The Pond with the Scouts

The Scouts from the Rocky Reach Ward (my ward) and the Eastmont Ward (Rob's ward) went to the pond in Ellensburg to do a cleanup service project and an overnight camp.... along with some fishing!

The fishing was good. The boys and leaders were already there when I arrived. I hopped in my tube and fished for about 45 minutes and landed 3 or 4 nice fish. All rainbows. I caught them on one of my home-tied cone head green moal leeches. It was extra fun to catch them on a self-tied fly! I went back in and let one of the leaders take out my tube. He proceeded to catch 2 nice trout including a large brown that broke off the fly at the tube.

I then took out Layton Judd in a rowboat and had him fish the clouser minnow that I had tied as well. He landed 3 bows in about 30 minutes. It was a good time.

Final stats for the night: Tom - 3 or 4 trout. Rob - 1 trout (I fished more!) Dad - 0 trout (he was busy rowing and calling the scouts "lard butts" and saying things like, "Do you think I'm rowing this boat for fun!") Rick - 0 trout (not present, but would the statistics REALLY have been any different??)

FISH ON!

Some Fish for Me!

I went to the Stake Father and Son's Outing on Friday and Saturday at Ensign. I called a somewhat less active family with a son and joked that I needed to have a son to go to the outing. His mom said he wasn't planning on going. About 5 minutes after I hung up, the phone rang. It was the less active boy. He said he'd be happy to go along with me so I could go on the outing. I wasn't going to turn him down.

Fished Friday evening in the lake. Lots of takes, but with no room for a backcast or a hookset it was hard to get a strip set on the little planters. After several takes from the little guys I put another strip set on a take. Then the excess line quickly peeled off! Several jumps and runs later I landed a 19" bow from the lake. VERY healthy and VERY fiesty.

The next morning I took Mark and Emmett out. We got one little guy which Emmett landed and posed next to while I held it. It reminded me of a picture of Mark, Jon and myself at Grandpa Ed's fishing ponds where I was holding a fish, Jon was holding 2 fish, and Mark was pretending to hold a fish (which I assume Jon must have been holding). Like father, like son!

Yakima River was off color and very high. No takes in a few casts there.

FISH ON!

No Fish for You!

Dad and I took a Friday AM trip with Hannah in the backpack to try for some NCW rainbows. We didn't catch nor see a fish in the our main stream, but in the tributary that is still closed, we walked up along the edge and saw 30-40 steelhead paired off doing their spring thing. Hopefully that means that 4 years from now we'll have a more sizable steelhead return.

End of Report #1

Train up a child.....

Friday evening in the spring, sunny, calm, tired of working in the yard - Melinda, I think we need to "go to Wal-Mart". That is code for taking a quick trip to a little irrigation pond in a new housing development nearby that is somewhat near to Wal-Mart. The pond is right next to the road and in people's backyards. It takes up about 3 building lots, with grass all around it down to the water's edge. It is more like a park. A great place for a kid to learn how to cast a fly. And a couple years ago it was full of bass, so you can do a little more than cast. But no such luck tonight. Melinda learned to work her 3 weight, I caught a little bluegill, spooked a couple big fish that were next to the bank (guarding nests I would imagine), then Melinda pulled two bluegill out by herself just before dark. We'll have to come back with small flies and target the little guys. I know, three bluegill isn't much to write home about, but I promised myself I would keep a faithful record of all fishing trips, unlike Tom who I see hasn't posted his getting skunked on his last trip out......

April 4, 2009

What a great way to start General Conference weekend! Tom and Rick snuck out at the crack of dawn to check out a tip on a new fishing spot. After the traditional #7 sandwich at McD's (sausage, egg and cheese McGriddle) we headed out with the first light of dawn appearing over the eastern horizon. Plenty of light by the time we arrive at the spot. Tom still has his custom chironomid on from yesterday, and I decide to strip the streamer that was on mine. A fish rises, he casts right on top of the rise, and seconds later, fish on! A nice 18-inch rainbow. So much for streamers. By the time I get a chironomid on with a San Juan worm below it, he has two more to hand. This aging and losing your near vision is a real pain, especially bad in low light. I finally get the knots done and get in the water. I see a few shadows moving in the water in front of us, but no takers. I toss it out a little farther, and after a short drift, I see the flash of a fish at the same time the strike indicator takes a dive. A quick lift of the rod, fish on! Nice fish! After a good fight with a few short runs, Tom comes and helps me net a 24-25" rainbow. Tom gets a couple more, then my watch alarm sounds and it's time to head home. Tom wins the numbers, I win the size. That's what I call a win-win.

April 3 Fishing Outing

Inaugural Post!!! Dad, Rob, Rick and Tom went out for the day. Rick and Tom started out early on the Columbia River and Tom found a 15" rainbow on his "home brewed" chironomid. Later, Dad landed 3 piggy Lahontans at Lake Lenore. At H______ Lake, Rob, Rick and Tom got into the action with the fish shown above. Tom also landed an unphotographed (so he could be lying) 18" Tiger Trout and Rob landed a couple smaller Tigers as well.

This was a good day to warm up for General Conference.