Andre
The Bamboo Guy!
My search for the truth.
I often wonder who's smarter me or the fish? The only criteria I use is; If I catch him I'm smarter, If I don't he's smarter.
Spent 2 hours fishing over the same fish yesterday and could not get him to take. There was a blue bird sky and the water was about as thin as it gets. The fish and I enterd into a unspoken contract with each other. We would play a game ti'll one of us quits.This fish was fished over all day and I felt pretty good about moving him as much as I did. Our game went on and on, fly after fly, tippet change after tippet change.I was in the Gorge below the Trestle pool. I got it to swirl at droppers and emergers fished off a CDC quill body. One time he came up for the dry and I got a good look at him. He wasn't a big fish but he had shoulders., and anyway the "game" was on. It was like electricity as we both wanted to jolt the other. Then after a couple of hours the lights went out , the fish would play no more.
I came home and told Jane I was in a slump and she suggested I try for him tomorrow.(that's why I love her). I spent the night pondering my strategy and decided I was going to be the first one casting to that fish today. I plan to be there at first light and ponder some more. I start thinking that there are probably some type of Drake's hatching at night on the gorge so I 'm guessing spinner.
The alarm goes off I wrestle with is this fish worth it? I decide to get up and go for it. Get to the gorge and there are two cars in the first lot. Is someone casting to my fish? As luck would have no one was. I string up the FE Thomas which seems to like a 5wt line better than a 4 and tie on a size 12 rusty spinner with a 20 BHPT under it. My thought is maybe it's ok if the spinner goes under a bit and drowns. As I walk into position I notice a gentle rise right where my fish should be. I let out line and measure my cast away from the fish. The Thomas seems to enjoy when I open it up a bit and responds like Pancho Sanchez to Don Quiote at 40 ft; a servant but wondering who is the master? I turn around and send my first cast over the fish and I see a slurp type rise, I lift the rod and I am fast to a nice fish. By now I'm really full of myself and want to know was it the spinner did I guess right. After an enjoyable but anti-climactic fight I land the fish.(yes, Dennis I do turn the rod over a few times)The fish turned out to be 14 inches, a good fish, a brown that is probably a holdover. The only question left was; did he take the spinner or dropper? The wisdom of solomon couldn't answer that question until I had the fish in hand. The dropper and the fish was a lucky catch. The spinner and I am Lee Wulff, Ernie Schweibert and full of myself again. As I look in the fish's mouth in it's upper jaw sits a rusty spinnner. Yeah, the fish was worth it. While I can't answer my first question definitively, I can answer it for this fish. I'm smarter. Am I confusing humility with humidity?
I often wonder who's smarter me or the fish? The only criteria I use is; If I catch him I'm smarter, If I don't he's smarter.
Spent 2 hours fishing over the same fish yesterday and could not get him to take. There was a blue bird sky and the water was about as thin as it gets. The fish and I enterd into a unspoken contract with each other. We would play a game ti'll one of us quits.This fish was fished over all day and I felt pretty good about moving him as much as I did. Our game went on and on, fly after fly, tippet change after tippet change.I was in the Gorge below the Trestle pool. I got it to swirl at droppers and emergers fished off a CDC quill body. One time he came up for the dry and I got a good look at him. He wasn't a big fish but he had shoulders., and anyway the "game" was on. It was like electricity as we both wanted to jolt the other. Then after a couple of hours the lights went out , the fish would play no more.
I came home and told Jane I was in a slump and she suggested I try for him tomorrow.(that's why I love her). I spent the night pondering my strategy and decided I was going to be the first one casting to that fish today. I plan to be there at first light and ponder some more. I start thinking that there are probably some type of Drake's hatching at night on the gorge so I 'm guessing spinner.
The alarm goes off I wrestle with is this fish worth it? I decide to get up and go for it. Get to the gorge and there are two cars in the first lot. Is someone casting to my fish? As luck would have no one was. I string up the FE Thomas which seems to like a 5wt line better than a 4 and tie on a size 12 rusty spinner with a 20 BHPT under it. My thought is maybe it's ok if the spinner goes under a bit and drowns. As I walk into position I notice a gentle rise right where my fish should be. I let out line and measure my cast away from the fish. The Thomas seems to enjoy when I open it up a bit and responds like Pancho Sanchez to Don Quiote at 40 ft; a servant but wondering who is the master? I turn around and send my first cast over the fish and I see a slurp type rise, I lift the rod and I am fast to a nice fish. By now I'm really full of myself and want to know was it the spinner did I guess right. After an enjoyable but anti-climactic fight I land the fish.(yes, Dennis I do turn the rod over a few times)The fish turned out to be 14 inches, a good fish, a brown that is probably a holdover. The only question left was; did he take the spinner or dropper? The wisdom of solomon couldn't answer that question until I had the fish in hand. The dropper and the fish was a lucky catch. The spinner and I am Lee Wulff, Ernie Schweibert and full of myself again. As I look in the fish's mouth in it's upper jaw sits a rusty spinnner. Yeah, the fish was worth it. While I can't answer my first question definitively, I can answer it for this fish. I'm smarter. Am I confusing humility with humidity?
