Cast and Blast

We packed up the truck Thursday night and headed out towards Yellow Pine. This would be the start of a giant loop heading north towards the central part of the mountains then back down ending in the Owhyee for one last shot at those big browns. The first stop was a small pull off by Johnson creek. This was just a pit stop, but the area was quite nice. I couldn't sleep well due to the full moon which is kind of like sleeping under a spot light. The white noise of the creek rushing about 10 meters away from where I was sleeping also kept me awake.

The next morning was brisk compared to Boise. We had climbed a couple thousand feet and left the desert to enter the forrest. I passed the time a bit by fly fishing the stream, but the creek only held juvenile fish. Alex and I sped off to Yellow Pine for some breakie before heading to the secret lake where huge fish were rumored to lurk. The town on Yellow Pine has less than 100 people during the winter. the restaurant was just how you would imagine. Wood panelling everywhere with historic memorabilia of big salmon runs and pictures of trophy elk taken during the hunting season. No time for love Dr Jones! We need to find get to the lake while there is still daylight.

Now I have done quite a bit of backpacking over the past year, but I never thought I would be packing in so much gear. We decided to pack in the float tubes, find, and waders along with all of our camping gear which added at least 5-7 kilos. All in all, I estimate the pack weighed about 20 kilos. In addition to the extra weight, the lake was about 500-600 meters above the trail head which meant lots of climbing. Jeez! The climb and bushwhacking was worth the trouble. For the next 24 hours, I experienced some of the best trout fishing in my entire life. Not another soul other than my buddy Alex, and fish (big fish) rising to skim bugs off the surface of the water EVERYWHERE. I think we just happened upon a crazy hatch (meaning there was an unusual abundance of bugs). We kept one fish for tacos that night. Once again, I was cursed by the full moon. This time, I positioned myself behind a tree to shade me from the moon beam. The local squirrel was not pleased with my arrival and apparent resting place.

We moved on to meet Mark and camp on the edge of the middle fork of the Salmon river. The bratwurst was just the ticket to cap a day of fishing, BB gun shooting, beer drinking, and ranting about health care reform. After dinner, we were treated to a few poetry readings by Mark who wanted nearly every detail of my last 21 months of travel around the world. It was a nice relaxed evening and great to connect with a new friend who I met only twice before nearly four years ago.

We moved on to Mark and Ann's place near McCall. they had bought property (about 9 acres) in a subdivided ranch near Brundage Ski Resort. Mark and designed and built the place by hand and it was a good break from sleeping on a thermarest and down bag. Our activities involved more shooting and Mark's attempt at going off a ramp on his mountain bike (with a couple beers in him). He survived. Alex and I decided to make one more run into Oregon the next day. I had been skunked at the Owhyee last week, but now I had a good idea what flies to use. I would not go out empty handed.

Overall, it was a fantastic trip. It was good seeing my old friend after two and a half years. Although it wasn't the Tetons or Yellowstone, I was happy with my experience. We'll just save the trip for next time.