Well I am sitting here on my couch/bed in Vail Hospital as I update the ol’ blog. My wife is relaxed on her bed chatting it up with the nurse. The 39 weeks have certainly flown by and soon, sometime in the next few hours, we will welcome our little boy into the world. Pretty exciting. But, until then here is an updated fishing report on the Roaring Fork.

The Fork is about and hour from my house. Not a bad run either all interstate and as long as there is not a rock slide in the canyon it is smooth sailing. Last Friday it was a balmy 50 degrees down valley so I grabbed the banker and magnum and headed to the Fork. With the blue bus in tow we got to the Carbondale boat ramp around 10:30 and had the old girl in the river by 11. It felt good to be back on the oars crab stroking our way down river. Brinkiman pegged one about 1/2 mile from the ramp. A Rainbow trout with a jaw that looked like mike tyson punched it. Weird.. That fella ate a golden stone probably a # 16. We tried to get a pic of him but magnum couldn’t figure out how to work that camera machine. Soon after landing old crooked jaw magnum was on the board. He was consistent on stripping streamers and it paid off. He rocked a nice brown right after the banker farmed one in a $$ run. We bounced down to another good nymph hole and I positioned Brinkman in a good casting position while magnum tied on some dries. Bobber down!!! Brinkman came tight and did battle with a nice Bow.

The next cast boom.. bobber down and Brinkman started to catch fire. Magnum was finished tying up his rig as we landed another fine Roaring Fork Rainbow Trout. We started to make way again then the Banker struck again.. A sweet whitey. Boo- yah. We now were on a mission to get the banker the roaring fork slam… RT. BT, Whitey & Gold Belly Sucker.

We slid down into a slow run and saw some risers Magnum quickly started tossing at them but they had no interest. He shouted out ” if you row your ass off I will change bugs” that got a chuckle from the banker and I. But, i did as he requested and rowed my ass off to an eddy up stream. Not too much anchor room on the fork, lots of private water the second home owners like to post. So we sat there and I told Brinkman that we would get a chance to watch magnum farm one on a dry. Sure enough we slid into position and magnum farmed one. It was a great shout out. We held there for a few more minutes but those pesky trouts wouldn’t take. Magnum took over on the oars after his poor display with the Dry fly… ha ha Just kidding magnum you are a effin rock star. I was in the back of the bus missing & losing trouts like a texan when the banker struck again. Big Bow on a tiny midge put the banker to the test but damn if he didn’t bring it in like an old pro.

After lunch fishing slowed down a touch but we were on a time restraint so we didn’t hit it too hard. Magnum heated up at the end of the day nailing a few shay dogs and some brown trout. The banker finished weak, I think after he lost his magic set up all confidence let the building. We made it back to the boat ramp before 4 and had the banker home before 5:30 and kept his old lady from yelling at him. The hot flies of the day were: Golden Stones, Micro Mays, Girdle Bugs, Red Midges & Purple Midges. The video below shows bobber tying some deadly purple midges.

Hey There followers I am over run with Sasquatch hoodies and need to make room for the new baby boy on the way… possibly any day. So I have discounted the price of the sweat shirts to make some room. Visit the schwag shop and pick up one for the mud season. You may or may not have caught this on previous posts but a percentage of this years hoodie sales will go to the Wild Steelhead Coalition to help protect wild steel. Thank you for your support.

After losing a fish in the red house hole Brinkman and I walked up the steep bank to 2 sheriff cruisers who were putting the silver bracelets on a young mexican man. The thought of this guy breaking loose and taking us hostage ran thru my mind as we walked by and stared with interest and when we got back to the truck I added this to the conversation. ” two innocent fly fishermen were gunned down as desperate criminal tries to escape.” Brinkman looked at me and said “that was why I was walking on the other side of you”….. typical banker.

The red house hole is usually pretty money, it has a nice shallow riffle that those pesky trouts like when the water is a bit warmer and a long deep tail out where they can hide from predators like the dude we saw in silver steel. But, what I think might be happening here is that the occupants of the red house are turning the the pesky trouts into freezer burnt dinner. Or magnum and Atreyu were in there prior to our arrival and the pesky trouts all had sore lips. Either way this cause us to head down river.

After a vicious knee slide down a snow covered ice bank we landing in the river. There was a nice Rainbow sitting in the shallows sunning itself and I watched while Brinkman tried to find it with his Banker Eyes. No Luck there, but while I was re-tying Brinkman laced into one.

It was just a little guy but it was nice to see the bobber go down — yes we were fishing with bobbers. Please don’t hate. i went back to re-tying my bugs and the Banker struck again. Now, Birinkman is brand new to the sport of fly fishing and is getting quite good at it but like all of us when trying something new we need some coaching. I don’t know if I am the right person for this job but I do my best. So there the banker was hooked up and I could tell that this fish was a bit beefier than the previous pesky trout so I started yelling directions and grabbed the net. But, like an old pro Brinkman brought the fish over to the net and BOOM he was on the board (again). He was stoaked it was a healthy Eagle River Rainbow Trout and the biggest he has landed to date.

A quick pic and this pesky trout was conked and thrown on the bank for a freezer burnt dinner. Just kidding we watched it swim back into the shadows of the run. Obviously Magnum and Atreyu hadn’t caught that one yet.

We left shortly after this fish was landed, it is good to see Brinkman getting the fly fishing bug. We have warm weather in the forecast so hopefully we can get out there again and take advantage of the good fishing happening right now. Spring is my favorite time to get out, soon the blue bus will be floating the Eagle River on streamer patrol but until then we will probably be staring at bobbers. Over & Out.

Last week was our third annual hosted trip to the Olympic Peninsula. Once again with the professional staff at Brazdas Fly Fishing all anglers successfully landed a wild steelhead….. or 4 or 5…. a day. Compared to previous years this trip was somewhat mild, although the tequila did get outta hand on a couple nights. We did loose a day to a mild blow out but it was nice to be able to take a day off and recharge the batteries. By the following morning we were back on the river hooking steelhead. All of the fish were super fresh and in most cases unnecessarily rough, I watched a fish do a back flip into a log jam and burry itself underneath the logs, saw a fish break a scott fly rod & also ran helplessly 250 yards down river chasing a big buck only to loose him after a 20 minute battle. Although not all battles were won we still managed to park a couple in the net. This is my favorite trip of the year. I always look forward to getting to the coast. A lot of anglers love doing the salt water trips and I can’t blame them, beach, sun and sand versus rain, clouds and cold. But, there is something about the lush green forests, green/blue rivers and silver steelhead that trump the beach for this cat. As I get a bit older and my blood begins to thin I am sure things will change, but until then I will try my hardest to get to the coast each spring. Here are a few shots from the trip, I am sure more will trickle in but for now here is a peak.

This was Santa Paul’s third trip with us out to the Olympic Peninsula. I am quite sure that it is the only time during the year that he fly fishes and his skills have grown head and shoulders since his first trip. He also looks like santa which is awesome. I was able to fish with paul for 2 days this year and between him and Joe Willaure there are times when I am laughing more than fishing. My favorite this year went as follows:
Joe- “get it on the reel get it on the reel”
Paul- ” I got him on the reel”
Joe- ” Let him run paul let him run”
Paul- ” I am letting him run the drag is not working” SNAP ” I had him on the reel the drag wasn’t working..”
Joe- ” well you gotta let go of the reel handle for the drag to work.”
Laughter erupted for a solid 5 minutes and we teased paul all day about it.

Joe Willaure releases a wild steelhead back into the Bogachiel River.

The highlight of my trip came one morning on the Upper Bogachiel River. Joe and I were standing in the heavy rain swinging the tail end of a run. We were not going to spend much time there since we got a call from the Braz telling us to get outta there and come over to the Sol Duc. Wilocerous (joe) and I were shooting the shit when my loop came tight and the reel started singing a big fish came to the surface and slapped its tail. I hollered with joy and I heard santa yell “that is awesome.” The fish decided to leave the pool and run down stream through a rock garden and series of rapids. I really didn’t have a choice so I started chasing after it. I worked it at a low angle over to an eddy where I got the best look I would get. It was a big steelhead we estimated it at around 20lbs, there was no chance that we could land it there and after looking at the beast eye to eye it quick made a heavy run back into the current. Joe and I ran through some treacherous water down to the next slow pool. We held our ground and then the line went slack. It was a bummer but the adrenaline rush was well worth. It will be a moment forever etched in my memory.


That right there is a Steelhead and they don’t get much brighter than that. The super cool dude holding it is Jeffery Bright (pork-chop) from Carbondale Colorado. Jeff was a first timer on the trip and hopefully he’ll be back again. I am sure this fish will keep him thinking about it for sure. The celebratory beer of choice for Pork-chop was an ice cold PBR. Yeah Buddy. – Jeff Brazda Photo

Matthew Burkett gives us the look away hooded pose with a Hoh River beauty. The inside of that net is 37 inches and I am sure that fish filled it. Matthew owns and operates The Fly Fisher Group in Denver Colorado. When he is not hammering steelhead he is putting people on some amazing trout water in Colorado. Be sure and check it out.
Jeff Brazda Photo

Last but not least is my ugly mug with a very fresh Hoh River Steelhead. I got yelled at by the Braz when he was trying to net it. ” Your not putting the fooking wood to it dude.” Thanks to everyone for making it out this year. It was a blast and I am already looking forward to next year. Jeff, Aaron, Tyler, Joe and Annie thanks for putting up with us again. Cheers

Hit the water with bobber this afternoon. After a being socked in with odd cloudy windy snowy weather for the past four or five days it was good to see the fire ball in the sky. It was beginning to feel like I lived back in Maine.
Side note – Did you know that 10 percent of new englanders get seasonal depression…. FACT

Anyway we thought about trespassing on some ritzy water in town but thought it was a better move to head down valley in search of warmer weather. Driving down HWY 6 we passed the authentic mexican food shack and my stomach rumbled, I was starving. But, having had a bout with some kind of intestinal disagreement about 30 minutes prior I kept my mouth shut. Instead I reached for a 7.5 oz pepsi in the cooler. I heard/saw somewhere that this helps with a stomach ache. FACT – (you be the judge)

The wind was howling it didn’t feel like 39 but thats what the mercury said in the truck. Bullshit, it felt more like 19. I was the first up to bat. I got a tip from magnum the night before that he and atreyu were having luck on big golden stones. I thought that he was lying to me and as I write I still think he may have been. But, since they have been on the water 4 days a week I trusted his call in tied on a giant articulated life like golden stone I bought for .30 cents. Friggin thing was heavy too, my flabby arms could barely roll cast the bastard. Bob was on the bank freezing waiting his turn and on my 61st drift I had a bobber down, yeah I was fishing a bobber please don’t hate. I set the hook and that spongey feeling was there followed by a head shake. I chanted hoping that my 30 cent fly did the trick. Bob hollered did he eat the stone. “yep” i yelled not knowing “nope he ate the tiny thing.” We netted the fish, a nice brown maybe 17 and 5/8 long and released it. Definitely a 6 lb fish by someone standards, I wont name names.

Bob worked his way down stream and saw a suspended fish about a rod length out. My clumsy ass stumbled down the river and spooked the fish further out. “Sorry bob” I mumbled as I perched up on a rock. Out in the middle of the run I could see the fish flash, it was a big fish probably 8 lbs by someone’s standards and as we watched the pink bobber roll past a submerged rock it did the dance. Strebber pinned the fish and we watched it flash and roll. Naturally I started yelling “Don’t horse ‘em” and got into netting position. I scooped up the beautiful Rainbow and gave bob the knuckles. We snapped a few pics, hell it’s not everyday that you see a 10lb fish on the Eagle.

At this point my stomach had eaten my esophagus and it was time to feed the fat kid so we trudged back to the truck and drove back to a little slice of Authentic Mexican goodness. Some may think that 2 beef burritos shouldn’t be the first thing in your stomach after a battle with Montezuma’s revenge, but then again some may say that fish was 10 lbs.

I am headed to the coast in a few days, I might have one more post in me before I leave. Until then keep it sleezy and as always thanks for reading.