Round One Goes To The Fish

These fish are incredible.

The boys can keep their Bass, Tarpon. Bonefish, Permit..etc...

There is nothing on this earth that can whoop ass like an October Steelhead.

On the walk out yesterday I was amused by the irony that the fish are at their sporting best in October on the first push,... right when my game is covered in rust.

...And my 'A' game is really not that good anyway.

LOL


This was the first trip out and after hearing gaudy reports from my closest Steelhead cronies I was all a-jitter with images of leaping chrome and primed with hope of a creel number that only a good water October day could provide.

Not quite...


At least at first.

I have got to stop bitching about people...
But there were a lot of them....some of them were actually camped out in there.
Infuriating..but I have to admit ..that would be awesome!!
LOL

I fished nothing but what I expect was first ,second and probably third water all morning...
Very frustrating.

Just when I thought that I would out hike them I would turn the corner and there would be another group of knuckleheads.
Lots of pressure but to be fair everybody I ran into went out of their way to make the river a civilized place to fish.
I didn't see a fish on a stringer all day....dare I hope?....have we turned a corner collectively???
..doubtful..

Even with all the people I didn't see anybody hook anything...except me...
;o)
Heres hoping that Morin's previous days education saved a few lives from some clumsy efforts...

All the obvious spots had been smashed and by 11:00 I had only managed to go 4 for 4...
I was happy to be out and finally doing it but sickened with the thought that I was once again a day late and a dollar short.

More Irony...
I guilted Morin into trying to get the previous day off work only to have my own leave denied by the Philistines at work.

At the next round of bargaining I am going to fight for special non discretionary steelhead leave based on river graph numbers.

Picking up scraps...

I was happy for those cocksuckers but my vanity would make it unbearable if I returned with anything but an exceptional day under my belt.

Thank Christ that at 11:00 I stood over water that almost nobody fishes and that could possibly be the best holding water on the river right now.

It is amazing how the river changes from year to year and this 30 ft stretch has improved greatly from last year.


I don't think it had been fished that day by anyone because I couldn't get a drift through there without my float being scuttled by a lightening finned beast...

For an hour and a half I fought the best that river or arguably this world has to offer sportfish wise and for the most part had my ass handed to me....
I lost a couple of huge fish...real heartbreakers....but I also put some beauties on the bank.


I had made a promise to my family that I would be home by 2:30 pm and I had what I estimated to be a 1 hour plus brutal hike out so at 12:30 I broke the rod down and walked away from the hottest steelhead water I have ever stood over....

OUCH!

OUCH I SAY!!!

Great day ..Now I am lovin Life..

In the immaculate words of Harv the shitstain....GAME ON!