Independence Day 2015

The Star-Spangled Banner "Oh say can you see by the dawn's early light, What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming, Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight, O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming? And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there; O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave, O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? On the shore dimly seen through the mists of the deep, Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes, What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep, As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses? Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam, In full glory reflected now shines in the stream: 'Tis the star-spangled banner, O! long may it wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave. And where is that band who so vauntingly swore That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion, A home and a country, should leave us no more? Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution. No refuge could save the hireling and slave From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave: And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave, O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave. O thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand Between their loved homes and the war's desolation. Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the Heav'n rescued land Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation! Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, And this be our motto: "In God is our trust." And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!"                       -Francis Scott Key                                             1814

Norway Trip 2015 no. 3

Evenin' Folks,

  I've got some more scenery photos from our trip.  I hope you're not sick of them yet!  I'll have more fishing posts up soon.

  Tight lines,

    -Nick

More stunning scenery from the train traveling from Bergen to Oslo.

The end of a fjord off in the distance.  I loved the shadow of the clouds on the mountainside. 

So many places here that I could easily and happily call home!

The Oslo Cathedral was originally built here in 1694.  This corner sculpture was brought from the first church in Oslo and, if memory serves, is getting close to being 1000 years old! Unfortunately, I forgot to get a picture of the church!

The only fish I saw in Oslo, that wasn't on a plate or in a grocer's case!

Built in 1825 and containing 173 rooms, this is Norway's Royal palace.

I love all the masts in the harbor.  No idea who the person is that walked into my shot, but it just seemed to work.

Walls of the 13th century Akershus Fortress.

The Alfred Nobel museum, the father of dynamite and the founder of the Nobel Peace Prize.

11pm overlooking Oslo in the rain.

I was quite admittedly fascinated with the fact that we had an operable window...on the 7th floor!

Another beautiful sailing ship in the Oslo harbor.

A Loft Storehouse from around 1750 located at the Norsk Folkemuseum.  Many old buildings were moved to the grounds to be preserved.

A Stave Church ca. 1200!

The interior of the Stave Church was far more ornate and decorated than I expected.

The detail is incredible.  Those small portholes are the only source of light inside the church.

Amazingly intricate carving around the door.

There is a small working farm within the Folkemuseum!

Norway Trip 2015 no. 1

Afternoon Folks,

Orvis 9'-6" Frequent Flyer Rod.

  As I write this post we are on an electric train heading south from Bergen to Oslo on our Great Norwegian Adventure.  Leaving from Atlanta on Friday morning we've endured about 30 hours of travel time, between flights and layovers.  We spent two nights in a beautiful, historic hotel in Bergen that, when built in 1928, was the most luxurious hotel in the city.  From Bergen we took a ferry through the fjords to Flåm where we hopped a train to start heading toward Oslo.  If you follow The Suburban Angler on any of the social media outlets then you've heard me say this before, the scenery here beyond every turn is absolutely stunning!  Even riding on a commuter type train, the time seems to pass quickly because you’re constantly looking out the windows and taking pictures.  We spent last night in the ski town of Geilo.  It is amazing to think that back home in mid-May the temperatures are in the upper 80s and creeping close to 90, but in Geilo there is still 3 feet of snow on the ground!  We’re going to be in Oslo now for about a day and a half before we head on to Stockholm, Sweden.  There is a park in the city, almost a wildlife preserve, that is set aside for all sorts of outdoor activities called Oslomarka.  I've got my Orvis Frequent Flyer rod and a box full of flies in my suitcase, so I’m really hoping to get out and do some fishing while we’re here.  If there’s any luck I’ll have some fish pictures in an upcoming update!  I’m going to keep this post short and just share a bunch of photos.  I hope you enjoy and let me know what you think.

  I hope you’re all doing well,

    Stramme Linjer (Tight Lines),

         Nick

After our layover in Oslo and heading to Bergen.

Funny bathroom doors in the Bergen airport. No question where these doors lead, is there?

Norway has more than 50,000 islands and over 83,000 km of coastline!

The lobby of the beautiful and historic Terminus Hotel in Bergen.

On Saturday night many Norwegians eat pizza or tacos for dinner.  We opted for pizza from Dolly Dimple's and it was really good!

The view across the wharf to the Hanseatic buildings of Bryggen, established in 1360.

Aboard the Fløibanen, the funicular railroad, above Bergen.

The Rhododendron are in full bloom!!

Imagine living here, overlooking the city?

This would be your view! Bergen is the second largest city in Norway and, of course, surrounds the end of a fjord.

The Troll is a mythical Norse creature deeply rooted in Scandinavian folklore going back to the 9th century.

A cherry tree in front of the fountain in Lille Lungegårdsvann just before a rain shower.

Dinner at Pingvinen (Penguin).  House made lamb sausages with foraged wild garlic, pureed celeriac, pickled red onions, broccoli and cauliflower.  Traditional Norwegian cooking!

 

The local suds!

Artwork by Karen Bit Vejle at the Bryggens Museum.  This is hand-cut with scissors from one sheet of paper!

A reconstructed section of the Bryggen Ship, including original pieces found during excavations of Bryggen after a fire in the 1950s.  The ship was presumed dismantled and the wood used to build foundations to reconstruct the town after a fire in 1248 (!!!).

Another shot of the Hanseatic shops.  Its hard to see in the picture, but the door and window frames on the ground floor are all about 15 degrees out of plumb!  You would be too, if you stood in the same spot for 300 years!!!

Taken outside our hotel in Bergen to show how light the sky was on a rainy evening.  The photo was taken around 10pm!  We are too early in the year for the midnight sun, but the nights are definitely shorter around here!

The front of our hotel, the Grand Terminus Bergen, built in 1928.

Fish, Local History, and Fish!

 Afternoon Folks,
  I haven't gotten around to posting in a while, so this one's a bit pic heavy.  Because of that, I'll try to keep the rambling short!  I've been fishing every chance I get lately and the Little Girl and I have been checking out some of the historical places we have here in North Georgia.  So, even though I'm out of school for the summer, we're still staying pretty busy.

Antiques are another of my passions. 

  The first set of pictures is from an evening in the kayak on Lake Lanier.  I caught a few little bluegills, but the fishing didn't seem to be too good.  The lake seems a lot busier this year, I'm having a more difficult time finding quiet places to fish without jet skis and speed boats flying by the whole time.  I'm still exploring some of the different areas of the lake, hopefully soon I'll find a good, quiet, fishy spot all to myself!
  The next few pictures are from a little day trip we took up toward Helen, Georgia.  We spent a few hours walking around the North Georgia Zoo and Wildlife Wonders park.  The Little Girl bonded with some young Pygmy Goats that were ready to adopt us.  If we had a bigger backyard, I wouldn't have been opposed to bringing a couple home myself.  I'm a little more partial to the chickens and miniature donkeys though.  After a wonderful German lunch at Hofer's in Helen, we stopped at Nora Mills Granary to feed the trout by the dam.  This stretch of river is owned by the mill, no fishing is allowed unless guided by one of the Unicoi Outfitters guides, catch and release only.  I'd love to do it, but I'm in no position to pay for fishing!  We ended up getting a tour of the mill, samples of the grits and had to buy a few pounds of assorted grains before we left!  A great little roadside stop, you should really check it out if you're ever in the area.  And, don't forget the trout above the dam, they put on a better show!
  I've got some pretty good fish pictures next.  I've been fishing Suwanee Creek a lot to avoid the traffic on Lake Lanier.  I found a pretty good hole where the creek doglegs and it seems to hold a good many bluegills.  The last time I was out there was  a beaver swimming around checking things out.  I think that's a good sign for the health of the creek!
  Lastly are some pictures of the historic Poole's Mill covered bridge outside of Cumming, Georgia.  It was a very picturesque spot and I look forward to going back with the kayak and a flyrod!  I do hate to see so much graffiti on a historical landmark, some people have no respect. I am fascinated with the milling marks on the old timbers and love that it's all peg construction!
  I hope you're all doing well, and that I didn't ramble too much for you!  Enjoy the pictures and get out and explore the fishing holes and history in your backyard!
  Tight lines!
      -Nick
  
 
 

I won a 3-month subscription to PostFly Box on Instagram. Each shipment includes a sticker, so I found an appropriate place for it!

A nice bluegill on a white popper taken kayak fishing on Lake Lanier.

Another nice little bluegill.

Just a fly-keeper shot.

Two week old Pygmy Goat kids nursing on the Little Girl's fingers at the North Georgia Zoo and Wildlife Wonders park.

A look back downstream at the Granary building.

A view upstream on the Chattahoochee River from Nora Mills Granary looking above the dam.

The hand-built log dam at Nora Mills Granary.  This is the last privately owned dam on Chattahoochee River. There's been a dam on this spot for over 150 years!

Did you know that the phrases "a damsel in distress" and "keep your nose to the grindstone" both originated in stone ground grain mills?

I know I've said this before, but I have a major fascination with water-powered mills!

They may be tough to see, but these are the trout below the dam at Nora Mills Granary.  I stopped counting at 20!

A good looking Suwanee Creek 'gill.

Another good Suwanee Creek fish, possibly the biggest yet!

Trying to shake the popper! Beautiful colors on this Suwanee Creek bluegill.

My favorite hole on Suwanee Creek.  Makes casting tough.

The aquarium at the Macon, GA Bass Pro Shop.

A monster Bluegill in the Bass Pro aquarium.

The vintage fly display at Bass Pro Macon.

Beautiful bridge.  The center support was added recently to shore up the sagging bridge.

100 year old milling marks.

The underside of the bridge.

The bridge from upstream.  You know there's fish in that water!