It was in the upper 90s everyday last week, and today has gotten off to a "good" start at a blazing' 101. Supposed to be 100 or more for the next several days. This means lots of irrigating corn, to keep it from wilting and going back in this intense heat. Son and I had several systems running yesterday, but one was causing some issues. That particular one draws water out of Brier Creek at 1000 gpm via a diesel powered centrifugal pump. The 8" diameter suction pipe has a "river screen" on the bottom end, which is a floating, rotating rotary screen that prevents debris form being sucked into the suction pipe. It needed some maintenance, which requires the use of a small jon boat to access it. We keep the boat at the creek bank, turned upside down, in case it rains.

Nobody with any savvy puts his hand under the edge of an upside boat, on the bank, to right it. That cool, shady place is a favorite place for cottonmouths, and an occasional canebrake rattler, to "lay up". I carry a long handled grubbing hoe in the back of the truck for many things, and turning a boat over is one reason that is high on my list. I can ill afford a hospital stay this time of the year due to stupidity. I have warned my son, grandson, and full time man to never put their hands under a boat.

Yesterday afternoon we were to meet up there about 4 pm to work on the river screen. I arrived first, looked around carefully for snakes, then pulled a double .410 out of it's case in the back seat. It rides with me this time of the year, loaded with 9s, just for close encounters of the reptilian kind. I took the grubbing hoe, reached over to the opposite side of the boat and pulled it over towards me, righting it. There lay a big ol' pile of cottonmouth, apparently so comfortable with his spot that he didn't even move. Reaching into the back seat I pulled out the much maligned Yildiz .410. Poor thing ............... he lost his head when he saw it.

As I have said before ................great patterns.



BIG cottonmouth. As thick as my forearm, and roughly four feet in length. If I had seen him crossing the road a mile away from our pump station I'd have let him go. But, we sometimes have to attend to these pumps at night, and I just couldn't let this 'un by.

Y'all watch where you put your hands and feet, ya' hear?

SRH

I was riding the roads in a turkey woods today and at about 10 a.m., saw small gators in the road and three widely separated gopher tortoises moseying down the road. Gotta be mating season for them to be on the prowl in this wx. I'd have done the same, Stan. Gil

Looking for 'shrooms?

SRH

Just showing a friend the woods. If we had some rain, the chanterelles would flush. They are usually early June, but we are in August weather wise. Gil

Still getting snow as of this week. Picked up about a foot total between Monday and Thursday. The Sun came out Friday and now it is all gone. Could get more next week. Typical May weather here.

Snow!!!???

Dang! We'll be eating roastin' ears by the time it warms up there. What elevation are you?

SRH

8200 ft here at my house. The only two months I have not seen it snow here are July and August. This Spring has been colder and wetter than normal. Snow pack in Colorado is running right about 250% of the median this year. Odd year for sure.

8200 ft. That explains a lot.

I'm at 200 ft.+. I think. I dunno, it's just hot!

SRH

Wetter and cooler here in the north woods of the Upper Midwest as well. And it wasn't like we needed a lot of rain. Snow melt has left pools of water scattered around in the woods. Ought to be a great year for mosquitoes.

Those make the prettiest belts and gun slings. Fishing on the Suwannee in the morning was great fish and cool breeze. Yesterday evening on the Withlacoochee not so much and hot. Waiting on the shrooms to pop up too

That would've made a nice belt, hadn't thought of that. Is there someone you can send the skin to, that will make it into a belt?

SRH

I have seen rattlesnake skins made into nice hatbands. I would have doubts they would be strong enough for a Gun Sling. I had killed a rattlesnake here near my house some years back. My uncle & first cousin came by for a visit an hour or so later. My cousin was in agricultural college at UT Knoxville at the time. He wanted the skin for a hatband, said they were very popular on campus then. I helped him skin it but not sure if he ever made the hat band or not. He is now retired from a career in soil mapping with the UT Extension Service so that gives a bit of an idea how long ago this was.

Stan there used to be a guy in the north end of the county around Hahira named 'Rattlesnake John". He made belts by facing harness leather with snakeskin. Haven't heard of him lately, might've died. I'll check on that...Geo

Keith, you ought to stay out of that afternoon sun around here until these 100 degree days go away. It'll take rain to get those chants up out of the ground...Geo

These are from the Alapaha a couple of weeks ago:

Thanks, Geo. I'd kinda like to have a cottonmouth belt. Canebrakes are so, how do you say ....................blasé.

Careful Stan. It takes the right kind of belly to wear a big ole Diamondback around your waist...Geo

George, after cleaning about a dozen of those fish, the thought will flash through your head "why did I keep this many?" Good eatin', especially river fish. Gil

I can picture me now, man ............ motoring up to the sandbar where the gang is chillin', climbing out with my cottonmouth skin sandals, belt and hatband.

Get back, Jack!

SRH

Or climbing off your motorcycle, Stan!

I don't think the gang will worry as much about the belt, as they would about if there's enough money in the king size cottonmouth wallet for the sandbar fish fry. Geo's mak'in a big batch of hush puppies and gator veal nuggets.

I sure would love to try some of those gator veal nuggets. How are they made, not that it'd do me any good, gators are somewhat scarce here in these TN Hills. e have had some Cajun restaurants around in the past which served gator & I ate some, some years back while on vacation in Lafayette LA. Sure do like it as well as that Crawfish Etoufee.

Sandbar get-togethers are a big deal on the Savannah River, and I only live 2 miles from a landing. My son is down there today at one, but my little boat's motor isn't running right, and my Allison motor powerhead is off at a custom shop having direct fuel injection put on it, and eliminating the Brucato. If it was back together I'd be there today, too.

No money needed, except what it takes you to get there, craig. South Carolinians and Georgians rubbing elbows and having fun in the sun. Great scenery, IYGMD.

I ain't riding no more motorcycles, Jim! If you hear that a bike killed me you can rest assured that somebody else riding one ran into me and took me out. I've wrecked two, now. You know what they say ................. three strikes and you're out.

SRH

stan: When will you stop asking questions that you could easily answer for yourself with a 10 second search? This is getting ridiculous...

a 10 second search will reveal that shrooms grow in the fall, not in the summer...

a 10 second search will reveal that it snows in colorado in may...

yes stan, it is often hotter at 200 ft of elevation than it is at 800 feet of elevation...

and, no doubt, a 10 second search will reveal the name and contact information for at least one source that makes belts out of snake skins...

I do get your drift, Stan. I sure do...
JR

Old man trying to get a peek at a scantily clad girl young enough to be his grand daughter..

That's a real nice mess of bluegills. (They're probably "bream" down George's way.) I'm still waiting for them to start spawning up here, and I'll be going after them with the fly rod.

I used to clean that many by hand, but not for some years. Electric filet knife is the ticket. Still takes some time, but they are fine eating for sure! Bluegills and hatchery trout are about the only fish I've killed in years. Everything else is catch and release.

Bluegills and redbreast, too, Larry. And, one channel cat. The redbreast are better eating than the bluegills, IMO. Is there a shell cracker or two in there, Geo?

Good pic.

SRH

We get mostly bluegills up this way. Some sunnies. Not sure I've ever noticed a lot of difference as far as taste goes. And they're all a lot of fun on a light fly rod. You can wear yourself out catching them when they're on the beds.

"bream" and pronounced "brim" around these parts.

No shellcrackers, a few stumpknockers (spotted sunfish) though...Geo

Brookies, browns, Atlantic salmon running by the house.

Geo, that was a fine mess of river fish. There is nothing like a meal of mixed wild fish; I've always enjoyed eating different species of fish in the same meal.

I went turkey hunting a few weeks back with a guy who owns property near the Little Ohoopee River. He has a pretty pond that's 10 acres or so and he recently had to drain it to repair the dam. When it was time to restock the fish, he said that he didn't want any "government bream." I had never heard that term before; it must be a south GA thing, but I know what he meant. He went to the river and caught wild fish and stocked the pond with them. It will be interesting to see how that works out.

any o yall ketch any snakefish lately?

an as fur "government bream"...

well in va, we call erm "gubmint brims"...

jes sayin...

Thanks Coosa. Government Bream are just bluegills and redeared sunfish supplied by the state for stocking. They grow up to be regular copperheads and shellcrackers. Could be your friend wanted red bellies in his pond. That won't work; I've tried it.

Far back as I know about, my family settled in the forks of the Ohoopee. I ought to go over there to the courthouse and trace back where they were...Geo

Your lucky you can go fishing. I haven't been in over a month and it doesn't bode well for the future. Devastating flooding all over NE Oklahoma......it may be weeks before it returns to a semblance of normality. Lot's of folks hurting.

Ken, hope you and yours faired well in the terrible tornadoes and storms that have hit some of the midwestern states.
A terrible thing, my heart goes out to all involved.

Yes sir. Brian Wynn at Bull and Briar Leather. He makes the stuff for Kevins. A lot cheaper though

Amen to staying out of the sun and that mess of fish. Good job!

David, I've had two tornadoes pass directly over my house in less than a week. No damage other than lots of tree limbs down. Thank God for his protection.

In the late 1970s, I had a tornado pass directly over my house. It came out of the southwest & there is a high hill directly behind my house, the West. It laid a long line of timber down behind me & also to the east of me. It swooped down just enough incoming over that hill to get my roof, but no other damage. It was amazing to look at those roof shingles though. There would be shingles Gone Completely, tabs & all, with the shingle on top of it un-ruffled, as if something had grasped the lower part of the shingle & snatched it through the nails without disturbing the one over its upper portion.

For a distance of probably a half mile or so every tree that was down was pointing in a northeasterly direction "Except" for four. These four all stood in front of my Dad's house about a 100 yards north of me & on the opposite side of the road, not as closely snuggled against the hillside. These four were in a north to the south line in front of his house. At least three of them would have gone onto his house had they followed the line of the others. These four all fell toward the north or at a near right angle to the others. On the south side of his house were two trees a large maple & a Pear tree. These could both have hit t his house had they fell ion the pattern of those in front, But they went back to the easterly line like all those others so none hit his house at all. His house had an older metal roof which also suffered damage & he had to re-roof also. We were both fortunate to have come out as well as we did.

Wow! What a blessing that you suffered no more damage than that!

I'm thankful for you, too.

SRH