Slow Sipping

I was sorta pacing through the house yesterday when Sylvia said, "why don't you go up for some fishing? It's a beautiful day." I thought about her suggestion for about two seconds, then grabbed my fishing duffle and headed for the mountain.

She was right. Just a beautiful day in the low sixties. The light breeze in my face had a hint of what we will soon be experiencing. As I was walking to the stream, the leaves were falling off of their branches as though they were raining down on me. I was very comfortable without a jacket as I started working the stream in search of those little wild browns. Yes, it felt really good to be outdoors with my rod in hand.

With the heat of the sun in the afternoon, there was some nice bug activity above the water...and the fish were active. To my delight, they were rising to my dry fly. But how they took the fly was different today. The brown trout were slowly sipping the fly without the usual big splash on top of the water as they typically do on this stream. Soft takes.

I told myself that I would fish until I lost my fly. Yeah, I finally stuck a fly in a tree branch above me and had to break it off. That was my "sign" that it was time to pack up and head for home. With several trout in the net, I was satisfied and ready for home and a little dinner.

Gear: Winston WT 7' 2wt rod; Trutta Perfetta reel; Orvis Wonderline WF2F line; #12 Elk Hare dry fly.

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