Pond Boss Forums INTRO Bob Lusk's blog New travels....

Well, after the conference, I headed home that Sunday, with Bruce Condello. I gave him the quick tour of our place, shoved him out of the truck, wished him luck, and I headed out to run errands. The guy caught more than 100 fish in less than 4 hours. We made a burnt offering of chicken and pork on the grill...and headed back to DFW Airport, for a short night's rest and early morning flights. He headed back to Nebraska, I headed to North Carolina for the week. Got lots done during the week, highlighted by seine samples of Richmond Mill Lake and receiving 4400 pounds of feed trained bass. During that week, I was able to communicate with Dr. Griffin (I was in a boat, sampling fish) and place one of the first orders for their new Aquamax Largemouth (I'll post on Q&O in a minute). We spent a fair amount of time observing bass feed, weighing and measuring and taking some data on the water quality and temperature. Home Saturday after a short flight delay (normal...weather).
Spent Monday and Tuesday totally focused on writing May/June Pond Boss...which will be late, by the way.
Next, headed to Memphis, Tennessee to meet with Robert Chandler and Bill Dance to learn more about their Signature Lake's program. They are interested in working with a number of lake management companies around the nation. Was there on Wednesday. More on that, when the time is right.
Headed west Wednesday night, stopped in Lonoke, spent the rest of the night and arose early Thursday to pick up some fingerling bluegill and redear, with fathead minnows to stock two lakes near home base. Got that done on Thursday evening, home about 7 p.m.
Spent part of Friday delivering tilapia we overwintered, consulting with a local client, then heading into Oklahoma to refresh a long time relationship with Shane Howell and Barry Rolfing. These guys are part of a family owned wildlife and fishing mecca in the Arbuckle mountains...I will write about their pristine, gorgeous 75 acre spring fed lake, and their 30 acre trophy bass lake...both of which we stocked 5 years ago. They want to step up their management a notch...maybe headed to "world class" management. Will keep you posted.
Tomorrow will be spent mostly in the office, organizing and scheduling the remainder of the month.
I do get to do something else quite fun this week. I have been invited to be a judge for the giant Toyota Classic at Lake Fork. It's a $1,000,000 bass tournament and I get to be one of about 40 judges who get to tag along in a boat with pro bass fishermen. My job will be to weigh and measure their bass, so the fish can be released, rather than dragged to a weigh-in. The tournament is Friday-Sunday. Some of it will be televised.
I love my life....

The Toyota Texas Bass Classic at Lake Fork was a blast. I had never attended a bass tournament from the angler's perspective. My job, as a volunteer, was to be a judge. The tournament format was unique...40 teams of four anglers...the best 160 professional bass fishermen from all over the world. The top 40 were team captains, the next 40 were "B" anglers, the next 40 were "C", and so on. Each team had a team captain with a "B", "C" and "D" angler. The teams met, plotted strategies and went fishing. I have to tell you, from my perspective, that most of the work these guys do is well before they hit the lake. They study maps, learn about the fishery, "Google" a lot, and spend lots of time studying. They watch weather forecasts, get their gear in order and prepare. Then, they practice. When it comes time to actually fish, that's what they do. Just like you and I. They throw, a lot. They make simple adjustments, such as subtle color changes of bait. But, they backlash their reels just like the rest of us, they hang up just like the rest of us, and they cast like most of us. I was in the boat with four different teams over two days and saw lots of fascinating things. Not one team had the same strategy as any of the others I was with. But, they all have some things in common. First, when they hang up, they go get the bait rather than break it of and re-tie. I asked each one why they do that and each one, to the man, said it was faster. They can use the trolling motor and go get a hung bait faster than they can break and re-tie one. Never mind they may be running over the top of good fish. "There's more water." Another similarity...they all BELIEVE in what they are doing. They believe the giant swim bait will catch a giant fish...while another believes the crankbait he is throwing will catch that crucial fish. Still, two other guys fishing in tandem would double-team fish. One guy would have a fish hit short on a six-foot diving crank bait and his teammate would come right behind in the same area with a senko. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. One team, with Randy Howell as captain, was one fish short of the limit. (The angler would catch a fish, hand it to the judge in their boat, the judge would weigh it on hand held boga-grip scales, round down to the nearest quarter-pound, show it to the angler, who would agree, then the angler would take the fish and release it. Then, our job as judge was to call in the weight to scoring headquarters, who would record and post it on the leader board.) Howell and his partner, Mike O'Shea, headed toward weigh-in headquarters..about a fifteen minute boat ride. With the lake fairly flat that day, we got there about six minutes faster than they predicted. So, we idled to a nearby cove. O'Shea needed one more fish for his fifth fish and Howell was interested in "culling" with a bigger fish. Nothing. With about a minute to spare, O'Shea made one last cast to the left of a private boat dock. Bam! He nails a four pound bass! With high fives, the boat roared to life. I weighed the bass, Mike released it, and we raced to the weigh-in site. It was exciting, to watch these guys "work." That single fish moved them six places up the leader board and pushed them near enough to the top to be able to compete for big money. That night, we had a heavy line of showers on the leading edge of a cold front. Tornados ripped through north-central Texas, one funnel cloud several miles north of the motel where I stayed. But, the front pushed through and on its heels we had 25-35 mph winds. Lake Fork had a wind warning posted. It was dangerous. This lake had two to four foot waves. I saw breakers hitting jetties and throwing water 10 feet high. I would never go out on a lake under these conditions. 46 degrees, winds, waves. There was no discussion at all about the weather. Everyone bundled up, got in their assigned boats and we took off. I was with the team which eventually won the tournament. James Niggemeyer and Frank Ippolito decided to brave the waves and go about six miles up the lake. I have never been in a 21 foot BassCat traveling 40 mph diagonally across these waves. We "caught air" about every sixth wave. It was exhilarating and fun and scary at the same time. Jumping a wave was a ball, but the pounding we took at the bottom made my butt and back sore for two days. It's hard to describe the sound a boat makes when it hits the bottom of the wave. The only "problem" was when I heard Niggemeyer say, "Uh, oh.." I was sitting in the middle, between Niggemeyer and Ippolito. The boat was about five feet in the air and came down nose first, sending a wave over the top and adding about six inches of water into the boat. My Pond Boss cap was soaked. Thank goodness for rainsuits. Otherwise, the rest of the day would have been miserable. That ride was more fun than Six-Flags.
After the tournament, the Princess Debbie had made up her mind that we would be spending the night in the construction zone we affectionately call "Lusk Lodge, Two." Heck, I wanted to sleep there, too, but not until the staircase was finished and the electricians had put in the rest of the fixtures. But, the princess, being the princess, was persistently manipulatively controlling enough to gain her wish. We took three beds to the construction zone we call, "Lusk Lodge, Two" and we spent Sunday night. It was quite a reward to be able to come back "home." You never know how much you love something or someone until you don't have it any more. Spending that first night was relaxing and energizing. Never mind the kids had to climb two thirds to the top of the staircase, then step onto a sheet of plywood with 2x 4" nailed horizontally on it, take about four more steps, then sit on the second floor, pivot and get up. By the third day, the staircase was finished. Now, the inside is nearing completion and we move construction to outside trim and work to finish up. But, we are finally home, 522 days after Lusk Lodge, One, burned to the ground. We are moved, and have said "adios" to the rent house in Whitesboro. Prayers answered.
In the meantime, there has been lots of fisheries work. Personally, I have electrofished several lakes in the Texas Panhandle, been to Arkansas, Oklahoma and Tennessee, consulting, stocking and doing management things. Looked at a potential 100 acre lake site in a gorgeous setting in south central Oklahoma, near Atoka. Spent time accepting a load of feed-trained bass east of Memphis, Tennessee for a Ray Scott Legacy Lake Client.
Now, I am in North Carolina, awaiting Outdoor TV Show host Alan Warren and his crew. They called several months ago, intrigued with what we are doing at Richmond Mill Lake. Zach Sweeney will be here later today to adjust some feeders and play a role with the TV shoot. Sweeney is one of Alan Warren's sponsors. Warren arrives Saturday and we begin shooting Sunday and continue Monday. His plans are to get several story lines for his television show. Speaking of television shows, mark your calendar for June 4. For those of you with satellite TV service, Purina Mills has asked me to participate with them on a monthly call-in TV show on RFD-TV that night. We have been meeting and and talking about the format and structure of the show. We will be talking about pond management and feeding fish, of course. The show is broadcast live from Nashville, Tennessee.
So, there you have it, dear pondmeisters. The latest and greatest...
Oh, by the way...thanks to our layout guru and print magician, Jim Stroud. He graciously received Pond Boss' words and photos about three weeks late, burned too much midnight oil and got the magazine out on time. It was mailed when we normally mail. He is a genuine gem of a man and was able to pull out all the stops to get the thing out way too fast. This latest issue highlights the Pond Boss conference (which it should) and has all the latest, most up-to-datest stuff you might need for making a better pond.
Fish on....

Since May 3, our lives (especially mine) have been a whirlwind. Princess Debbie continues to focus on completing the house. It really is a cool place to hang out. You all must come see it, once we are ready for company. Another month or two and we'll be finished, totally.
The last 17 days have been filled with activity. Alan Warren made it to Richmond Mill Lake in North Carolina and stayed three days, shooting lots of video footage while catching hundreds of bass. It was an intriguing opportunity. I have no idea what goes into the making of a tv show, and we all learned mucho. Alan brought his cameraman, (his younger brother) and went to work. We spent several hours the evening he arrived to work out his script and agenda. The next day, we went to "work," shooting. He used the camera from several different angles to give the viewer the perception there were three cameras instead of one. The footage he shot will be edited several months from now to be made into two or three different shows for the 2008 schedule.
I got home from North Carolina May 10 and immediately focused on local fish deliveries. We have had abundant rains recently, filling most of the ponds which had lingered in a three or four year drought.
Please welcome Walter Bassano. Walter was Pond Boss' very first office manager, in 1995, three years after the birth of the magazine. In 1996, Walter had a great job opportunity with one of his lifelong friends to help with public relations for a chain of fast food restaurants in Texas. So, Walter headed to Midland, Texas and plodded the ground there for 10 years. I saw Walter for the first time in those years at the PB conference in Arlington, found out his boss/friend had died and Walter was looking for another opportunity. I hired him to help guide my consulting and fisheries business. I'm not too good at taking care of details. Walter specializes in that. Chad handles the field work. Looks like a good combination to me.
Last Monday, Purina Mills' nutritionist, Dr. Mark Griffin, made his way to Lusk Lodge, two, along with Max Fisher, Purina's media and television consultant to film some b-roll and stand-up stuff for our upcoming RFD-TV Monday Night Live television broadcast. So, tune in June 4 (if you have satellite) and watch. I've seen dvd's of other Purina broadcasts. For the first 15-20 minutes, the subject of the show is explained through talk and video footage. This show, which airs at 7 pm June 4, is about pond management. Purina's Dr. Gordon Ballam, Dr. Griffin and I will be around a table, talking about pond management. Then, around 7:20, they will take callers' questions. So, call in and ask some questions about pond management, feeding fish, fish nutrition, etc.
The show will be broadcast from Nashville, Tennessee. The channel is RFD.....
I just booked the flight. From there, I go straight to Minneapolis, rent a car and drive to International Falls, Mn, to meet up with Ray Scott and his entourage to go fishing in Canada, just like we did last year. That trip begins June 4 and ends June 10. Smallmouth, walleye and northern pike are the creatures of this pursuit...although I look forward to the camaraderie as much or more than the fishing.
Today, after church, I head to Monroe, Louisiana to meet up with charter Pond Boss subscriber, Dr. Jim Geisler. He has a great 30 acre lake in the area, and I consult with him every May to help guide the direction his lake takes. He is a gentleman and avid pondmeister. Then, Monday afternoon, I head south of Shreveport to consult with Sims Calhoun, another of Pond Boss' finest. We met face to face at the PB conference, and he owns a 30 acre lake which is used as a fishing club. Then, Tuesday, I meet with Larry Hughston to work on a private club lake in east Texas.
Last week I was able to drive to Memphis, Tennessee and take a look at some of the bass we recently stocked in a Ray Scott Legacy lake. The owner was a bit concerned with some red spots on the bass. I caught ten on ten casts. Yessir, they did have some red, bruises which were healing from the trip. When fish are harvested, held for a few days in a confined vat, loaded onto a truck and incarcerated for another 12 hours or so, it's tough on them. Those stressors lead to bumps and bruises, loss of slime and sometimes death. But, these fish were healing nicely, with no ill effects.
That was Tuesday. Then, Wednesday, I met with Robert Chandler and Bill Dance, to talk about what they are doing with their Signature Lake opportunities. They are building a business model that will work. They wanted my thoughts. Got home Thursday morning, and prepared the vat shed for fish. Chad brought in a load of fish to distribute to small pond owners west of us. Friday, I taught at a field day in Windthorst, Texas and headed to Mineral Wells, to deliver a few fish and have dinner with my uncle and aunt, and a cousin. Home by 10:30.
Somewhere amongst all this fun I have to finish writing and editing our favorite magazine to get the next one out on time.
So, there you have it...the last two or so weeks of an active and fervent lifestyle. Come hang out with me for a few days.

The June 4 RFD-TV live show was a blast. Purina Mills has promised to send a few dvd's and told me we can copy and send them out, if we want. The show started off with introductions. Dr. Ballam and Dr. Griffin and I told who we are and what we do. Then, the host talked about us and asked a few questions about pond management. Then, about 15 minutes into the show, we started taking callers. While the callers were asking and we were answering, the producer, Max Fisher, was showing B-roll of the activities our callers wanted to know. In all, we took 21 callers. After the show, we celebrated with Stag's Leap and a burnt offering of red meat at a nice restaurant in downtown Nashville, at the old stockyards.
Then, back to the hotel, up at 4 a.m. to catch a 6 o'clock flight to Minneapolis, connecting through Chicago. Rented a car in Minneapolis for the five hour drive to International Falls. There, I met up with Ray Scott, his right hand man, Jim Kientz and the rest of our group to drive across the border and catch a float plane to Lac LaCroix for five days of smallmouth bass fishing and meetings in boats and politicing. It was a blast, as well as fruitful. We stayed at Campbell's Cabins, and fished with guides each day.
I am thinking of a Pond Boss trip there next summer. If anyone is immediately interested, email me now and let me know. I was thinking a small retreat, maybe 15-20 people...depending on what you all want to do. Hang out, fish, cook out, maybe hold a little seminar... Anyone interested?
Anyway, got to meet and fish with Dale Hall, the director of the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Intriguing fellow, Mr. Hall. He has agreed to speak at next year's Pond Boss conference. We haven't set the dates, yet, but we will soon.
Fishing was good, no, it was great. Eric West was able to come and spend some time on the water. I fished with Eric the first day. He is an outstanding fisherman. While I was measuring my line by pulling out a bird nest, Eric was giggling and catching bass after bass. Finally, I got into the hunt, too, and we caught lots of bass.
The time with Ray Scott, Eric West and Dale Hall was fruitful and enlightening. I learned a lot.
After the week, we dispensed. Caught a float plane back to Fort Francis, then a van through customs, back to International Falls. From there, south to Minneapolis. I had a little time to kill, so headed to the Mall of the Americas to see what it was all about. Intriguing place. Spent three hours there and headed to the airport.
The next few days were focused on finishing July/August Pond Boss. (I should have finished before the trip, but just didn't make it.)
Then, I headed to North Carolina on June 17. Took the princess and Ashley with me. I did what I do, working with the Morgan Company and Richmond Mill Lake while Debbie and Ashley were abot to vacation.
Arrived home Sunday, 2 a.m. Flying is an artform and a game.
While in North Carolina, our area received a monsoon style rain event. Flash flooding took several lives in Gainesville, about 20 miles to the southwest. There was flooding around Whitesboro and Sherman, also. But, where we are, we were spared the intense rain. We got 4 inches from that event, where the flooded areas received 8 to 12 inches in three hours.
Now, it's time to catch up on emails and phone calls. By the way, I found out that many of my emails are being caught by my server as spam. Our server has had lots of issues in the last few months and some of my emails are not getting through. If you have emailed me without a response, please send again. I spent time with the server company yesterday with their tech support people, trying to find out how to fix the problem. I think it has been resolved. But, if you have emailed me and I didn't respond, send again, please and I will get right back to you.
This week is a light one, and I will begin working on the September/October issue of PB, along with a couple of consultations.
Next week, one of Pond Boss' regular contributors, Mike Mitchell, is coming to Texas to talk about an idea that has been stewing in my mind for several years. I am planning to formally start a "think tank" to be bolstered by seminars here, at stately Lusk Lodge, Two several times a year. My thinking is that people want to know as much about pond management and wildlife as they can get. This is a good place for that. More on that, as it comes together.
So, dear friends, thanks for caring and sharing.
Fish on.
Lusk

Since June 26, life has been a whirlwind. What a great life! Lusk Lodge, Two is a great place to hang out and entertain. But, I haven't been there much. We spent much of the last week of June and the first week of July working on the house and continuing to settle in. Colorado biologist Mike Mitchell made it to town and we spent two good days together talking about the "think tank" concept. I took him to several projects I have been working on, a 75 acre lake in Oklahoma, a 30 acre lake nearby, then Sherman Wyman's newest project.
The second week of July, I headed to North Carolina, where I met up with Mitchell Morton and Shan O'Gorman, with Foster Lake Management Company to electrofish Richmond Mill Lake. Noted writer and editor Dr. Robert Fulton tagged up and tagged along with us. (He has an article in the upcoming Sept/Oct issue of PB)
Two days after returning from NC, the princess Debbie, Ashley and I headed to Monclova, Mexico for a church mission trip with 45 of our church family and friends. I drove the manly Dodge 150 miles into Mexico. Quite an experience. Monclova is a city of about 350,000 people, tucked into a valley surrounded by desert mountains. The economy is fueled by several steel factories along with a few maquiladora plants in the area. I never knew smoke came is so many different colors, spewing from the smokestacks of the mills. We helped build a room onto a church, build a bathroom, pour three driveways and hold vacation Bible school at three different places. We saw some things we have never seen and had some memorable experiences. The Mexican people are clean, humble, good-hearted people, content with their lot in life. They live in small houses in Monclova, and there are several different classes in their society. Driving is a trip in itself, almost funny. You best be watching and stay on alert at all times, or you will be hit.
We got home from the mission trip last Saturday, driving straight through for 17 hours. (The princess had had enough of riding for one day.)
Then, after church on Sunday, I headed toward Columbus, Indiana, to meet up with Tony Stewart to examine his lake on his farm and then go to Ohio, to Eldora Raceway, a dirt track he owns. I listened to the Brickyard 400 at Indy as I drove and Tony won it! I knew the next few days would be interesting. I cut the drive in half, driving the final leg on Monday, arriving about 5 p.m. and heading straight to Tony's farm. I met up with Jody Doles, Tony's property manager, and took some time to take a look at the lake. It covers about 10-12 acres and he has feed trained bass. We fed the fish, caught a few, and took a look at a good number of fish. Then, we toured the property to examine the watershed. Tony's ranch is amongst some steep forested hills. Then, we headed to Tony's house. He had gotten home at 6 a.m. and had slept a good part of the day. Jody's wife, Teresa, was cooking chili, and we met up with a few friends who had come from Alabama to watch the race at Indy. Tony has a show on Sirius radio on Mondays. He has a studio set up in his bedroom, and he let me hang out with him as he did his Monday show. I'll have photos in the Sept/Oct issue of PB. It was huge fun. Then, Tuesday morning, we headed to Ohio, to Eldora Raceway, to electrofish the two ponds. Tony was exhausted from his weekend adventures and chose to rest. Jody and I flew over in Tony's private plane, met up with Jones Fish Farm biologists from near Cincinnati, Ohio and electrofished. Then, we climbed aboard the plane, flew back to Columbus, grabbed Tony and flew to Paducah, Kentucky to watch him race on a dirt track he owns with Dale Earnhardt, Jr and Ken Schrader. It was a blast. Tony is a competitive guy, but a sincere man. We spent time in the pits, in a suite, in the grandstands and all over the race track. I got a personal seminar in dirt track racing from Steve Barnett, one of Tony's early mentors and dear friend. I left Columbus this morning and headed to Tennessee. Took a quick look at a Ray Scott Legacy Lake east of Memphis late this afternoon, now holed up in a hotel room, battling a fever, sore throat and flu-type symptoms.
More, later, as life continues to develop.

Well, here we are, already August 18. Believe it or not, the September/October issue of the magazine is almost finished at the printer. They should finish printing and binding by the end of the week next week...and then it will go to the mail house. I felt so guilty and incompetent about being late with the last one, I busted through and got this one done early. There's some good stuff in it. We have several new advertisers and some exciting things in the magazine.

I spent the second week of August hunkered down, mostly under the radar, at home. The Princess Debbie had plenty for me to do, so we did some of those "honey do" thingys we all hear about. Then, last week I jetted off to North Carolina and spent Monday through Friday at Richmond Mill Lake in Laurel Hill, NC. Got a room near DFW last Sunday, to arise at 4 a.m. to catch a 5:30 flight. Arrived Raleigh at 11:30, after connecting in Atlanta. Got a car and was in Laurel Hill at 2 p.m. Met with landowner and company president, Jim Morgan, and his right hand land manager, Dave Buhler. We exchanged ideas and made plans for the week. At 6 p.m. the Morgan Company business consultants, Dev Pathik, from Tampa, Fla, and Bryan "Goose" Finnerty, of Detroit, Michigan arrived and we continued our meetings. Jim Morgan is developing a plan to host corporate retreats at his gorgeous lake and they are working to build all the necessary infrastructure. In the meantime, it's my job to grow a lake full of the largest bass possible. It's a blast. The lake is 125 acres, built in 1835 with mules, fresnos and shovels. The dam was constructed to harness water for power to turn a grist mill. To make a long story short, Morgan drained this mature, scenic lake in 2001 to renovate the dam. Four years later the lake is full, with 100-150 year old cypress trees, gum trees, rolling upward to several kinds of pines. The lake is stocked (several times) with feed trained bass and are fed all they want. The lake flows heavily, between 7-9,000 gallons per minute cascading over the u-shaped concrete spillway. The water's pH is 5.3 and looks like ice tea. Bass are growing like crazy. If any of you are looking to book a company retreat next year, they are almost ready. It will be fairly high-end, but not outside the scope of what most people pay to have a business retreat. They will be able to sleep up to 12 people in 6 bedrooms and have a conference room large enough for 25-30. The whole concept is centered around "Peace, Privacy and Privilege." Part of the privilege is being able to fish a world class Ray Scott Legacy Lake managed by Bob Lusk.

Tuesday welcomed the arrival of Dr. Mark Griffin, with Land O' Lake Purina Mills. Dr. Griffin had several things to accomplish, so we started with the feeding program. He has developed an exciting new feed, Aquamax Largemouth. Months ago, during the furor over the giant California bass, Dr. Griffin went to a seafood market, bought a 12" rainbow trout, headed back to the lab and analyzed every ounce of the fish. Then, he duplicated the nutritional value of the fish in a pellet, directed at folks who are stocking and feeding those fast growing bass. We met for two days...in a boat. Great venue for a meeting.

Then, on Thursday, we met with the newest intern, who will be in charge of feeding fish, managing the day to day routine of caring for the lake and property.

I caught a rain-delayed flight late yesterday afternoon and made it back to stately Lusk Lodge, Two at 1 a.m.

Tomorrow afternoon, around 5ish, I catch the next flight to Minneapolis, where I head to Wisconsin for two days with Bob Robinson and his Kasco Marine colleagues and most of their top dealers. There will be news from these meetings. Home Wednesday.
I'll check back in with you guys when I get back.

You really should come travel with me. It's a ball.

Some really interesting things are happening. Spent some time with Bill McArdle, from Longview, Texas about ten days ago. Bill made up his mind he was going to buy some land, build a lake, stock it and take care of it. I don't know how much land he looked at before he selected, but his whole process was centered around building a nice lake. I know he has been looking for several years. He found a place just north of Tyler, and has done his due diligence, learning, calculating, talking, interviewing all kinds of experts from engineers, to the NRCS, to earthmovers to fisheries people to foresters. He has done his homework. Now, the bulldozers and loggers are almost finished necessary clearing and the core trench will be built next.
I also visited new client, Chase Palmer, from Marshall, Texas. He and his family live on a 100 acre private lake north of Marshall. The lake is more than 70 years old and has some siltation issues. But, that's not the biggest problem. The biggest issue is hydrilla. Over the last three years, hydrilla has consumed almost 40% of the lake. They are pretty sure they know where it came from. They let a "professional" local fisherman have access to their lake several years ago and they are pretty sure some sprigs of the nasty plant came in on his boat trailer. They had no rules for allowing boat access. That's the consequences. They are contemplating what to do. Probably a combination of herbicides and minimal numbers of grass carp.
Met up with Charlie Bush, from Dallas, at his property near Paris, Texas. Charlie is an industrialist, a manufacturer of cardboard boxes and packaging material. He has a neat, tidy weekend getaway in the country with an existing six acre lake. It has a layer of dead algae on top. It was pretty interesting. The algae died, floated, and clung together in thin mats. It has been so hot that the dead algae dried up, like a thick sheet of coffee colored paper. Touch it, and it's dry as a bone. Pick it up and it tears like paper, but the bottom part in the water is moist. Ironically, all the pondweed beneath was dying. A weird case of dead algae being a natural herbicide. We chose to leave it alone and see what happens. His water temp was near 90. We plan to electrofish his lake this fall. He also has a brand new lake, about three acre. (Near Paris, a "lake" is a "pool") He wants to stock it.
Then, I spent a few days at home.
Pond Boss was mailed on the 27th.
I headed to Mexico Friday, to meet up with Rusty Baker. You will read about his lake in the Nov/Dec issue of the magazine. I have been in the private fisheries business for 28 years and I have never been as excited about a lake project as this one. Read his story in the next PB.
While in Mexico, got to mix a little business with the pleasure. We evaluated the new lake, which amazingly is about 2/3 full...it was empty in April. We "sampled" the old lake and shot a few doves. I left there yesterday morning, and headed north for the short 575 mile drive.
Met up with a real estate broker south of Austin shortly after 1 pm yesterday to look at a piece of property with a 20 acre flood prevention lake on it. One of my clients wanted to know about it.
Got home last night about 8.
Now, checking emails, looking at the website for a few minutes before heading to Lincoln, Nebraska, for the princess' dentist appointment Tuesday and our fabulous/fantastic/fun Pond Boss regional meeting Wednesday.
I'll check in with you guys in another week, or two, or.....
Safe travels!