Yes, Portage is The Right Answer...

The collective, "um yeah, we better get out and scope this out....it looks a little rough" went through the boat.  No reason to be a stick jockey, we all have kiddos and people expecting our return.

I think we made the right choice in dragging our water chariot along the dry, safe route

Be safe out there ladies and gents.  Error on the side of caution and live to float and fish another day.

Picking At The Bones...

Another box store falls.

And I felt like I was picking at the bones of a dear friend.

I now have more leader 3 packs then I'll need in 2 years of trout fishing

20 different sizes and shapes of bead heads and a gazillion other odds and ends

15 different styles of ostrich plumes that are so damn sexy for steelhead, I had to break them out tonight on the bench.

And still, I feel a weird mixture of getting a good deal and seeing a lot of good people now without a job.

I wandered about the store saying hello to the people I know in different departments and having that weird conversation where you try to give them some kind words and rays of hope.  My bet is they're about up to it with that exact exchange.  Alrighty, yep...we're done.  I'll be ok.  Dont worry, there's opportunities out there

Give me break, it's a shit sandwich for a lot of really good people.

I've worked with these people in my day job for over 9 years and through 2 buyouts and multiple corporate restructurings.  Through the worst economic downturn in our lives, to store site changes and a lot more.

I've sat with them at conservation banquets like the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and the Mule Deer Foundation and watch them give from their hearts and the companies pocketbook as well

They were my first really big account.  They trusted in me and gave me a lot.

The powers that be sealed their fates with pen strokes and bottom lines in mind

Shitty.

Life will continue.  Jobs will be found and another retailer will take their place

My fly tying bench is now well stocked and I cant decide how to feel about it.

Extending The Season...

You spend most of the spring and summer waiting and watching.

Is it time yet?   Rumblings come from down river on a few fish here and few fish there being caught, just enough to stoke the fire and get you rolling on the vice.

And then it's time.  Drylines.  Skaters.  Wet flies on the tight swing.  Yes, the takes are savage and subtle just the same

The leaves fall and the snap of cold creeps in daily.  Out come the tips and cold weather and you're in the heart of steelhead season.  

Trip after trip, fish after fish, skunk after skunk.  The season just .....happens

Then all of a sudden, it's time to let the summer fish be and do their job.  You can still catch them, but each time  you feel just a bit dirtier.  Just slightly

Inland steelheaders are then forced to make a choice.

Start tying tiny little bugs, or find one more trip to extend the season where the fish are chrome and the rivers are just a little less familiar.

Saddle up for a long drive, bring the good rain gear and be prepared to get wrecked.

Winter Steelhead are an amazing thang.

Vice Time With Ol' Hank...

A bit late in posting this, but hilarious non the less.

Now to go find some Elmer's glue...

OMR's River Taxi

A little assistance never hurt anyone in a tricky river crossing.  Even OMR.

A Prompt and Thorough Ass Kicking

I have never been so destroyed by a steelhead than this one I never saw, and absolutely couldnt land

With available fishing space gone, I traversed around the basalt ledges and get to a spot that I can make a half decent cast.  Before cast #1, I say to my buddy Ryan these prophetic words...

"I am screwed if I hook a fish"

And in the first cast....I was

About 3 minutes after the video ends, the hook pulled and the game was over

I never saw it, could hardly move it, and had the feeling the fish was playing me the entire time

Yo Adrienne, Your Flies Work

Last week, some amazing mail hit the doorstep.  10 beautifully crafted flies from one of the preeminent ladies in the sport of fly fishing and custom steelhead fly tying, Adrienne Comeau.

Turns out, about 5 casts after I tied this fly on...

We had a player. 

Seriously, these flies are damn amazing.  Perfectly proportioned, good pop and great colors. 

Interested in learning more about Adrienne's talent on the vice, visit her site

The Female Angle