Back from CR & My Friend Bob

So fishing was pretty tough. Unexpected rains put the kabosh on the salt fishing. Cloudy water made it hard for the baitfish to ball up. The typical inshore gamefish found crashing bait were no where to be found. The fishing at Lake Arenal was even tough too, not touching a fish over two pounds.

We had quite the adventure though- running up river into the jungle and floating back to sea. We will share the entire trip with folks in issue three coming out this May.

For right now was thinking about spreading the light on my friend Bob White's site. Bob's paintings have been the medium for which I have taught my son fishing. Since an early age Hudson and I would tear out the back page of FR&R and talk about the fish, the fishing pictures, or what ever it was Bob had painted to illustrate John G's column. Sometimes Hudson and would trace the paintings or color the actual pages themselves.

Afterwords Hudson would take the ripped page and place it into his Fishy Box. A shoe box under my tying bench that we had decorated together for Hudson to save all his treasures. I counted the other day and there are quite a few of Bob's paintings folded up in that box, along with a couple of flies, a box of crayons, and lego man missing an arm.

See the thing is with Bob, his paintings speak to me. Even before Hudson and I started our collecting of Bob's work, I had saved his back page for myself. Seemed there was a connection to what Bob was painting and the words I could never find to express what I was thinking while on the water myself.

I think any outdoorsman in recent years would be hard pressed to not have been exposed to some of Bob's work. He's illustrated, more magazines and books than I can count. Despite this tremendous amount of success Bob has taken the time to play an important role in the life of nobodies like me.

A few Christmas's ago, I shared the story above about my son with Bob. A week or two later a tube came in the mail, with a note. Opening up the package revealed two sets of pen drawings of flies by Bob White on poster sized paper. The post-it note attached said, "Have H color these in. When he's done let me know and I'll send some new ones for him to work on next."

Later in life I shared with my friend Bob, how I had desired to be a writer my entire life. However, despite my desire, I didn't have the aptitude or ability to see my dream come to fruition. His response to me was, "Aaron do what you love and the world will come crashing in to support it."

Now a couple years later I have lost track of the number of articles published.

Few people in this life do you get to meet who's talent is only exceeded by their character. In that vien I would sincerely like to think that those of you who read this blog, those of you who "Know SID", and most of all for those of you who feel like the lifestyle is something worthy of pursuit take a minute to look at Bob's site. Page through his work, I just bought my third piece from him tonight and will continue to add more as long as finances hold out.

He's the original painting-angler. His strokes tell the story of the life well lived: his, mine, and yours.

Whitefish Studios