Tailgates & Fishing

 One of the things I enjoy is pulling the truck off the road next to a pretty trout stream, and rigging up my fly rod on the tailgate. The brush of wind in my face, the sound of the stream, and singing birds put me in a relaxed state while I prepare my gear. I use the time to transition into a patience mindset and remember how fortunate I am to be fly fishing this day. There should be a country song about rigging up a fly rod on your tailgate...that would be very cool.

My plans were to fish a couple of mountain freestones. No hiking to remote waters, just easy to reach streams near the road. I call it gentleman fishing since I'm mostly on the bank and casting to fishy looking spots. The first stream had no signs of trout life. Sure, there are plenty of brown trout calling this stream home, but they weren't coming out to play today. 

I turned to head back to the truck when rumbles of thunder were blasting through the sky along with sprinkles of rain just starting to hit my hat. The sky was dark and looked like a good downfall would begin any minute. Nope, I didn't bring any rain gear. And I wasn't complaining either. We need the rain. I was surprised I made it back to the truck...and not dripping wet.

At a second stream, I did sight two nice brown trout, but they weren't interested in my fly. While I didn't land any trout today, it was nice to get into mountains and roam a bit along a trout stream. This mountain always puts me in a good mood. I'll be back. The brown trout should start getting a little frisky and ready for spawning season to arrive. It will be interesting to see when the trout "dance" begins on my home waters.

Gear: Winston IM6 476 custom build rod by Flat Creek Rods; Hardy LRH fly reel; Rio LightLine WF4F fly line; Dogwood Canyon landing net; Elk Hair Caddis dry fly.