I walked into Scotty's about five minutes after eleven and immediately saw something that holds my fancy...a cardiac on a stick. Corn dogs are wonderful aren't they? I know very well that corn dogs aren't good for me and my health issues, but the way I have it figured it's doubtful there are corn dogs in heaven...so I'm going to eat as many as I can now. Oh, I grabbed a Coor's Light too because I know dang well there aren't any of those in heaven.
With corn dog in mouth, Coor's Light in left hand, I gathered the reins of the prairie schooner with my right hand and slapped leather across the butt of the ponies and we made trail to the river. The corn dog and beer never had a chance and they were gone in short order giving me a satisfied palate and buzz at the same time.
After walking four miles yesterday in the south wilderness I was looking for something different today. I turned downstream in Area 1 and slowly passed the sandbar, island, flats, and riffles and all were pretty much void of people but I passed all these spots up. Further downstream I slowed again to look at Horseshoe Falls and saw four anglers there. Horseshoe Falls is an area I don't fish much and was pretty much the kind of area I was looking for today. Further down there were a few risers at Glory Hole and I passed them up too. Can't believe I passed up risers. At Seventeen there were a host of anglers so I made the circle drive and went back to the bluff above Horseshoe Falls and hitched the ponies there.
The bluff at Horseshoe Falls is an anthology of granite boulders that are time worn and telling. Fissures in the boulders suggest icing that occurred millions of years ago. Many scoff at the idea of icing this far south while others believe in the "snowball earth" theory. Regardless of which thinking is right, some event took place to cause such scarring and unique structuring in these rocks.
Directly above Horseshoe Falls is Ted's Pool. Now, I don't know who Ted was because I never got to meet him but I do know this stretch of water has held his namesake for as long as I can remember. Ted's Pool is a long wide stretch of water which basically can't be waded. Some of the deepest water on the river can be found at Ted's Pool and the lower end just above Horseshoe Falls has some pockets or holes that have to be fifteen or twenty feet deep. I waded out about fifteen feet onto a ledge and cast upstream into the dark green water with a red-ass bugger. Today required an agonizing slow drift and gathering strip allowing the fly to fall deep enough into the column. Once the fly fell deep enough a slow gathering strip was employed and that is when the strike would come. The bows today were low and slow but they were quite eager. Just like yesterday, but not as quickly actioned, it was a bow with every cast. There were two anglers on the bank to my right using spinners and they weren't getting any results at all. I could tell that their retrieve was much too fast and the lure wasn't getting low enough in the water column. After I battled eleven straight bows I decided to fish Horseshoe Falls.
I only had to wade about thirty feet to get to Horseshoe Falls and there were four other anglers fishing here. I was kind of sandwiched in between anglers and alders so I simply made some short roll casts off the falls. The bows at Horseshoes had a no-hitter in mind for me and for a time I thought they were going to pull it off. However, I started casting across a current and fishing through the swing. Even this proved challenging because if you came out of the swing to quickly the results was nada. I took several bumps before I finally landed a bow and the bow community had to settle for a 1-0 game. I found it amazing in wading just thirty feet I went from a rich pot of bows at Ted's Pool to basically nothing at Horseshoe Falls.
I stayed a few more minutes at Horseshoe before deciding to go look upstream. The middle of Horseshoe Falls barely had any water coming over it today but had good discharge on the fringes.
Going back upstream I looked at the water below the crossing and decided to give it a dozen or so casts. I waded out onto Chuck's Ledge and the bows here were also looking for a shut-out. I still had the same fly on which was the red-ass bugger. I took one bump and then a rock took my red-ass. I tied a yellow tail bugger on and captured one bow but then that damn rock took my yellow tail. Next, I tied a fluro-bugger on and made short casts of twenty feet directly upstream and found a pocket that had bows. I stayed long enough to capture three more bows and then it was time for me to go.
The river looked really good today and although there were anglers there wasn't that many people on the water today.
Tomorrow's weather looks really promising and I'm tempted to be back with Blue but guess I better not chance it with the workplace.
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