Friday Variety Specials

 Friday Variety Specials

5/03/24

  I was driving my way down creek quite a ways from camp. As I passed a campsite I was surprised no one was there. Even not camping there's usually someone fishing this hot spot as early as daylight. Instead of continuing on, to where I was planning to fish, I pulled over and got my gear together. I knew I'd be making long casts at times so I took out my 9' 5 weight fast action Icon rod with WF5F line.

 The sun was high above warming the ground temperature already in the morning. There was hardly a cloud beneath the light blue sky. There wasn't much of a breeze to speak of. The trees that lined the creek looked much healthier in the sun as the olive evergreen trees looked much brighter and some of the hardwood trees were already budding and flowering. Even the banks were showing a springtime complexion after the lackluster colors of winter. I lined my fly rod on the bank, knotted on a Woolly Bugger, lit a cigar and stepped into the water.

 Interesting how a stream changes the flow of water over the winter months. What used to be deepening water near the bank was now pushed 1/4 the way cross creek. The riffling wavy water was still flowing  just not as wide a section as I remember. 

 I waded over the shallow stony creek bed in ankle deep water. Once I was in shin deep water I casted the Woolly Bugger out into the open water. The second cast I felt a bump but he didn't grab it hard enough for a hook set. There were a few caddis fluttering around like they weren't sure where they wanted to go. On my third cast I heard a splash and looking, across creek, saw a swirl expanding with the flow. I saw a fish rise soon after that and brought my line in. I wasted no time knotting on an olive body tan caddis. By this time more caddis were arriving like they've been invited to a beach party. Some caddis seem to be just enjoying this May morning warmth while others were teasing the trout tapping the water and then flying up out of danger. The unfortunate ones weren't so lucky and got gobbled up by a quick acting trout.

 I made my first cast towards a rise but it didn't enthuse its fancy. There were so many caddis at the party now that my imitation, no matter how much of an exact silhouette, wasn't any more enticing than the real thing. This made it harder to get a strike. I did hook up with the tan caddis before changing to a black deer hair caddis.

  The darker caddis seemed to be a better match or was easier seen under the bright sunlight. The trout were feeding at will like this caddis buffet would never end.  I noticed once a fish rose he wouldn't rise immediately afterwards. The trout weren't in any hurry to gorge themselves. Therefore when I did see a rise I didn't cast to it immediately. I would cast elsewhere and if I timed it right, cast back to it and get a hook up. 

  I would say this went on for an hour or so before the caddis were becoming bored and most fluttered upstream.

 Being there were less caddis on the water now my imitation was more likely to get a strike. I mean, there's a better chance of winning a beauty contest if there's less contestants. I was hooking up with trout whether I was casting upstream, across creek or letting my offering drift drag free downstream.

 

 Some were so hungry, and unaware of my presence, that they engulfed my caddis. I would have to clip my tippet not wanting to risk a tonsillectomy trying to get the fly out of their mouth. I'm glad I had plenty of Grannoms and black caddis.

 After the caddis just about all left, or got eaten up, no more trout were rising. I decided on knotting on a Woolly Bugger for any of the trout that didn't get their belly full and wanted meat. Casting out the bugger amounted to another half dozen trout or so that wanted more than a small measly caddis. Mostly I was catching rainbows but this one brown trout wanted meat also.
 

 When I wasn't getting any more hits on the bugger I decided to tie on a wet fly and knot on a San Juan. Anybody that fishes for rainbows should know they love red. My first cast, up in the oncoming riffles, yielded a rainbow on the San Juan.

 

I caught maybe 5 more on the San Juan before snagging up and losing the combination.

 I went back to the bank and rested on a downed tree trunk. I knotted on a new section of leader and tippet. I knotted on a BH Prince Nymph and another San Juan below it. I went back out into the water and nymph fished, which isn't my favorite way to fish but sometimes I'm forced to.  

 There was this one trout across creek that came up less frequent than the others during the caddis party. I tried for him many times but he didn't want anything I threw his way. I knew the vicinity he was in. It took a well placed long distant cast upstream from him but below the oncoming fast wavy current. Well, while I was nymph fishing I saw a good size trout come up in the wavy current cross creek in that vicinity. He porpoised like a dolphin after something and I was able to see his length. Maybe not a whopper but maybe the longest I had hooked so far. I already had a lot of line out so I brought the rod and fly line back and shot a single haul his way. I swear my offerings didn't sink below the surface very deep before I felt a strike. I reared back the long length of line and it tightened. That trout was pissed. He squirmed, head shook, tugged and fought all the way to the net. He had taken the Prince nymph.

  I lit up my last cigar and continued fishing. I caught a few more trout after that one before calling it quits.

 

 I caught trout on dry flies, buggers, nymphs, wet flies and a San Juan. It was like I was a variety store back near my home town!

 There was this one variety store in town that sold any odd thing you could think of that you wouldn't find in a general store. Most of his items were gag gifts like the little exploding cigarette loads. There were those things that you threw on cement and they would pop. Also who can forget the hand shaking buzzer? Whoopee Cushion? The snake that sprung out of the can of peanuts when you opened the lid? Yucky tasting candy? I was always able to find something I wanted to buy. I think he even had a dummy and a marionette on a shelf.

 Tootles!

~doubletaper