent flap all night. The swamp is different from my home territory: it’s all flat, whereas the hills offer more windbreaks and protected coves. We stayed in the truck- camper, baited our line, and ran it once during the night and again at daylight. We did manage to get some catfish… caught enough for supper when we got home and put two packages in the freezer for future meals… we made groceries and had a pretty good outing.

More signs of Spring

A little woods violet was smiling through the leaf- litter…another pronouncement of spring. The goldfinches were busy at my birdfeeder, and there were many other birds fluttering around the bushes and the camp- yard. I need to put up a nest box for that bluebird!

My intention was to do some squirrel hunting while I was in the woods; when I was chasing deer, the squirrels were everywhere. Now, I only spotted two, and they were far away. Maybe I was too enthralled with the birds bouncing everywhere, to be serious about squirrel hunting. The rainy spell seems to have ended, but the ground is still wet like a sponge. It was cold this morning, low 20’s, but it was still, and warmed up to a very pretty afternoon. I love this time of the year... I guess I say that at every season... it's always joyous to be out basking in the natural world. Sunrises and sunsets have been colorful… those red- orange skies make beautiful contrasts to the silhouettes of bare- limbed trees.