Local Collecting Trip & Guest Speaker Wild Peru 3/16/13

[BeefyG]

How does March 16th sound for a day for this collection trip? Perhaps meeting up at my place up in Spring around 1-2pm in the afternoon and visiting 3-4 places in the local Spring area. Afterwards, we can collect some photographs and collection data for the specimens at our place and host the GHAC meeting that evening.

Is this the official itinerary? If so, could someone add it to the first post please?

[SunnyHouTX]

Re: Local Collecting Trip & Guest Speaker Wild Peru 3/16/13

Carrot cake cupcakes sound awesome Sasha!

I'll bring my usual beer, jalapeņo/cheddar sausage, and something else.

[LooksLater]

So everyone got their native tanks up and cycled?! I'm excited to see what everyone ends up with!
We do have a home for all unwanted/too-big-to-home-responsibly-fish from the trip: a HFB member is wanting to stock his daughter's pond with natives, so no worries there.

And I've been trying to figure out what's on the menu- we're definitely doing burgers, what else sounds good? Potato salad, chips and dip- typical BBQ stuff?
Sweets lovers- how's carrot cupcakes?

[mnemenoi]

He said he had one, just did not have a projector. From the pics on his facebook page I bet he'll have some cool pics

[armthehomeless]

Re: Local Collecting Trip & Guest Speaker Wild Peru 3/16/13

Awesome Tim, I'll let him know! I'll try and post up a bit of a tenatative day/meeting schedule soon for everyone

Do you need me to bring a laptop too?

[mnemenoi]

Awesome Tim, I'll let him know! I'll try and post up a bit of a tenatative day/meeting schedule soon for everyone

[armthehomeless]

Re: Local Collecting Trip & Guest Speaker Wild Peru 3/16/13

I can borrow one from work.

[mnemenoi]

Does anyone have a Digital Projector we could use for the Guest Speaker?

[mnemenoi]

Please PM me or Lookslater for our address if you have not been over before.

[mnemenoi]

Hmmm, I suppose it just depends on the target species you are collecting for and the area you are collecting in. In ditches and low flow areas, high boots and long fine hole nets are my prefered methods. In swifter creeks, I imagine waders would help a lot (I usually just wear old boots and shorts and expect to get wet) and using a seine net (or a cast net) can yield better results with swifter species. Lakes and ponds are best with cast nets or long handled nets. I have heard of folks using minnow traps, but have never used them myself. I imagine even fishing poles with fly fishing tiny lures could be used for larger cichlids/medium sized quarry. If you are looking for something larger, then it really depends on what you are wanting to catch.

As far as personal equipment I take, I use tall leather boots, Usually longer shorts or pants, sunscreen, a billed hat (helps in spotting the fish), a backpack with collection bags, an ice chest for collected species. Possibly a battery powered aerator for longer trips. A first aid kit is always in good measure and having a good staff or long stick is useful for disturbing any area that might host a defensive cottonmouth. Looking over the local snakes is a good idea to assist in identifying possibly dangerous species. A few dry runs in your local area can help in knowing techniques and what you can expect on a trip.

[clayt101]

Sorry to hijack, but it is relevant. What do you recommend people have for native fish collection? I was thinking a net, waders, anything else? I plan to do this in Florida this summer.

[mnemenoi]

Hmm, drinks and some snacks are always appreciated. I am still a bit uncertain as to what I'll be making for dinner that evening, but we are leaning towards hamburgers as they are a bit easier. Especially if we are collecting that afternoon.

[armthehomeless]

Is there anything that we should bring, Roy?

[armthehomeless]

For what its worth, its been brought up before that the posts made here under the GHAC banner can prevent or make it much more difficult for the club to ever obtain non-profit status. That was a goal that was being worked toward at one time. Its been a while since I've been to a meeting so maybe that has been dropped but it is something to consider. Another consideration is whether you would attend a meeting of people you have never met before where a majority of the discussion leading up to that meeting was passing out and roofies. Joking is fine and all but at a point it becomes bad for the club.

Thanks Matt. Keep in mind that not everybody knows y'all. I get messages from people that have no clue what type of club the GHAC really is. People pass judgements on the club all the time -- perhaps you've seen some of that in recent posts.

The GHAC is a welcoming and friendly club. Some members have 30+ years of fishkeeping experience while others have about 30 minutes. We learn from each other, share stories, help each other out, trade equipment, compare tropheus sizes, etc . . .

What it comes down to is this: The GHAC is just an aquarium club. It stands for the Greater Houston Aquarium Club-- nothing more. With that said, many of the members of the GHAC are much more than club members to me. They are my extended family. Some I see weekly, while others I haven't seen in years. It is the people in the GHAC that makes the club -- and we've got a great group of people.

[Nickintex]

I have a swamp wolf, a cast net (I hope it's not broken from the last trip) and a minnow trap. I'm sure we will catch SOMETHING!