On my first cast on the Big Wood river I found myself attached to a 13″ rainbow trout, and though it sounds like something I’d be thankful for (catch the holiday theme?), I shuddered a little after I let him go.
That’s because catching a fish on the first cast is a jinx, like talking openly about a no-hitter in the seventh inning, or telling an actor to have a great performance.
Fortunately, I found another Big Wood Rainbow trout 15 minutes later, and before my day-before-Thanksgiving trip to Idaho’s Big Wood River was over, I’d landed six pretty trout.
My jinx-breaking trout; I’ll always be grateful.
Still, the first-fish jinx sorta held; my first fish was my biggest, and the fishing slowed as the day went on. I didn’t see a fish the whole last hour, which was my cue to find a way up the bank and onto the riverside trail for a hike back to the car.
It was a laid-back, pleasant day on the water, and – due to the first-fish reinforcement – I stuck with a red brassie all day.
The day also reminded that the 8.5′ 4wt Diamondglass rod is a nice technical nymphing rod; it flung the small, stick-on indicator, #4 shot, and red brassie in pretty much the right places all day, which was nice because I was operating largely on autopilot.
The Big Wood River in Ketchum, ID.
The 1.5 miles (or so) of the river I fished was deserted – at least until the last few minutes, when I stumbled across a local. A little older than me, he urged me to fish right above him, and as we got to talking, it turned out how he’d fished the McCloud River a lot.
We have a joke in Dunsmuir about “all roads leading to the Upper Sacramento” and it’s true enough – at least among fly fishermen. I’m simply not that surprised when someone knows my home water.
He was a nice guy, offered what information he knew about the upper reaches of the Big Wood River, and pointed out the easy path to the trail.
Naturally, he’d hooked a few trout too (I watched him hook and lose one), and because I absolutely sure that a midge was the right fly, he told me he’d caught his on a big rubber-legged nymph, having struck out on the Zebra midge earlier.
So much for belief.
The Big Wood was a different river than in its winter incarnation (the only one I know), and while I’d like a shot at it in warmer weather, I’ve also been warned that it’s heavily fished during the warmer months – enough that the locals tend to find other water.
A Big Wood River rainbow trout in late afternoon light.
Perhaps it’s better that it remains a cold-weather river for me; it’s never disappointed, it’s fun to fish, and some of the trout have a yellowish coloration that makes them look like brown trout when they jump.
And yes, to catch a trout on the day before Thanksgiving is a powerful symbol of what life is like right now, and I think I’ll postpone my Thanksgiving post for a day in order to gain a little perspective on that thought.
See you around the turkey, Tom Chandler.
Happy Thanksgiving! (to the Undergrounders from the head turkey).
Powered by ScribeFire.
Recent comments