Dodging Rain Drops

13 mile bike ride on the Perkiomen Trail this morning. Installed a new set of clipless pedals on the mountain bike last night and had to take them on a test run. Rained a little bit, but not enough to make things miserable. The Perkiomen Creek was high and muddy from the previous days rain - no fishing or kayaking for a while.

Changing Wheels

On Sunday I placed an ad on Craig’s List to trade my 18 year old Trek 1100 road bike for either a mountain bike or a kayak. I haven’t ridden the 1100 much since I picked up a Trek 7.2FX Hybrid last year – it’s been hanging in the basement collecting dust, tires slowly losing air pressure. I purchased the 1100 brand new in the Spring of 1991 - I was 23 years old – It was the same year I met Susan. I’ll bet I put over 1000 miles on it in the time I owned it – did a lot of great, fast riding on that bike.

So anyway, I received a response from a gentleman in Delaware who had several mountain bikes he was willing to trade. I ended up trading for a 2007 Diamondback Response mountain bike – almost new condition – only about 20 miles on it. Still, it was a little sad handing the bike over to another person on Wednesday evening. But, my riding style has changed. No longer do I crave the speed of road riding, 40 MPH downhill runs – I’m more of a cruise and back woods trail adventurer now. So spin the wheels of change.

A Perfect Summer Day

One of those rare summer days when the weather is perfect – not too hot, not too cool. Slight breeze and just a few clouds in a brilliant blue sky. I woke up early and put the Kayak in the Perky – water was clear and smooth as I paddled up to the steel bridge. Fished for about two and a half hours and then drifted back to the landing. Caught only a few small bass and blue-gills, but it didn’t matter…the day was perfect.
Met up with Brian later and went on a nice 8 mile bike ride. Then took the family down to the Skippack for a brief creek walk. Tasha (our Labrador) also went along - a rare treat for her as she has arthritis in her hips and legs. I could tell she wanted to run like she did in the days of her youth. But we kept her on the leash and made he take it easy – she’ll be 13 years old in January. Finished the day with a BBQ and board games…Perfect.

Sunday Glass and Brass

I paid a visit to my favorite old dump site this morning. The brush and mosquitoes were thick so I covered myself with Deet and dug for about an hour. Persistence paid off as I pulled 2 nice insulators - one embossed with Ame Tel & Tel Co (American Telephone & Telegraph), a Levengood's Dairy cream bottle, and a small medicine embossed with W.T. & Co USA (Whitall Tatum Co). I later found the medicine bottle to be dated between 1875 to 1901. More likely dated to early 1900, as I have dug many artifacts from this location around that time period. Later in the day I found a brass name plate with the words "Jewett Buffalo" engraved on it. I've just started researching this piece, but I believe it is from an old stove or ice box - again, from around 1900.

Early July Rainbow Adventure

Jenna and I headed back to the Skippack Creek today to enjoy

some fishing and creek walking on Independence day. I caught many small pan fish and one rainbow trout held over from the stocking back in April. The water is starting to clear up nicely - soon fishing will be good in all the creeks and rivers.

Kayak Fishing On The Perkiomen Creek

June is almost a memory. I decided to put the kayak in the Perky this morning. Fishing was not good - the water is still up and muddy from all the rain we've had recently. The paddle up stream was great exercise and the drift down to the landing was peaceful. I saw a few other people on the creek swimming and canoeing, but had the water mostly to myself.

Wet June Means More Detecting

This June has been one of the "wettest" in recent memory. Fishing and Kayaking have been out of the question because of the muddy and high water. I've been spending allot more time detecting - I believe I discovered an old camp site, as I have dug many relics and small coins.

Everything seems to date around the early 1900's.