1 hour ago, A-Jay said:

Hope you're doing OK.

As well as can be expected - today was Day 4 of the chemo-cycle....WBC booster. Appetite's been flagging the last couple days, so I'm pounding Hi-protein drinks to at least get good nutrition if not a lot of calories.

 

Hopefully it'll come back and I can eat the good stuff again.

Usually the last week of June, these annuals on the east side of my house come into full bloom.  There is one that opened today.  I have a feeling the rest will be out in bright orange color by the weekend after a couple inches of rain coming.

 

 

47 minutes ago, gim said:

Usually the last week of June, these annuals on the east side of my house come into full bloom.

I've got a row of those as a border between my yard and next door. None have bloomed here yet, but they're getting close.

A nice shot of the lake during sunset earlier this week. Someone left a make shift rod holder and I decided to use it for this photo. I really like the glass and mirror like surface that yields a nice reflection but colors in the sky, in which the photo cannot give due justice, steals the show. The colors were more vivid than ultra4k. 

We were privileged enough while to spend time up in the Pacific Northwest and enjoy some pleasant weather.  We were treated daily to floatplanes seeming to use the high rise buildings as markers for their final approach, view of the Space Needle and waterfront and a Lake Washington sailboat regatta.

@J._Bricker: Nice! It’s home sweet home for me. 😎lots of Smallies in both lake Wa and Union. Then you got saltwater behind the space needle in your pic.

 

 

Bambi has been spending the past few days balled up

under some scrub brush in our side yard.

Mom picks her up each afternoon.

Photo compliments of Lynn and her trusty Rebel T7 ~

A-Jay

 

The wife and I got to spend some quality time with new friends.  Wonderful day.  

1 minute ago, BigAngus752 said:

The wife and I got to spend some quality time with new friends.  Wonderful day.  

New friend or lost family member? 

Wow! Some great photos in this thread and some new fishing spots to take a look at.

 

MN fisher... your boat is a "Rebuilt 1972 Alumacraft F-9" ???

 

You got me beat! Mine is a 1974 AlumaCraft F-7 I think. I rebuilt mine as well. Got it for free 10 years ago dragged out of someone's backyard who was moving and could not take it with them so they said its yours for free.

 

 

Been all over the SE with it since. Takes me anywhere the $100,000.00 bass boats can go- and to places those boats can never go since our AlumaCrafts draft only about 7 inches. I can get into some spots deep in the woods bass boats can never go, like this secret spot way back up in the Little Econ river in central Florida... just watch out for the 10 foot plus gators in here.

 

https://www.wsoctv.com/news/trending-now/10foot-gator-killed-after-biting-woman-in-florida/393771676/

 

 

This is one of my springtime photos from way back up in the Deep Creek area of central Florida.

 

 

This next photo was taken by a Florida FWC state fisheries biologist I repaired reels for while working at a rod and reel shop in central Florida. But do you know what fishing secrets are shown here?

 

The state of Florida is working hard to turn Florida into a multi-billion dollar fishing tourist destination and this folks is one of their laboratory frankenfish that the biologists were on a field trip checking out at very specific locations in Florida. Here is a link to the FWC website fish stocking program that this photo is all about.....

 

This fish is designed so that bass fishermen do not have to change anything they do to catch them, only learn where and how to find them which is quite different than Florida largemouth bass! This photo shows the secret but what is it?

 

https://myfwc.com/fishing/freshwater/stocking/

 

1 minute ago, FloridaFishinFool said:

You got me beat! Mine is a 1974 AlumaCraft F-7

Here's a pic of Bass Trek finished for your perusal

29 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

New friend or lost family member? 

In-laws…

A face only a mother could love😵

1 hour ago, MN Fisher said:

Here's a pic of Bass Trek finished for your perusal

 

Looks a little shorter than mine, and maybe a little wider. Not sure. I will look up the F-9 and see what the specs are.

 

There is an interesting backstory to how the aluminum boat industry got started. All a result of WW2 coming to an end and DOD manufacturers left with piles of aluminum that was being used to make war planes now had nowhere to go. So guess what they did next? Your boat and mine are made from the same aluminum as the planes dropping bombs on Germany. The pontoon boat also came from WW2.

 

You sure did a lot more interior compartment construction than I did. I wanted to keep the floor space as open as possible so two men would have some room in it. I considered building a removable rear deck for mine but never got around to it.

 

I'm curious what you built those compartments out of? I did some research before working on mine and opted to avoid all wood, especially any treated wood because those preservation chemicals corrode aluminum. I built the front deck using framing of the same type of aluminum as hull, and then covered it with PVC foam deck board. I even used aluminum hardware to prevent galvanic corrosion. Had no issues in 10 years.

 

The previous owner put a 60hp motor on it and busted up the transom. So I installed a 1/4" custom cut to fit aluminum plate across the back of the transom and topped it off with a solid crossbar that now has a hinge on each end so as the motor thrusts forward the transom can give a little bit if need be. The previous owner welded it all together and then broke it all with too much horse power. If that 60hp was on it now, it can take it.

 

I'm presently running a 1987 35hp U.S. Navy Seal Evinrude/OMC MARS motor purchased at a surplus auction from I think Panama City Naval Surface Warfare Dept. for a couple hundred bucks- never used- so its nearly 40 years old and like new still. And still on original factory settings never touched. No need to. I did remove all the water pumps the navy spec'd on it for dropping it 400 feet to ocean bottom and retrieving it and pumping water out to start it up again. A really cool motor. Built like a tank and runs like a scalded dog. By myself I can get it up around 35mph. Nothing like the big bass boats for sure, but it puts me on the fish cheap, cheap, cheap for an old guy on a retiree income.

 

This old navy seal motor has some power. It can porpoise the boat wide open even though I have all fuel and two large 31 size trolling motor batteries stored up front to weigh it down, and this motor will still over power it and I have to slow down to stop it. Sometimes with another man up front and weight of batteries and fuel and it will still porpoise sometimes. Its not the trim or weight balance. I think it is just the hull design and that the boat is rated for 20hp and I am nearly doubling it. I can't imagine what it was like with a 60hp on it busting up the transom.

 

Its really cool to keep these old boats on the water! It would be nice to have a $100,000 boat, but I would not want all the expenses they bring with them.

 

My next boat will be an all welded aluminum hull. No more rivets! And wider too.

 

Glad to know there are more 50 year old boats out there still on the water! Newer fiberglass boats will never last as long. Heck I bet yours and mine will last another 50 years with little change to them.

 

Thanks for posting the photo. Your boat and mine look similarly constructed from the top down. I just did not want all the compartments you built. I created one large space under the deck and everything fits down under with no problems. Keeps the entire boat open and free of clutter.

 

19 minutes ago, FloridaFishinFool said:

I'm curious what you built those compartments out of?

Pic - 1/16x1x1 aluminum angle, 1/16" HDPE for the sides, 1/4" HDPE for the bottom. Glued in place with Gorilla Glue.

Lips overlap frame, use flush aluminum rivets to secure.

 

19 minutes ago, FloridaFishinFool said:

I did some research before working on mine and opted to avoid all wood, especially any treated wood because those preservation chemicals corrode aluminum

All the decking is 1/2" plywood sealed with 2 coats of water-based Spar Urethane then cheap indoor-outdoor carpet glued on top, stapled underneath. The water-based Spar Urethane doesn't interact with aluminum.

 

@FloridaFishinFool, I’ve got a 1957 Cherokee aluminum boat with airplane rivets in it, tough jokers. Transom replacement nearly killed me haha

@IcatchDinks milkweed? 

49 minutes ago, Jar11591 said:

@IcatchDinks milkweed? 

Indeed. Such a strange plant.

@IcatchDinks yes, and a beneficial flower! I grow some in the garden for the pollinators, mainly monarch butterflies as it’s their “host” plant. 

This guy’s sporadic visits might be reason why the resident mourning dove population hasn’t been visiting our pool/ local bird water hole lately. I was sitting at the kitchen table when he arrived to scope things out and was fortunate enough to get this picture.

@J._Bricker is that a kestrel?

 

The annuals along the east side of my house all came into full bloom today with the sunshine we have.

 

 

I don’t know @gim, either a Coopers or Sharp-shinned hawk. But I’m confident I can rule out an Osprey since it didn’t have a fish in its talons.