camping in musky country, us of a!

i absolutely love the great outdoors and anything associated with it! :) over the weekend, we went up to the northwoods in vilas county and hunted muskies... and i couldn't have asked for a sweeter more amazing person to have explored and go lake hopping with! j, you are such a trooper!!! what awesome memories!

a fisherwoman is hooked! ;D

while my friend cher and i were hiking rib mountain on a random saturday, she got a text from her boyfriend instructing her to go get them fishing poles and lures because he was going to take her out! obviously, neither of them fish... but this has been something she's been wanting to do for a long time now and it was finally happening! happy belated mother's day to her!

after we wrapped up our walk, and ice cream stop in between, i went with her to gander mountain to buy her fishing license and pick out a couple basic setups sufficient for general fishing to get them started. and somewhere, somehow... i was invited along to "show them the ways." yeah, playing 3rd wheel is not new to me, haha, jk.

that afternoon... with the canoe strapped on the truck and my tacklebox all equipped for a variety of species and ready to go, we were on our way to a secret spot someone had recently told her boyfriend about! once we got there, i insisted on a few practice casts from shore - i wasn't about to get into a canoe with 2 people, one of which has never casted before, haha - and i'm sure glad i did! can you say, DANGER!? lols, jk.

once we were finally in the water... cher was the first to get a strike! (followed by 2 more!) it was quite funny... with the first fish, she glanced at us and nonchalantly said "i think i have one..?" while her boyfriend and i instantaneously exclaimed "...then set the hook!" not realizing she had no idea what that meant. but she still managed to boat the fish! what an exciting feeling it was for her!

although it was a small pike, the look on her face was priceless! moments like these are definitely my favorites... and just like that, a new fisherwoman is hooked! ;D

canoeing down the plover river...

the ice has finally began melting. in an attempt to take advantage of one of the first warm days of spring, N and i dusted off his canoe and opted into enjoying an afternoon adventure down the local plover river.

...somewhere between capturing a few shots of mother nature's oh'mazingness and deftly maneuvering through the [unanticipated] hazards on the water from winter, i managed to tip over the canoe - yes, all 17 feet of it - which also eventually sent the bf and i straight into the river as well! not to mention my poor canon t2i dslr and favorite lens..! womp, womp, womp. and his brand new smartphone (sorry) smh! everything else non-electronics was drenched, but okay - yet, it sure quickly became a very expensive day on the river, haha. river gods, 1... us, 0. but, it was still fun! :)

here are the last shots i was able to capture before i so clumsily fell overboard... i still shed a tear every time i think about it :'( we shared some great memories together, you and i, rip.

on a more positive note, it was 4 months ago today that i decided to explore a new interest :) and i am definitely looking forward to the adventures in store for the days ahead. ahem.