Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Surfing school and fishing

I was comfortable with the surfing school my visiting grandson from San Francisco was going to attend after I checked it out, but my wife and I wanted to make sure that his swimming skill is good enough for him to surf safely. We hired a swimming instructor to put him to a test of his swimming ability and endurance and the verdict was he needed improvement in both areas LOL.


His swimming instructor giving him a workout


His surfing class warming up


The surfer meets the sea


After a week's lesson, he is already looking like a pro....yeah right!


Had enough for the day?


My other grandson living just a mile from us and the surfer dude wanted to learn how to fish so I bought them fishing rods and showed them how to cast at a small lake just across from where we live. This lake is regularly stock with trout during winter and catfish during summer so I figured we'll at least catch something.


I observed how serious and patient they were waiting for a fish to bite. Too bad the fish were probably not hungry or were vacationing somewhere. We went home empty-handed.


I wanted them to experience the thrill of their first catch so I decided to take them to a private lake about a 90 minutes drive away where fishing is less challenging but you have to pay for each fish you catch. It is still a good deal overall.


His first catch of the day!


Look at the smile on his face at his catch - the $3.75 trout is worth it.


We fished at this "lake", one of three in the ranch. A larger lake is exclusively for bass and it is "catch and release" only. It cost $17 to fish all day from the bank or in a float tube. The third lake is stock with trout with a 5 fish limit for $17. Lures and all kinds of bait are allowed here, except live minnows.


I'm afraid these guys are now hooked to fishing for life LOL.

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Summer!

I went to the beach to check out the surfing school that my grandson was going to attend the following week. I wanted to make sure he will be in a safe environment and there will be sufficient watchful eyes to keep track of him. He has a tendency to stray away and to ignore instructors/authority figures whether at school, in his swimming class or anywhere else. He just do his own thing when he feels like it. Very frustrating to me at times. Kung nasa atin siya, palo na ang aabutin niya - that's how my father disciplined us when we were growing up in Pinas. It worked with us. All of us grew up to be professionals, responsible family men and women, and a big plus to the society we live in.


On my way to the beach from where I parked my car, I ran into this guy showing off his biking skill for the loose change he can get from the appreciative crowd.


A view of the beach from the pier


A closer view of the beach


A much closer view

Beach volleyball


Rock climbing for the young and not so young


Early comers for a beach concert entertaining themselves to kill time


Tricycles for hire for the lazy


Cops on beach patrol neutralizing a couple of rowdies


Contest for the young at heart


Contestants have to do a somersault, then grab a bottle of water and drink the content while running to the next station.


They have to get a fresh bottle of water and pass it on to their waiting partners and so on......until they complete three laps. It was fun to watch the participants having a ball competing. It was also fun watching some of the spectators...hehehe. Btw, I found the surfing school before I hit the road home LOL.