Trout Water

There comes a time every summer on the homestead that I like to call the "Mid-Summer Slump".  The frenzy of spring chores is over, the summer garden has yet to produce, and the fall harvest is still a few weeks away.  The sun blazes high and hot.  The animals lounge lazily beneath the shade trees.  I find myself wandering around the homestead doing nothing but piddly stuff, and my son spends every moment on the couch, glued to the iPad.  That's when I know it's time to escape the heat.  And this year we knew exactly where to escape to...

The icy cold trout waters of beautiful Bennett Spring State Park.  We packed our bags, hopped in the car, wound our way through heart of the Ozarks, and reached the park just in time to meet my family for a picnic lunch.   Here's a shot of the peaceful view we passed on the way through the park.  Fly fishermen waist deep in the water, casting gracefully through the haze that hovered above the spring-fed river, and reeling in trout after glistening trout. 

And here's a shot of my favorite fishermen, re-baiting their hooks for the twentieth time.  Well, my dad didn't have to re-bait.  He'd already caught his limit.

And then there's me, leisurely resting on the bank while wearing my new sunhat.  I love it.  The sunhat--I mean.  But I do love sitting on the bank, too.  Don't worry, I spent the entire next day in my fishing gear, endlessly wandering up and down the river, searching for a fishing hole where the fish were actually willing to bite the hook that I was constantly re-baiting.  I know it's hard to believe, but I'm not actually a professional fisherman.

See that fingertip in the lower left corner?   That belongs to my photographer, William--my seven year-old son who took a break from untangling his fishing line to snap this photo. 

Okay, back to the fishing.  Oh, he got a bite!  Reel, William, reel! 

Hey, there's a muskrat swimming by!

And a deer pooping in the grass!  Why does everything happen at once?!!

Are you laughing at me, cute guy in the fishing hat?  Um, can I have your number?  Oh that's right, it's the same as mine...

Okay, moving on...literally.  Time to try our luck over at the Whistle Bridge.  I just love following these paths along the river. 

Wandering along with your fishing gear, casting your line in at whatever spot you come to that looks appealing.  Some spots are very appealing.  Irresistible, actually.

Especially when you can dip your toes in the frigid trout waters on a 98 degree day.  I love Bennett Spring State Park.  And the Mid-Summer Slump.  And my new sunhat.

But I especially love seeing my son holding a stringer of trout...instead of the iPad.