No Break in the Streak this Week

Had to keep the streak alive boys. Hit the lower section of Jfork today. Put in at the horse trailer lot, haven't done this section in a couple of years, but decided to try since a truck was parked at the rangers house. With the volume of water, I was fishing all the "micro" runs. I imagine these are overlooked by most piscators, and sure enough, took my first brookie in a shallow run in the middle of the stream, what a delight. This section is marked by a lot shallow water, but again with all the volume this spring, there were some runs and fish in them. Also a lot of flat water. I was fishing downstream, working a woolly bugger. Caught a number of small mouth and red eye bass. Seemed to only be a couple of fish in each run. There are a couple of deep, long runs in this section where the stream runs up against the mountain but other than one little brown and the small mouth, didn't do much there. Lots of walking through the shallow areas, very pretty, but not too productive.

Took a couple of pictures and video on my blackberry, but can't $%#*$*$ figure out how to get them off. I aint bringing that thing again. Not only is it hard to take pictures with it, but it buzzed to remind me of a meeting I was missing- I don't like that one bit. When you're out you're out man, no electronic leashes to interupt the outdoor experience.

Black Canyon

Pablo & the Mule in the Black Canyon from John Berry on Vimeo.

AK Fix

Pablo Landing Salmon, AK 2008 from Mick Berry on Vimeo.

Quick Fix

Felt that need, or itch to get out today.. the weather was too nice, though predictions of thunderstorms filled the afternoon sky, I ventured out regardless. Only to remember a doctors appointment, that cut my day short.
here's the 411:
Quick trip up LHF. Water was a tad off color and high, most of the snow gone, 60 degrees. Nice day, took several decent trout, tried a variety of flies. Check out the link for videos.

http://vimeo.com/4141020 The Intro
http://vimeo.com/4140722 The Catch
http://vimeo.com/4141555 Walk & Talk

if this link works, I'll add the others in a bit.. tight lines. Here's a couple of other vid's from the days events.

Men and Boys

70 and sunny isn't necessarily a good thing on the Jacobs fork, just like a full moon, it brings out the -------. But, given my need to feed the addiction, I was going in regardless. I met my buddy Bill (need to add him to the site) at the 127/10intersection a little after 2. We were standing in the stream stringing up at 3:05. I toyed with hitting the lower section, something I haven't done this season, maybe not even last season, but there was a truck at a lower turnout, so we headed to rangers house- why is that you just get stuck in these routines? Mainly I wanted to get Bill into fish and this section tends to get less attention and even though it was Thursday, it was sunny and the day before a holiday, so I feared the worse for the upper section. As soon as we stepped in the stream I spotted trout in the shallow run above us. I advised Bill about the success of the egg pattern, and to prove my point, I took two brookies on the egg in the first few casts. I love fishing this stream when the water is up- gives so many more runs and fish seem to be more dispersed.

Bill got off a little slow, victimized by the combat fishing terrain. I guess I'm so accustom to these tight spots, it doesn't bother me much-


I'm not sure I can still back cast. I took one brookie on a slingshot cast up under a branch. Eventually as we moved up, Bill took a couple of fish and was getting in the groove. 8 or 9 trout in, I looked up and spotted two yahoos coming down stream. #@$@#^% %#$@&! I hate seeing someone in my river! I watched them for a minute and dashed up to the big pool I was working up to, just to stake my ground. Two young guys, I asked them if they'd put in at the campground- yes they had- meaning all water above us, all MY PRECIOUS, PERSONAL WATER had been pilfered over by these two naerdowells. I was particularly talkative and they passed by on the other side of the stream. Bill stopped and chatted with them, just out of earshot, and I happened to notice that number 2 was wearing topsiders for wading boots- I tried to get my camera out and snap a shot, but decided against it. As bill came up to me I asked what they said. Caught four between them, one guy had on a dry the other a streamer. Well, do we stay or do we go?

We eased up to the next hole and could see several nice fish in the tail. Bang, bang, bang, took them just like routine. Maybe these guys hadn't bothered anything. We kept having success and I caught a couple in fast little pocket in between pools, always fun, makes me feel so superior to these other fair weather piscators- only a real fisherman would think to prospect in these short little brushy runs, let alone take fish in them. I left a couple of runs for Bill and headed up to slick rock. Caught a sweet rainbow there (see film- no that's not a strike indicator, it's egg with a black wooly dropper) but he came off at my feet as I was getting the camera to still mode, he was nice 13" or so, good girth. I sent Bill on ahead to Christian's hole and took 4 more fish out of slick rock. When I got up to Bill he was fighting a nice brookie, good on yah mate! He proceeded to take 15 trout out of the pool while I watched and munched on snacks, lazily fishing the upper section and missing two trout because of my inattention.

I suggested Bill eventually switch flies and thought he might run the entire pool again with a second menu item, and I eased up to the next run. And so it went. All the way to the campground, right in the boot prints of the youngens- I guess that's the difference between men and boys.

Finished up putting on a show for 4 campground spectators who looked on in amazement as I deftly flicked the fly up under branches dangling with broken off lures and took wriggling trout after trout. There was a 14" light colored, possibly rainbow in the last run with several brookies and I took most all the brookies, but the big boy alluded me. On my final attempt, a nice trout drafting next to the bigun I was angling for actually took my fly off the submerged rock where I'd landed it trying to swing into the big boys nose- that was funny and I figured a good note to end, so I took his picture with my rod (notice the fly is a lime trude with a split shot head- I love being creative).

It's almost too easy- though very enjoyable. Bill told me of a fellow coworker who has been taking very nice trout at the top of linville gorge, right below the falls, says no one has the umph to hike down there... I'm thinking end of next week when wife and kids are at disney world, I may need to pay the gorge a visit. Pablo know's the gorge, this is the upper section where it's still a little open.

There you have it.

Tale of Two Rivers

It was the worst of times and it was the best of times. Let me tell you the tale of the Black Canyon.
I arrived at 11 ish, the song from my car speakers blasted the aptly named song by the Cars,"hello, hello again". One car in the parking lot (found out later those yokels were shooting rock chucks) so I had the river to myself, a first. I quickly headed upstream a bit.. tied on a royal wulff and started casting. It was therapeutic to just enjoy the act of casting a dry on a large river.. haven’t done that for a while.
After a half hour of no rises, I added a dropper, and in a bit had landed a little rainbow. Added another in short order. That was it for 3 hours. I switched up flies many times, dry only, different droppers, nothing. As fatigue weighed in and concentration waned, I decided to switch up one more time. I put on a massive stimulator (stimulator?, I hardly know her) and tied on a bead head prince nymph (party like its 1999!) That’s when the action began. After one cast, I was fighting a jumpy bow… and so it went for a half hour. I landed 9 or 10, all decent size. I had started using different techiques, ie.. stripping that nymph, swinging it, and a little jiggle, teasing those fish into striking. The Gov'na would have been proud.

I was having a grand ole time, just like Black Canyon used to be. Things I forgot though. How hard it is to wade in that river, how you need a wading staff, need a net, need more nymphs, and how strong those rainbows are. I'm making this note to self.. bring those things next time! And bring a sinking tip line, with streamers! (n.t.s.)



that last trout was a dandy.... He flashed at my fly twice before taking it, right along the bank. He took off downstream, into that fast water.. I was holding on for dear life.. trying to keep from breaking off, and trying like mad to get downriver, after him. Those of you who've been to that river know how treacherous it is to "run" downriver after a fish...after 15 min & a hundred yards, I finally coaxed him into shallow water where I was able to "corral" him with my boots (I need new boots). Enough said, what an ending... all told 71 miles from my door (1 1/2 hours, n.t.s.) I must go back, soon.

Solitude

What a day. No one in sight, clear water, many fish. Hiked into LHF, felt like walking into the arms of a familiar lover. The 411: landed 8 or 9 fish, nothing under 11. I missed several others, had a very nice brown on (twice) momentarily, and lost several flies to a wayward tree limb. The most memorable was losing that brown. I had come to a very deep run, had taken a trout from the back end, but then saw another swirl a little farther up. You know how you can see the back of the fish break the water, then the tail rotate over... you can tell its of good size.. I flicked a great cast right up into the overhanging tree, had to break off. Tied on another fly, lost that one too. finally put the fly right in the sweet spot.. gulp!.. I stung him and popped it out of his mouth! Tried again, nothing. Tried a new fly, smaller, gulp again! this time I had him on for about 8 secs.. that's right, I rode that bull for the allotted time, then he popped off... Drat! Fun nonetheless.. what a day!

I'm amazed by how many fish, and good size fish are in this stream. They were starting to stage for spawning, and I spooked out many fish in the riffles.. some quite nice, say, 16" or so.. and for this size stream the number per run or hole is incredible...

The Carolina Quartet

How do you describe that feeling when it's a weekday and you've got trout on you schedule? I did stay focused through the morning and then about lunch time headed for my meeting with Jacob Fork. Cloudy and cool. I scoped out the upper section and one angler was up there. I decided to hit my favorite haunt. Water was very heavy from all the rain recently, it was a little off in color, and really amazing how the runs change when there is so much water. Couldn't sight fish with the volume and dark sky so resorted to "strip searching". Wasn't long before I took my first brookie on a black beadhead woolly bugger I'd tied as a dropper to the egg pattern, really using
the egg as an indicator, these trout can take it so gently you gotta try and see your fly under water, in fact I missed two fish before I took number one. Took a little brown on a dead drift in the gorge, watched a big fish flash around it, and then ended up taking the small mouth in the cut of the big rock (fished from the right hand side- if moving up stream) I was standing on. Fished all the way up to Christian's hole (took three brookies there) and then decided to keep going. It had been quite awhile since I've fished that section. With the water so heavy there were great runs in areas that wouldn't typically hold fish and I had a ball taking trout in fairlyshallow water swinging the woolly bugger down current. There are also two really nice deep runs up in this section, one of which yielded three trout on three casts. Fished all the way up to the campground, it really wasn't that far. Skipped some of the shallower water and then fished right there at the parking lot, taking the big brown. He hit the fly as soon as it hit the water and I missed him and on the next cast he hit again really hard and put up a good fight. The next section up I caught the little rainbow. The section just above the parking lot is really cool, couple of deep plunge pools and a gorge type section. I need to check this section out more thoroughly next time. Didn't catch anything in these pools, did miss a fish and saw another flash at the fly. By now it was getting dark and I was terribly dehydrated, so weak I could hardly walk. I had forgotten to bring water and although surrounded by clear cold water, I didn't want to chance giardia. With out the strength to walk the 2 miles back to my car, I had to rely on my British special forces training.

GEAR REVIEW:

Love the slimline chest pack. I picked out my flies ahead of time and put them on Velcro backed pads which fit perfectly in the vest. Loved being able to open my "fly box" by unzipping the pack's main compartment. Very light, don't even notice it and perfect for scampering under bushes and over rocks- excellent and cheap, I only paid $14 for it.

Didn't try the foot warmers. Its too warm here to try them out now. One of you snow bound boys gonna have to test them out.