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.