Fish And Camp At Crater Lake, CA

No fish caught, but the camping and eating was good.

Extended Weekend

May 12th & 13th - I headed out early Thursday morning for an extended weekend in the Burney/Hat Creek area overlanding, exploring, fishing, and hiking.

Thursday and Friday I was at Iron Canyon Reservoir near a spot in the road called Big Bend off Highway 299. I camped, I fished, I tried out a new lens for my Lumix G9, I drove side roads and spurs to see where they went, I did a little dispersed camping, and I ate great meals cooked over the campfire. I hooked several good size fish and several smaller fish. All but one were released alive. I landed what was probably the largest Brown Trout of my life...a 16-18 incher (released alive so I didn't get an exact measurement).

I was surprised to find the lake so full. I used to fish this lake a lot many years ago, so It was nice to come back and find the lake in great shape and the fishing as good as I remember it. It was a very enjoyable two days just enjoying the solitude and tussling with spirited trout. I hope to return soon and do it all again...

Mother's Day Camp Stove Pizzas

Making Mother's Day Firebox pizzas with our grandson.

It started raining so we had to move from the backyard patio set-up to the garage entrance.

Misty Lake Sonoma Work-Out Hike

A gorgeous morning for a hike at Lake Sonoma. A misty/light drizzle the entire time made for a most auspicous 5+ miles hike on my favorite loop.

Work-out/Solo/No rush! Retirement is amazing.

Total Time: 02:05:00

Total Miles: 5.63

What the Lake Sonoma boat launch looks like when you are retired.

Firebox Kit Pizza

I recently picked up a pizza stone for my Firebox camp cook kit and thought this morning was a good time to try it out, so...

I fired up the Firebox store outside and rolled out some dough...

Pre-baked the crust for about 5 minutes...

Threw on same sauce, salt/pepper/herbs, salami slices, and mozzarella cheese.

Baked it for about 15 minutes...

Checked it...and baked it for another 5 minutes...

And vwa-la!!!

It actually tasted amazing for a first try. The crust was perfect.

Next time I'll make a couple adjustments layering the ingredients and less heat on the top to prevent burning of the cheese. I'd feel confident taking the ingredients along on the next camping trip, or on the next kayaking camp trip, and whip up camp pizzas.

More Info: Firebox Stove Website

The Dry Creek Waterfalls

The water Level at our local Lake Sonoma has risen enough that we reasonably felt we could make it to the Dry Creek Waterfalls. It took some boat hauling and it was a long day, but we made it.

We didn't climb up to the main falls because we have done that several times in the past, but spent the time swimming to deep pools and sunning on the rock.