July 26
I finally got back out on the home river after doing the float trip last week and realized it has almost been 2 weeks since I have fished here. The temperature was a balmy 81 degrees when I arrived on the water at 6:30 am. By far this is the warmest morning I have had yet. It turned out to not affect the fish too much. I quickly got the rust off by presenting my CDC Spinner pattern to a couple fish feeding regularly in a good slot between two rocks. The fly drifted over where the first fish was rising but it didn't make it far. The second fish gulped it down and a few moments later I brought a nice 15 incher to the net. Not a monster but still fun and a good way to break me back into the groove of finesse fishing as opposed to the run and gun style out of the drift boat.
Soon I spotted another feeder just up the river and put the stalk on it. I approached within casting range and made several fruitless casts over the fish. This fish was moving back and forth in the water feeding lane a bit so it was a challenge to guess where he would show up next. Finally just as I was beginning to wonder about my fly selection and if I should think about changing it my fly dissapeared in a tiny swirl. I set the hook and the point found paydirt. I could tell this fish was a little larger and I was right. Eventually a nice 18 inch fish with golden buttery brown sides and a serious lack of spots came gently into my net. It was a pretty fish and I was satisfied that the fishing hadn't diminished in the last two weeks.
July 27
For the first time in about a month my usual spot was taken as I drove up the river on this early morning. He wasn't fishing my exact run but close enough that I didn't feel comfortable just jumping in. I headed downstream a bit to the spot I used to frequent where midges hatch in droves and noticed the fish were definitely feeding. I had a frustrating day though from a hooking standpoint. I fished hard for over an hour and had many takes on my tiny midge transitional pattern but the hook was not making contact. Finally I found a fish slurping in ankle deep water that was close to the truck so I decided I better make a try at it. After many many casts I finally got the fish to slurp the fly. And this time the hook point found a holding point in the fish's mouth. I eventually landed what turned out to be the only fish of the morning for me, a nice plump 16 inch fish. I continued fishing for about 20 more minutes and had three more fish jump all over my fly but I never even felt them as when I set the hook they were already gone. To have so many takes and so few fish to the net was a bit discouraging but it was good to be out on the water again anyway.
July 28
A few pics from a great morning on the river.
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