You just don't know 'til you go.

Want you to know that before starting this, I poured myself a PM and I just might have added a touch more rye. It's been a tough day. 

After yesterdays morning venture I never gave a thought to am trip. Spent a couple of hours cutting back the garden and pruning branches the deer have broken on the peach trees. The button buck followed me everywhere I went hoping for a handout. Yesterday I cut back the tomato plants that the deer have been eating through the fence. Walked over to the button buck and his mom and laid the pruning's out on the ground. Both deer gave them a sniff and walked away? Was soaking wet so I went in and took a shower.

 Messed up a Wednesday Sudoku two times, vacuumed (how many people know there are two u's? I typed  two c's and then two m's before throwing in the towel and using spell check),  (I'm saving the toilet cleaning for tomorrow), finished both crosswords (except for a couple of foreign words and a violinist's first name) and went out and shot the bow. Did well until I tried from forty yards (bottom pin is set for thirty). Buried the first two shots in the grass before hitting the target with the last two. Had to take my shoes off to feel for the arrows (I grow good grass,) (no not that kind). Was so hot and sweaty when I came in that I took another shower. By 5:00 there was nothing else to do but go try to find a place to fish.

The fishing - Pay attention, this is why there's a touch more rye in the PM. Went east (WB in the 'Sulfur Zone" has bugs and rising fish, but its like fishing in a blender full of spinach turned on to puree). Saw a landowner I know heading up to his house, tooted the horn, backed up and talked to him about the posted signs that were on his property last year. Haven't fished there since the signs appeared. He said anyone could fish as long as they asked and that I was welcome anytime. My day was starting to turn around. 

It took a step back when I saw olives on the water and rising fish in a deep slow water pool. Soaked fly boxes to get in range, made one cast, got refused, and the pod of fish never (while I stood there) rose again.

At 6:40 I made the decision that I should head for the WB down in Hancock (could be there by 7:00 and would have an hour of fishing). Somewhere along the way I said "but wait, if you order now, you not only get three browns but also a big rainbow". Stopped where I'd done well a couple weeks ago, walked in to the bank and stood there for five minutes watching water go by. Was about to leave when a fish rose. Waded out and when he rose again I hooked him (a fat, healthy 18+ inch brown). There were a modest number of bugs, olives of two sizes, a few isos and some spinners. Saw two or three rises out of casting range then a good boil near enough to throw at, he ate an iso, (a beautiful 18 inch rainbow). Was heading for shore pleased as punch with the two fish when I saw a rise, cast a spinner at the fish, he ate and exploded two feet into the air (a 12 inch brown). Landed the fish, put the fly in the hook keeper, reeled it in, and headed for shore (not 60 feet away). Saw a rise half way to shore. Made the cast and saw a little tiny circle in the water. Lifted and nothing moved, the rod just bent. Ten minutes later I landed my 21.75 inch brown from the previous visit two weeks ago..

So, if you knew you would catch those four fish, in the hour you had to fish, how far would you drive?   

Comments

  1. Darryl BogartSeptember 7, 2023 at 8:23 AM

    Question: Why is there so much algae in the WB? In ASOTD you don't mention it. Is the water coming from a different tube?It has been like this for a few months now. Any thoughts?

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Had To Get Out The Neosporin For The Tooth Cuts On My Index Finger.

  To say the Delaware  is a hard river to figure is an understatement. Yesterday was an overcast day that had fishermen thinking olives. Turned out the water was probably too warm for olives and too cold for sulfurs, in short, a dud. Today the air temp was a little cooler, (I think), with a mix of sun and clouds and the sulfurs, (both yesterdays and todays), hatched. The fish? At least where I was, went nuts, threw caution to the wind, and ate everything that came down their feeding lane, both with and without hooks. Heard from two sources that the sulfur hatch at the red barn was also very good today. If my last report on the red barn sulfurs was erroneous, blame it on Ed who has been in Hawaii for the last two weeks, (hence no reliable red barn reports). The fishing mid-day was so good, and the number of fishermen in the "Zone", (it's Friday afternoon), so high, that I decided to fish down river during the evening hours. Fished a pool in the middle section from 6:30 unt
Read more

Fishing A Cold Blow From Out Of The North.

  Jean came down and we spent the weekend watching wildlife in the backyard, driving around the area and enjoying two "nights out", one with David and Maryann, (the apprentice Troutfitter Inn cleaning lady). A shout out of thanks to her for spending four hours on the road to have dinner with us. Not sure the company or the meal was worth the drive. We drove up to Stilesville to witness the hordes of anglers, and then along the reservoir all the way up to Walton, where we usually stop and go in some of the shops. It was threatening to rain so we elected to keep going. It was raining on top of the mountains but we took route 206?? to Downsville anyway. We hit the rain part way up the mountain and then drove down the other side to Downsville in a torrential down pour. Came out of the rain at Downsville and drove down route 30 with the intention of checking  out the trout in some of the BK's thermal refuges, saw the muddy water at "Jaws" and drove back to the Lordvi
Read more

IT'S GOOD TO BE BACK HOME AGAIN!

 It's Wednesday night, a fire is going in the fire place, an empty Perfect Manhattan glass is washed and back up on the shelf, 30 shrimp netted from Zane Gray Creek ((did you know that Zane Gray (famous fly fisherman and writer of westerns) was a dentist and that his office is now a museum that you can visit on the Delaware River?)), have been consumed by Jean and me, prior to the three pieces of venison backstrap that traveled from home to Florida and back, an early spring snowstorm is raging outside and most importantly, we're glad to be back home again! With that season opening sentence, Mrs. Haskins has no doubt thrown in the towel and disavowed all responsibility for my literary malfunctions. Run on sentences she could handle, but my never before attempted "double aside" was apparently beyond the pall. I sent her a "Go Duke" banner with apologies and hopefully she will cool off before the fishing heats up. Our trip back home was uneventful. Started at 2
Read more