Fishing the flood

This is from the big flood on the Mississippi River in New Orleans in 2008.  The Bonne Carre Spillway was opened to alleviate the flooding and it made quite a site.  These were among the many who took advantage of the situation to do a little net fishing.

Great Egret takes a new tack at fishing

Our Great Egret from yesterday suddenly changed his tactics. Instead of standing straight to look for fish, he suddenly started leaning his head way over to the side -- further that what you see here, but I did not get a good picture of that. Then, when he spotted his meal, he would take a sideways jab into the water, somewhat parrellel to the water's surface. The tactic proofed worthwhile. He got plenty to eat.

Obviously our 4-foot bird with about 5-foot wing span, is not the bird brain I took him for. I bet his has a bunch of other fishing tricks up his sleeve.

By the way, thanks for coming back from yesterday to check this out.

--steve buser

Great Egret shows off fishing skills

Heading down the I-10 I spotted this Great Egret fishining in some dark waters at the ponds edge. He was making a pretty good go of it. You know Egrets have those very long necks -- maybe a couple feet or more. (This bird's wing span seemed about 4 or 5 feet in width and he looked about 4 feet from head to tail. ) It makes a pretty good fishing tool. You just thrust it out and down in the water when you see a fish and whamo! you've got food. In the picture below our hero enjoys the fruits... er, make that ... fish of his catch. He picked up about six fish while I was watching. This is all as you expected. What came next is what surprised me. I tell you what. Give me some time to get those pictures ready and you come back tomorrow, for "the rest of the story."


--steve buser

Fishing buddies

Did you get in some fishing this weekend? Bet you had a buddy along. It's always a more pleasant experience with someone to chat with and to share your catches. Even someone to verify that you did catch the big one.

It would seem from the photo above that birds share that comfy feeling. The great egret on the left seems to relish the presence of his smaller friend as they search the waters of the Audubon Park, New Orleans, lagoon. Occasionally, they would wade to a another location for a little variety, but this day, the pickings seemed slim.

--steve buser

Summer slides away

Crazy lazy days are gone. Fall has fell. This guy was taking advantage of the warm weather out on the lakefront of Lake Pontchartrain a few weeks ago to do some fishing. From what I saw, the fish were safe.

--steve buser

Fishing lesson

I was wondering why about a dozen of these Great Egrets were hanging around this tangle of branches in the lagoon at Audubon Park in New Orleans. Then this guy leaned over and it hit me. These are the guys that taught us humans where to find fish. Even though the Egrets are white they kind of blend in with the light colored limbs to give them camouflage.

-- steve buser

The last bite of sundown

The sun is tired. The last ray, hopefully the last bite. The lakefront in Mandeville, just across Lake Pontchartrain from New Orleans. Maybe it wasn't a good day, but maybe it will end well. Maybe.

-- steve buser

Swim up, eat up

A pair of Koi fish swim up to fight for a fish food pellet I tossed into the pond. The pond is at our friends Sam and Theresa's house in Baton Rouge where we were for Memorial Day. The luscious, shady pond with water fall and water lilies is a real repose. Of course the shade presented a problem with capturing a shot of moving fish in darkened waters. I useda polarizing filter to cut the glare on the water, however that further reduced my shutter speed. The key was shooting a lot of shots -- every once in a while the fish were at a stopping spot and my hand shake was at a minimum.

--steve buser

The sting of luck

Even on the best days things sometimes just don't go right. The sun is shining, the breeze is gentle and cool out over Lake Pontchartrain. The water is clear and inviting. Suddenly you've got a tug on your line and you smile with expectation. You're expecting a huge redfish, a succulent trout.... Yeah it's going to be a good fish fry tonight... and then.....

New Orleans Daily Photo is 1 year old

Before I explain the picture, let me do a little rejoicing. Today is the anniversary of New Orleans Daily Photo. On April 21st of 2007, I started the adventure. Please don't go back and look at those first few days, because I had no clue how to do all of this. It was about a week later that I started letting people know about it -- had to get rid of the rookie jitters first.

Now, the picture. We went up to Norco yesterday to check out the Bonnet Carre' spillway. Because of high waters flowing down the Mississippi River from heavy rains and Spring melting, the water is about as high as anyone cares to see it. The Bonnet Carre' allows water to bypass New Orleans on its way to the Gulf. It lets the water flow into Lake Pontchartrain.

The purpose is not so much to keep the water level low as it is to keep velocity of the flowing water to a manageable level that doesn't erode and weaken the levees.

While were up on the levee, we notice a tanker ship out in the middle of the river with three tugs apparently trying to push the ship toward the opposite side of the river --the west bank . The tugs were huffing and puffing -- you could tell by the smoke billowing from them and from the fact that they were tilted to one side straining.

When we left about a half hour later, there were only two tugs -- one at the bow and one behind the ship -- they appeared to be just holding the ship stationary. I suppose they were waiting for reinforcements because the ship was closer to our side -- the East bank -- than when we first started watching.

Oh, the picture. The levee by the spillway gates was crowded with people there to observe and be part of the event. There were quite a number of fishermen and three or four people with casting nets like these guys. Apparently water isn't the only thing spilling over the gates -- logs, dead cows and a lot of fish that got swept away from their tranquil creeks are just some of them.

Okay, now I have just 364 more posts until my second anniversary.


--steve buser

Okay, let's take a break from Mardi Gras for a day. Hey, it wasn't my idea, it was the weatherman's -- he let a front come through here and cancel all the parades for tonight. Tomorrow at this point is kind of iffy, too.

Let's sit back, take a deep breath and put ourselves in a good place. Imagine yourself on a sunny day, sitting on the akefront wall in Mandeville, under the shade of a century-old oak. Favorite fishing pole in hand. The fish are biting. The cotton is high.

Sing with me. "Summertime....." --- you're doing good, keep singing.

See, weather can't bother us.

Tomorrow.... back to Mardi Gras. .... but for now, keep singing.
--steve buser

Lagniappe -- (a little something extra)

A hill,
a kid,
a cool morning,
bright sunshine.

All the elements are in place.... for the beginning of one of the country's greatest orators....

today on Pixel Eyed.

"Firm Deadline"--Theme Day

On the first of each month, 117 City Daily Photo sites do a new "theme day." Today's theme for January 1, 2008 is "Best Photo of the Year." I had to dig through my old photos to find the one I rated highest. This picture is what I chose.

The photo was from May 7th, just a couple weeks after I started this blog. Here's the link to the orginal post The scene is a sundown shot from the lakefront in Mandeville. I don't think it needs any explaining.

Other Theme Day participants are:

Paris, France - London, England - Hyde, UK - West Sacramento (CA), USA - Grenoble, France - Stockholm, Sweden - Riga, Latvia - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Manila, Philippines - Silver Spring (MD), USA - Weston (FL), USA - Prague, Czech Republic - New Orleans (LA), USA - Wichita (KS), USA - Cleveland (OH), USA - San Francisco (CA), USA - Hobart (Tasmania), Australia - Greenville (SC), USA - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Mainz, Germany - Melbourne, Australia - Portland (OR), USA - Albuquerque (NM), USA - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Toulouse, France - Naples (FL), USA - Jakarta, Indonesia - Brussels, Belgium - Stayton (OR), USA - Selma (AL), USA - Mexico City, Mexico - Ocean Township (NJ), USA - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Port Angeles (WA), USA - Toruń, Poland - Fort Lauderdale (FL), USA - Budapest, Hungary - Baziège, France - Nashville (TN), USA - Saint Louis (MO), USA - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Chicago (IL), USA - Prescott (AZ), USA - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Nottingham, UK - Moscow, Russia - Philadelphia (PA), USAEvry, France - Trujillo, Peru - Arlington (VA), USA - Denpasar, Indonesia - American Fork (UT), USA - Seattle (WA), USA - Chandler (AZ), USA - Coral Gables (FL), USA - Montpellier, France - Joplin (MO), USA - Pilisvörösvár, Hungary - Crystal Lake (IL), USA - Bucaramanga (Santander), Colombia - Boston (MA), USA - Torun, Poland - New York City (NY), USA - Dunedin (FL), USA - Quincy (MA), USA - Stavanger, Norway - Chateaubriant, France - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Jackson (MS), USA - Wailea (HI), USA - Port Elizabeth, South Africa - Budapest, Hungary - Austin (TX), USA - Montréal (QC), Canada - Cypress (TX), USA - Bicheno, Australia - Wrocław, Poland - Brookville (OH), USA - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Nelson, New Zealand - Cheltenham, UK - Wellington, New Zealand - Rabaul, Papua New Guinea - Mumbai (Maharashtra), India - London, UK - Haninge, Sweden - Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation - Arradon, France - Jefferson City (MO), USA - Orlando (FL), USA - Mumbai, India - Terrell (TX), USA - Bogor, Indonesia - Delta (CO), USA - Radonvilliers, France - Saigon, Vietnam - San Diego (CA), USA - Adelaide (SA), Australia - Belgrade, Serbia - Auckland, New Zealand - Seguin (TX), USA - Inverness (IL), USA - Oslo, Norway - Singapore, Singapore - Las Vegas (NV), USANew York City (NY), USA - Anderson (SC), USA - Torino, Italy - Susanville (CA), USA - San Diego (CA), USA - Sharon (CT), USA - Melbourne, Australia - Port Vila, Vanuatu - Memphis (Tennessee), USA


Lagniappe (a little something extra)

The legs tell the story. What is the story you ask? Well, you have to check it out today on Pixel Eyed.

Bayou Bienvenue

This slip flows out into the Bayou Bienvenue area in St. Bernard Parish -- east of New Olreans. You can see the shrimp boat in the center with its net up. The area of swamps, marshes and shallow lakes outside the levee system is an abundant source of shrimp and seafood.

This area along Paris Road also has an assortment of small boat repair yards. Note the house far out in the distance. It's either well built to have survived Hurricane Katrina, or its a new house.

-- steve buser

Other boating scenes on City Daily Photo Blogs today:

Berowa Waters Car Ferry -- Sydney Daily Photo
Guess Who Was Happy -- Joensuu Daily Photo
Reflection -- San Diego Daily Photo
View From My Window -- Rabaul Daily Photo
West Pier Brighton Photo -- Brighton Daily Photo

Firm Deadline

We were across the lake in Mandeville yesterday visiting relatives. I got the task of driving the truck back from the restaurant while my wife and her sister road the bikes along the lakefront. So when I saw this pair fishing in the sunset I pulled over and took the opportunity for a shot for the blog.

My wife grew up in Mandeville when it was a sleepy village of less than 2,000. Now it is very urbanized. But, the lakefront has kept its character. A great place for jogging, biking, fishing, even swimming -- about 20 years ago the lake was so polluted you would want to swim --that was caused by sewer dumping into canals then into the lake and dredging for clam shells. But today the lake is nearly back to its pristine beauty.

--steve buser