Personal Trails - A Blue Kind Of Thanksgiving

For the last twelve or so years, I have spent some part of Thanksgiving day on Blue River.  This year would prove no different.  Usually I am alone, but this year my daughter and her husband decided they too would like to have a Thanksgiving meal at this wonderful little river.

Kempy is still yet to pick up fishing, but she loves hitting the trails with Van and me as we continue to learn about the rainbow trout and fly fishing as a whole.

 

Kempy enjoys taking in the braided streams and forks this river takes, along with burnt orange, gold, and yellow tint of the leaves this time of year.

 

The wind was rather brutal on Thanksgiving day, so we drove across the river because we knew that is where we would find natural wind breaks.  Van got out his grill and went to work preparing some rather tasty burgers for lunch.  Now, he may not want me to share the secret to his burgers, but they are so good I think it would be a injustice to the rest of the burger loving world if I failed to mention he uses Head Country seasoning.  Yum. 

 

 

After lunch, we decided to take a picture to preserve the occasion and it's something we can look back on years later.

 

 

It was time for fishing for Van and I and Kempy was up for a good hike.  What she didn't know was the trail we would take today is a really rough-going haul. 

 

Today's personal trail is one that not many choose to take.  To find the trout by way of this trail requires a lengthy walk through some rough country.  However, if you're up to a three-quarters of a mile hike through green briar, overgrowth, and thickets, the fishing can at times be rewarding.

 

The fishing wasn't spectacular today, but some bows did come to hand.  As soon as we started fishing it begin to sprinkle rain and the small shower lasted a good hour or so.  Once the rain stopped the fish seemed to loose interest also. 

 

Buggers and pheasant tails were the trout pleasing flies today, but again, once they went off the bite they were off.

 

 

 

Van is an avid hunter in addition to being an angler, so after fishing he wanted to scout the woods and look for a place for a deer stand.  He has already harvested two deer this season and I believe he told me he can harvest a couple of more.

 

It was time for me to head back because the mercantile store needed to be checked.  On my way back home I thought about all that I have to be thankful for.  I have the love of my family, can still get around the woods and on the water fairly well, and of course I have this wonderful river.

 

So much to be thankful for. 

 







Chapter 58 Day 24 - Trout Season

A Bluebird Day Not

Thanksgiving morning certainly wasn't shaping up to be a Bluebird day - wet and damp, hazy to foggy, gray and ovecast with enough southerly wind to make the body uncomfortable.  It was hard to tell if this was a perfect day for trout fishing or a perfect day to not sit around the bunkhouse and be bored to tears. 

Indecision has never been a vice I own and it wasn't long until I was in the prairie schooner slapping leather across the ponies backsides setting sail for the river Blue. 

These days I take a more eclectic approach to fly fishing.  I enjoy planning the trip, trying to imagine exactly what fly will be fished and where, and then... there is the voyage itself. 

Each trip starts out pretty much the same... taking a sea-lane of hardended concrete. 

Always, at the first opportunity a sea-lane consisting of a dirt road is taken.  Something about dirt roads that seem to call this fly angler.

On the voyage I stopped by the old west town known as Sipokni West to see what the townfolk there had going on.  However, town was vacant - guess they all loaded in the wagons and went somewhere else for Thanksgiving. 

Shortly thereafter, I cross Pennington Creek and stopped to see how this little beauty was doing.  Little Sister, as I call her, lost a lot of herself this past summer - growing thin and looking drawn.  Today though, she looked to be filling out once again. 

One of the main reasons for coming to the river Blue today was because of the conflicting reports received about the river's conditions.  Right after this week's rain it was reported the river was murky and may get worse.  Then yesterday came a report that the river was just a little murky, but fish-able.  Today when I got to see the river for myself it was, "Blow me down - shiver me timbers!"  This river is clear as a bell!  Clear and extremely fish-able. 

The trout at the first run of water I fished wasn't interested or frisky at all.  And... that was okay with me because I wan't feeling very frisky myself having to fight a chest and head cold.  Spooling up, downstream water calls me and on the way there I find a recently abandoned campsite with a campfire still going.  I don't know who left the campfire, but, it was very inviting and I appreciate finding it.  Stopping at the campfire, I take a seat by the fire and enjoy a cold beer.  Nothing like a cold beer on a brisk cold day. 

After the drink is disposed of, I step into the stew headed for the boulder above Seventeen.  Here, the trout are willing and are feeling frisky.  Almost as soon as the water is split I sense a drop in temperature and that makes for the decision to give the trout the fly low and slow - deeper in the column and a slower action.  This presentation seemed to be what the trout wanted.

The trout today had some surprising size to them .  No, they weren't big by any means but they were a pound and half that fish.  And, another surprise was how many of them showed the characteristics of male trout.  The only thing that figures, to me, is these were some of the pound to two pound trout the derby organizers placed in the river. 

The wind continued to pick up and I decided to call it a day. 

Standing on the boulder reminded me of why I prefer the wilderness areas to the main campground area.  It's the damn trash.  On the boulder I find six or seven empty beer bottles and folk we do not take our alchohol-laden beverages with us on the water.  The wildlife department forbids it and for good reason.  Void of a trash bag today, a bookmark was made, and next time I hit the river the trash bag will be with me and the damn beer bottles will be removed. 

Overall, it was a good day on the river.  Not a Bluebird day, but a good day that I am thankful for this Thanksgiving.  





Another Thanksgiving On Blue

Trout Season 2009/2010 Trout Fishing Day 10

This was my twentieth Thanksgiving to work at the same place and I guess I should be quite thankful for that fact. And...I am. I'm particularly thankful this year because the job situation looks like I may find myself adrift on the sea of joblessness at any time.

Today also was my eleventh year in a row to spend at least part of Thanksgiving day with the Lady Blue.

Battling a chest cold and feeling rather crummy the thought of not going at all crossed my mind but still I was compelled to go. Spending time with the river seems to have become some kind of requirement of my very existence. Fishing didn't seem all that important today...just being there did, but still I would put on the waders and cut the waters.

At Chris's Pool the risers were crazy and there was a mixture of black and grey bugs on the surface. Convinced I could entice them with a soft hackle I flung that sucker and hoped for the best. The wind was giving me more battle than the bows at first but finally I got into a rhythm and met a couple of bows.

Down in the channel there was a flurry of activity so I waded there. In the channels is challenge fishing, at least to me, because of the tight casting. However, if you can pull the cast off the fishing is priceless. More bows would be met in the channels but the bows actually got the best of the jousting with more strikes than I.

Today I was thankful for the chance to be on such a special natural occurring river as Blue. She is quite special.

Hope we all will remember our troops this holiday season.