If you’ve ever dreamed of riding roller coasters on other planets, you should 1) stop eating spicy foods before bedtime and 2) plan to watch ”Planetary Thrill Rides II” — sequel to Tellus’ most popular planetarium presentation.

Warning: This adventurous show is not for anyone affected by motion sickness.

The second presentation examines the rare and magnificent celestial apparition called a “Venus transit.”  This full-dome show illustrates:

• what a transit is
• a famous transit viewing from the 18th century led by Captain Cook
• information about the sun and Venus
• how to view a Venue transit safely, and more.

The show will run through June 5, the date of the transit.

While you’re at Tellus, spend some perusing the Amazing Universe: Images from the Hubble Telescope, on display through November 11, 2012.

Launched in 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope has redefined our concept of the universe and has produced some of the most dazzling images of the cosmos ever imagined.  The 90-inch Hubble telescope circles our planet every 90 minutes focussed on super novae, stars, planets in our solar system, black holes, and distant galaxies.

You can save $2 this month with a special coupon available on the Tellus Facebook page. Print it off and give it to the front desk when you purchase your tickets. The coupon is good through May 31, 2012.

Click Here for Tellus Science Museum’s Website

The HEAT — Highway Enforcement of Aggressive Traffic — will be on those who choose to break the law.  For the ninth straight summer, police from 159 Georgia counties and the Georgia State Patrol will be conducting the 100 Days of Summer H.E.A.T. campaign.

Director of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety Harris Blackwood said, “Our partners in law enforcement will be launching the 100 Days of Summer H.E.A.T. campaign in all corners of the state this year … looking for all kinds of unsafe motorists … from drunk drivers and aggressive speeders to distracted drivers who continue to text while behind the wheel.”

The bottom line: If you speed, you’ll be cited.  If you fail to properly buckle your seat belts or properly restrain your children, you will be cited.  If you are cited for drunk driving, you’ll go to jail.

Click It or Ticket — a crackdown on motorists not using their seat belts – will also be a special focus for officers statewide through June 3, 2012.

With dangerous drivers off the road we’ll all be more safe.

Click Here for Georgia’s HEAT Website

Click Here for the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety in GA

Line side fishing: Very Good.

The summer bite is really starting to take off.  All the major creeks are producing good numbers of fish right now.  The down-line bite is the best bite going.

These fish are scattered in the water column from anywhere from 12-50 feet deep right now.  Trust your electronics.  If you are marking fish at 50 feet, go get them.

The south end of the lake is now keeping pace with the north end.  Fish can be caught in almost any major creek right now.

Trolling is working great with the Mack Farr umbrella rig.  The key to trolling right now is not starting too early.  The rig bite is better after the sun comes up and may be your best bet for getting bit midday.

Top water action is good early in the morning and late in the afternoon.  Use a Sammy 110 and catch the hybrids, stripers and schooling spots.

I was featured in May’s Issue of Georgia Outdoor News!  Click Here for My Story on May Tactics on Lake Allatoona.

The fishing is great right now.  This is the best time of the year to introduce the kids to fishing.  Give me a call at 770-827-6282 and book your family trip today.

Come catch some fish with First Bite Guide Service.

This weekend several campgrounds along Lake Allatoona will open for the 2012 season, including Clark Creek North, Old Highway 41 #3 and Upper Stamp Creek.

Click on the links below for all you’d ever want to know about fees, rules, amenities and where to find the best fireflies.  We’ve updated information on fishing licenses, local attractions and GPS coordinates.

Get off your rocker.

Go camping at Lake Allatoona.

Click Here for Camping on Lake Allatoona

Click Here for Clark Creek North Campground

Click Here for Old Highway 41 #3 Campground

Click Here for Upper Stamp Creek Campground

The tour’s top riders will compete — before a crowd expected to number close to 10,000 — performing death-defying aerial maneuvers and “rail” tricks that make the most sane person scream, “THAT WAS CRAZY!!! DO IT AGAIN!!!”

Acworth’s Parks and Recreation Director James Albright is thrilled to have thousands of professional wakeboarders (a.k.a. “lunatics”) and their fanatical fans come to Acworth … and leave their money behind.  (Just kidding!)  Albright said, “It brings riders, families and people from all over the world.”

Qualifying rounds — free and open to the public – take place from 9 AM to 5 PM on Friday the 18th.

Saturday’s main event is scheduled from noon to 8 PM.  Tickets are required and will be available at the event.

Families are encouraged to attend, although mothers will probably not encourage their precious children to become professional wakeboarders.  (Nice try, kids.)

The weather is going to be perfect for the madness on the water, and the food and music on shore.

If you’re in the market for the world’s most remarkable boat to hustle the family around Lake Allatoona, the new MasterCraft XStar will be the star of the show.  It’s a half-ton dandy that provides huge wakes … perfect for launching teens into orbit from tubes and wakeboards.

Rounds on Saturday will be followed by exhibition events — the Double Up Contest and Big-Air Kicker Contest — featuring unconventional tricks.  That should be cool.

Parking at Dallas Landing Park is limited, but Acworth has kindly provided Shuttle service from designated stops downtown.

Click Here for a Wakeboard Video Teaser

Click Here for Heart Attack Symptoms if You Watch Teaser Too Many Times

Click Here for Wakeboard Schedule

Click Here for Information on the Event in Actworth

We’re blessed to have several marinas that rent reliable watercraft for a day or a safe three-hour cruise (without the skipper, Gilligan or Ginger).

Go fishing, water skiing, take a sunset cruise on a pontoon boat with the family or charter a boat and leave the driving — and the clean-up — to professionals.

Don’t waste another summer.  Unplug your TV.  (The Beverly Hillbillies, Barney Fife and Hollywood Squares will still be there when you get back, don’t worry.)

Float or zip around Lake Allatoona … where the livin’ is easy.

Get some sun.  Have some fun.  On Lake Allatoona.

Click Here for the Latest Info on Lake Allatoona Boat Rentals

A few regional post offices that are affected include:

*  BOWDON JUNCTION

*  COOSA

*  ESOM HILL

*  FELTON

*  MOUNT ZION

*  NELSON

*  TATE

The new USPS strategy would adjust “window hours” for existing post offices by matching hours to customer use.  PO Box and retail lobby hours would remain the same — as would each post office’s ZIP Code identity.

This is not a “done deal,” however.  The new plan would be implemented over a two-year, multi-phased approach and would not be completed until September 2014.  Once implemented, the USPS hopes to save a half-billion dollars annually.

Here’s the fine print: The USPS will provide an opportunity for the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) to review this plan prior to making any changes. The USPS intends to file a request for an advisory opinion on the plan with the PRC later this month. Community meetings would then be conducted to review options in greater detail. Communities will be notified by mail of the date, time and location of these meetings.

“The Postal Service is committed to serving America’s communities and providing a responsible and fair approach for our employees and customers,” said Postal Service Chief Operating Officer Megan Brennan, and “The Post Offices in rural America will remain open unless a community has a strong preference for one of the other options. We will not close any of these rural Post Offices without having provided a viable solution.”

A voluntary early retirement incentive for the nation’s more than 21,000 non-executive postmasters was also announced.

If you’d like to take a stab at figuring out the USPS press release for yourself, Click Here.  Good luck.

Click Here for a List of Post Offices Affected

Line side: Fair!

The Super Moon we had this past weekend really did slow down the bite.  The fish are still in the places they were last week, but just on the finicky side right now.  The bite should pick back up before the weekend and hopefully we will be back to catching good numbers.

The fish will be staging on the flats and schooling up at areas like the Delta.  The mouth of Little River should be loaded with stripers and hybrids.  There has been a good early morning topwater bite in the Little River area, and there’s also lots of action on top at Victoria Landing by the sailboats.  Again the Super Moon slowed this bite down, but I look for it to pick back up any day now.  Also, look for fish from Iron Hill to the spillway.

Fish flat-lines and planer boards early, and then switch to down-lines dropped to between 18 and 24 feet.  Bait has been a pain to catch this past week due to the full moon.

A Mack’s four-arm umbrella rig with chartreuse jigs pulled between 2.7 – 3.1 mph is good once the sun gets up.  While you’re trolling, keep your eyes open for white bass coming up in schools, and have something ready to throw to them.  A Rooster Tail or Zara Spook are both good.

I was featured in May’s Issue of Georgia Outdoor News!  Click Here for My Story on May Tactics on Lake Allatoona.

We still have a few days open for May.  Don’t miss the action!  Come catch some fish with First Bite Guide Service.  Give us a call at 770-827-6282.

In conjunction with Federal Recyclers, Acworth’s Parks and Recreation Department invites you to their semi-annual Computer, Electronics and Metal Recycling Day at the Acworth Sports Complex, off South Main Street.

The date is Saturday, May 12, 2012, from 8 AM until 5 PM.  There won’t be another opportunity until next November.

Anything metal can be recycled instead of tossed into a landfill to rust.  Bring your old BBQ grills, lawn mowers, patio furniture, car parts, bicycles, siding, exercise equipment or those crummy golf clubs that cannot hit a stupid golf ball straight even after you watched Tiger all day on TV.

Recycling is free, but there are exceptions:

• $15 fee for computer monitors
• $20 fee for televisions.

Paint cans are allowed to be recycled.  However, please leave labels on paint cans because some paints are hazardous waste and need to be separated for controlled recycling.

• $2 for pints and gallon cans of paint
• $7 for 5-gallon cans.

Please Note:  You cannot recycle your neighbor’s noisy motorcycle and/or annoying air blower without their written permission.

Click Here for Acworth’s Recycling Day Website

Click Here for List of Recyclable Items

Easy choice.

The video below, provided by Robert Eidson and our friends from Firstbite Guide Service, captures what it is like to catch a fish … then another … then another … then another … at the same time.

Tie a worm to a string or hire a guide, but take a kid fishing on Lake Allatoona.

Your daddy might not be rich and your momma might not be good lookin’ but the fishing is always good on Lake Allatoona … where the livin’ is easy.

Click Here to Watch the Firstbite Fishing Video

Click Here for Info on Fishing on Lake Allatoona