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At the end of last year when the 2017 schedule became finalized, I looked at the places we were going in June and got incredibly excited. We were going to start out in Washington DC for a week and then head to upstate New York to spend 2 weeks on Lake Oneida. I had never been to either of these places and always wanted to go. DC was an awesome place to set up camp for a week and a fun city to explore, but it was hot as blazes down there! I felt so bad for Kigs. The temps were nearing 100° and the humidity was 100%. He really had no interest in doing anything outside so when it was time to head up to New York with a 10 day forecast of highs in the 70’s and lows in the 50’s we couldn’t get out of town fast enough! With every mile north driven through the Appalachian mountains, we could feel the weather finally cool down and dry out. We drove around Oneida, through downtown Sylvan Beach and over to our campground before having our camp set up by 7:00 that night. We stayed at a campground about 10 minutes east of the lake called Treasure Isle RV Park. It’s a family owned and operated business and they run a very clean and secure camp. It was a great place to be set up for the next event.
Since official practice didn’t start until the following Monday, that meant that I was able to get on the water with the boys for the first week. Those guys had me laughing all day long out there with them! During that week we met up with friend and fellow angler, Christina Weber, who was up on Oneida helping Trait Zaldain with her practice for the same event. Trait was kind enough to let me hop in the boat for a bit and snap some pics of them and her new rod line. It was nice to be in a boat with two women for once! Love the boys but there’s a lot of “bro” being thrown around all day and sometimes I need a moment away. Trait and I discovered that both of us were financial analysts in a former life and Christina talked about her upcoming guided kayaking trip in Panama. It’s great to see two women in this industry that have it figured out and are utilizing their personal strengths to create their own successful brands.  Once official practice started, I was banned from the water and had to stay on dry land for the final week. Being on the road, we’ve met some great people who also live the same lifestyle as us. On the FLW Tour we often coordinated campgrounds with angler Carl Jocumsen and his lady Kayla Palaniuk. They are doing the northern leg of the Opens as well and had their Lance Camper set up in the same campground. Kayla and I have been keeping each other sane during tourney weeks this year and we like to go adventuring when the weather allows or hang with the pups when we have free time during our days. This week, however, it was my mission to take out my drone and finally get it in the air. A few months ago I purchased the DJI Phantom 4 Pro and it’s sat in the box ever since. There was an incident in LaCrosse where I almost landed a dear friends drone in the middle of the Mississippi River due to a battery issue, so I’ve been a little gun shy when it comes to flying my own. The joke has been on me though because I’m only holding myself back by not learning how to fly it. The campground we were staying at was one that had a very open layout, meaning that the only trees were around the perimeter of the property. This made for the perfect landscape for my first flight. I could take her up in the air with few obstacles to worry about. After going up and taking a look around, I knew that a new obsession had just developed. I hit the record button to try to capture as much footage as possible. When I took it down and looked at what I had, it became clear that I could easily whip up a quick aerial tour/camper setup video with what little footage I had. It was so much fun to fly that thing and I will definitely be taking it out more often in the future!  When I wasn’t flying my drone, I was attempting to perfect the Italian sandwich. In each location we visit, I try to take the local cuisine and re-create something in the camper. According to Josh and Chad, I found the perfect combination. The traditional sandwich comes on Italian bread, naturally. However, I found that using a sweet onion bun added wonderfully to the flavor explosion that you get with the hefty meat selection. I’m super peeved at myself for never getting an actual photo of the final creation. I’m going to have to find the equivalent of what I used because it was just too good not to share! The great thing about this tournament is that it is on a smallmouth bass fishery which fits right into my husbands wheel house. The first day was on Thursday and Josh managed to land himself in 5th place. Friday was his birthday and we had super good vibes going into it. He went out and did what he had to do ending the day in 8th place which meant he got to fish Day 3! A spot reserved for only the top 12 competitors. Day 3 is always great because at the end of the day, no matter how you fished, you still leave with a much needed check! After everyone weighed in their fish, Josh finished in 9th place! Way to go babe! Our time in New York was a blast and we can’t wait to go back. For now, we get a few days at home before we have to turn right back around and go to Orlando for the ICAST convention. Yay! Florida in July! 😬
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Hey there -I'm Bri! Lover of food, wine, and photography that is currently traveling with my professional bass fishing husband along with our cantankerous rottie, Kigen. When not traveling you can find me living the lake life off the shores of Lake Mille Lacs in Isle, MN. Pour a drink, pull up a chair and join me as I journey across the country documenting it all along the way! Archives
July 2017
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