How To Make Campfire Mulled Wine

This looked good, so I'm putting it here so I can find it next time I want it. It's from a web-site called Fresh Off The Grid (link below), which has great camping/outdoor cooking recipes.

Campfire Mulled Wine

Here is the link to the article: https://www.freshoffthegrid.com/campfire-mulled-wine/?utm_source=FOTG%20Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=11.29.23

 

Link to Fresh Off The Grid home page: https://www.freshoffthegrid.com/

The Lost Coast Loop

Typically, on the Thanksgiving long weekend, we take off for a four day camping/hiking/caving trip to Lava Beds National Monument. We/I have been traveling quite a bit over the last couple months so decided to stay home and work on home and yard projects this Thanksgiving. That was the plan, but...after a couple days of doing boring home tasks and clean-ups we decided we needed to get out on a single day sortie and drive the Lost Coast Loop that has been on my list for several years.

The weather was perfect, the crowds were non-existent, and it was a great one day 12 1/2 hours of driving, site-seeing, beach combing, and photography. We left home at 4:00am and pulled into our driveway at 4:30pm.

Total drive Time: 12 1/2 Hours

Total Driving Miles From Home: 392.0

Total Lost Coast Loop Miles: 96.0

Temps in the high 20's as we work our way to Honeydew

Hey...The Bear Flag bear on a closed campground gate

The one lane bridge at Honeydew

We are headed to Petrol/Ferndale

The General Store and Post office at Honeydew

Crossing the Mattole River a few miles west of Honeydew

Road art

The Post Office at Petrolia

The road climbs up out of Petrolia and finally drops down to the coast

There are several pull-outs with beach access as you get closer to Cape Mendocino 

We shared our lunch spot with this pelican

Looking south down Humboldt's Lost Coast

Beach combing

The forgotten settlement of Capetown between Cape Mendocino and Ferndale

Third Stone From The Sun

The Jimi Hendrix Experience...

Jimi Hendrix - Third Stone From The Sun (Isolated Guitar)

 

 

Traveling

 Not my words, but so true...

Fly Tying - Gurgler Variation

 Based off of Jack Gartside's Gurgler pattern, I've added a little weight to the inside of the downward lip and tied it to try to match the minnows at Lake Sonoma. Could be both slow trolled or as a casting fly.

Simi Front View

Larissa Liveir - Purple Haze Riff

 Larissa Liveir does JH...

 

My Beginning Film Presets

I've started building some of my own film stimulations/presets. I've purchased some commercial preset like those from Luminar and other from individual photographers, but I'm more interested (right now) simulating old film recipes. 

Here is what I have come up with today. I feel these will fall in the "Nostalgic" category, but they aren't based on any specific film brand/type.

Nostalgic - warm

Nostalgic - cool

I just realized one of my favorite sayings comes into play here: The more you learn, the less you know.

Lake Sonoma Hike

Yesterday's rain showers made for enjoyable hiking this morning at Lake Sonoma. The trails were damp and cool, and the low fog made everything soft and quiet.

This was a loop out around Bummer Peak mostly on the North Slope Trail from the No Name Flat Trailhead.

Iron Canyon Weekender

Iron Canyon Fishing - Northern California

November 9 through 11

I journeyed up to Iron Canyon Reservoir in Northern California for two and one half days of lake fishing and camping. Iron Canyon is a PG&E (Pacific Gas & Electric) lake that is mainly filled by an underground aqueduct and is used for hydroelectric production. The water comes from McCloud Lake about 20 miles to the North, and empties into the Pit River and becomes part of the Pit River hydroelectric project.

It is stocked with trout during the Spring and Summer, but has a great population of large holdover rainbows and big Brown Trout. Surface fly fishing for Rainbows from a boat or personal water craft is usually productive in Spring, Summer, and Fall. On this trip, things were quiet so I never put our Flycraft in the water and ended just fishing from shore.

I had a productive morning on Thursday when I arrived, landing 8 or 10 fish, with three decent size browns in the 15 inch range. All released alive except one 15 inch Rainbow that I kept. I fished for about 4 hours at the spot where the underground aqueduct comes in which is alway a good spot when the water is flowing.

Went back to the same spot Friday morning but the inflow wasn't running and fishing was slow. I did hook three fish but lost them all. I'll blame that on barbless hooks. :) The masses showed up Friday night and there were people camping in dispersed places all around the lake. I spent a few hours Saturday morning trying different places, but couldn't find any willing fish. I decided to pack up and make the 4 hour drive back home.

All in all, a great three days camping and fishing in our beautiful Northern California Trout Mecca.

Lake Sonoma Trout Action

Lake Sonoma land-locked Steelhead. Technically, it's just a trout, but...

About 14 inches. Caught on a homemade steelhead spinner. Released alive.

I caught her twin the other day using the same lure. Also released.