Today is day 764 of our two-week Covid-19 quarantine. I'm currently experiencing a dull ache behind the eyes and a feeling of listlessness. It's been quite a while since I last went fishing or hiking or snowshoeing or anything exciting. My consumption of random trail mixes has also increased. It's not a great combination.
To say that we are living in strange times is probably the understatement of the century.
Lucky Charm
As the wind whipped through the valley a slight shiver crept up my spine. The sun was out, but the high wind created a chill in the air and an adversary that an east coast fisherman is not used to. The smart, strategic decision in this particular situation was to fish below water with a sturdy rod and heavier fly. However, I have never been accused of being smart. My attention was not focused on the wind, but on the tiny little bugs floating on top of the water and the little dimples that soon followed. I'm easily distracted by bugs. And so with my fiberglass rod in hand, I tied on a small, yellow back fly.
Read moreOur Year - 2017
From tiny brook trout in the Blue Ridge to giant lake trout to more cutthroat than we could stand; adventures around the corner to road trips across the country; the ability to create custom rods and a whole rod bag business.
Read moreA Garrison Fly Rod
According to Jacob, this rod is equally suitable for both small stream fishing and larger bodies of water, able to handle the wind, as well as the larger fish; a classicly smooth and progressive taper, just as, I'm sure, Mr. Garrison intended it to be.
Read moreColorado Ready
In exactly one month, Jacob and I will be in our 12th hour of driving, probably somewhere in Arkansas, on our way to Durango.
Read moreAnimas River
Originally posted September 25, 2016
The Animas, a tributary of the San Juan is a sought out river for most anglers. It runs right through the heart of downtown Durango and the access is amazing.
The Animas became our "Want to go fish for an hour or two before dinner?” river. We never really planned an actual day to dedicate to it. It was more or less the “go-to” after fishing or exploring somewhere else.
For us, The Animas is totally different from anything we're used to. It's HUGE!
No trees or laurels or rhododendrons to get stuck in.
No rocks to hop across to get to the other side.
And most importantly, no people.
This crazy attraction, right downtown, was wide open.
This was no South Holston river where everyone was clambering to get "their rock" for the day.
The shear openness was astounding. The freedom in knowing you could traverse all the way to the other side, up and down as far as you can see without running into a single other soul was absolute bliss.
One evening as we set out, after a day of back country fishing, we could see a storm starting to move in. The wind picked up, the clouds turned an ominous shade of gray and in the distance, above the mountains, you could see the lightning begin. Nature's fireworks were going off all around us. We headed back to the car, standing in the middle of a river with stick that conducts electricity in the middle of a thunderstorm is never a good idea. We waited the 10 minutes it took for the storm to roll in and then quickly roll out.
The Animas gave us brown trout. Every different shade of gold and yellow and brown you can imagine, shades of gold that matched the color of the evening light.
It may have only been our evening retreat for an hour or two, but she gifted us with memories and more gold than we could ever hold on to.
