Another Saturday on the Touchet

Saturday I was helping out a friend in the ward with a Scout class on the only MB required for life (not the Life badge, I mean real life).  Yup, the Fly Fishing MB.  I drove up to Teancum Timbers, the church property on the NF Touchet river, but left a little early so I could grab a #7 with OJ at McDs and stop at a couple places, one a new access point found on Google Earth.  Found a few small fish in a quick stop at a familiar place as the sun was rising (just checking out a place to take a friend and his daughter this next week for a first time fly fishing trip).  Fly of choice on this stream is CGPP.

 



Small Touchet trout

 

Found my new access point and happily several nice little runs stacked in a row.  About seventeen fish in 15 minutes, still on the CGPP, mostly small, but did find this nice one.  I just sampled the water to make sure there were fish here so I could bring scouts back in the afternoon to catch a fish on the fly.  Then it was on to Teancum Timbers, arriving right on time, amazingly.



 

A good-sized trout for the Touchet

Gotta love a face like that

While at Teancum Timbers, I was able to add another new stream to my Washington total - the NF Touchet.  Small stream, mostly pocket water with a few holes adjacent to the church property.  I'm sure it is heavily fished here, but I still found some fish.  While they were showing the boys insects and crayfish and stuff they found in the small stream, I picked up my friend's rod, tossed the EHC into a little pocket behind a rock, and pulled out a 6" rainbow.  The boys were like, "Where did that come from!?"  I taught them the proper etiquette of kissing and thanking the fish before letting them go.  Later after lunch, I put an EHC with a dropper on my rod and visited the deeper holes that had already been fished a couple times that morning.  Got 9 fish, all but one on the psycho prince dropper.  I love that fly!  No size at all, but it was fun.  After the boys tied a couple flies, we split up in groups and took them to different parts on the main Touchet.  I was able to help 5 boys catch their first fish on the fly, a very successful day.  Then in the hour or so before dark, my friend Boyd and I stopped at another spot on the way home for some time to ourselves and a few more small trout.  I got home later than intended (I thought the fishing was going to be right after lunch, but we didn't start until about 3 pm), but I have a very understanding and tolerant wife.  I just need to do a lot of chores this week before I go Saturday again.