Dry Flies, Rivers, Trout & Tarpon.: Fish Story

Today's mission was to fish the lower slough. On the walk down the trail, I decided I'd follow it all the way to its junction with the main river. I had been within a mile of it yesterday working upstream. There was nothing going on fish or bugs, until I got to the junction. A few bwo's made an appearance but I only saw one rise, one time. Coming back up the main river around noon time, I was able to get an eat from that fish and get it in the net. At least the two mile walk wasn't just to see both waterways at low flows, something I hadn't done since they dredged the slough.

As I neared a crossing of the slough, well on my way back to the truck, a slash right on the bank in some shade caught my attention. Sure enough, a nice fish was eating something every few minutes, no more than an inch or two from the bank. As I got ready to cast, I spotted yet another nice fish holding out from shore a couple feet and downstream about the same distance from the bank feeder. This one wasn't feeding, but was sitting in a foot of clearwater plain as day. Figuring I only had one shot, I cast to the bank feeder. On the first cast, the lower fish spooked back downstream past me and into the deep hole below the flat. The bank feeder didn't budge to my first 5 or 6 casts. I mad a fly change to an Almost Dun, since I was almost done at that point anyway. First drift he ate it and was a thing of beauty. The take of the day, and fish of the day.

But, I still had to cross the little creek, and as I walked back up to the shallows to do so, there was a fish back on the flat. Was it the same fish I had just released? The one I had spooked 10 minutes earlier? Could be either. All of a sudden, as I stood there just looking at it, it turned and went after something on the surface with some gusto. Hmmm. So I put the dun over him, and not even a look. Then a Bob's ant. Still no look. Then a big beetle. Got a turn, but no take. Now what? There have been hoppers all over the grass along all the rivers this month, including this one today. What the hell. First drift, he came up, looked, and ate it softly. Another great fish. Both above average for the small creek. Like the fish we used to catch here. So just by pure luck, I went to cross the right little riffle at the right moment, and payed just enough attention to see these two wonderful fish. Both casts were upstream too!

The hatch remained very sparse, and I saw no other risers for the rest of the way back to the truck. (And these two fish made me look a little more serious on the way back) I'll probably go back in the morning.