Old Friends, They Mean Much More To Me Than The New Friends Do - - - -

 Today was the last day of Mark's trip. We left camp at about 1:00 with the hope of finding bugs somewhere above Hale Eddy. We did not. Stopped at numerous places where we looked for both bugs and rising trout, nada. It is strange to see, what is the most heavily fished water in the entire river system from June through August, devoid of bugs, rising fish, drift boats and anglers. The Hendricksons are slowly making their way up the river and should be in Deposit soon.

At about 2:30 we got serious about fishing and headed downstream to the middle section of the WB. It was warm, (74 on the car dash), the smokestack at the Deposit on ramp could not get the smoke more than a foot above the top of the smoke stack before the wind cut it off, the number of boats was about the same as yesterday, cars parked at the gamelands was down a bit from yesterday. We made the decision to go to a place where the boats probably wouldn't get to us during the hatch, and they didn't. Access to the "spot" is by way of a trail maintained by a long time friend and Troutfitter regular JF, and after walking the trail, I've got to say, JF, you've got work to do. 

Arrived streamside at 2:52, sat down on a grassy bank, ate our lunch and watched Hendricksons hatch and fish rise in 6 inch waves, girded our loins and waded in. Then the wind began to blow and it began to rain. At one point the wind had to be well over thirty mph. The fish kept rising. We kept casting. At 4:30 we waved a white handkerchief and retreated to the car. 

At 7:00, after having licked our wounds, from the wind, rain and JF's poorly maintained trail, we selected a tailout where we felt we would be the beneficiaries of a good spinner fall. The temperature had dropped fifteen degrees during the frontal change, yes, the wind had died, and there were a few paralep spinners on the water, but the fish refused to rise. On the way back to the car I saw a rise, made a cast which floated by where the fish was supposed to be, and  as I was in the process of picking up the fly to cast again  a 19 inch brown ate it. Five minutes later I was sitting on the bank when Mark saw a fish rise, made four casts changing flies each time and hooked another 19 inch brown on a spinner that I had previously told him had wings that were way too big.  

Those two browns made a perfect ending to what was a difficult day and a fun week, we may even have a drink to celebrate.