Swimbait

  I got a chance to hit the salt again for tuna, they are close this year, and they are hungry. This trip we ended up with 28, with my biggest going somewhere around 24 pounds. Lots of quad hook ups and sheer pandemonium on the deck and of course, blood and carnage everywhere.

  The crew loved to troll, and the Captain swore up and down that I would not get to use the swim bait rod on this day. On a stop with a quad I proved them all wrong by casting to my fish and hanging a hot bullet on the slide that put my chest to the rail three times. Guys who troll or dunk bait will never understand that ultimately the "tug is the drug" and as far as I am concerned, that one fish is the only one out of 28 that has burned itself into my memory. After landing the fish I got mildly chastised for holding up everyone from trolling back over the pod, I just smiled to myself and played off an apology as if I didnt know otherwise....and had never fished before haha. Like I always say "I just look like this."

 We had an excellent time, the crew was great, and lots of tuna sacrificed there lives to my Kerr jars.

                                                         

                                                                         

                                                                     

Salty

A long time has passed since I have felt the cool spray of the ocean tantalize my senses, being out on the big blue carries with it a myriad of unique sights, sounds, and images that are both exhilarating and comforting all at the same moment. Most know me as strictly a catch and release fly fisherman, but I kick myself for selling off my conventional gear every time I am re-exposed to the mystical wonders of the sea.

Many rock cod and an unsuspecting halibut died today, and I am boastfully unapologetic.

You can touch it bro, we swear it wont bite you.

Thanks for an excellent day on the water Dave and crew.

Cohesive

              I didn't have to do much convincing, I used the words, big, dumb, hungry, and wild as the descriptive terminology to seal the deal. Just a couple of hours would do, and then we will get you back home to Landon and the Wifey. Welcome to one of the places we call "Nospeakum River". So stoked that you had the opportunity to fish with Big George, and thankful for another kickass day on the water.

           

Game changer

          A terrible week had descended upon me like a thick black cloud of impending doom. I silently boiled inside with wave after wave of continuous drama. In times like that, I often reach out to close friends to vent my frustrations with the imperfections of the world. I do not have many, but the friends that I have retained understand just what I need to shake off the stench of a foul mood.


         It took about as much convincing as coaxing a bee to the flower of a honeysuckle, before I realized that I needed to warm my face in the sun. It was time to feel that fly line glide through my fingers, and listen to my drag scream like a couple of angry tomcats brawling over scraps in an alley. The solution to all that is bad, is the invitation to a day on the water with a good friend....and a mess of hungry trout, on a forever nameless river.


         Way to change the game my brother....way to change the game.

Attitude

           Often times things may not plan out exactly as you would have liked them to, even after extensive research the game can change. Moral has a tendency to dive to destructive depths at this point, the air becomes static with frustration and you may feel as if you may be chasing phantoms. Nothing that you do is turning out right, there are others relying on you and they have invested time and patience in the confidence of your skill.

           A renewed attitude can often come from an unlikely source. A stranger in a white mommy van with the random words of "Good luck boys" can fix an entire day and transform a feeling of hopeless defeat into renewed passion and drive for success. Thanks man in the van, I owe you one.

          Good students make a difference. Their willingness to patiently listen to instruction and apply techniques with finesse proves interest in the sport. Through their learning I am assured that my knowledge is valued and respected, and will be carried forward one day in success and in right of passage. Special thanks to the Nephews for making every trip I take a memorable one. I am proud to call you family, and even more proud that you are my friends.

           "Those two head shakes were good enough for me, my heart dropped", the best quote of the trip and will assure that you have become a steelhead addict for life....like it or not, you now have the fever and it cannot be quenched.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the video

It comes in threes.

As far back as I can recall, all of life's greatest challenges have come in groups of three, stacked one right after the other in rapid succession. The present is no exception to the rule, and they seem to increase in severity as I age. The only difference between the days of my youth and now is the manner in which I cope with these obstacles. Nevertheless, it certainly seems that my existence in this world is a never-ending trial by fire, and a test of my will.


1) A cherished and invaluable member of my family has seen more pain and trips to the hospital than any one person should ever be forced to endure, and it kills me and many others each and every time he hits the ICU. The amount in which he has enriched my life cannot be put into words.


2) Day before yesterday I learned the fates have once again dealt me the hand of Fatherhood.


3) Yesterday, I lost my job.


Some turn to a named God for guidance. I run to the rivers, the pines, and a fly rod to give me the answers that I seek. Natures creations are the very definition of God to me as I understand it....a thing that you can sense, touch, see, and feel. A thing that brings calm serenity to my mind and soul.

This is God.

The cup is always half full, because the fish come in threes as well.

Thanks for looking.