Well if anyone still reads this blog, you probably noticed the last post was a very long time ago…  Spilt milk, lets get over it together.  And deep breath in…..and exhale.  Ah that was nice wasn’t it?  Now lets move on.  We just got done with a large storm that lasted the last 4 days or so and dumped quite a bit of snow.  I continue to be a weekend warrior due to work and got out to the mountain on Saturday regardless of immeasurable back pain from shoveling snow.  What’s that?  Did you call me something with a feminine reference?  Well for your information, I went to a doctor and he gave me vicodin and valium…this was the real deal.  Anyhow, I was contracted for a small fly tying job this week and had to get it done today.  The flies are headed to Belize River Lodge, just outside of Belize City, which is, yes, in Belize.  Pat yourself on the back if you got that, but take that pat away if you think Belize City is the capital city.  You are wrong.

Baja is back on the books for this June and looks to be another great trip.  We learned a lot last year and made some good contacts down there.  We’ll be spending a few more days down there this time to maximize our opportunities.  This go round we’ll have 11 full days of fishing.  The mullet flies with the black tail are for Jeff Currier, as I continue to repay him for his original watercolor of a roosterfish he gave me last year.  All is good in the hole and I am looking forward to my annual February trip to central Wyoming to kick off my fishing season.  The state of Wyoming gained a lot of snowpack this week and we are now looking a lot better for water this summer.  I think a lot of anglers are subconsciously hoping for a little less snow than last year so we can actually fish in July :^)

Had a great time this weekend with Kevin and Keith.  We did an overnight float and had decent fishing.  Mosquitos were much better that last year when we did this float, probably due to the time of year, but either way, we were appreciative.  The first fish was netted about a half hour into the float.  Dry fly fishing produced a lot of smaller fish and streamer fishing showed us some larger fish, but nothing to write home about.  Atka, has finally showed some interest in fish and its good to see.  She actually hopped back in the boat a few times upon request!  Baby steps, baby steps.  One of the local ranchers in the area was kind enough to let us know that we were anchored and fishing on private property……whoops!  We had camped the night before and I mentioned that where we set up camp was BLM land on the map.  He said it was all private from where we put on and where we were going to take out.  I certainly didn’t try and argue with him and I apologized for trespassing and thanked him for letting us know:)  He was a nice enough guy but I really don’t see the big deal in getting out and fishing a side channel here and there.  As long as anglers are leaving the property as they found it, I don’t see why it is such an issue.  Idaho definitely put more thought into their water property laws.

I’ve been blessed over the last six years to live the life that I have and have met the people I did.  The great group of experienced guides in the area, world renown fly tiers, and many big names in the sport of fly fishing, such as Jeff Currier.  Jeff has taken his artwork through the roof since leaving Jack Dennis and is truly living the fly fishing dream.  Many months ago, Jeff proposed a trade in each others skill set.  The deal was simple.  Flies for artwork, retail for retail.  We agreed that this would be the fairest trade, due to the fact that both Jeff and I could sell our “goods” at a retail price regardless of time spent producing said goods.  I’ve tied a number of flies for Jeff since the agreement, not to mention IT work:), and this week Jeff delivered on his end of the bargain.  An incredible roosterfish watercolor was given to me by Jeff a couple of nights ago, and I couldn’t be happier with it.  I still have a great deal of flies to tie for the global fly fisher, but that what makes it nice.  I get to tie flies for species found all over the world.  Eventually, I plan on using the same flies for the same fish:)

Well I floated the green today and it was a total bust.  I’m sure other anglers on other stretches caught fish, but we did not.  Lots of gray drakes out.  The flow of the river is steadily dropping right now, but it is still high and off color.  Visibility is about 3 feet.  I did catch 2 nice cutties out of flat creek behind the house yesterday, so I got that going for me.

Friday night started out as a normal night out.  Keith, Nick and I went to Thai Me Up for a beer and some food.  After that we thought we would check out The Garage, formally Burke’s Chophouse, on Pearl Street.  After settling up our bill there, someone told me that guy at the bar really looks like Dave Matthews.  I looked at him for awhile catching a glimpse of his face here and there.  I thought to myself, “Man, that guy really looks like Dave Matthews.”  After closer scrutiny, I confirmed it was in fact Dave Matthews.  When he got up to hit the head, Keith had him come over and chat with us.  I showed him a photo of himself along with Tim Reynolds, Jane Goodall and my brother.  He immediately started telling us stories.  He then bought us all a round from the bar and shot the shit for awhile.  Unfortunately, I didn’t have an actual camera on me, so this is where the iPhone came into play.  Dave wanted to take the first picture so obviously I let him have at it.  He’s a pretty cool guy in person and enjoys his beer .  He’s also a lot taller than I thought he was.  He’s probably 6’2″, most celebs always seem to be short little bastards.  Anyways it was pretty cool and totally random running in to him and his guitar manager.  Certainly made for an interesting weekend.

Kevin, Keith and I headed over to Idaho this weekend to try out the Henry’s Fork.  It’s one of the few river systems fishable right now.  We saw a ton of bug activity including drakes, caddis and the occasional golden stone.  Mostly smaller fish were caught on small dries.  I landed one decent rainbow on a streamer.  It was a beautiful day out and many other anglers were out enjoying the clearer water.  There were at least 10 boats ahead of us when we put on around 1030 hrs.  With so little fishing right now, I got a lot of mountain biking in the last three days.  Cache to Game on Friday and Sink or Swim today.  We’re certainly watching the flows around the state, ready to pounce on them as soon as possible.  I can’t wait for the first overnighter.

Fishing in the area is simply not happening.  So we went elsewhere last weekend and it was a great time.  We waded our first day and did ok, the most exciting event being sight fishing to a large brown trout and putting a stonefly nymph right in front of his face.  He turned on it and ate.  It was an awesome fight that ended in a lost fish at the net.  Really cool experience to actually see the plan unfold as it does in our minds on such a large fish.  Atka, my new puppy, had her first camping adventure and I think she truly enjoyed it.  She does great wading in the river right at my feet and usually takes naps on the boat  Off to another spot this coming weekend….report to come…

I headed to the east coast this weekend to visit my brother Matt in New York City.  The big city isn’t exactly my “stomping grounds”, but I had a great time out there.  We saw a ton of stuff in two days, but I’d have to say the Comedy Cellar was the most fun.  Saw a handful of well known comedians there and their material was pretty damn funny.  From the top of 30 Rockefeller, I got some pretty cool wide angle shots that really let you see a lot.  The food was incredible.  Our last night there we went to Dahba, which is supposedly the best Indian food in the city.  I can see that being true.  I’m hoping to wet a line this coming weekend.  It would appear that lakes are still the best viable option…

This was just too damn funny not to post on the web.  This is my new roommate and co-worker, Kevin Spence.  He IS urban kayaking…

What a weekend it’s been.  We finally got some beautiful days up here in the hole and many took advantage of it.  Keith and I decided to check out Jackson Lake on Saturday.  Fishing certainly wasn’t on fire, but we caught a half dozen fish or so.  Cutty’s and browns were the only eaters, we saw no lake trout which was quite surprising.  If runoff hasn’t begun yet, it certainly will after today and yesterday.  It was in the high 70′s both days.  The mountains still think its winter though.  So much snow is still up there its incredible