A warm welcome as usual to The Journal on Fishing With Rod, your top fishing web page for the latest fishy news across the globe. As I am taping the Leaf game that I am certain will be another win, I will give a brief accounting of my late afternoon jaunt out to the Vedder.
I then will settle in an enjoy the game.
I had intended to make a run out to the Vedder at first light but the 3 degrees of frost combined with the delicious meal and events after made me instead visit Tim' s to read the paper and then attend the Long Table at McDonald's to catch up on the local gossip.
I also questioned some of the top rods in the Valley when they had caught their first steelhead of a new season and I believe the earliest was in October. I cannot really remember when I have taken mine, maybe mid December, will have to check the book. Maybe others that read this can add the date of their earliest catch of Mr Iron Head.
Anyway I finally get organized mid afternoon, tying up some new leaders and some roe bags, a little under a quarter size as I knew the visibility would be not the best, even after the cold of last night.
I park the Leaf Mobile in a high visible spot to try and thwart any attempt by any crook who would attempt to violate her by breaking a window to gain access. I wish she could talk as that would most likely paralyze the would be thief and then would be easy picking on my return as the bear spray I carry would add to his discomfort.
I pack my gear, camera and cell phone in a back pack making sure the latter two items are in a zip lock bag in case I happen to get a early start on a Polar Bear swim. I take a staff as well to help steady my 63 year old frame. i wonder how I am fairly mobile on the badminton court but like a fish out of water when walking the rivers these days. As I plow through the foot or so of snow I find the staff is indeed a great help, so one could say the rod and my staff comfort me.
As I reach the river proper I almost think I am on a moonscape, every thing has changed so much since the flood of 2006. I quickly see the area I am in it appears at a first glance to be for the better as there is so many good looking holding spots. I even shiver a bit, not from the cold but from the thought that I believe I can smell a steelhead in the area, now that going a bit far CG.
I see the water is ok with visibility at around two feet as I wade the first side stream, to reach the first run I am going to try. A nice freshly made roe bag is slipped firmly on the #1 Gammy with a Maple Leaf Drennan carrying the payload. I must change that to a Maple Leaf Stealth for the next trip as I like them equally as well.
I then get itchy feet to do some more exploring so head upstream a bit, I think I am treading on virgin turf as I can see only eagle, heron, duck and seagull tracks, all feeding on the dead that are everywhere. Some of the chum are like mummys, incased in a tomb of ice their grimace of death staring skyward towards the heavens, fish heaven maybe. I wonder as I tread around their bodies, respecting them as much as I would any other creature be it human or other animal. I wonder if any of them were some of the 140 chum that a number of us rescued from a premature death during the flood. I hope so, we sure wanted to give them the chance to complete their life cycle and not die in a drying up mud soaked pool.
I finally stumble on some human tracks, someone with the same idea as me I guess. As there is some good looking runs above him that need checking I continue onward. Besides I will be doing an article for the Chilliwack Progress on the upcoming Boxing day Steelhead Derby so I require a picture as well.
Taking about pictures I think the Leaf game should be over now so will take a break so to take in some moving pictures, of the Leafs winning.
Back shortly.
Author
Topic: The First Steelhead Trip For The New Season, The Journal For Dec. 2 (Read 7676 times)