BONEDALE FISHING REPORT #13

BONEDALE FISHING REPORT #13

MOSQUITOS ON THE RIVER FISH RISING UP LIKE BIRDS

Thank God the nymph fishing is finally over. Copi and I loaded up on Mexican cokes, floated Hooks down to Westbank and tied on big orange dries, because we’ve had it with watching bobbers. Copi’s inclined towards throwing singles, but I convinced him to double-down and the trout were chowing anything, as long as it was tight to the bank and twitching. The young gun, in his unbridled enthusiasm, snapped my beloved Scott G2 on a big Brown halfway through the float. I’m down to a couple of rods and right in time for the official start of the drift-fishing season. I like my 4-weight Scotty so much I bought two of them sumbitches, so I have a backup. I’m a big fan of Scott rods. Who else makes fuzzy dice to hang from your rearview mirror? Plus they’re made in Colorado. There’s no such thing as too much gear, as long as it’s the right shit. I would rather have a junker car and good fishing gear any day. I have bags to keep my bags in. The water is still up, but perfect for dries, and the fish are nestled on the soft side of the river, over grass and riffle bars while the big early summer Caddis are popping. The channels running through the grass are like mini spring creeks, and you can see the fish slide out to nuzzle your bug. I have no idea what kind of Caddis these are, except they’re big and orange, which is enough information. The Drakes come off shortly, after the big Caddis, so mid-June should be torrid. Then it’s just a question of mojo and repeating over and over, C’MON EAT IT EAT IT EAT IT. If you expect a fish it happens; if you don’t it doesn't. My dentist, Doc Covello, got the Bass bug several years ago, and he’s been using dental tools to make some unusual jigs. We were talking about coming up with some kind of buzz bait you could huck on a fly rod. There’s lots of clever stuff the Bass Boys do that would be fun to try on trout. Santini, Copi and I are headed to some damn tailwater Friday to floss pellet feeders, but after that, I’ll be back in BONEDALE where the trout are finally up. I like all kinds of fishing, but there’s nothing better than floating dries on a western freestone.

Live from the WORLD HEADQUARTERS

Kea C. Hause esq.

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Photo: Frying Pan River brown, Basalt, CO.