Greenwater and some clarity
Seems when things are not going good for me, nothing helps me more than a nie long day alone fishing a mountain stream. Yesterday was another great example of that concept working.
I completed my errands on my way, and was heading up 410 to the Greenwater. The river does not hold big trout. By that I mean fish that will push 20". I have gotten some that were pushing 15", but most are in the 6" to 10" range. What the river does have is proximity to my home. It is less than an hour and half to get there. It also has some gorgeous canyons, with some suprisingly deep pools. Fish there are not fished for very hard, and I have had some really good days there.
I fished dries as I worked my up river, and had no takes to speak of. I fished softhackles on my way back down, and managed to get a few fish with that. I knew there were a lot more to get, so I decided to nymph my way back up river. I took a few more fish this way, as was happy to catch fish on a two flies I had yet to use (AP Black and a BH GRHE).
When I got up to the highest pool in the canyon I have managed to get to so far, I saw a nice fish rising in the current. I hid myself on a rock about 30' behind where I say the fish. It rose a few more times, looking like it was taking the mayflies that were laying their eggs. I moved from the rock below, to the bank on the side, and must have spooked it. It swam for the heart of the pool, which must be at least 10" deep, and lost sight of it. I stayed where I was to see if it would come back, and after 5 minutes, it did. It also brought back a friend too. THey took position at the tail of the pool, with the one fish taking flies, and what must have been the female, laid back on the bottom in what appeared to be her red. The fish were much darker than the fish I was catching, and their stripes were very red, and noticable from my position. I assume they were spawning, as they both took up positions like they were guarding the red when the bugs tapered off. Seems a little late for spawning, but they do what they do on their own time, not mine. While I did make some casts with a soft hackle fished on the surface, as soon as the fly came near them to headed for the deep again, and I never saw them again. It is really neat to watch fish in the act, almost feel like a peeping tom.
While the catchin was not great, 12 fish for the day, the fishing was awesome. I saw some fish on the red, dodged some good rain, and had a lot of time to think while in a beutiful setting with out any distractions to take my mind from where I was at. I managed to deal with what I needed to deal with, and re discovered one of the many reasons I fish. (Solitude + Scenery) X (repetitive problem solving + repetitive actions) = a peaceful mind.
Finally, some math I can understand.
Have fun, Jeff
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Tis my time on the water, in the mountains, and in my driftboat where I can see things as they really are.
