The New Fish
Before heading back to the mountains on Friday, I stopped by the pet fish store (Walmart not) to buy a plant for Stone Lake and left with a koi. It's about 4 inches long and colored blue and red. A nice little fish, I could have bought two dozen Sam Walton's for the same money!
So after discussing a strategy of how to get this bad boy (girl?) from the flatlands to the mountains, we arrived at using a large bag of water with an oxygen stone in it, all contained in a large plastic bucket. Alas, I'd already taken all the large plastic buckets to the mountain and a stock pot that would just contain the water was used instead. The pot with the bag, water, stone and fish were carefully packed for the trip and tested for tipping.
So, about 10 minutes into the journey, while driving on a perfectly flat road with no curves, I hear the sound of a sizable mountain stream in the back. Rushing to the side of the road in full traffic to make an emergency stop, I soon discover my feet in water in the foot well of the Jeep. The pot had tipped, leaving the fish and oxygen stone with just enough water to cover them. Not wanting to take any chances on the water at gas stations, I drove on to the Haw River.
Parking in the access lot, I rush down the the river's edge with a stock pot containing a gasping koi in a plastic bag. I took the bag from the pot and used the pot to scoop water from the river. As I was trying to pour water into the bag, it drooped and all the remaining water ran out into the river. I just knew Koi Boy was gone, the only blue and red carp in all of the Haw River and soon to be an afternoon snack for a big bass downstream in Jordan Lake. But, no, there was a koi and an oxygen stone in the bag with no water whatsoever. Eventually I managed to filled the bag with water, put the bag back in the pot, and drove on with further adventures ...
... until we got to the mountains where an electrical storm was raging. Risking life and limb, I put the fish in Stone Lake -- the third set of water chemistry in three hours.
Sez I me me, if that bad boy is still kicking in the morning, he's going the be the luckiest fish alive.
He was and that's how he got the name "Lucky Charlie" or, alternately if he ever has babies, "Lucky Charlene".
Anyhow, Lucky Charlie is now in complete control of Stone Lake with Sam Walton, 28 Cents and Plain Jane running around in a school, usually with Lucky Charlie in hot pursuit. While he's very active fish, Lucky Charlie is still a tad shy of me (hmmmm ... wonder why) and, as such, I have no photographs of him to show you just yet.
So after discussing a strategy of how to get this bad boy (girl?) from the flatlands to the mountains, we arrived at using a large bag of water with an oxygen stone in it, all contained in a large plastic bucket. Alas, I'd already taken all the large plastic buckets to the mountain and a stock pot that would just contain the water was used instead. The pot with the bag, water, stone and fish were carefully packed for the trip and tested for tipping.
So, about 10 minutes into the journey, while driving on a perfectly flat road with no curves, I hear the sound of a sizable mountain stream in the back. Rushing to the side of the road in full traffic to make an emergency stop, I soon discover my feet in water in the foot well of the Jeep. The pot had tipped, leaving the fish and oxygen stone with just enough water to cover them. Not wanting to take any chances on the water at gas stations, I drove on to the Haw River.
Parking in the access lot, I rush down the the river's edge with a stock pot containing a gasping koi in a plastic bag. I took the bag from the pot and used the pot to scoop water from the river. As I was trying to pour water into the bag, it drooped and all the remaining water ran out into the river. I just knew Koi Boy was gone, the only blue and red carp in all of the Haw River and soon to be an afternoon snack for a big bass downstream in Jordan Lake. But, no, there was a koi and an oxygen stone in the bag with no water whatsoever. Eventually I managed to filled the bag with water, put the bag back in the pot, and drove on with further adventures ...
... until we got to the mountains where an electrical storm was raging. Risking life and limb, I put the fish in Stone Lake -- the third set of water chemistry in three hours.
Sez I me me, if that bad boy is still kicking in the morning, he's going the be the luckiest fish alive.
He was and that's how he got the name "Lucky Charlie" or, alternately if he ever has babies, "Lucky Charlene".
Anyhow, Lucky Charlie is now in complete control of Stone Lake with Sam Walton, 28 Cents and Plain Jane running around in a school, usually with Lucky Charlie in hot pursuit. While he's very active fish, Lucky Charlie is still a tad shy of me (hmmmm ... wonder why) and, as such, I have no photographs of him to show you just yet.
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