Worth the Wait??

We took advantage of the nice weather Friday evening and caught a few bass from the pond at K&M.  We first stocked the pond in May of 2009, with 28, 6-10 inch largemouth bass and 100 hybrid bluegills.  The bass have done very well, and we finally decided to start taking some fish from the pond for consumption.  We took mainly fish in the 8-12 inch range, but the fishing was hampered a bit by the thunder and lightning that was approaching.  The rain really never came, but we did manage to keep nine fish.  We caught several others that were either too small, or too large.  Once again, Marlys caught the largest fish which was thrown back before we could snap a picture or two.  I'm guessing it was in the 18-inch range, and approximately 4-5 pounds.  

The bluegill have been more elusive, but some have reached a decent size.  Claire kissed this one goodbye before she threw him back in the water.  We have supplemented the pond with additional bluegill stockings in the past, but they seem to have trouble escaping the hungry bass.  This is isn't all bad since we really don't want a high, stunted population of bluegills.  We'll continue to tweak our put-and-take, and try to grow more and bigger bass and bluegills.  For the most part it provides a great opportunity for the kids (and the adults) to catch a lot of fish for some exciting action

Of course, the best part is eating what we caught.  It went over very well, as Kate, Claire, Kellen, and Jack all ate their share.  I'm sure we'll do it again, and if things go well maybe save a little for that Friday night feed before the opener.

Other than that, things have been pretty quiet.  Corn planting will most likely begin this week.  Some rain would be nice, but not much we can do about that.  As long as the avian and canine influenza's that have been hitting certain parts of the country stay at bay, we'll be happy.  With the dry, mild weather things are ahead of schedule, so all we need now is some timely precipitation.  I'm sure Mother Nature will provide and we'll all be singing her praises this fall... we can hope.

Spring has Sprung

The weather has definitely turned Spring-like and even more like Summer on a couple of occasions.  That has allowed me to get some early spring wheat planting done, and begin prepping for the upcoming planting season.  We could use some moisture now, but with no rain or snow in the forecast, we can only hope for those April showers.  In South Dakota that doesn't necessarily mean rain, but snow, and we'll take what we can get.  At the beginning of the month Brandon was able to participate in a coyote calling contest, and was able to call in and kill three coyotes over two days. The weather conditions were not the best, but he did manage to put a small dent in the population and secure second place in the contest.

Other than that, we've been watching a lot of wrestling.  Cordie and Marlys just returned from St. Louis after their inaugural trip to the NCAA Division I wrestling tournament.  It was a great experience, and they definitely plan on making a return trip at some point.  On the home front, Kellen managed to scrape out a third place finish at the Regional tournament in Pierre, which is good enough to earn him a spot in the State tournament in Brookings this weekend, March 28-29.  We were all very proud of his effort and performance in a tough bracket and tournament.

In Like a Lion?

March is here, but winter seems to be hanging on.  I spent a little time in the country this morning.  It was cold, nearly -10, but the sun was warming the earth quickly, and had the birds out and about enjoying the brightness.  Tomorrow, and the next several days look good, with 50-60 degrees forecasted.  We'll be looking forward to it and so will the birds I'm sure.  All in all, the winter has been fairly mild with a few minor stretches of frigid temps and blizzard like conditions, but we've had several January and February thaws.  It won't be long and these snow showers will turn into rain showers and the hens in this picture will be looking for a place to lay a few eggs.

Everything else has been nearly as quiet as the weather, at least in central South Dakota.  We've had some issues with our website lately, and have changed the domain name.  This has been quite a pain in the butt, since we had email addresses attached to it.  So, if you've sent me anything recently, I apologize if I did not respond or if you got a message that said undeliverable.  Our new domain is www.thesnakedenlodge.com.  We'll be making some minor changes, but things will be pretty much staying the same on the website.  If there's something additional that you would like to see, feel free to send me a note.  The old site is still up, so don't be surprised if you come across it.  The old one is just that- old and outdated.  Feel free to check out the new site and "like" us on Facebook if you haven't done so already.  Cordie can be reached by email at schlomer@kennebectelephone.com, and Casey at casey@thesnakedenlodge.com.

Other than that, we've been busy wrestling.  We attended the State High School tournament this past weekend and Kellen will wrestle at his District tournament this weekend.  The top eight will move on to the Region tournament next weekend, and then the top three will wrestle at the State tournament at the end of the month.  Jack has been wrestling also, but has decided to stick to practice for the time being.  He's got plenty of time considering he'll just turn five this month.  I'll do my best to keep you updated.  In addition, Stacie and Mark announced that they'll be adding another grandchild to the mix.  Stacie is due in September, so just in time to show him/her off during the hunting season.