Post by Smallfry on Nov 21, 2023 12:20:41 GMT -6
Fishing hasn't been too hot this year, mostly due to not going out as much. Ya know how some people fall into a little slump, just like when ur ankle decides it doesn't want to do its job and u randomly trip. Slowly I've started dragging myself out of the house and around the end of August I got a pretty decent kick start back to fishing with a short, sweet trip to NM. Caught me a handful of tiny browns n rainbows, got my first cutthroat which would be considered a dink but I'm quite pleased. Traveling to fish isn't something I normally do, I'm quite happy with the variety of my local water especially since it seems each time I used to get out I'd see or experience something fun. Lake, river, pond, crappie, bass, sunnies, trout, I don't have to travel far for them. One of these days I'd like to go after walleye tho.
Anyway, afterwork BB trips are picking back up with some weekend days sprinkled in, mostly visiting spots I don't fish a whole lot just to see who's home. My next goal is to finally land one of those pesky chain pickerels that I see chasing my flies. Closest time to landing one I sent the poor dude flying on a hookset. I don't think it was hooked, just holding on for dear life. As far as fly selection goes, I've been veering away from my old staples of adams style dries in favor of either large stimulater styles or small comparaduns. I'm unsure if that is making any difference but I do tie them faster so that's a plus. As for nymphs, I haven't adventured much from the basics, u know, the rs2's, pt's n whatnot.
I had fun on a recent afternoon trip, which I'll refer to as the palomino rodeo( there must have been a fresh stocking). Up until that day I'd only landed a handful of those small ugly yellow creatures. This humid overcast drizzly day I decided for some reason to cast to every yellow beacon I saw, they actually ate my flies without hesitation. All but one, at least. A few days later I took the kid out with me. I'd cast a bugger out and let her bring it in. She got a few grabs on her own and landed 2 rainbows before playing with rocks became her main focus. She really likes holding and seeing the trout more than catching them herself. When I'd get one on she'd come running to be my net helper. I had a proud parent moment at one point when a lady walked by with her baby boy to see the trout we'd just caught. That little girl walked our trout over to him, showed it and then said "Hold on, it has to breathe." and dipped the trout back into the water before presenting it a second time. The baby wanted to touch that trout so badly but was just as frightened by it as he was delighted. He squealed and stamped his chunky baby legs in frustration before running back to his mother. My baby laughed and lowered the net into that water, said her goodbyes to the trout as it swam away.
I have plenty to learn and I think this river likes to keep me on my toes. It could be me and whatever mental space I'm in but it seems like sometimes I don't see the trout and other times they're so crazy obvious. Often when I manage to spot a trout it's too late for me to catch it. I'm still at that point where I only get one chance. I just don't have the thought process or competitiveness to get that 2nd eat. Example, this last time I saw a decent brown trout feeding at the bottom of a pool. What had caught my eye was a smaller brown that was moving around feeding on what I imagine were caddis. I hadn't even run my flies through the area so I was pretty confident that I could actually target and get the larger brown to eat. I changed to a heavier compact streamer. Still unsure if my eyes were messing with me or not, I waited. The light olive dash I was watching flashed and I knew I wasn't imagining things. At the front of the pool I plopped my fly, watched it drift into range, twitch, twitch and head turn, chase, then the olive streak veered off back to the holding spot. Okay, it didn't grab or feel hook, so I'll try a smaller fly. Almost the same reaction, no chase, just a head turn and grab from the small brown. After that it all went downhill, as usual.
The way the river must keep me humble amuses me. I missed the satisfaction when variables are in my favor and action plans fall into place. I haven't been at 100% this past year, but forcing myself to go out has helped. I think I'm ready for this cold weather and to see what I can get into this season.
Anyway, here's a pic I've been sitting on for a while!
Anyway, afterwork BB trips are picking back up with some weekend days sprinkled in, mostly visiting spots I don't fish a whole lot just to see who's home. My next goal is to finally land one of those pesky chain pickerels that I see chasing my flies. Closest time to landing one I sent the poor dude flying on a hookset. I don't think it was hooked, just holding on for dear life. As far as fly selection goes, I've been veering away from my old staples of adams style dries in favor of either large stimulater styles or small comparaduns. I'm unsure if that is making any difference but I do tie them faster so that's a plus. As for nymphs, I haven't adventured much from the basics, u know, the rs2's, pt's n whatnot.
I had fun on a recent afternoon trip, which I'll refer to as the palomino rodeo( there must have been a fresh stocking). Up until that day I'd only landed a handful of those small ugly yellow creatures. This humid overcast drizzly day I decided for some reason to cast to every yellow beacon I saw, they actually ate my flies without hesitation. All but one, at least. A few days later I took the kid out with me. I'd cast a bugger out and let her bring it in. She got a few grabs on her own and landed 2 rainbows before playing with rocks became her main focus. She really likes holding and seeing the trout more than catching them herself. When I'd get one on she'd come running to be my net helper. I had a proud parent moment at one point when a lady walked by with her baby boy to see the trout we'd just caught. That little girl walked our trout over to him, showed it and then said "Hold on, it has to breathe." and dipped the trout back into the water before presenting it a second time. The baby wanted to touch that trout so badly but was just as frightened by it as he was delighted. He squealed and stamped his chunky baby legs in frustration before running back to his mother. My baby laughed and lowered the net into that water, said her goodbyes to the trout as it swam away.
I have plenty to learn and I think this river likes to keep me on my toes. It could be me and whatever mental space I'm in but it seems like sometimes I don't see the trout and other times they're so crazy obvious. Often when I manage to spot a trout it's too late for me to catch it. I'm still at that point where I only get one chance. I just don't have the thought process or competitiveness to get that 2nd eat. Example, this last time I saw a decent brown trout feeding at the bottom of a pool. What had caught my eye was a smaller brown that was moving around feeding on what I imagine were caddis. I hadn't even run my flies through the area so I was pretty confident that I could actually target and get the larger brown to eat. I changed to a heavier compact streamer. Still unsure if my eyes were messing with me or not, I waited. The light olive dash I was watching flashed and I knew I wasn't imagining things. At the front of the pool I plopped my fly, watched it drift into range, twitch, twitch and head turn, chase, then the olive streak veered off back to the holding spot. Okay, it didn't grab or feel hook, so I'll try a smaller fly. Almost the same reaction, no chase, just a head turn and grab from the small brown. After that it all went downhill, as usual.
The way the river must keep me humble amuses me. I missed the satisfaction when variables are in my favor and action plans fall into place. I haven't been at 100% this past year, but forcing myself to go out has helped. I think I'm ready for this cold weather and to see what I can get into this season.
Anyway, here's a pic I've been sitting on for a while!