Snow Day

A couple of weeks ago I was hired to be an adjudicator for a music festival at a nearby school for their region festival. While I was there I talked to Lane's wife for a minute and she asked if I'd go out fishing with Lane so she didn't have to. That's definitely a request that I can help out with! Fishing with Lane is always fun, and I always learn something from him. With both of us being music teachers you'd think we'd spend a lot of time talking shop about our jobs, but both of us fish obsessively and have plenty to talk about our piscatorial pursuits.

As seems to be par for the course lately, I didn't really have a plan when it came to the day's pursuits. I didn't even text Lane until about 9:30 in the morning and was really glad when he agreed to put up with me joining him. I set out pretty quickly after that, hoping to beat the weather but the blizzard that I drove through persisted for most of the day. 

First stop for the day was more to check water levels and clarity, though we did manage to get the skunk off quickly. Lane started out with a Griffith's Gnat and a Zebra Midge dropper and got the fish's attention from the get-go. I had on a large Ant for an indicator and an electric green Zebra Midge for a dropper. 

I'm thinking this one will be killer when caddis start making their move

Second stop had a good stretch of water and a promising looking beaver pond that we spotted from the road. After a short hike we approached the dam from downstream and found a couple of nice spots to try. After a small fish the green Zebra turned off cold, but Lane found some willing trout with a brown Wooly Bugger. The pond itself was probably the deepest water we fished all day, but it seemed void of life. Above the pond, as is often the case, there were more ponds that held willing fish. Some had to be left alone because we couldn't figure out how to get a fly wet through all the trees and willows. Lane seems to really like this type of fishing, and I do too but a little goes a long way and I like to have a back cast now and again. 

It may not look like it, but casting was very difficult with all the vegetation

One of mine, just awesome colors

As we worked through the bush we traded off fish except when I wasted my turn by getting stuck on a log. Lane caught five or six while I watched. To his credit, he did offer me his rod but even when I finally agreed to give it a go the fish knew I wasn't deserving. These fish were stunningly beautiful, like they were still colored up for the spawn.

Glowing fish, and no, Lane doesn't have anything in his mouth

Another of Lane's fish, this one with the lucky bugger

We decided to drive upstream to another spot that Lane likes to fish but the low, clear water made fishing difficult and the best part of the day was behind us. Lane managed a couple of rianbows in this stretch and I got my last fish for the day, a small brown. It was obvious that the day was over, even if we weren't entirely ready to stop. I'm really hoping that this is the first of many trips with Lane this year. The guy knows how to fish, casts extremely accurately, and can spot fish better than anyone else I know. I can learn a lot...

Hope you're as lucky,

Kidder

Marshes

Been wanting to make this trip happen for over a year now, but it's hard to get my brother and my Dad available at the same time. The destination in question is a place that loomed in family legend for me while I was growing up. A place where huge trout could be caught on flies in the dead of winter. I had been there when I was really little, but I didn't have the chance to fish it until I was an adult. A few years ago Weston and I decided to make the trip. Not knowing where to fish, or what to use, we started at the first open spot we came to and missed a couple fish. As the snow storm intensified the fishing seemed to get better and we began picking up a few fish. In typical "place-of-legend" fashion, I lost the biggest fish I hooked into that day but Weston made good on a slab of a rainbow. (Read the full story of that first trip HERE)

Fast forward to the present and we've managed to make a few trips there and have gotten to know the lay of the land, so to speak. This trip finally came together when Weston and my Dad got a break in their constant stream of side work and Jeff and I were ready to roll. It's a long ride, so I made the drive up to my Dad's the night before. It's always hard for me to sleep before a big trip and this one was no different. Exhausted, I pulled myself off the couch at 2:30 AM and got ready for a long, but exciting day. 

Arriving early is usually a good thing, but not so much when the temps outside read 19º and it's still dark. I passed some time tying up a leader for Jeff, but it still seemed to take forever for the sun to show. Not sure if it was the cold, or we just suck, but the first stop didn't give up any fish. It's definitely one of my favorite spots (it's where I lost that fish on our first trip there) so it seemed to be a bad omen that no fish were willing to play. The second stop told a different story, one with lots of willing fish. The first few we found were small bows, but Weston found a great fish that liked what he was serving up. The fish didn't feel like coming into the net too easily though, and instead dove into the cut bank at our feet. It seemed like the fish had found a way out, but Weston didn't give up that easily. Instead, he handed me the rod and proceeded to move rocks and reach his arm down into a hole, soaking his arm, and pulled the fish out. He definitely earned this slab of a fish! After a quick pic he released the fish to fight another day and went remedy what the ice cold water had done when he stuck his arm into it. 

It was definitely Jeff's turn, but my Dad decided to cut in (mostly just joking, I think...) and hooked into a sweet tiger trout. "Holy crap he hit hard!" Tiger trout are a hybrid fish, a cross between a male Brown Trout and a female Brook Trout. They're named "Tiger Trout" because of the vermiculations which make it look like they have tiger-esk stripes. These fish seem to love streamers and I think they fight as hard (or harder) than any other kind of trout. 

Dad was happy, Jeff was not. Not knowing how fishing was going to hold up at this spot, and not knowing how many spots would be available on this holiday weekend, I was worried that Jeff's chances for a lunker weren't too good. I wandered off to check out fishing at a different pond, but came running back when Jeff hollered that he had a good one. He played it perfectly and managed to keep it out of the weeds while I readied the net. The fish was definitely one of the prettiest rainbows I've seen and I couldn't have been happier for my brother as it slid into the net. I held the beauty up for a moment and a picture before letting it go. 

I headed back to where I'd left my rod and started catching more, and bigger fish than I deserved. Well, I started out by hooking and losing three large fish before getting my first nice one in. Luckily, Weston and Dad were there to help with net because the banks were muddy and slick. 

The next good fish I hooked is definitely one I won't soon forget. It was a large fish, so Weston grabbed the net and carefully got into position near the water. Jeff came over to video the fight. When the fish pulled my line across Jeff's field of view he tried to move in order to stay out of the way, but because he was looking at the camera Jeff didn't realize he had gotten too close to the slippery bank and his feet went out from under him. Jeff landed on his back and slid down into the water, only stopping with a hand from Weston. I continued fighting the fish while laughing at my brother's situation (as only a brother can). The only thing dirtier than his entirely mud covered back and legs was the stream of profanities exclaiming his predicament. With Jeff up the hill and off to try and clean up, Weston returned his focus on helping me with the fish that somehow was still on my line. Another great fish!

A lot of great fish were caught and some great memories made. Never pass up an opportunity to be in the outdoors with family, it's one of the best experiences you'll ever have. Even if it's cold, even if not everything goes your way, even if you fall in the mud. It's always worth it.

Hope you're as lucky,

Kidder

PS. I ended the epic day with another great fish!

PPS. It may take a couple of days, but watch for the video of this trip on our YouTube channel! LINK 

Crazy

So...I've been busy. In the past week I've decided to change jobs, sell my house and move back to the city. I accepted the job offer, had a buyer lined up and everything was a go. Something just wasn't right, and the more I thought about it, prayed about it, and asked for advice from people I respect, it became clear that I was about to make a huge mistake. So, I passed on the job, canceled the sale, and am feeling great about my decision to stay. 

I knew things were amiss when a buddy of mine brought by his fishing stuff Monday afternoon and I'd actually forgotten mine. IT'S A SIGN! In an effort to repent, and possibly celebrate my decision, we got out and hit the local pond and stream this afternoon.

The pond was pretty off color, but gave up a few of it's smaller residents for closer inspection.

"Smaller" could be interchangeable with "Smallest"

With the pond not quite giving us what we'd hoped we headed over to the local stream to check up her. This stream fell victim to the Wood Hollow Fire in June of 2012, suffering a nearly 100% fish kill. So finding several fish, both Cutts and Browns, was really encouraging. Hopefully it will continue to recover.

Small, but I'm glad to be seeing more fish in this stream again

So basically, nothing's changing and we caught some little fish. But not bad for a Tuesday! Hope you can get out and enjoy the water.

- Kidder

Ride

Last weekend I took the family on a little ride to check out where the snow lines were, and to see if I could get into a certain lake. It's just about time, but the wind kept me from trying with the wife and boys there. I did find a cool little beaver pond though.

I didn't get any fish out of the pond, but I did see some in the stream just below so I'll be checking back to see if anyone's home. Just nice to get out sometimes, even if the fishing doesn't cooperate. Hope you can get out and enjoy the water.

- Kidder

Quick Pike

I wasn't going to get out this weekend at all, but then I started feeling it this afternoon and decided to head out with my boys to try for some pike. It's pretty hard to keep them both in the game and give my own fishing any real effort, but one fish for them is way better than any I could catch on my own. With that in mind I set them up and kept a mindful eye while they spent most of the afternoon playing near their poles. 

At least they're good friends

Once my oldest got serious, he put on the clinic pulling in two small pike.

The first

Gotta love that smile!

There are some plans to poison this lake to get rid of the pike and carp to establish a bass and bluegill fishery. I'll miss our little hammer-handles but would welcome an increased bass population. Whatever happens, I'll fish and be happy.

Gotta love geese over the pond

I was glad to get my boys out into the warm weather. Hope you can get out and enjoy the water.

- Kidder