Stocker Trout

I've been fairly busy these days. This past Saturday was the Fall trout opener here in Illinois. They stocked the lake down the street from me after they stocked it with a bunch of rainbow trout. The lakes been closed for 2 weeks, and now it's finally open. With the sun going down around 6:30 PM, it's only logical to fish this lake after work during the week, and now that it's stocked with trout, for as long as they last....Bonus!

That bucket has only seen a handful of fish in it's life.

Made it out on a dreary Monday evening just as the sun was starting to set. There were a ton of guys, but I was lucky and was able to get my favorite spot on the lake. I am usually 95% catch and release, but I paid for the inland trout stamp this year, because, I wanted to give these stockers a go in the kitchen. I didn't feel all too bad about it, because, it was either me or someone else taking these trout home. So, why the heck not, right!

Next stop for this rainbow...my dinner plate.

Musky Lures

Found some big 'ole lures!

This first one I will never use, but it it definitely cool. It's a hand made, hand painted, and designed musky lure from the Lake St. Clair Muskie Guides. An ex-girlfriend of mine bought it for me, as a gift. While I will never use this lure, it's still pretty cool, and I am sort of a tackle junkie. 

This top water lure on the hand, I want to use. I bought this at a local Musky Show last year. The only problem I currently have with this lure is, I don't have a rod & reel set up to handle the size. Maybe next year...or maybe it'll just stay a decorative piece.

Eastern Tiger Salamander

************CORRECTION************

I was recently informed that this was not the species of salamander I thought. I was told that this is an Eastern Tiger Salamander. 

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Found this little guy wandering around one of my buildings at work without a security pass. At first I thought it was just a little pile of dust. When I crouched down by it, to my surprise, it started to move. A salamander-HA! I scooped him up in a container that I got from the cafeteria, and he became my office pet for part of the day.

I scooped him up in a container I got from the cafeteria, and it became my office pet for the day. I put a small amount of water with him inside of the container, and poked a bunch of holes in the top for air. I was also able to get all of the dust, and lint that it collected off.

Google helped me ID the type of salamander this little guy was - a Slimy Salamander. Apparently, they are very common, and a few of my coworkers were all telling me stories of how they all used to find them, and now their kids find them. This was a first for me.

After some research on the habitat, I released the little guy back outside of the door where I think he snuck in from. Hopefully, he was able to find his way back to Momma or where ever it lives.

Saw a Cardinal right after I released the salamander.