When the fishing is great, the great do whatever it takes to be on the water. This past week the fishing has been great. The famed Blue Wing Olive Mayfly has been hatching daily on a local trout stream, bringing some of the best top water action of the year, as well as producing a hatch of die hard fisherman. With the fishing off the charts I couldn’t sit around until Saturday to get back on the water. Fortunately I have a flexible job and was able to take a couple of half days and fish the river with some friends as well as hit it on Sat.  So with 4 days on the water this week, I was able to witness first hand the majestic beauty that God has giving us to experience and respect. During these days I have learned some great lessons about fly fishing as well as life. So here they are:

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Lesson #1. Know your water-Having consistently fished a river for over ten years, I have come to know the the river on a personal basis. I have grown to understand its flow as well as its spirit. Most people that fly fish haven’t put in the time to understand a water. They just arrive and hope to find a hatch and fish. (Cause they read a hot spot online) Those that respect the water are the ones that are rewarded with knowledge of where the hatches occur, the time to be there, and the flies to use. You can’t put a price tag on river knowledge, period.

Lesson #2. On Tuesday I had the opportunity to fish with someone that I had never fished with or met. This outing thought me a great lesson and one I hope to always keep close to my heart. His name was Jacob Dowse, he is a student of law and fly fishing. From our stream side introduction to our last cast together Jacob was constantly learning and growing. He was excited to gain new incites to fly fishing and would constantly pose questions and then try out what I would suggest. By the end of the day Jacob was on his way to becoming a great top water fishermen. So why do I tell you Jacobs story? Its because we should all strive to be more like Jacob, students of our sport and in everything that we do in life. Never stop trying to learn.

Lesson #3. Saturday was a cold morning, the freezing canyon breeze ripped through our clothing making fishing near crazy. The forecast called for 51 degrees, but by noon it was still a cold day with no sign of letting up or producing any kind of hatch. Knowing the river, I continued to tell myself as well as our large 6 man group that it will happen, just be patient.  Just like it was supposed to around 2pm, the wind died and the midges and BWO’s can out in full force. At one time we had 4 hook ups at once. There were hundreds of fish eating like it was their last supper.  So why do I tell you this? Its because at around 1:30pm one of our group members couldn’t take it any longer. He was mad the hatch didn’t come off on time and thought he was wasting his time and left. Not realizing if he would have just stuck it out a little longer he would have had some of the best dry fly fishing of the year. So from Jordan I learned to be patient, if the fishing isn’t great hangout and enjoy the surrounding and friends, because you never know what you might miss on the water if you go back to the city.

Lesson #4. Be prepared- Lately I have been getting a lot of fly orders. Which is a good thing, but I haven’t sat down to refill my my own fly boxes. Those that know me are probably laughing,(Cause they know of the 1000s of flies I carry around) but when I got to the river last Sat. I needed a size 16 para BWO, which I was out of. I had sizes 22, 20, 18, 14, but not one #16. I ended up using a double emerger setup that worked just fine, but it got me thinking that the next time I go out I need to be prepared, since this is important to me. So that night I stayed up tying, refilling my old BWO box as well as some bigger buffalo midges.  That next time on the river, I was prepared for almost any situation and the fished seemed to like the new flies. So do as you learned in Scouts and be prepared.

Lesson #5. Fish Emergers-Plain and simple. Fish like emergers, better than adults. SO FISH EMERGERS! 

Lesson #6. On Friday I though I would throw out to a couple of buddies that I would be hitting the river in the morning. It turned in to a 7 guy group. I usually don’t like to fish in large groups, (2 or 3 tops) but today it was a great time and half of the whole experience. We had great conversations as well as lots of smack talk. I guess larger groups can be awesome if the situation is right. I might have to try that again. Didn’t hurt that the fishing was epic.

Lesson #7. Do our part- As I walked the river this past week I noticed garbage, pop cans, flip flops littering the banks. Each time out I would pick up the piles I would create and pack them out in my net. I know that this problem will never end, but if we all do our part and pick up any trash we see, we can keep our rivers clean and pristine.  

Here are a few more of my favorite pictures of the week. Can never have too many, right?