As I've gotten older, I've generally lost my enthusiasm for winter. I'm not sure when it happened. I used to rather enjoy a little bit of cold and snow, but at this point in my life I almost envy those fortunate folks who migrate south for the winter. Despite its reputation, Colorado's winters are sometimes less onerous than most folks would envision. Still, January and February are slow fishing months for me, particularly since it's hard for me to make quick trips to any fishable tailwaters.
Needless to say, a recent warm spell that has melted away some of the ice and opened up some water has been a welcome January surprise. Combined with a slow period at work, the mild weather has allowed me to sneak away the last couple of afternoons in search of picky winter trout. After landing my first fish (using the term "fish" loosely) of 2011 yesterday, today offered a nice preview of what lies ahead for the year.
As is often true on the Poudre, neither of my two fish were huge - both about 12 inches - but each one offered a valiant fight that got my juices flowing again, after a two-month involuntary hiatus. Best of all, they were caught on new flies I tied during my less than auspicious holiday tying experiment. Yesterday's little dinker sucked an RS2 out of the film, and both fish today hit on Blue Poison Tungs drifted into a deep pool.
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| RS2 |
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| Blue Poison Tung |
The numbers have been few, and the fish have been small. The fun, however, was big, and the sunset loomed as a promise of more to come, very soon.
Ahhh...serenity. Lovin' my Poudre.
4 comments:
Absolutely love the sunset over the Poudre picture! Don't fret John, Spring is just around the corner...at least that's what Punxsutawney Phil told us!
Thanks Jim. You should have seen it in person. The picture doesn't do it justice. Knowing you, I'm sure you'd have loved the moment as much or more than the picture.
It's all ice now, but hopefully we'll warm up here soon.
Just found your site, but don't see a "follow" button... I am going to have to visit the Poudre someday...
River Damsel - Thanks for stopping by! I took your suggestion and added a "follower" button. Thanks for the tip.
The Poudre's kind of an "unsung" stream here in Colorado, especially with all the great trout waters we have. It's beautiful up the canyon from here in Fort Collins, but it suffers from low flows closer to town because so much of it gets diverted for other uses. Still, it's in my backyard and gives me hours of fun.
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