We're Outdoorsmen

I’d be lying if I said the thought didn’t cross my mind, if even for a moment, but pushing back our opening day weekend to avoid what was looking like a certain washout would have bucked decades of tradition. The line my uncle said over the phone that finally put any notion to bed was, “We’re outdoorsmen.” He was right. Fuck the forecast. We were going when we always go and we were going to enjoy ourselves no matter the conditions. 

It’s funny how things work out because we ended up with two days of better than expected weather before any rain fell and the following weekend was a soaker anyway (ask my buddy Chad who camped along a Natchaug River well over its banks). Our deluge eventually came on Friday night, yet by then we had camp pretty damn tight with ample pop-up tents, tarps, and cordage, as well as a signal fire going throughout.

As it tends to be, the food on this trip was a highlight. Aaron made an incredible paella for dinner on night one that included Bluefin tuna from Cape Cod and fresh clams and mussels. Uncle D rolled out venison backstraps the next night from a trophy buck he took on state land back in muzzleloader season. It was paired well with delicious morels and black trumpets that he picked last spring, dehydrated, and saved for this very moment. Both nights also featured a charcuterie and cheese board and bourbon selection (thanks Tommy) that seemed to reach a new level this year.

The trip falling on Easter weekend threw us a bit of a curveball. We cut things short by a night so we could spend the holiday with our families. That turned a weekend that is typically light on fishing even lighter, but at least the spot where we did wet a line was new water for three of the four in our group. My uncle was the only one who had fished there before and it was fitting that he caught the lone trout of the trip to remind us what a holdover looked like.

We hung around well into Saturday afternoon with a slow breakdown of camp, partly to savor the moment and partly hoping our wet gear would dry out a little. Despite the rain, one less night, and an onslaught of ticks (four surgeries were performed via hemostat), it was another awesome opening day celebration. Regardless of what Mother Nature throws at us, we’ll be going back every third weekend in April. After all, we’re outdoorsmen.

A little hardwood for the fire.

Flowers for our hosts.

Camp life.

The important food groups.

Fire-cooked paella.

Connecticut-grown venison and shrooms on cast iron.

Best breakfast sandwich I've ever had.

The core.

Uncle D showing us he's still got it.

Ready for the rain (photo credit Aaron Swanson).

It finally came in buckets.

Farewell franks. Until next year...

Go Time

It's the eve before our favorite trip of the year and even Mother Nature's belated April fool's joke of snow this morning could not spoil it. The traditional opener of Connecticut's trout season is just days away and we are going to celebrate on the banks of the Farmington River the best way we know how, by camping, fishing, eating and drinking with good friends and family.

It's funny the way anticipation for this trip always builds weeks in advance--time seems to slow to a helgramite's pace just before we leave and then shifts to warp speed when we're actually there. To set the table for another memorable celebration of spring, here are some posts from the last few Opening Days: 2013, 2012, 2011, and 2010.

Tight lines!

What it's all about!

Eat Like Kings

One of the most anticipated things about Opening Day weekend is the top-shelf food consumed in camp. For three nights and four days, if we are not fishing or sleeping, we are eating or preparing the next meal. It's three square meals a day all weekend, but it's broken up into two breakfasts and a monster dinner. We forgo eating lunch to fish during the bulk of the day, then go to town on appetizers and the main course late into the night.

Breakfast sandwiches and bowls of Cheerios with bananas are always on the morning menu. The dinners and appetizers are where we change it up a little bit from year to year. This Opening Day consisted of paella (a Spanish rice dish) served with clams on night one. We kept it simple on night two in the pouring rain with natural casing hot dogs topped with kraut. Then the grand finale was the classic steak with baked potatoes.

Fresh seafood made up most of our apps. This year's sampling included clams from Long Island Sound, oysters from Point Judith Pond and sea scallops form George's Bank. Of course you can't overlook the serious cheese spread that was cut up each night.

A little excessive for a camping trip?  Probably, but then again Opening Day isn't just any old camping trip! All this food and camp talk has me already looking forward to next year...

A nice cheese spread with my late Grandfather's KA-BAR.

  

Top neck clams fresh from Long Island Sound.

Clams on ice waiting to go down the hatch.

My uncle preparing his famous roasted oyster dish.

Big boy steaks over an indian fire with potatoes baking in the coals.

 

Kurt prepping ingredients for the paella dish.

Sea scallops wrapped with bacon held together by tooth picks whittled in a pinch.

Slicing up natural casing hot dogs before they go over the fire.