Fall in Virginia's Blue Ridge
Friday afternoon I arranged my affairs to leave work just early enough to stop at a stream before heading home without being late to the boss and kids. It had been a while since I had made it up to the Blue Ridge, and I was anxious to go before all the leaves were gone. I drove to one of the half-dozen or so wild trout streams in my area and accessed it from the lower end. After rigging up my 8' 4wt rod and loading my gear into my backpack, I had just under 30 minutes before I had to leave and make it home on time. I parked at the end of a county road right next to some trees with National Forest boundary markings on them, and right across the creek from a house guarded by a dilapidated bridge and knocked-down gate with a No Tresspassing sign still attached. The bank I was on was public property however, and that is where I intended to stay.
I rigged a size 10 self-tied comparadun onto a brand-new 7.5' 5x leader and cast to several pools, catching this guy on the 3rd or 4th pool. The red boundary marking on the far bank indicates that I may have briefly wandered on to private property. The water was up from last time I visited one of these streams, due to recent rain and lower temperatures. I did not see any spawning fish, and the one I caught looked to be alone in the pool.
Fall Brookie.jpg
After releasing him, I stopped to take another few pictures of the surroundings before heading back home to my regularly scheduled evening of diaper changes, dishwashing, and picking up toys.
Fall Colors.jpg
And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. Ezekiel 47:9