Tough Fishing

We told Jen we would take her to three of our favorite rivers, hoping to have her catch three of the four species of cutthroat trout required for the Wyoming Cut Slam award. The streams had finally receded and cleared up so we hoped the fish would still be there. The first day we went to a stream that holds Bonnieville cuts. It’s a stream that can be great if no one else has fished it, (that day). Reaching the stream, we saw fresh tracks along the stretch we had planned to fish.

Little fish after little fish tried to take our flies. They were too small to hook. Working upstream we had a few rises of catchable fish but they shied away from actually taking our offering. We drove upstream to a stretch we had never fished. Jen did a good job of roll casting in the dense willows and had several larger fish hit her fly. We could not understand how she could have missed the fish until she checked her hook, it was bent almost straight back. Lesson number one, check your hook often!

The next day we headed to the stream where Renita had caught her first fish on a fly. Walking along with Jen she tried hole after hole. Finally, she had several rises and at the last hole she caught and released a Fine spotted Snake River Cut. Unfortunately, her picture did not show the details that would allow it to be used when she applied for the Wyoming Award! We then tried fishing the Greys River, but the construction crews blocked many of our favorite spots. Renita did have a large fish on, but it pulled free as she fought it back upstream. Still, it had been a good day and we discussed the fishing, and the beauty of the Greys Valley. Jen, Val, and Renita had all caught and released fish. It’s not the first time I have gone fishless, and I am used to be out fished by Renita, Jen, and Val.

Resting for a day we next went to the spot where Renita and I had caught out Colorado Cutthroat .To get there we had to cross McDougal Gap. It’s a fun drive that is on a fairly good road, one that did not require a four-wheel drive vehicle. Arriving, the stream looked good but to our dismay, the fish were rising but not taking. I changed my fly often and in frustration even put on a nymph, all to no avail.

A game and fish biologist stopped to survey our fishing and we all had missed risers but no takers. She said Game and Fish had electroshocked the stream and the fish numbers were down. She suggested another creek, but the road was a four wheel drive road and we were driving Renitas car. We did drive up it but decided discretion was the better part of valor, so we turned around. After lunch we had a strange encounter as two identical camouflaged jeeps/hummers with trailers drove by. At least we showed Jenny three of our favorite streams. We showed her many new places, many wild places. We did see wildlife and at one spot a cow moose walked out from a copse of trees. Jen also spotted a fawn black tailed mule deer. Jen is laying out line, which means she now has the skill she needs to casy a during flyfishing. She has already shared pics of the trout she has caught in Montana. Additionaly she understands how to fish small creeks, which are some of our favorite places as they are often passed by, because of their size. It’s always a special day when we are with Jen, and we have shared three days of fishing. wildlife, and the beauty of Wyoming Mountains. Clear skies