Tag: Steelhead Sanity

A summer evening spent knee deep

~ SamF ~ Leave a comment

Made the decision about noon today… called a friend and we were off over the hill, bound for warmer climes along the river.  His mission was to fill the truck (or expend his back, whichever came first) with landscaping rocks and mine was to stand knee deep in the river trying to find a steelhead.  We succeeded on both counts, but the rocks far outweighed and outnumbered the fish to hand (only one).  I was daydreaming when a freight train of a steelhead grabbed my fly at the end of the swing, dashed downstream and came unbuttoned all in an instant – a solid fish but never saw more than the initial boil.  Ended up with one half pounder landed and a couple of other missed grabs.  There were definitely a ‘few’ fish around – a slow evening by catching standards, but once the sun was off the water, the caddis came off thick and the river came alive with bugs and juvenile fish gorging themselves to a backdrop of singing frogs, crickets and miscellaneous birds.  Best of all, the wind died down way early – leaving a warm, calm evening – shirtsleeve comfort.  I found myself in a great meditative rhythm with snap-T casting, so the fish were an add-on bonus, though I was muttering profanities to myself when I missed that one fish – my once chance – no instant replays allowed.  It’s exactly the kind of evening that keeps me coming back.

A truckload of rocks gathered along the river.
A truckload of rocks gathered along the river.
Looking upstream from halfway through the run as the sun slips behind the last hill - signaling the onset of the witching hour.
Looking upstream from halfway through the run as the sun slips behind the last hill - signaling the onset of the witching hour.
Swinging through the honey pot of the run at just about the right time. It was here, my fly hanging on the dangle, that I was caught daydreaming by a freight train. Guess I'll need to go back.
Swinging through the honey pot of the run at just about the right time. It was here, my fly hanging on the dangle, that I was caught daydreaming by a freight train.

Summer returns, tropical storms brew and fizzle and a new job looms

~ SamF ~ 1 Comment

No fishing this evening.  The front passed through this morning, wetting the streets with heavy drizzle that quickly vanished with sunrise.  In it’s wake, fresh northwest winds kicked in – not a good situation.  It’s supposed to return to smokin’ hot conditions over the hill for the rest of the week.  Even if the river cools down overnight, the wind will probably be ferocious tomorrow.

Tropical storm Julio formed off the west coast of Mexico and began to migrate north.
Tropical storm Julio formed off the west coast of Mexico and began to migrate north.

I often wonder if these tropical storms of the eastern Pacific that form this time of year ever make it up to northern California and produce significant rainfall.  Unlike the east coast where remnant hurricanes will occasionally barrel up to New England and wreak havoc – I’ve never seen or heard of such a scenario here on the west coast.  Any geologic or stratigraphic evidence of a large, early season mega-rainfall producer would be hard, if not impossible, to separate from other storms that come later in the year. I might have to one day take a look at some long running rainfall records and look for large rainfall events in August/September and try and track down their origins.

Regardless, this afternoon Julio was downgraded to a tropical depression and began to wash out sending some impressive looking thunderstorms into Arizona.  Today’s discussion indicated a long range chance of some thunderstorms moving up our way – but it’s a long way off – both in time and space – and likely won’t be anything organized for widespread, prolonged rainfall.  Oh well, time to enjoy some more summer tomatoes or run down to Arizona and chase flash floods.

The big news is that this is my last week at my current job.  I’ve been there for 10 years and it’s time to move on – moving all the way across the parking lot to a different building – and a new group of co-workers.  Of course, in my mind, the first order of business is to get a feel for how flexible I can make my schedule and still get away with it.  I’m told it’s very flexible – so we will see if afternoon river trips are still a viable option.  One of the benefits of a long time job is that you come to understand when you can and can’t bail out on short notice.  Hopefully I can figure this out quickly because it’s about that time.  Don’t get me wrong – I’m into my work – I just have competing priorities.

A dying cold front and a sunset is born

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I was up on campus this evening – I walked outside to the warm glow of a spectacular apricot-hued sky.  Layers of clouds were each catching the last rays of the sun painting watercolor stripes across the western sky.  I wish I woulda had my camera but wouldn’t have captured the scale of it.  The ingredients were perfect.  An approaching storm is fizzling out – sending broken layers of clouds towards the coast.  The afternoon forecast discussion reads as follows:

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...CORRECTED
 NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EUREKA CA
 505 PM PDT SUN AUG 24 2008

.SYNOPSIS...A WEAKENING COLD FRONT WILL WASH ON SHORE
OVER THE REDWOOD COAST AND NORTHERN INTERIOR TONIGHT
INTO MONDAY...BRINGING  PERIODS OF DRIZZLE AND PATCHY
LIGHT RAIN TO DEL NORTE AND NORTHERN HUMBOLDT COUNTIES.
COOL TEMPERATURES TUESDAY MORNING WILL BE FOLLOWED BY
A SHARP WARM UP WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY AREA WIDE...

“Washing ashore” is the perfect description.  Meanwhile, high up overhead, our neighborhood weather satellite captures the infrared image showing the bands of clouds filtering towards the coast.

An approaching cold front washes out along the west coast - resulting in a spectacular sunset for those who happened to be outside this evening.
An approaching cold front washes out along the west coast - resulting in a spectacular sunset along its southeastern margins for those who happened to be outside this evening.

If it cools down inland overnight, that means tommorrow will be a day to bail out of late afternoon work responsibilities and go swing a two-handed rod on some river somewhere.  A true harbinger of fall passing through but the longer forecast shows triple digit temperatures returning later in the week – a typical August feint.  But it will only get better from here.

Tying with Coot – The Spey Experiment

~ SamF ~ Leave a comment

The new coot skin arrived!  Yippee..my substitute for heron feathers – or so I was hoping.

This really wasn’t an experiment – as others have used coot for a variety of spey flies.  But I had to see if it met my expectations of a good looking buggy fly with hackles that would stand up in the faster water fished this time of year.

The goods
The goods

Time to try it out.

I wrapped the hackle three times over the alpaca wool body to help it stand up.
I wrapped the hackle three times over the alpaca wool body to help it stand up.

The first outing confirmed it fishability and success.  The half-pounders couldn’t stay away from it.

I’m sold.

On the Coming of Storms

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Reminiscing on Fall Steelhead

Somewhere in August a subtle change happens. One morning dawns cooler than the last. Maybe it lasts a day, maybe three, then the notion is lost in the incessant summer. Nothing of real importance happens now, except maybe noting a yellowing cottonwood leaf hanging from a branch. Finally, well into August, I realize there is no turning back now and the best time of year is at hand.

Over the hill and away from the coast, the relentless heat holds fast – lasting well into September and often October. I remember sunsets along the coast when far off webs of cirrus clouds would hold low on the horizon hinting at some far off storm and the reminder that winter is not far off. But these can be days of agony – days I spend with a sense that all of summer’s delights are now out of reach, even though I well know that many more weeks lie ahead. All the while, the fog-shrouded, chilly mornings I remember of seasons well underway seem impossible now. As the days go by, as summer hangs on, I wonder if they will ever come this year. Sometime, not long after, in a fit of desperation, the decision is made to make the annual pilgrimage over the hill, to return to the river. I do not have high hopes of hooking a steelhead, after all, summer is still holding fast. This is a journey to prove that something really is happening. Continue reading “On the Coming of Storms” →

A Late August Raindrop on the Way

~ SamF ~ Leave a comment

Tuesday, August 19.  I couldn’t resist the forecast: cloudy skies with a chance of rain.  Yes, rain.  Over the hill it had been pushing triple digits.  Now, October-like weather was to make a brief appearance.  I jumped on the opportunity – sneaking out of work a wee bit early, grabbing a rod and fly wallet and wheeling inland.  The river temps were dropping to below 70 (ouch that’s warm water!!!), so hopefully any fish hooked and released were likely to revive.  (check out temps at the Yurok’s Real-Time Monitoring Page).

Sure enough, cloudy skies prevailed, though the rain drops could be counted in the dozens (thankfully, because I had left my jacket back in the truck).  What transpired shall remain unposted… suffice it to say there are a few early running fish in the river.  I will leave it at that.  Also of note is the lack of wind that evening – the normally ferocious and unrelenting afternoon winds up the river had been knocked down by the approaching storm.  It’s so nice to leave the river at dark, warm and calm, with the crickets chirping amonst the dry grass.  We just don’t get that here on the coast.  I can’t wait to get back!