The "Artist in Residence" Journals with artist Jeff Kennedy from Gates Au Sable Lodge continue with this post and if you missed Journal #1, Journal #2, Journal #3, Journal #4 and Journal #5, circle back to those posts before diving into this one. There is just one more dispatch to go after this one.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2019
I got up a bit later due to the mousing activities that took place the night before. I did some sketching and colored up the George Griffith prints. I wrapped that up and decided to hit the river for a few hours. I was looking forward to today. My wife, Janine would arrive to stay with me for the duration of the residency along with our 13-year-old rescue Greg, who accompanied her on the journey North.
Janine has never visited the Gates Au Sable Lodge and I was grateful that she had time to come up to share the experience with me. We strolled around the lodge and sat on the bench behind the shop overlooking the river. I have spent many a quiet hour sitting on that bench, watching the river flow by and watching trout rise.
We decided to head out and visit Hartwick Pines State Park, which is a 9,672-acre park whose principle feature is the 49-acre of old-growth virgin white pine that escaped logging during Michigan’s 19th-century logging boom. Most of these large giants are 325 years old. Michigan led the nation in lumber production and this intense lumbering is still evident today. Many of the rivers were used as highways to float the logs to the sawmill. Some of these logs are still laying on the river bottoms throughout the region.
The intense logging also aided in the demise of the grayling from the Au Sable River. The town's names sake is no longer, although there are efforts bring back the grayling to Michigan. You can find out more about it on the Michigan Arctic Grayling Initiative website.
Josh invited Janine and me to the Clam Bake BBQ that evening. It was held in the tent which was left standing from the wedding reception that took place over the weekend. Good thing, due to the on and off rain that was in the area. I got to see my friends Gene and John Williams who just returned from a trip to Alaska. It is always a treat to get reacquainted with old friends and discuss our fishing exploits.
Jeff Kennedy unplugged his website but the Drawing Flies 365 blog is a great trip down memory lane. You can follow along with his latest fishing exploits and studio news on Facebook and Instagram.
Gates Au Sable Lodge is on the banks of the Au Sable River outside of Grayling, Michigan and has a longstanding history as a mecca within fly fishing. If you haven't been, plan to go, fish, eat and stay. Following along on Facebook and Instagram is a good idea too.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2019
I got up a bit later due to the mousing activities that took place the night before. I did some sketching and colored up the George Griffith prints. I wrapped that up and decided to hit the river for a few hours. I was looking forward to today. My wife, Janine would arrive to stay with me for the duration of the residency along with our 13-year-old rescue Greg, who accompanied her on the journey North.
Janine has never visited the Gates Au Sable Lodge and I was grateful that she had time to come up to share the experience with me. We strolled around the lodge and sat on the bench behind the shop overlooking the river. I have spent many a quiet hour sitting on that bench, watching the river flow by and watching trout rise.
We decided to head out and visit Hartwick Pines State Park, which is a 9,672-acre park whose principle feature is the 49-acre of old-growth virgin white pine that escaped logging during Michigan’s 19th-century logging boom. Most of these large giants are 325 years old. Michigan led the nation in lumber production and this intense lumbering is still evident today. Many of the rivers were used as highways to float the logs to the sawmill. Some of these logs are still laying on the river bottoms throughout the region.
The intense logging also aided in the demise of the grayling from the Au Sable River. The town's names sake is no longer, although there are efforts bring back the grayling to Michigan. You can find out more about it on the Michigan Arctic Grayling Initiative website.
Josh invited Janine and me to the Clam Bake BBQ that evening. It was held in the tent which was left standing from the wedding reception that took place over the weekend. Good thing, due to the on and off rain that was in the area. I got to see my friends Gene and John Williams who just returned from a trip to Alaska. It is always a treat to get reacquainted with old friends and discuss our fishing exploits.
Jeff Kennedy unplugged his website but the Drawing Flies 365 blog is a great trip down memory lane. You can follow along with his latest fishing exploits and studio news on Facebook and Instagram.
Gates Au Sable Lodge is on the banks of the Au Sable River outside of Grayling, Michigan and has a longstanding history as a mecca within fly fishing. If you haven't been, plan to go, fish, eat and stay. Following along on Facebook and Instagram is a good idea too.
No comments:
Post a Comment