Summer Camping/Fishing Trip...

The Whitetop Laurel Creek begins in the mountains of southwestern Virginia and flows down to the small town of Damascus. Along the way it is joined by a number of other streams and eventually ends up in the Holston River. I drove from Louisville to Damascus early this week to get in a few days of fishing... and to take "Sacerdos 1" on her maiden camping trip. I must say that the fishing, as well as the overnight camping were excellent. The scenery in the mountains was beautiful, and the truck proved to be a suitable home. The mountains have received more than their share of rain this year, and the river was up and rusty in color. With a storm the day I got there, and one overnight, the river was on the rise. This didn't keep me from catching about a half-dozen wild rainbow trout in the 12" range. The wild fish always seem to have the brightest colors and the most fight in them. The rainbows lived up to their reputation of being fantastic jumpers when caught, leaping out of the water. Another notable thing about the trip was the tremendous access that the stream enjoys. The "Virginia Creeper" trail (a former railroad right-of-way that was converted into a 30+ mile biking/hiking trail) parallels the river for quite a while and provides some great access for fishermen. The Appalachian Trail also utilizes part of this right-of-way as well, before it disappears into the rhododendron of the mountains. Here's some pics:

One of the many existing trestles spanning the creek on the "Virginia Creeper Trail:"


A beautiful wild rainbow trout:


"Sacerdos 1" on her maiden voyage:


A storm blew-in overnight, but the truck kept me high and dry:


The Appalachian Trail crosses the Virginia Creeper Trail along the creek:


Another view of the creek:

My Summer, in a Nutshell...

Besides spending my weekdays at the Tribunal, where I have set up my "Summer Thesis Writing Camp" (kind of like summer camp for canonists...), I have recently come upon a fishing hole here in Kentucky. If you've seen this blog then you know that I have taken up (lock, stock, and barrel) the leisure activity of fly fishing. One of the real bright spots of my time in Washington, DC (other than studying canon law of course...) has been my Fridays up fishing at the Gunpowder River in Maryland. It's a beautiful place (my "mental health getaway" during the school year). Sadly, I have been without such a place here at home. That was until this week. At the recommendation of a fly fisher here in the area I checked out Otter Creek, which runs through the Fort Knox military base, just south of Louisville. It's not quite the Gunpowder, but it has fish, and is a reasonably beautiful little stream. And, its only a 30 minute drive! After jumping through the hoops to get a fishing permit from the Army, I drove down Tuesday and spent the day exploring the new stream. While the largest fish I landed was only about 6-8", I caught a good number of them (I'm guessing a dozen or so) and the stream was quite serene. Take a look for yourself:







Here's my "Base Camp" at the Louisville Tribunal:



P.S. - What a great thing it was... applying for the fishing permit at Ft. Knox, they go over the map of the base to let you know where you are permitted to go and where you are not. A position on the map was marked in yellow and I was advised that permission to enter the area was never granted. The reason... UNEXPLODED ORDINANCE! Yeah, I'll be staying out of there.

Crazy Fish...

Just saw this video posted over at Backwater Angler, a fly shop near the Gunpowder River in Maryland that I occasionally stop at. Check out the fish frantically feeding on an afternoon hatch of insects. Whatever they are eating it must be a favorite, seeing that they are literally jumping out of the water to get to the bugs. Very interesting...

Summertime...

Getting settled-in for the summertime here at home. Working on the thesis at the tribunal, filling-in for the guys on the weekends. The only negative is that the Gunpowder River isn't nearby for my usual fishing excursions. I'm planning on checking out the Cumberland River, about a two hour drive south of Louisville. There is supposed to be some pretty fantastic trout fishing there and I plan on finding out. Here's a recent video post from the Gunpowder to whet the fishing appetite:

Ciao, Roma!

Getting back from a brief trip to Rome with my aunt and uncle. They had never been before and decided that they needed to take me along... and a good time was had by all.

The Colloseum:


Pompeii with Mt. Vesuvius in Background:


The Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi:


The View from our Hotel Room Overlooking the Via Conciliazione:


Looking over the Tiber from the Castel:

Semester Finished!

Alleluia, the semester has come to a close. I've finished all the papers, taken the exams, now I'm packing for the drive home tomorrow and the summer. Of the grades I have received so far (everything except for today's two exams - and I feel good about them) I did pretty well. Now for a 9+ hour drive, a few days at home, and then off to Italy on Sunday with my aunt and uncle. Scarpone's here I come!

Footage of Derby Day, 1931...

Check this out: someone posted 16mm film shot at Churchill Downs on Derby Day, 1931. No sound here, but very interesting to see the track as it was so many years ago. Notice that the title says Churchill Downs "near Louisville"...! I suppose that back then the city had yet to expand that far South. Today the track is well within what people would consider the city.

Kentucky Derby 1931 from henry birdseye on Vimeo.

Derby Day...

Anticipating Derby Day up here in Washington. Will be introducing the guys in the house to the wonders of the mint julep tomorrow afternoon...

Paper done...

Alleluia, paper done and turned in. Thirty one pages on the Sunday Mass obligation (its development from apostolic times to the 1917 code). Now it's in my professor's hands. Time to study for three exams next week. Thursday can't come fast enough!

Inside of the Library...

For all you smart-alecks out there: yes, I know what the inside of the library looks like! I've been spending far too much time there recently (on page 28 of the future thesis, though)...

Weekend...

Just getting back to Washington after spending the weekend at home. It was a much-needed break (albeit a brief one) from the studies. The trip was prompted by the fact that a good friend, Matt, was Ordained to the Diaconate on Saturday:





Matt will be Ordained to the Priesthood in May of next year. He will be a fine priest. I also had the opportunity to catch up with some friends while home. The guys got together on Sunday night for dinner and drinks, which was very nice (it's always nice to stay connected with your brother priests). Being away from the archdiocese for two years now has made that all the more important for me. On another evening my sister Katie, a friend of mine Joe, and I were able to catch a Reds game. They actually beat somebody too (the Dodgers):



And finally, I was able to celebrate the 12:30 Extraordinary Form Mass at St. Martin's on Sunday. It is always a treat for me:



Now it's back to the books. I have to complete revisions on my final paper of the semester and get ready for finals next week. I should be driving home next Thursday.

"Talkin' Baseball..."

The Reds are picking up right where they've left off since 1995 (the last time they reached the post-season). Fifteen years now! And just this afternoon they've been swept by the "no-account" Pirates, of all teams. It's been a long, long time since Reds fans have had anything to get excited about. For a Reds fan, memories are all we have...



Good ol' Riverfront. We haven't reached the post-season since we left it:


Some Louisville Redbirds memories:


Right behind the section where my dad and I always sat at the old Cardinal Stadium:

Congrats Fr. Yves...

Congratulations to Fr. Yves, a good friend and fellow here at the house who just passed his comps in semitic languages. He has been sitting at the dinner table muttering in Hebrew and Syriac for months now. I'm glad it ended well. Had a little party for him tonight:

"All work and no play..."

I need to bust my posterior tomorrow finishing off/cleaning up the last paper of the semester (20+ pages on the "Sunday Obligation" which is the seed of my thesis) so I can get out on Friday to catch some of the fishing action that has been heating up along with the weather around here lately. Nothing like a little motivation...

It's Baseball Season, Finally...

The weather has finally turned and baseball season is here again. Thanks be to God. Now all I have to do is find the time to get myself to some ballgames. Here's a little something to whet the appetite (there's just something about baseball that demands jazzy organ playing, no?):