Spring Break Trip: Part 3
Our second evening on the Eagle was special. We had done "alright" during the day, but after Day 1 our expectations were high and we were not disappointed once the late afternoon hours arrived on Day 2. We headed to another spot and I had my thoughts on rising fish. I had nymphed more than normal on Day 1 and the first half of Day 2 so I wanted some fish to scarf down a well presented dry fly.
The second spot we hit was a beautiful freestone piece of river. There was a stretch of fast water and then a nice long deep run that opened up into a slow pool. It reminded me of a section of the Genesee River back home in New York. As I glanced downstream I saw dimples on the water from 200 yards away and I won't say that I hit jogging pace, but I briskly walked my way down to these fish ignoring the beautiful run that my compatriots were about to destroy. There weren't many bugs on the water, but there were a few fish rising every so often. I had to wade out ever so slowly to avoid putting them down. Oddly and although my stealth was up to par, the fish stopped coming up. Actually, I blame the donkeys that were in the field on the far side of the river. They must have put the fish down! All joking aside (darn donkeys...) the bwo's/spring midges were extremely few and far between so after casting to one fish that was tightly nestled up against some dead fall that did eat, (don't ask me how I missed the set) I walked upstream and boy am I glad I did.
I had heard some commotion from upstream while I was failing at catching trout, but I was focused so most of that excitement fell on deaf ears. Once I abandoned my quarry I realized that although it was easier to see rising fish in the slow water, the catchable risers were up above on the far side of the fast water.
As I headed upstream I quickly discovered that my amigos had been slamming them! Chris, Tim, and Josh had been pulling them in left and right on an assortment of nymphs. Some heavy browns and rainbows were netted as I was down below missing out on all of the fun. There were several doubles and when I arrived there was even a triple (three of us all had fish on at the same time). It's a rare thing to have four friends fishing the same stretch of water where everyone is catching multiple fish. Thank you Eagle River for allowing that to occur as 6pm rolled in. That is a tell tale sign Spring has arrived because clearly the nymphs were active and the fish were feeding hard. Here's one (of about a half dozen or so brown trout) that succumbed to one of my midge or bwo dry flies:
I was especially happy for my friends Chris and Tim. They had nymphed hard and their efforts were handsomely rewarded. I enjoy catching fish, but when my friends are hooting and hollering, (as I sometimes do) I feel a sincere happiness for them as well. Fly fishing isn't just about the fish, nature, bugs, etc. It's about camaraderie, friendship, and someone to help you net a nice fish. I'll wrap up our trip in my next post. Until then, tight lines my friends.
The second spot we hit was a beautiful freestone piece of river. There was a stretch of fast water and then a nice long deep run that opened up into a slow pool. It reminded me of a section of the Genesee River back home in New York. As I glanced downstream I saw dimples on the water from 200 yards away and I won't say that I hit jogging pace, but I briskly walked my way down to these fish ignoring the beautiful run that my compatriots were about to destroy. There weren't many bugs on the water, but there were a few fish rising every so often. I had to wade out ever so slowly to avoid putting them down. Oddly and although my stealth was up to par, the fish stopped coming up. Actually, I blame the donkeys that were in the field on the far side of the river. They must have put the fish down! All joking aside (darn donkeys...) the bwo's/spring midges were extremely few and far between so after casting to one fish that was tightly nestled up against some dead fall that did eat, (don't ask me how I missed the set) I walked upstream and boy am I glad I did.
I had heard some commotion from upstream while I was failing at catching trout, but I was focused so most of that excitement fell on deaf ears. Once I abandoned my quarry I realized that although it was easier to see rising fish in the slow water, the catchable risers were up above on the far side of the fast water.
As I headed upstream I quickly discovered that my amigos had been slamming them! Chris, Tim, and Josh had been pulling them in left and right on an assortment of nymphs. Some heavy browns and rainbows were netted as I was down below missing out on all of the fun. There were several doubles and when I arrived there was even a triple (three of us all had fish on at the same time). It's a rare thing to have four friends fishing the same stretch of water where everyone is catching multiple fish. Thank you Eagle River for allowing that to occur as 6pm rolled in. That is a tell tale sign Spring has arrived because clearly the nymphs were active and the fish were feeding hard. Here's one (of about a half dozen or so brown trout) that succumbed to one of my midge or bwo dry flies:
I was especially happy for my friends Chris and Tim. They had nymphed hard and their efforts were handsomely rewarded. I enjoy catching fish, but when my friends are hooting and hollering, (as I sometimes do) I feel a sincere happiness for them as well. Fly fishing isn't just about the fish, nature, bugs, etc. It's about camaraderie, friendship, and someone to help you net a nice fish. I'll wrap up our trip in my next post. Until then, tight lines my friends.
Nice Blog Post! Definitely a worthy blog to tell my friends about!
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