10. You check water flows for more than 3 gauges daily.
9. You plan your summer vacation around the salmon fly hatch.
8. You buy your 3 year old a 3 wt so he can accompany you on the salmon fly hatch.
7. You over spend said 3 wts budget by $30.
6. Though your felt soles provide no traction on the slick clay mud you traipse up and down the trail, at time precariously hanging over the creek.
5. After startling the moose on the other side of the creek, as it is the best looking hole you've seen all day, you pray there is no calf near you and continue fishing.
4. Though it is raining hard, you still hike up the creek for a mile anyway.
3. When you get to the first ford in the creek, and step off the bank into thigh deep water, you contemplate for a second crossing, before common sense steps in.
2. Upon discovering you have no strike indicators, you rig up a 02 Salmon fly as an indicator.
1. You give no thought about the 3 weeks of continual rain, and what it might have done to the creek you are heading to.
When the bug strikes you and you really need to get out, sometimes foresight goes out the window.
Though it has been raining for what seems like eternity, I had heard good things about a local creek for mid June, and really not thinking about what snow melt and continual rain had done to the creek, I hopped into the car and headed out. It rained during the drive up, and the local mountains look like the deep pacific NW. In fact my wife is starting to believe we are in Seattle, not SE Idaho.
The reservoir was filled almost to the brim and where the creek met the lake seemed a great spot for a flock of big birds.... I think they were pelicans.
My first sight of the creek was pretty discouraging. But, as I was already there I decided to hike up and fish anyway. I hiked up as far as the first ford, casting floating nymphs through likely slow water and softwater spots on the way up. I got to the first ford, stepped in, thought "this is nuts" and hiked back out. The rain really decided to come down at this point, turning the trail into a little stream.
I decided to make one last attempt at fish by a washed out beaver dam, where the was some slow water. Approaching the dam a big brown head popped up on the other side of the creek. Not 20 yards from me..... a moose. I quickly scanned my surroundings for a calf. Getting stomped into hamburger was not high on my to do list.
No calf so I kept fishing ;) Till I snagged up. I snagged dozens of times as there was all kinds of submerged twigs, stick and logs flowing down the chocolate water.
I hiked back out to the car and drove to the confluence of the creek and river, reasoning (finally applying a bit of logic) that if the fish were staging to spawn up the creek then maybe thet would be at the mouth of the creek. Yet, still nothing.
When, if, the rain stops..... I will try the creek again.
