HALF OVER

Monday, July 20, 2009

The rain that started three days ago has and does continue intermittently.  Early this morning as the writer was putting fish on racks to dry he could hear the rain falling on the shed roof.  As he and Onie woke from time to time during the rest of the night they could hear the faint sound of rain.  Of course the rain has brought higher humidity and the feel of colder weather, dropping the temps by about five degrees.  The rain was needed as ground exposed to direct sunlight had turned to dust, almost talcum powder in consistency and wildfires continued to burn at every point of the compass.  All in all the rain was welcomed and has been enjoyed as it has not hampered activities at all.

When Onie rose this morning the rain was still with us.  When Pawpaw rose it had ceased for a while but the heavy skies promised more, later this afternoon.

Onie worked on and completed formatting and inserting pictures into week seven and had it ready to post, only wanting the writer’s final perusal before sending it to the website.  And while the writer worked on the current week and week nine she almost completed week eight.

Breakfast was waiting but tea was made and enjoyed.

Outside our windows a few fishermen flipped for reds.  With the commercial fishermen having their gill nets at the mouth of the Kenai River over the weekend the number of fish entering the river is down to twenty eight thousand from Friday’s fifty eight thousand.  The writer believes it takes fish about eighteen to thirty six hours to reach the grate, after they enter the river and are counted by the sonar detector at the weir so the effects of netting is not immediately felt at the grate.  Fish will be caught today but it will take longer and be more difficult.

Speaking of difficulty, it is hard to believe that our summer is half over.  We will be leaving a couple of days after Labor Day and heading south.  Onie looked at the Denali Park website yesterday and we were not among those drawn to drive their own cars into the park.  We will try again next year.

While the writer was having his first meal of the day the heavy skies made good on their earlier promise and began delivering more rain.  Onie was cleaning the kitchen while Pawpaw ate and worked half of the Sunday crossword.

Then it was time to get dressed and begin the chores that were waiting to be done.

Trash was taken out and buckets from brining and rinsing fish were washed and stored so they would be ready on another day.  The fish that had been drying on smoker racks in the shed were taken outside and placed in the smoker.  Apple and mesquite wood was placed inside the smoker and then the time and temp were set.  All that had to be done now was to check in a couple of hours to replenish the wood and then take the fish out three hours later.  The new digitally controlled smoker Onie bought Pawpaw for Christmas has taken the art out of fish smoking and replaced it with science.  In a few hours we will see how science did.

Onie had been fishing.  She caught her limit, three, in short order and left them on a stringer for Chuck to clean, later.  La Von wants to can and needs a few more fish to fill her cooker so Onie gave her catch to LaVon.

Helping Pawpaw out, once again, she took his catch from last night, which had been on ice, to Custom Seafood.  Nancy rode along.

Pawpaw and Bill went to the grate to fish.  The fishing was great and the catching wasn’t too bad either.  Pawpaw had his three fish in two hundred eighty five casts.  He doesn’t always count his casts but today he was limiting himself as his back has been a bit sore and he didn’t want to aggravate it.  Bill caught one fish before he left for supper, determined to come back and get his limit.

Onie had returned from town where she had done a little shopping after dropping off the fish.  She had let Nancy out at their rig and then gone to Becky’s to visit.

When the three fish had been skinned and filleted, they would soon be canned.  Pawpaw joined Onie at Kurt and Becky’s.  Onie and Becky were getting pictures off Becky’s camera and Christopher’s camera.  Some of the pictures would be used in last week’s stories.

Back in the Marlin Onie fixed a salad and warmed up the feral hog roast and veggies.

Supper, at an end the fish in the smoker, now finished, were removed, placed in Food Saver bags and vacuum packed.  A few pieces were kept out for sampling and those who participated in the taste test concurred, the smoking was a success.

A little writing, a little surfing and a little talking were done before we hurried off to bed.

A light rain was falling in the cool night air.    

TWO POSTINGS

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

The earth moving, aka earthquake, rattling the coach woke us the first time.  The second time it was strong winds shaking us and whipping the awning.  That time we bounded out of bed, pulled on our clothes and rushed outside.  Losing the awning to high winds this morning was not in our plan for the day.  The plan was to fish, write, get weeks seven and eight posted, clean house, wash, eat if time permitted but not have the awning ripped up.  Once outside we moved quickly to retract the awning and then place paper goods and electronics in the shed.  A light sprinkle was being driven along by the rushing wind.

Dennis had come over to help and with our awning secured we looked to our neighbors.  Most were already in but Kurt’s was still out.  He was up the hill with his family working on the house.  Dennis and I went over and got his in, put things in his shed that shouldn’t get wet and then went to Jay’s place.  There we repeated the operation.

With the cold wind whistling about his now cold head and shoulders, the writer made his way back to the coach where Onie was waiting.

A kid’s dream breakfast was the first food to pass our lips today, watermelon.  We worked to complete the Sunday crossword, a challenging one, before Onie returned to her laptop, intent on getting weeks seven and eight posted.  Pictures from other cameras are being used in week eight and have presented some obstacles for her but she is conquering them and will soon have the fourteen days up for our readers.

Pawpaw cooked some blueberry pancakes so she wouldn’t run out of energy as she worked.  The pancakes were followed by tea then Pawpaw returned to his computer to write.

Outside the wind continued howling, blowing a light mist as it came.  Fishermen at the grate were bundled up like it was thirty, not fifty five.

Onie announced that week seven and eight were finally posted after having been a good challenge for her talents.  Pawpaw visited the website to see the finished product.

A rap on the door announced Chuck’s presence.  He and the writer had discussed the possibility of Emily, Chuck’s young lady that helps with house cleaning chores in the lodge, taking on the job of operating the honey wagon for those willing and interested in paying for the service.  Pawpaw will get back to him on the number of those interested and how much they are willing to pay for service every four days.

Inside Onie had been stripping the bed and getting ready to do more wash.  Now she and Pawpaw walked to the wash room where washers were loaded and started then Pawpaw went back to the coach and his laptop.

Outside the wind still howled and brought an increasing amount of rain, still not enough to chase the fishermen from the grate but enough to encourage them to don more clothes.

By four o’clock the thermometer had begun a retreat from it’s high of fifty five point eight.  Even though the rain had stopped and the clouds had somewhat dissipated the possibility of rain still seemed very much a reality.

With the wash done Onie and Pawpaw headed to the river.  It might be blustery but not blustery enough to prevent fishermen from their duty.

Pawpaw quickly landed a fish and was interrupted in the stringing process by a cry from Onie of “Fish On”.  Dropping his fish he ran to help her.  With the fish on the grate and her line clear she began fishing again.  With the fish strung Pawpaw returned to his line where he made three more casts before hearing “Fish On” again and rushing to Onie’s aid.

Onie standing in water on fish grate unaware she was

being photographed.

At the end of the day limits had been strung and the duo were quite satisfied.  Onie returned to the coach and Pawpaw fetched his filleting equipment and a cooler.  When the fish were in the cooler a trip was made to Custom.  We were well on our way to having a first box for shipment home to waiting loved ones.

Delicious pork roast and veggies quieted rumbling stomachs before we went to visit with Kurt and Becky.

With evening shadows growing we returned to the coach and our bed.

CLAM UP

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Another day of clamming and cleaning was in store for Pawpaw.  Onie had seen her days of clamming and would be staying home.

He was up at six thirty, dressed, had some salmon salad to quell his rumbling stomach, worked a bit of a crossword, kissed Onie bye and headed out the door to Kurt’s.  It was five to seven.

At Kurt’s a crowd was busy putting gear in trucks and getting riding plans in place.  Kurt, Pawpaw, Krista , Sean and Christopher would be in Kurt’s Ford F150.  Larry, Ruth and Norman would be in Larry’s Ford F350 diesel and Don and Julie would be in their Chevy pickup.

When all was in readiness the caravan rolled out of camp on its way to Ninilchik and the clamming beach.  Today’s minus five tide would expose a lot of clam laden beach.

At the beach everything and everyone was loaded into and onto Larry’s pickup and we headed down the beach, in four wheel drive.  Half a mile later he parked, we unloaded, got our gear and headed toward the receding water.   Soon clam shovels and clam guns were in the hands of the crew who were searching for and finding an abundance of razor clams.

Hours and hundreds of clams later the trek back to the truck was made where everything and everyone was loaded in and the drive back to the parking area was made.  Looking back, we could see that where we had walked a few minutes earlier the sea had reclaimed the beach.

At the parking area boots were removed and replaced with shoes and then the drive home began.

Cleaning clams takes longer than it does to dig them.  An assembly line employing all the clammers was set up and the job commenced.  Two hours later over five hundred clams had been cleaned and most had been vacuum packed.

A tired but pleased crew was ready for something different.  Some, including Pawpaw, went to the grate to fish.  Others went to their rigs to rest, walk their dogs or eat.

Kurt and Pawpaw fished on the grate in water that was getting deeper by the minute in addition to bringing down mature trees that swept along mid river or sometimes within arms reach.  Somewhere it was raining, hard, and snow was melting.

Bill Hager fished between Pawpaw and Kurt.  Before the supper call came Bill had three fish, Pawpaw three and Kurt two.  Kurt filleted all of them.

Becky and Onie along with Krista had snacks, Becky’s wonderful green pea salad and grilled lobster waiting for the fishermen but supper had to wait for Pawpaw as fish had to be taken to Custom before thy closed, at ten.

The fish delivered Pawpaw rejoined the group where he ate and visited along with the group until eleven thirty when they went to their rig.

Onie went to bed but Pawpaw stayed up to check some email and make a few notes before joining her at one. 

TATA BECKY

Thursday, July 23, 2009

The wind was still blowing under overcast skies when we woke.  It was eleven o’clock and fifty eight degrees.

Onie went to her laptop to check the market, email and the fish count.  Pawpaw sat down to finish a story for last week as well as Tuesday of this week.  He is making a real effort to complete stories the day after they occur, this week, as well as write at least one day for last week.  In that way he will get the stories current, once again.

Jasmine tea and our usual hot cereal were consumed while we worked the crossword then Onie set about making sweet and sour sauce.  We are sharing supper with the Tatsami’s tonight and Onie is doing her highly prized coconut salmon.  The sweet and sour sauce is for dipping the salmon.

Pawpaw sat in his chair with his laptop and wrote. 

When the sweet and sour sauce was done and in the frig cooling Onie’s interest turned to her laptop, Facebook and email while Pawpaw continued clicking away at his stories.

Later in the day they went to fish.  Even though the count was low they managed their limits.  Filleted and in a cooler they were delivered to Custom before the duo headed for Kurt’s and supper.

This was Becky’s last day in camp, for the year, and most of the group gathered to share one last meal with her.  In addition to Onie’s coconut salmon and sweet and sour sauce there was beer battered halibut and clams, prepared three different ways.  Also on the table were assorted cheeses and crackers as well as two different green salads and a green pea salad.  Once again it was a feast. 

The latening hour brought cooler temps so the campfire was lit and chairs drawn near as the feasters sought to keep the cold at bay.  When the addition of more wood and a bigger fire proved no match for the cold damp air the feast attendees began to drift away home.  We were among the last to leave as we helped clean up and exchanged parting hugs with Becky.  She, Kurt and Christopher will be leaving around six in the morning, the middle of the night for us, for Anchorage and her and Christopher’s flight back home.  While he, Kurt, is there he will pick up his incoming company, Jeff, Scott, Dave and Dan.  All are coming to work on the house and fish.  They will be here a week or so before returning home.

In the Marlin we talked about how Becky will be missed.  Her smile is a real light in the camp.

With the day lengthening we prepared for bed.  In bed we watched TV until the hours caught up with us when we fell asleep.

GRATE, GRATE,
WHERE’S THE GRATE?

Friday, July 24, 2009

If it’s Friday it must be yard saleing day.  Onie was up at eight getting ready for a day, with Nancy, of going house to house looking for treasures among other peoples trash.  Pawpaw got up just a bit later.

They had cold cereal for breakfast.

Nancy appeared at the door at ten.  Onie was just getting her clothes on.  A few minutes later they were gone.

Pawpaw sat down to write and there he sat for more than three hours, catching up on week nine, before he stopped and went up the hill to help Krista put up insulation.  She was working by herself since Kurt had taken Becky and Christopher into Anchorage for their flight home.  They worked together for two hours before getting finished.  He headed back to the coach.  She stayed behind to clean up.

At the coach a few more notes were made before Onie got home.  She had some new things for the coach and herself in addition to having bought Pawpaw a new knife sharpener and a new egg poacher.

After a big fresh salad and the last of the feral hog roast the writer set off for the grate.  Water was completely covering the grate so one had to be careful where one stepped lest one fall into the fast cold river. 

 Chuck on grate at the shallow end.

Jay further down the grate toward deep end.

Ted on grate at the deep end.

The Kenai is in minor flood stage and higher than Onie and Pawpaw have ever seen it.  After gingerly finding his way along the grate he settled down to fish.  While only eleven thousand nine hundred fish came into the river yesterday, a good day sees forty or fifty thousand come in, some fish were being caught.  Pawpaw began his Kenai flip.  A few hundred flips later he had three fish hanging on his stringer.  Later Onie strung three.

Half an hour before ten the writer left for Custom with the filets.  He was back forty five minutes later.  Bill Hager was on the grate fishing and Pawpaw went down to net for him.  Half past eleven Pawpaw took Bill’s three fish and cleaned them, put them in a cooler, put ice on them and went in the house.

Tired, hungry and thirsty he sat at the table eating chips and salsa, drinking three glasses of water and working on a crossword.  Onie slumbered in the back of the coach.  Half an hour after coming in he joined Onie in bed.

It was twelve thirty, cloudy, cold and threatening rain.  If the rain fell it would fall on deaf ears.

OOPS!

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Summer is holding on but is losing ground to cooler temps and shorter daylight hours.  It is also actually getting dark even though it is for a short time.  Fireweed has bloomed at least halfway up the stem sending its message of a killing frost soon to come.

Through all this we slept until almost ten.  The cloud covered skies had kept it almost dark in our bedroom and only by looking at the clock did we know the morning was slipping away.

We rose, showered and had cold cereal and blue berries for breakfast.

Onie had stuffed pint jars with salmon prior to putting them in the cooker and then she lit the fire.  She was inside the coach making brine, for salmon bellies, when a quick sharp rap at the door told her something was amiss in camp.  Half a minute earlier she had seen folks running toward the other end of the camp.  When she answered the door Sidney told her Nancy had fallen and was asking for her.  Onie dropped what she was doing and headed out the door hustling toward Nancy and Bill’s rig.  The writer was in the shower.  By the time he was out Onie was back getting some fresh sheets and a cold pack.  With Pawpaw in tow they headed back to Bill and Nancy’s.  Once there she assured herself Nancy was alright, Les, a physical therapist, had examined her and said he didn’t think anything was broken but said she would be very sore for a few days.  The clean sheets were put on the bed, their’s had been taken off to be washed, the cold pack given to Nancy and then we headed back to our rig.

Pawpaw adjusted the fire under the cooker and then placed the weight on top of the relief valve. In an hour and a half, three o’clock, it would time to turn off the fire, let the canner cool and then remove the jars.

In the meantime the cooler was washed out, the awning put out and salmon salad sandwiches eaten for lunch.

Then Onie headed off to shop in Soldotna.  Pawpaw sat down to write.

Onie returned at four.  Pawpaw still sat at the laptop, pecking away and the fire still burned under the cooker.  He had set his alarm to go off at three but apparently failed to enable it.  Rapt with his creative (?) writing the time had passed, unnoticed by him, and he had allowed the cooking/canning to go on.  Onie turned off the fire.

Somewhat chagrined Pawpaw helped Onie unload the car and store her purchases.

Pawpaw went to fish.  Onie went to her laptop.

Later when Pawpaw returned with the information that he had caught his limit Onie was sitting outside having a glass of wine.

The canner was cool enough to remove the lid and check the jars.  That was done.  They had all sealed.

Pawpaw went back to fillet his fish and then took them to Custom.

Supper followed and then, with rain falling, we settled in to watch Tru TV before drifting off to sleep.

RAIN, RAIN, RAIN

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Sunday means we get up earlier than usual, to get ready for church.  We did this morning.  It was raining.  We ate cold cereal before showering and dressing for church.

At twenty minutes to eleven Krista knocked on our door.  She was ready.  The three of us left camp and headed toward the Sterling Highway and Sterling Baptist Church.

The church building was less crowded than usual, for a summer Sunday, but we did see W.C. and his wife, from camp, in the congregation.

Back home at twelve twenty we changed clothes before reading the paper and doing part of the crosswords.

It was raining.

The crosswords were abandoned to take the fish bellies from the brine and place them onto the drying racks.

Onie and Krista went to shop.

When Onie returned she and Pawpaw sat down to play dominoes.  Onie would have had no luck at all it she hadn’t had bad luck and as a result she finished second in both games.

It was raining.

The fish count had been low yesterday and today’s energy levels matched it.  Onie and Pawpaw opted not to fish.

Did I mention it was raining?  At eight ten, with a chill in the air, we sought the warmth and comfort of our bed.  Tru TV was turned on.  Onie watched several shows while Pawpaw dozed, watching a bit before drifting off again.

At eleven Onie hit the power button on the remote and the TV died.  She was ready for sleep.

Outside the rain fell.