Sunday, March 8, 2015

CFS 2015

Do you bite your lip and close your eye's when people ask you, "been fish'n lately".  They don't know how close they are to someone on the verge of a psychotic break.  Well, I'm happy to inform everyone, I narrowly avoided CNN coverage again this year.  It was getting close, but I managed to not choke anyone during my bout with cabin fever...well, there aren't any witnesses.




This blog has been terrible since inception but particularly awful the last 2 months.  The good news is..I went fishing and I'm going to write about fishing.  The bad news is...I have the writing ability of a 2nd grader...so this blog has reached its full potential.




It started like any other Friday, I wanted to go fish'n.  However, this weekend the weather looked good, the generation schedule looked good, and I was good to go on the home front.  After a couple texts, I had a "willing participant", my brother-n-law.  Should have known something was off...it never happens that easy.





I packed and planed to leave early Saturday morning at 3 am.  Headed to bed around 7:30 pm, only to wake 5 hours later at 12:30 am...no complaints...it's been 2 months!  I have no idea where the 2 hours went but decided to head out at 2:30 am.  Keep in mind, most of the state got 5-10 inches of mix to snow on Wednesday night.  My fish brain never grasped the idea of icy roads...not even as I dove past the 2 ft snow drifts along the highway.  I figured, if I can make it to Heber, game on.  Its been 2 months, I'll walk, carry, or drag my plastic boat to the fish if necessary.  I drove slow and made sure to keep it out of the ditch.




The only change of plans we had was where to launch.  The generation schedule was all hosed up...short story, they generated water until 1 am and there was way too much flow at our first location.  Plan B, start mid river and paddle up as the water fell.  Sounded good and must have been good b/c we were graced with a great boat parade, like 25 boats over 2 miles.  No complaints.  I was on the river and fish'n.




It was slow.  The snow melt had stained the river and I felt the boat traffic pushed the fish down.  I managed a few fish at each good run, but nothing crazy.  I only fished fly's I tied and that made my day alone.



Around lunch, I looked up to see my BnL taking a nap.  It was obvious the day he was having.  He's a bass guy, but as a "willing participant"...up for any fishing trip when bass aren't biting.  A few boats passing by noticed him napping and tried to help.  Saturday confirmed for me, there are 2 types of anglers.  Those that ask how you're doing and want specifics.  And those, that tell you how they are doing and offer advice.  We met both types on Saturday.  Much respect for the latter!



I wouldn't change a thing.  I was on the river and that was enough.  The sun was bright, it was warm, and the river was flowing...perfection.  Happy to be, Cabin Fever Free (Cabin Fever Survivor - CFS 2015).


12 comments:

  1. I'm not quite there yet. Still about a week of potential blow-up time, maybe more.

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    1. That's got to be tough. I look forward to reading about that first trip and all the rest.

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  2. As someone who has suffered for a while with cabin fever, I think you need to be careful to not be misled. If we have another snowy, cold month of March you're right back where you were. I find your blog enjoyable Drew. Don't talk me out of that.

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    1. This is the worst 2 months I have ever experienced...and I've seen it snow in the ocean. If it comes back this blog will be re-titled "looknforanewzipcode" b/c I'll be moving to the keys...to chase Tarpon...I know how you feel about Tarpon!

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  3. Looks like a good one to me , weather couldn't have been any nicer. Congrats on catching em on all on flies that you tied...that's always a nice bonus.

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    1. It was a great day and I'm still smiling. Gonna sit down in a little while and make some new creations...can't wait to get back out.

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  4. Drew
    Just to be out on the water with some of the weather you guys have had is a plus---just curious how far are you from the White River in Gassville? Thanks for sharing

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    1. I couldn't agree more. I told my BnL before we got started, I don't care if I catch a thing...I'm just happy to be on the water. I'm about 5 hours from there. I need to make my way up there more...but I have a hard time driving past the LRR. Plus, I can be in Grand Isle, LA in 6 hrs...and I can't pass up chasing reds.

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  5. Drew! Not only were you out on the water catching fish...but catching them on your flies! Hats off to ya! Always a great accomplishment! Thanks for sharing and keep the posts coming!

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    1. Thx. It was a day I won't forget. Having a blog to record the memories is pretty cool too! Thanks for reading.

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  6. Drew, really great to see you are CFS for 2015. What a great way to break out too! A great day on the water, some beautiful fish caught on your fly patterns, and, some good memories that make it all worth it. Wish I could be CFS for 2015,,,,,,,,,, We are very close in Northern Colorado.

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    1. Thanks Mel, it's nice to be a CFS. I was watching the weather channel this morning and noticed a nice warming trend all over the US. I know you're ready and I bet it won't be long till your enjoying some water time. Look'n forward to reading about it! Tying is addictive, I've cleared more room in my boxes and started filling those voids with my own versions...we'll see what the fish think of my hideous bugs.

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