In addition to teaching music at the local high school, for the past two years I've also been in charge of jazz music for our state which includes running the State Jazz Festival the weekend before Spring Break. Leading into this festival is always pretty stressful, but the one thing that kept me going were some loosely laid plans of fishing during the break. The one definite plan was a trip with Weston and Dad to where nessie has been rumored to live. As it always seems, the best laid plans were screwed by the unexpected. This time Dad catching a stomach bug kept him from coming, but me and Wes decided to go without him.
The new plan included staying at Weston's the night before and then making an early morning drive. I haven't watched basketball for awhile, so I was shocked when watching the game before going to bed. When did the NBA stop playing defense? Went to sleep with the image running through my head of some guy breaking his leg during the game...
The drive was a good one talking with Wes and listening to Randy Newberg podcasts. The wind was waiting for us as we got out of the truck but right away Weston hooked up on a good rainbow. These fish were coming off the spawn looking like they'd been run through a blender, but still had a lot of fight in them.
Tried lots of streamers since that was the kind of fishing we wanted to do, but the good old Olive Wooly Bugger was more effective than anything else. Fishing was spotty, but we made contact in most spots we stopped. Even the new spot that required a little more effort by way of walking produced some fish, including the only splake (Brook Trout + Lake Trout = Splake) I've ever seen out here.
The next day Weston had to work early so we called it a day decently early and hit the long road. Lots of fun and a great reprieve from work.
Hope you're as lucky,
Kidder
Amazingly, I found time to read again despite the fact that I probably shouldn't have made time for this. From a purely practical stance, this should've been a ways down the priority list for me, but from a standpoint of actually taking care of myself and enjoying life this book found me at the perfect time.
Craig Nova's "Brook Trout & The Writing Life" was an easy read that told of his coming up in the world as a writer, a father, a husband, and a fly fisherman. Very quickly I fell into his life through the man's beautiful way with words, not only about brook trout but about all aspects of his life. This book made me want to become a better writer. A definite must read.
"One of the beauties of fishing, or spending time in the natural world, is being surprised when you least expect it." pg. 140
No, I'm not affiliated with this book in any way and I don't receive any compensation for recommending it. Just passing on the good word. Buy it on Amazon HERE
