Just got back from a morning trip and was pleased to see the water in good shape.
Nothing at home in the first run so moved to where I broke the fish off on Thursday. Was just settling in and I see Clayton into a fish at the Diving Board. It looks like a nice fish from my distance. Nick who is fishing with Clayton comes up to tail it for him and it is a hatchery fish.
Just then a fellow slips below me and asks if anything, "nothing for me yet" I reply. Meanwhile Nick is getting ready to take a photo of Clay and his fish. Just after a cast, a flash from the camera distracts me for a split second, I look away for a second or two, thats all. You know whats coming now don't you.
Just as I look back where I think my float should be, no Drennan in sight
Just then before I can react the tell tale feel of a steelhead as 2 or 3 head shakes telegraf up the rod to my hands, not again I am thinking, just like a week ago when Ed distracted me and I never set the hook then either. The fish easily spits the hook as I did not even have the sense to pull, no wonder my hook - land record slips to 4 for 18. I had set a goal of hooking 50 this year, good thing I did not try to set a land goal. Nick told me in the good old days he would hook around 200 and land 100 so I will have to improve to get to that 50% mark.
After I lost the one the angler casts right now where I had hooked it, this actually is a unwritten law that we should not do, we always let the fellow that has missed a fish or had one on we give them 3 or 4 casts through the area before casting again. It is just a sporting thing to do but the fellow most likely never realized that.
The fish did not give him or me a second chance. I fished some new water and found nothing but a snag that scared me for a second.
I called it a morning at 12 and on the way back ran into Ed and Doug who had seen one caught earlier up river a bit. Doug had just lost one in the run I had fished first thing. I heard of 2 others lost so it was a bit slow in the area I fished anyway, even though I had a chance.
Time for a nap and most likely will dream about all the steelhead I should have caught this season. A good way to go to sleep, instead of counting sheep I can count where I have lost the fish this year. I am sure I will be a sleep before I get to 14.
May slip out again for the last hour or so just before dark.