Early Sunday morning was a repeat of early Saturday morning with Ridge awaking in the middle of the night.  However, this time, he came to bed with us and went to sleep.  I couldn’t sleep, and got up so as not to wake Kay and him—two short nights in a row for me!  After breakfast, we headed for the playground at Burns Park where we found a gym set with several slides.  He climbed every step at least a hundred times, and posed for pictures along the way.  He has so much energy that we tire just watching him. 

His mom called about mid-morning, and we arrived at their house just about the time they did.  After a little transition time, we departed for home, and on the way Kay decided we would clean out the storage building in the little time we would have between arriving home and dark.  Over the course of the last year, we have had significant moisture, and resulting mold and mildew.  Everything was unloaded from the building, and in the process I got stung on top joint of the ring finger of my right hand.  The pain, though short lived, was excruciating, and the finger began swelling immediately.  It has been years since I have been stung, and then this summer/fall, a stinger came my way 3 time, each causing swelling, etc.  We proceeded to finish unloading the building, and pressured washed it outside and in.  To try to rid the inside of mold, we cleaned every square inch with a mixture of water, tri-sodium phosphate, and bleach.  A power blower and fan assisted in the drying, and about half the stuff was put in a pile to give away or donate.  Any valuable gardening equipment was store in the garage for the winter, and the rest was repacked in the building.  Soaking we and tired, we called it quits for the day.

More cleaning and disposal followed on Monday.  Old used oil was taken to the Baxter County Road Department for disposal, and the other unneeded stuff was disposed of.  A bit more packing for winter took place, though we’re pretty much finished, except for loose ends.  Otherwise, it was an uneventful day. 

Tuesday, I picked up a new bicycle ordered the week before, a TREK FX 7.6, an early Christmas present.  This road bike is a better fit, and much lighter than the LL Bean Cruiser hybrid ridden the last year and a half.  We’re looking forward to a lot of bicycling this winter.  A haircut followed, and the stylist did a great job; sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s great.  And then, it was off to Edward Jones to move a 401k account from post retirement consulting work.  Finally, I drove back home for some quiet time; these chores wear me out!  

(NOTE:  Driving by Ackerman-Handicap Access, I noted Arkansas Game and Fish Commission dredging the Norfork River on the left descending bank.  It is on the inside of a bendway, and material will deposit there again in the future.  Each river is dynamic and has an energy level associated with it, and will move material from one place to another in an attempt to reach equilibrium.  It had made great progress in “healing” itself after the 2008 floods, but this new work, in combination with minimum flow, has disrupted that equilibrium and so material will be moved from upstream (scouring the channel on the OUTSIDE of endways and removing all life-supporting substrate), and depositing the material on the INSIDE of bendways downstream.  And the rocks being placed in the river for habitat will likely be covered with sand and gravel eaten away upstream as a result of this alluvial process.  So, what we’ll have after all this work is a narrow, more defined channel generally devoid of substrate, with faster and deeper flows upstream, and generally slower flows downstream.  If they had only asked…  There will be no more nor no less fish as the Norfork is for the most part a put and take fishery, and while the fish may be more active upstream, the fishing will be more difficult for waders, and easier to navigate water craft—perhaps this is what was desired!  And, we’re already seeing a plethora of drift boats and kayaks.  And our neighborhood has our road ’s remaining useful life cut short by loads of heavy equipment and rocks.  The way we did business in the US Army Corps of Engineers looks better and better. )

Back at home, a new and improved camera and lenses were delivered late in the afternoon—another early Christmas present—and the rest of Tuesday evening was spent reading instruction manuals.

Free at last, free at last—Wednesday’s calendar was void of any scheduled activities.  We continued packing for winter and I spent some time gathering manuals and instruction books on the internet in pdf to avoid carrying so much paperwork in the motorhome.  We have virtually all of our records, etc. digitized now, and stored on the computer and a backup external hard drive.  I gave the rest of our music collection, except for vinyl albums, to Wayne who enjoys the same eclectic taste we do, so no more cassette tapes and no more CDs.  We honored the day by having a late lunch in town at Chen’s Chinese buffet, our favorite restaurant.

Kay was busy Thursday with much of the day spent in town for “beauty” work (don’t even go there), shopping, etc.  Upon her return mid-afternoon, we drove to our GREAT dentist, Dr. John Lane, in Calico Rock for semi-annual checkups and cleaning.  Dr. Lane is the greatest dentist ever, and such a low key, personable fellow.  He and his wife, Lorie, share a lot of the same interests as Kay and I.

We were honored with a visit from HARP (Harper Ann Riley Painter), Jenny, and Brian on Friday for our early Thanksgiving weekend.  As we’ll be spending the Thanksgiving holiday in the Rio Grande Valley, it’s our final visit before the Christmas holidays, and Jenny wants us to prepare a traditional Thanksgiving meal.  For us, that means vegetarian cornbread dressing (stuffing), broccoli, mashed potatoes, lima beans, ham and pork shoulder in lieu of turkey, etc.  We usually try to prepare at least one of each person’s favorite foods.  HARP has not been feeling well for the last couple of days, so we were surprised at how active she was.  She “investigated” everything within arm’s reach, and climbed every piece of furniture in the place.  She would climb to a precarious position, then stand atop the item with no hands.  She loves to dance, and since many of the Dunnhill toys for Ridge and her are musical, she danced all afternoon and evening.  As dusk approached, we built a fire for marshmallows and s’mores and she had a blast outside, running all over the place—her parents don’t allow her to have sugar though, so she passed on the sweets.  All of our grandkids really enjoy being outside, and it’s fun for us, too, though it is getting more and more difficult to keep up with them as even the 2-year old and 15-month old can outrun us.

Saturday, we were up early expecting HARP to be up so we could take care of her, allowing Jenny and Brian could sleep late.   But Jenny and HARP were up by 7 AM.  While the BABY and Disney Jr. television stations interested her, neither kept her attention for long as she continued to explore every nook and cranny, low and high.  She climbs more than any kid I’ve ever been around, though Kay says Karyn was a climber.  And she doesn’t seem to be afraid of heights.  We drove to Quarry Park where HARP played briefly on the slides and other gym equipment, but she was more interested in walking and exploring the grounds.  Back at home, Jenny and Brian built a great fire to generate coals for s’mores.  After it began burning without assistance, Jenny and I began preparations for an early Thanksgiving dinner.  She definitely has a better sense of taste than I do as to what seasonings a food items needs; both of us use a recipe as a guide, and make adjustments based on taste.  Dinner was great.  HARP got a bath after playing outside and in the dirt most of the afternoon.  Afterwards, Jenny and Brian stoked the fire and made s’mores while Kay held HARP.  Though busy and full, everyone had a great day.

HARP woke up feeling a bit worse than the previous two days, but she was a real sport and didn’t whine.  A dose of Advil seemed to ease her discomfort.  We visited until about 11:30 AM, and Jenny, HARP, and Brian left for Memphis as the Advil wore off and her discomfort returned.  

Kay and I washed clothes, cleaned house, and finished packing for our winter down south in the Rio Grande Valley.  We finished just before bedtime.  Tomorrow, we leave for our winter place of residence, the Rio Grande Valley in Texas.

What could be better?  This week was devoted to fishing, friends, and family. 

We attended out last church service of the year at First United Methodist Church, Mountain Home, on Sunday as our next two Sundays will be devoted to grandkids, and of course, their parents.  We rarely miss church, but…

Ed, John, and I fished Monday morning on the White River, and John served as boatman for the day.  After waiting in queue at the Norfork launching ramp (vehicles for both Rose’s Trout Dock and Norfork River Resort pulled in front of us), John motored us upstream to the riffle on the left descending bank at the tip of the island. I hook and landed a fish immediately on the Davy’s Fly.  I caught a few more fish on this first drift, almost all the way downstream to the confluence, while Ed picked up fewer fish.  The second drift produced a few fish for both of us.  Ed switched flies, and caught a half dozen or more fish in a row before I finally landed one.  The next couple of drifts produced fewer and fewer fish.  John motored us the bubble line on the right descending side, and two drifts produced no fish.  He motored us downstream below the confluence to the first riffle, but again, no fish.  A sediment plume from Arkansas Game and Fish Commission work on the Norfork River existed in the best line downstream of the riffle, and rather than motor further downstream, we called it a day.  Most of the fish were slightly larger than those caught last week on the White River.  Kay had an interesting day, having a filling replaced and suffering through a Norfork Planning and Zoning Commission meeting to deliberate allowing house trailers to be set up anywhere in Norfork where subdivision restrictions do not prohibit them.  She said the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting was more painful!  The “againers” are outnumbered by the GOB (good ole boys) who believe a person can do anything they want with their property without regard to impacts to others.  Of course, we know about subdivision restrictions, and most aren’t worth the paper they are written on based on recent decisions affecting us by both the US Federal Court and the US Federal Court of Appeals.  So, we may have a house trailer next door.  What’s our world coming to? 

Tuesday was oil change day for the Expedition.  It began raining shortly after I left the house at 7:30 AM, and rained most of the day.  The inclement weather provided a good opportunity to tidy up the workshop area, and identify more STUFF to be given away, including the remainder of our incandescent lightbulbs which John will use as a heat source for specific areas in winter.  We had a great visit with Ed, Linda, John, and Sandy Tuesday evening, and Sandy prepared a sumptuous chicken dinner; both she and John are excellent cooks/chefs.

Wednesday morning found Ed, John, and I fishing again, but this time we launched at Sneed’s Creek and I served as the boatman.  We started our drift near the first upstream house on the left descending bank.  Ed was into fish immediately, fishing #14 Davy’s Fly and a #20 Red/Silver Zebra Midge.  He continued to catch fish, mostly on Davy’s Fly.  John took several fish as well, but today belonged to Ed who seemed to be in a zone.  Several fish took something on the surface near the shoreline on the left descending side of the river.  Water levels rose most of the morning, and there was lots of debris, slime, and moss in the water.  The wind changed directions several times, making it difficult to provide a good drift for Ed and John.  We all had a great time, as we always do when fishing together.

It was a routine day Thursday, with more pilfering , sorting, and pseudo organization in the workshop.  Kay and I went through the last of our music collection on cassette tapes and CDs, finding a song we “howled” together when I first started singing; I was not good!  She was such a trooper to stand there and try to harmonize.  And, we also found the audio portion of entire wedding ceremony.  We transferred both to digital media, and will make a backup for posterity.  We have given our entire music collection to Wayne who also enjoys the same genres as we do.   Over the course of the last few years, most of the cassette tapes were transferred to digital format, and both those and the CDs were loaded into the computer.  Consequently, we have made substantial progress in cleaning out the shop and storeroom in the basement.

We were off to Maumelle, AR, Friday morning to spend the weekend with Ridge while his parents visited Fayetteville for the Auburn vs. Arkansas football game—he’s such a cute kid, and I’m not even biased!  We took over his care mid-afternoon, and played the rest of the day, including a couple of hours at the nearby playground.  At the house, he drug every toy out of his toy storage areas, and we played with them all, until bath time and bedtime.  We all went to bed early.  

About 2:30 AM he awoke, but went back to sleep for an hour or so and and after some time, Kay brought him to bed with us, thinking he would sleep the rest of the night—no way.  So we all got up REALLY EARLY, and continued playing where we left off the evening before.  After breakfast, we all loaded up in the car and drove to Sam’s Club, and he fell asleep on the way.  I was going to stay in the car with him while Kay shopped, but he awoke just as we pulled into the parking place.  We all went in, and because shopping was limited to corporate members at that early hour, it was eerily quiet—until Ridge arrived!  The store has used balloons for display throughout the store, and several had broken loose and drifted to the ceiling.  Ridge spotted every single one, and chattered loudly about them.  He can get very animated in his talking, and we even understand an occasional word or two.  We definitely broke the silence at Sam’s Club that morning.  From there, we drove to Bedford Camera in North Little Rock to investigate their trade-in policies for two cameras and lenses bought there.  I had to wait about 30 minutes for someone to assist me, and then only to find they would give us pennies on the dollar for photographic equipment, and that was after they hum hawed around and about for several minutes.  So much for customer appreciation and loyalty, and people wonder played why we shop on the internet!  While I was in Bedford, Kay played with Ridge around the pavilion and pool, and we exchanged places after I finished while she shopped.  Ridge explored every crack and crevice in the pool, but did not get wet.  Back at the house, he napped for a couple of hours, and then we were off to the playgrounds for the slides.  He enjoys climbing and sliding and could spend hours there.  It was baseball Saturday, and the park was crowded with rambunctious kids either playing ball, or having siblings playing ball, and some were quite rude.  Kay and I took turns playing nice playground police.  Ron and Cheryl dropped by for a visit, and we enjoyed spending time with them.  All of the kids lead very busy lives, and we feel blessed to get to see them as often as we do.  After they left, we had some play time, and early bedtime.

Thank goodness for Sunday; it sure provides a respite from an otherwise busy week.  After church, Sunday school, and an early lunch, we returned home to spend a quiet afternoon, reading the paper, and continuing packing for our winter in Texas.  Cold weather is fast approaching!  We had a great telephone conversation with Chuck and Sue Mercer, friends from Canada; Chuck is my bicycling partner.  They have had a busy summer as well, traveling extensively and buying a place near Edmonton, three fourths of the way across the continent from their current place of residence.  And, Chuck has battled a sinus infection for much of the summer.  Sunday evening, our good friend Ed arrived for a few days of fishing.  We are truly blessed to have such good friends.

After the recent channelization of parts of the Norfork River and scouring the bottom to bedrock, I vowed to fish the White River more via boat; fortunately, I have great friends eager to accommodate.  Ed and I launched at Sneed’s Creek Access, and motored upstream to the first building on the right (left descending bank), and began a drift downstream in near perfect water conditions in a reach I had never fished before.  Mistakenly, I had grabbed the wrong reel, but without a backup, fished with a 4-weight line on the 6-weight rod.  I tied on John’s Superfly and a Cerise San Juan Worm, and caught some fish on the Superfly.  I dropped a #20 Red/Silver Zebra Midge below the Superfly and caught fish on one, and then the other. Ed switched to a #20 Red/Silver Zebra Midge dropped below a #14 Davy’s Fly, and caught fish on both, with a predominance of fish caught on Davy’s Fly.  This section of water has a clean bottom, with several slight riffles interspersed throughout the long drift.  It was easy, and fun, to drift fish this section of the river, and is particularly conducive to low water fishing.  Ed and I ended up with about 2 dozen fish each, including 5 doubles on a great morning outing, and I  took a small Brook trout, my first on the White River.  After returning from a great morning on the White River, and Ed’s Turkey Chili for lunch, we accessed the Norfork River at Mill Dam Eddy; it was packed with people, as we counted over a dozen just from our private walk-in access.  During lunch, a light rain began and remained all afternoon, becoming heavy at times.  Nevertheless, with rain jackets made for wading, and an optimistic outlook, we tied on dry flies and began casting, but the fish were reluctant to take what we were offering. Despite the rain, Craneflies would emerge to the surface, though we did not see any fish key on the aquatic insect.  After experimenting with several patterns, the #16 Olive Cockleburr seemed to produce the best results, followed by a #14 Pink Cockleburr.  Though it wasn’t a fish on every cast, we both caught enough fish to make it interesting and worth our while, particularly on dry flies exclusively, and despite the rain.  A few small cutthroats and a brown completed my first grand slam in over a year.  All the other fishers left about 3:00 PM, and several egressed through the construction cut in the river bank and via private property which is posted; wonder if Arkansas Game and Fish Commission staff gave them permission?  Though generation was not forecast to be started until 5:00 PM, we noticed a rise in water levels at about 4:15 PM, and barely made it across the right descending channel.  Neither of us had any big fish, but we had lots of fish, ending a great day.

After our success yesterday morning, we returned to Sneed’s Creek on Tuesday morning to find similar, near-perfect water conditions.  The river was enshrouded in fog, as temperatures  overed in the high 40s.  Our first drift resulted in several fish brought to hand, mostly on the Red/Silver Zebra Midge.  On the second drift, the fog lifted as the sun burned through, but catching slowed compared to the first drift.  We also noticed a rise in water levels.  This drift seemed to favor Davy’s Fly.  AS the wind picked up and the river continued to rise, flushing slowed considerably, and the loose “junk” in the river, i.e. moss, began to catch on the flies.  Ed added weight and caught more fish; I followed with similar results, but it was nothing like yesterday.  We each ended the day with almost two dozen fish.  We had five doubles, and I had a rare brookie.  Perhaps a brown this afternoon will yield another grandslam. Not getting enough dry fly action yesterday afternoon in the rain, we returned to the Mill Dam Eddy area in the afternoon.  Generation has been ceasing about 8:00 AM, resulting in a delay of sufficiently low wadable levels until about 10:30 AM, thus aiding our decision to boat fish in the mornings.  The Norfork River was less crowded than yesterday.  Ed returned to the section of left descending side of the island near the island, and I fished Mill Dam Eddy.  Wind was gusting to about 35 miles per hour.  I struggled to catch fish, with bunches of refusals and near hook-ups.  And as the wind settled, 3 drift boats with guides and clients, and 3 kayaks came right through my drift.  I ended the afternoon with 8 or so fish, including rainbow, brown, and cutthroat trout.  Ed, on the other hand, was having a great day, finding a small deep trench loaded with large trout.  He took about a dozen fish in close waters, all on dry flies, including a couple of 16-inchers and a nice 17-inch fish .  Once again, and its among many, we had a great day fishing, though he wore me out, both figuratively and literally. 

Perhaps a mistake, but we decided to fish somewhere new Wednesday morning, and fished the Rim Shoals area of the White River.  Our first drift was from Jenkins Creek downstream, and was a bust.  We continued downstream and drifted through Rim Shoals, with several fish caught.  Our next drift through Rim Shoals was less productive, and fishing slowed on each successive drift.  Our time on the water quickly passed, and we called in a day about 12:00 noon, having caught over a dozen fish each—not our best morning, but good nevertheless. 

Thursday was a “visitation” day, and began by taking the river boat in for a new cover.  We had over scheduled for the day, and had to cancel an appointment in the afternoon in order to visit some new friends who were in Mountain View for an RV rally.  We met them near the County Courthouse Square and listened to a music jam session for a couple of hours.  After departing there, we stopped by another RV park to visit cousin Lin and husband Tom, and friends Karen and Warren.  We arrived home tired from all the local travel, but assembled a new bicycle rack for the car, taking advantage of the shop in the basement.

Up early Friday morning, I drove into town to pick up the boat, and returned home to do a few chores, and Kay and I drove back into town for lunch and a visit with our financial advisor.  It proved to be fortuitous for us as we changed our checking account to one in which we had much more flexibility, and remained a “no cost” alternative.  It pays to review one’s credit cards, telephone service, satellite or cable service, insurances, and the like every year or so as the services and prices therefore constantly change.

Saturday provided time to store hoses and take care of outside stuff before first frost.  In the evening we hosted a chili supper with friends Patty, Whit, Whitten, Charlotte, Sandy, and John present.  It was a great visit, and we enjoyed hearing about Patty and Whit’s encounter with a polar bear a couple of months ago in northern Ontario.  It must have been one of the most frightening things in their lives to have a polar bear bump them in their tent on a cold, rainy night in the wilderness, and then shred the tent while they watched from only a few feet away.  Fortunately, the bear left after the guide fired warning shots.

This week was full of birthdays and/or birthday celebrations.  First, Sunday was Jenny’s day as she celebrated her 33rd birthday; I remember the night she was born as if it were yesterday.  Wednesday, Kaden celebrated his 18th birthday, and he is a very busy senior in high school with little time for anything else.  And then Saturday, Ridge celebrated his 2nd birthday a couple of days early.

We began the blog week visiting briefly with Karyn, Ridge, and Matt before they said their goodbyes and departed for home.  Ridge was up very early as were we, and we got to enjoy him for several hours before his parents got up.  We played with trucks and building blocks until daylight, and went outside and continued playing with his new trucks on the patio.  He loves to walk, and we walked down the lane to the street, and then down the street and back, logging well over a half mile.  Back at the house, we built a fire outside, his firsts.  We had a great time.  By the time he and his parents left, he was exhausted, but still grinning from ear to ear as they put him in the car seat.  He was asleep before they crossed the bridge about two miles from the house.  We had lunch with Jerry and Karen Smith at Chen’s, then went on a long pontoon ride all the way up the east arm of Lake Norfork and back, seeing lots of birds, including several bald eagles.  We also saw a few persimmon trees, somewhat foreign to Jerry and Karen; they really enjoyed the ride.

Jerry and I fished Monday morning.  As you may recall, Jerry and his wife, Karen, are full time RVers, whom we met in Alaska.  He is a retired senior regulator/biologist with the US Army Corps of Engineers. We waded in at Mill Dam Eddy, only to find the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission staff continuing their channelization of the Norfork River, having moved from the right descending bank to the island below McClellan’s, the river itself, and the bar below the island; heretofore, this had been considered sacred and hollowed fishing territory.  It is my professional and personal opinion that the greatest segment of the Norfork River has now been destroyed and rendered sterile by this state agency.  They have removed practically all structure and changed flow patterns and regimes.  Areas where I caught thousands of fish have been robbed of substrate flora and fauna. And, there is absolutely NO SCIENCE to support what is being done. I have lost all confidence in Trout Unlimited, Friends of the Rivers, and Friends of the Norfork Hatchery.  These groups have coalesced in “improving” the river to the point of ruining it for me.  Jerry, too, was amazed at what he saw, and as a former regulator, was astounded as to how this work was permitted.  We now have a great catch and kill, channelized river.  Out of protest, I published the last entry in Donald’s Fishin’ Journal after a 9-year run.

After the river debacle yesterday, I woke up Tuesday morning and felt like a great burden had been lifted, and told Kay that I was ready to fish again, after almost a year of “going through the motions.”  However, rather than fish, Karen, Jerry and I drove to Ponca and Boxley Valley, hoping to see elk and some hint of fall colors.  Enroute, we drove through Maplewood Cemetery in Harrison, but the maple trees had not yet begun to change.  The Elk Education Center in Ponca provided a restroom break, and information on the area.  As we drove through Boxley Valley, we saw two trumpeter swans and a bald eagle, but no elk.  Making our way back to the Mountain Home area, we stopped at KT’s for some great Memphis style BBQ before dropping Jerry and Karen off at the house on wheels at Denton Ferry.

Wednesday was grandson Kaden’s 18th birthday—my, oh, my but where has the time gone.  He was just a tot when Kay and I first started seeing each other.  Wednesday also marked a new beginning for me.  After the gross disappointment experienced the last several days with respect to the destruction of the Norfork River as I knew it, I rationalized that there was nothing I could do to affect the work.  And, having awakened yesterday morning with a fresh outlook, telling Kay that I was ready to fish again, my resolve was tested.  As I was preparing to suit up, a group of four fishers, 3 who were in my Sunday school class, called and asked if they could park in our driveway, as they had received permission from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission to access the Norfork River via Dr. Ronnie Warner’s place, being used as a mobilization site for equipment and materials used in the river “improvements.”  Kay and I both informed them that AGFC did not have authority to grant access, and that trespassing was seriously frowned upon in the neighborhood.  I offered to take them to private access at which I had permission to use, but informed them that they were on their own to find a way back if they wanted to fish beyond 12 noon as I would be departing then.  We all accessed at Mill Dam Eddy, and I took two with me upstream, gave them flies to use, and showed them where to fish.  I waded upstream, fishing the Plunge Pool, Ace in the Hole, and the river below Otter Creek without so much as a nibble on the scud, sculpin, or zebra midge fished in different combinations.  I saw more sculpins in the river than ever before, and was surprised that the sculpin imitation did not work.  Duane Hada floated downstream in a canoe with a couple of clients, and was kind enough to paddle behind me, even though there was not much room for him to maneuver; he’s one of the rare people that have done that, and I really appreciated it.  Switching to a pink cockleburr, I fished the riffle above the island, catching several fish on top.  I waded downstream on the left descending side, but with minimum flow the river has changed course and is flowing more to the right, necessitating really long casts.  I picked up a fish here and there on the pink cockleburr in the tailout of the riffle.  Downstream, along the island, I had no success.  Just in the last couple of days, the river has scoured away all the substrate down to bedrock along the right descending bank in the vicinity of the bank protection.  At the bottom of the island, I chatted briefly with Mike Womack, and he said he had caught fish on the left descending side of the island and at the bottom of the island on #18-#22 Adams.  After he left, I caught several small fish on the pink cockleburr near the walk-in access before leaving the water., fishing with Bruce, Al, and two others

Thursday, I fished with Al Vekovious, a friend from Sunday school.  Al is retired as the Dean, LSU Shreveport, and has a PhD in mathematics.  He has an acerbic sense of humor and along with his wife, Gaye, is a real pleasure to be around. They enjoy watching many of the same British television shows that we do, and share many of our cultural values and outlook on life.  Al wanted a lesson in fishing “dry” flies, and we lucked out with a sparse cranefly hatch.  We walked in at Mill Dam Eddy on still falling water, walked up the island, crossed back to the right descending bank, and briefly fished the riffle from that side of the river. We moved to the middle of the river between the riffles, and Al began catching fish on the Pink Cockleburr. A couple came through in a canoe, and asked what we were using and when we told them a pink fly, they didn’t believe us.  Al continued to catch fish for over an hour on the Pink Cockleburr.  We waded back across to the right descending bank, and downstream where we met the young lady in the canoe.  I showed her the fly we’d been using and she said, “You really were using a pink fly.”  I gave her one and told her how to fish it.  We walked along the island to Mill Dam Eddy and Al resumed catching fish on the Pink Cockleburr.  He remarked, “You can call this Al’s Greatest Day.”  l is a very good fly fisher, but lacked experience fishing with a “dry” fly.  His abilities, in combination with the fish cooperating, made the day great for both of us.

Sunday was daughter Karyn’s birthday. Happy birthday, Karyn.

Back in a rhythm, we started the week with church, Sunday school, and lunch at Chen’s Chinese buffet. We typically eat lunch on Sunday with Bruce and Joan Burr and Al and Gaye Vekovious from church and Sunday school. We all seem to have a lot in common: same church obviously, fishing, travel, love of the outdoors, and we all enjoy watching British television via Netflix. It is fun to share that part of everyday life with others, and we discover new places to go, and shows to watch on Netflix!

You all have read about the issues with our auxiliary brake used in the Honda CR V when we tow it behind the motorhome. We did send it in, and the company promptly replaced a bad circuit board, made other modifications to bring it up to date, and shipped it back to us; so far, it works great, but the real test will be enroute to the Rio Grande Valley.

Monday morning, I hosted Michael LeBlanc for a fishing experience on the Norfork River. Mike is a son-in-law of Dick and Carolyn Todd, good friends of ours. He recently retired from the US Post Office in the Kansas City area and is an avid fly fisher. We entered the river at Mill Dam Eddy, and a sick feeling came over me as we observed a track hoe working on the right descending bank of the river adjacent to the island. And, they took out trees under which I have caught hundreds of fish.  I have fished this area so extensively that an intimate bond has been developed, and to see it altered was heartbreaking. But, as Kay says, “Turn the page.” Anyway, Michael caught lots of fish, but had to listen to my tirades all morning!  He did learn how to high stick, and use other techniques for nymph fishing, though he is an excellent fisher in his own right.

Kay and I did a major bicycle ride on Tuesday, riding from the house to the White River via Push Mountain Road, and then down along the White River and back. At 14 miles, it was Kay’s longest ride, and she did great! We really enjoy riding, meeting folks along the way, and seeing sights at a bit slower pace.

Wednesday, we had no hummingbirds at any of the feeders. Their numbers had been steadily dwindling over the last several days. Consequently, yesterday, October 8, marked their last day at Dunnhill for 2013. Typically, the hummingbirds which call Dunnhill home for the summer depart for warmer climates on October 6; however, one year it was October 7, and another it was early November. So, we expected them to depart on Sunday. This season was a good one, and there were lots of birds, second only to 2005. Also, the numbers and varieties of butterflies are dwindling, as we are only seeing a few Pipevine Swallowtails, Eastern Commas, Fritillaries, and Eastern tailed-Blues. Surprisingly, those we seem appear to be in good condition, with few “scrapes and bruises” to show for their journey south.

Friday was a special day as we got to see Jenny and Harper. Jenny’s birthday is coming up soon, and we hadn’t seen them since Harper’s birthday party on July 27. Our drive to Memphis was to celebrate Jenny’s birthday, and, of course, to see Harper. She is growing, and getting cuter, if that is possible. And, Jenny is such a good mom. Harper dances to music, and at 14 months is able to maintain a rhythm matching that of the music. And she has learned to pose for the camera with a scrunchy, pseudo smile. What a doll. She missed her morning nap, but was a real champ during our visit, including lunch at Cheddar’s and a lengthy shopping trip to Costco. Jenny texted us that she went to sleep immediately when they were leaving Costco. She talks up a storm, though we have no idea what she is saying, but can say “D”, a nickname she has adopted for me.

And then, to top off an already great week, Ridge and his folks came to visit Friday evening. He is talking up a storm, making complete sentences and adding a lot of body language such as pointing his finger at you during a conversation to make a point. While we understand some of what he says, most is not a language with which we’re familiar. He sure enjoys time with his “KK” and “DD” and rarely says one without saying the other. He loves music and has several toys that make musical sounds. And, his parents stopped in Mountain View on the way up and bought him a couple of trucks. Wow, did we ever play with them, and they talked as well. Needless to say, Dunnhill was not quiet over the weekend. Ridge also likes to walk, and enjoys the natural setting of Dunnhill. He walked to the road (accompanied) several times, and is noticing all sorts of things like dead snakes—he’s all boy. Now, if we can only “house break” him—you know what I mean (he’ll quickly become a complete country boy with a little bit of redneck thrown in).

Jerry and Karen Smith, our RVing friends from the RGV, have stopped in the area on their way south for the winter. We had a great visit Saturday, beginning with biscuits and sausage gravy for breakfast, and ending with grilled chicken and vegetables for dinner, and spent most of the day on the patio enjoying beautiful fall weather, birds, and butterflies, and of course, Ridge, coming in and out of the house.

We had a very busy week, but are learning to set aside some time just for the two of us—to have a fun.

Back home almost two weeks from a previous trip, we’re somewhat back in a rhythm today with church, Sunday school, and lunch at Chen’s Chinese buffet. Monday, however, we were back at high speed with high dose flu shots at Walgreen’s, and a much coveted visit from George Laux, our brother-in-law from Richmond, Virginia. Regrettably, Kay had to attend a Planning and Zoning Commission meeting, but her attendance was brief. Wayne came by to say hello, as did John and Sandy. George and I visited until 1:30 AM, catching up on family activities. After a big breakfast, George departed, and Kay followed with her monthly visit to central Arkansas.

Taking advantage of the quiet and warm weather, several butterflies were stopping by on their migration south. The following photographs are of a Great Spangled Fritillary (Speyeria cybele), Sachem (Atalopedes campestris), Eastern Tailed-Blue (Everes comyntas), Eastern Comma (Polygonia comma), female Pipevine Swallowtail (Battus philenor), and a little yellow and black butterfly I need help in identifying. Interestingly, with respect to the Pipevine Swallowtail, females have a row of yellowish-white dots on the topside of their open wings, males do not. When a Pipevine Swallowtail folds its wings while it’s resting, you will see a curved row of 7 bright orange dots underneath its wings.  A very similar butterfly, the Spicebush Swallowtail (Papilio troilus) has two rows of orange spots on the underside of the hind wings.

Wednesday was quiet, with nothing to account for except chasin’ butterflies. Kay returned home Thursday morning, and together we packed some items in the motorhome including a table to be used outside and folding/collapsible chairs. We also gathered other items for our winter trip to Texas, tidying up the little garage and lower front porch in the process. We spent Friday morning tidying up the patio, and had a great visit with Gary and Betty Wallis over lunch. Gary and Betty are a well-traveled couple, and we have many things in common. She and Kay worked together some time ago. We drove to near my hometown for a great visit with family, and an all school reunion—my classmates look so old! What has happened to them?

We wrapped up the blog week on Saturday, returning home in a much needed rain, and doing a lot of nothing the rest of the day.

It was off to church today, then to Chen’s Chinese buffet for an early lunch, and, of course, to Walmart, then a quick drive thru Quarry Campground to check on availability of camping sites (there were none), and then home for a much needed nap—so much activity on a Sunday morning!

I was awakened by a phone call in the middle of a great nap by Kay advising that she had driven back to Quarry Park and found a vacant spot, and was parked in it until I arrived with the motorhome. I do not do well when awakened suddenly from naps, to the extent that Kay says I’m a little gruff—pshaw! Still groggy, I unplugged the MH from shore power, drove to Quarry Park, set up, and returned home for clothes, toiletries, etc. We called DishTV to activate our the account, and could not get it to work. Two more calls proved futile as well, leading us to believe we could not get a signal from our camping site. Giving up, we took a stroll around the campground and recognized cousin Walker, aka “Chief”, and his family stopping for a restroom break after a harried trip to Oklahoma, Branson, etc. They appeared exhausted from their travels, so we exchanged pleasantries, and they were on their way home.

Without television, we had a quiet night, and both of us read. Wow, cool temps and the air bed in the motorhome provided a great night’s sleep. We awoke quite refreshed Monday morning. As the morning progressed, we noticed packing-up activity in a site across from us along the river with great south and southwestern views of the sky for a DishTV satellite signal. Kay inquired and they were departing about noon, so we began unhooking and preparing for the expected move. During the process, Kay noticed this weird looking, creepy crawly creature. Interesting, huh?

We moved across the way, set up the satellite, called DishTV, and still no luck. Driving 5.7 miles downstream to the house, bicycles and more “camping” paraphernalia were loaded for the return trip to Quarry. Kay went into town to run some errands, and I again phoned and talked to a DishTV representative, 5 times in all, until I finally got a US tech on the phone who immediately solved the problem; seems we had not been activated, despite 7 previous calls. Our service is great when we receive it, but quite painful when re-activating the account or moving locations. From now on we will ask for a US tech at the onset of a call. After all the fretting, we enjoyed a great evening with a visit from Wayne.

While there are many positives to “camping” near home, one negative is that we have a tendency to return home at least once every day for even the most insignificant reasons.  We drive to the house everyday, to access the internet, water plants, and check up on things in general.  This really puts a damper on continuity and enjoying the whole camping process, and the synergies associated therewith.

At home, we noted that the quantity and diversity of birds and butterflies is rapidly diminishing, and believe most are leaving, migrating south for the winter.  We still see an occasional swallowtail, but they are few and far between, and much smaller than those we saw in the heat of summer. We also have had several Fritillary butterflies return after an absence of a year or two.  And, the Clouded Sulphurs have returned, presumably migrating south for the winter. Of course, the warmer fall weather we’re experiencing brings out more butterflies. American Gold Finches have lost their brilliant summer color, and the many deer that stop by for a handout of corn have become darker, taking on their fall and winter coats.  Oh, how I wish I had observed these subtle changes when a kid and young adult! Nature tells us so much!

Back to Quarry Park, the campground is full, at least all the “premium” sites with 50 A electricity and water. The park hosts tell us this has been an unusual year, with lots more campers than in the past.

Friend Wayne is restoring a 1999 Itasca Spirit motorhome, and it has been amazing watching the improvements being made to an already great RV. The Class C motorhome’s floor plan, with one slide, is among the best we’ve ever seen, and he and Loretta have done wonders with both the interior and exterior. As one of those guys who can do anything, he has installed almost enough solar panels and batteries to live off the grid, i.e. without hooking up to external electricity. In fact, except for the need for air conditioning, they can live very comfortably with satellite television, microwave, furnace, electric blanket, and all the other bells and whistles—all without ever plugging in. I digress… Anyway, I spent parts of Thursday, Friday, and Saturday observing a master at work! Now, he has to take Loretta camping.

With rain forecast Saturday night and Sunday morning and the imminent threat of a US government shutdown on Tuesday resulting in closing the campground, we opted to leave Quarry Park a day early; the road to our house is canopied with low hanging branches of trees and the least amount of moisture causes them to sag, and scrape the top of the motorhome and tug at the antenna and air conditioners. Consequently, we move the motorhome to the house, hooked up electricity, and engaged the slides, and will begin the process of loading it for our winter in Texas as the departure date is fast approaching.

This week celebrated completion of the “To Do” list.  After last week’s marathon chore week, compounded by cleaning up from storm damage, this week proved to be pretty laid back, though busy.

We took the day off on Sunday, went to church, and then to lunch with Sunday school friends.  It was good getting back in a routine.  After sating our appetites, Kay read the paper while I half-heartily watched football.  

I fished Monday morning with Bill, and he ripped lips with the Zig-a-jig and spinning rod combination, while I managed a dozen or so on a combination scud with a zebra midge dropper.  Fishing behind him is like hunting squirrels with a .22 rifle behind someone hunting them with a 10 gauge shotgun.  Monday afternoon was used to lube the motorhome, contorting this 64-year old body in ways heretofore thought impossible.

Tuesday was spent rewiring the electrical connections between the motorhome and the “toad”, i.e. the Honday CR-V that we tow.  A direct charging line was installed between the battery and connected to a female plug receptacle which was installed on the front of the Honda, and a new wire and plug were installed in the tow bar.  Still, the BrakeBuddy failed, would recycle, and wouldn’t hold the brake for the required 10-seconds test.  Thinking the Honda was not providing enough amperage to fully operated the auxiliary brake, and consulting with Wayne, I installed it in the Expedition only to find the problem persisted.  This has been an ongoing problem for the last two years, and we sent it in last October 22, receiving it back as testing 100%, after which we tried it on the way to Texas in late November, only to experience problems again.  We phoned Hopkins, the company which makes the auxiliary brake, and explained the problem, and while outside near the Expedition talking to the tech, the brake began recycling,, fortuitous in that he could hear it on the other end of the phone call.  He authorized shipment for sending it back in—solution and cost to be determined!  

On Wednesday morning, Kay left for central Arkansas for visits with friends and family, and to drop off the BrakeBuddy at FedEx for shipping back to the factory, and I continued the clean-up of storm debris from last Thursday’s straight line winds knocking the neighbor’s big, double-trunked oak tree down.  I counted a total of 9 trees in our backyard that paid the toll.  Despite cleaning last Friday and Saturday, there were sawdust, leaves, and small limbs everywhere, and to prevent them from blowing on the patio and/or washing back down onto the dry gravel creek, they were raked into a small terrace.  Three of our pampas grass plants were damaged by equipment cleaning up the storm debris, but we had wanted to move them anyway so holes were dug in the hard, rocky earth and the plants transplanted.  Also, Creeping Jenny was transplanted between the recently installed stepping stones in the back.  Temperatures soared into the mid-90s, and humidity was near 80°, rendering my clothes soaking wet from the outside work.  After cleaning up and cooling off, I began the process of back flushing, sanitizing, and recharging the motorhome water softener.

Thursday was a near repeat of Wednesday, except that I used the morning to dig a small (10 to 12-inch) oak tree stump up that was tilted with roots going everywhere.  It left a perfect hole for a fire pit, except it was in the wrong location. Recovery from the storm is slowly taking place as the white butterfly bush sported a couple of blooms after its traumatic couple of days and being severely pruned.  We see some opportunities for additional landscaping and sitting areas…  After showering, and then washing wet outside work clothes, I re-installed the undersink water filter in the motorhome; however, what would normally be a mundane job proved to be a 2-hour endeavor in completely rebuilding the bracket and water filter valve; it had somehow gotten twisted and the filter cartridge would not fit!  This completed the very last chore on the list! But then wouldn’t you know it, when picking up the mail, the mailbox door was hanging by a single “thread”, as one of the hinges had popped loose.  It was off to Lowe’s for a new mailbox.  On the way home after punching the mailbox and stick-on lettering, I remembered buying a riveting took in the mid 1990s, and thought it would repair the old door hinge.  Back at the house, I found the old tool, collected other tools, and made my way to effect the repairs.  Wouldn’t you know it…while changing the size of the rivet mechanism, the tool fell into pieces with a key nut dropping to the street.  It was back to the house for a magnet, then back to near the mailbox where the nut was retrieved.  I took the mailbox off the post and back to the more controlled environment of the shop, where the rivet tool was rebuilt—no easy chore—and the mailbox repaired better than new, almost.  Once again, it was back down to the post for re-installation.  Whew!  Meanwhile, Kay reported in from Maumelle that Ridge had been sick with a stomach virus, and she, too, had gotten the bug and suffered symptoms late early Thursday morning.  After taking Karyn to the airport at 5:00 AM, she returned to the Adams’ house and kept Ridge for the day while they both convalesced.  

Rain was welcomed early Friday morning and continued until noon, yielding about 3/4 inch.  It was much needed and appreciated, and provided a day of rest.  Not wanting to infect Kaden before his taking the ACT on Saturday, she decided to cut her visit short and return home today, arriving shortly after lunch.

Refreshed and well, we ate breakfast Saturday morning at Mel’s Diner in Mountain Home for the first time in a couple of years.  The food was good, but we were shocked by the reduction in portions, about half of what we received last time we ate there—cost-cutting measures?  However, it was enough food, and we enjoyed the dining experience.  We drove to Lowe’s to return the new mailbox and lettering, and buy screening material for the patio door—an 18-month old toddler, Ridge, can play havoc opening and closing a screen door hundreds of times.  Anyway, maybe the new screen will last through Harper’s toddler time as we’re sure she’ll do the same thing.  But after all, they are grandkids and can do no wrong…  At the house, Kay began transplanting more ground cover, and I removed limbs overhanging the drive and a tree obstructing the view when exiting our driveway—seems our work never ceases.  At least we’ll have Saturdays off the rest of football season, as the University of Arkansas lost to Rutgers this afternoon, and has the beef of their schedule coming up.  

All in all, it was a good week, and the good Lord has blessed us with a great family, super friends, a good place to live, and talents, gifts, and physical ability to do the things we want and enjoy doing. 

(NOTE:  After reading the blog, one is probably led to believe that owning a motorhome, or any recreational vehicle requires a lot of work.  Actually, it doesn’t require  that much work; it’s just that it’s concentrated over a short period of time.  And our situation was compounded by the broken hood hinge and the inoperable BrakeBuddy, two anomalies rarely faced.  Otherwise, changing the oil, oil filter, air filter in both the motorhome and generator, and lubricating the motorhome is a one or two day job, once a year; not bad when you consider we drive about 5,000 miles a year, and live in the motorhome 6-months a year!)

After spending part of the early morning with Ridge and his parents, we drove back home after what seemed like a 6-week absence; of course, we left for Wisconsin and Michigan on July 28, returned home on August 20, then left for Colorado on August 26 and finally arrived back home September 8—38 days away from home.  But, for the most part, we escaped hot weather. 

Glad to be back home, we made “To Do” lists, and began working on the items in earnest Monday morning.  Over the course of the week, we changed the oil, oil filter, and air filter in both the motorhome and the Explorer, as well as the motorhome generator; reinforced the under sink water filter bracket in the motorhome; and repaired, for the 3rd time, the hood hinge on the motorhome.

The hinge for the hood is connected via an adhesive, not a bolt or screw, and the adhesive failed on all three connection points, likely due to the pounding caused by rough road joints (Missouri and Michigan roads) on our trip to Wisconsin and Michigan!  Neither Gorilla Glue nor epoxy gel (recommended by the Winnebago dealership where we bought the motorhome) worked, so I took neighbor and very close friend Wayne’s advice and used JB Weld.  We both worked on the hinge for parts of 4 days this week, with Wayne doing a lot of the work and all the supervision (thank goodness he was there to help).  First, I took the hood off the motorhome, then the hinge.  We removed all the paint on the connection surfaces, and sanded the motorhome front cowling where the connection was to be made, preparing all surfaces for the JB Weld bond.  And then, Wayne and I worked in tandem to spread the JB Weld adhesive to both the hinge surfaces and the motorhome surfaces, and apply multiple clamps to hold it in place; it was like a well orchestrated dance, and we do really work well together.  The following morning, we removed the clamps, and the hinge held.  We then mixed fiberglass resin and hardner, and covered each connection with fiberglass (resin, cloth, and resin) to reinforce the bonded surfaces.  These dried in about 4 hours, and we applied another coat of resin to smooth the surface.  The connection points are now stronger than ever thanks to Wayne! 

Since we belong to Amazon Prime, we order a lot of our “supplies” and the parcels trickled in all week.  Finally on Thursday just after lunch, the motorhome Onan generator oil filter and wrench arrived and I drained the oil and removed the oil filter.  In the course of adding new oil, straight line winds from the north came out of “nowhere”.  Now understand, I’m only about 40 feet from our patio, have my hearing aids in, and have no external noise.  I finished adding oil, getting soaking wet by the hard driving rain, and come in to shower and notice our neighbor’s HUGE oak tree laying partially across the patio—and I didn’t hear it fall.

As I began to take inventory, a sickening feeling came over me at the damage, particularly to the trees on the back of our property, and our landscaping efforts over the past several months.  We emailed our neighbors who were fishing out west with the bad news.  They were quick to action, calling a tree cutting service.  Friday morning the tree trimmers/cutters showed up in force, 4 and 5 strong most of the day, and cut the two trunks of the HUGE tree as well as the 7 others it knocked down. 

The two photos show before and after.  They did a great job of clearing all the debris, and had two loads of shredded wood chips from the trees.  We lost all the trees on about half our our back property, and now have lots of open space and sky.  With sawdust and leaves everywhere, we began the process of “picking up the pieces.”  The stacked stone wall forming some of the beds around the patio was toppled in several places; we lost several solar lights, a solar pump for the bird bath, a couple of tube feeders, a couple of humming bird feeders, a cast iron hummingbird bird bath, a tubular patio chair; and several of our plants look a lot worse for wear:  rare white butterfly bush, a 10-foot lantana, and a couple of plants put in last year by Kelly Thomas Landscaping (fortunately, the new Japanese maple was unharmed, saved by the the big pine which took the brunt of the force and had to be cut).  We continued raking, and otherwise removing debris from the patio, beds, and dry creek, calling it quits before lunch on Saturday. It sure looks different around our patio now, but we’ll have to treat it as an opportunity and start the rebuilding process!  One poignant memory I have with respect to the large tree is the “squirrel interstate.”  Recovering from a radical retro-pubic prostatectomy for cancer in December 2010 and January-February 2011, I spent countless hours watching squirrels play and run back and forth across a particularly long, horizontal limb on the big tree; it was also their escape route when they sensed danger.  Wayne would join me for several hours each day in the adjoining recliner, and we would laugh as the squirrels traversed the limb.  The tree may be gone, but the memories of it will live as I do…

After cleaning up the mess, I successfully loaded Windows 7 on the Apple MacBook Pro, and then loaded some software that I couldn’t “live” without:  Windows Live, Quicken, and Streets and Trips.  This allows me to carry only one computer now when we travel.  The process of loading Windows on an Apple computer appeared daunting at first, but after beginning, proved to be fairly simple, though time consuming.

So, all in all, and despite a tough week, we are truly blessed to have great neighbors, and to have been kept safe in the storm.  Until next week…

DATE: Monday, September 9, 2013

TIME: 8:25 AM TO 11:15 AM

WEATHER:  HIgh 80s, partly cloudy

WATER CONDITIONS: 0 units

LOCATIONS FISHED: Norfork River, Riffle Above the Island Below Otter Creek

FLIES USED: #14 Gray Norfork River Scud, #20 black/copper Zebra Midge, #14 Furnace Cockleburr, #14 Pink Cockleburr

ROD USED:  8’ 6” 5-wt Winston JWF

HATCHES:  Midges, occasional cranefly

OTHER: I fished with Ed.  After walking in at Mill Dam Eddy, we walked upstream to the riffle above the island.  Apparently, minimum flow has been effected because water levels were unusually high, and wading was difficult, necessitating a staff.  (Be careful what you ask for; I didn’t ask for minimum flow.)  I managed a dozen and a half fish, mostly on the midge and scud, with the remainder on the Cockleburr.  Ed caught 35 fish on 8 different fly patterns; he was in a zone!