My Favorite Type of Rest Stop

Long days of travel across the state mean a few things...

Lots of coffee or soda (bad).

Little sleep.

Getting irritated with people leaving their brights on while driving in the opposite lane.

Taking time to see new water or throw a line in if there is time.

All of those things applied today as I literally drove across the great state of Washington. A short respite from emails and phone calls allowed me to take a few hours and throw my line into the beautiful Yakima River canyon.

A quick hookup and landing of a nice feisty Rainbow brightened the mood and several aggressive takes (but no lands) on the streamer left me wishing I had more time to fish.

As I left the canyon I stopped to look back, both figuratively and literally. Those few hours on the water refreshed my mind and for that (and the scrappy trout) I am thankful.

Life on the Road: The Snake River

My new job has many perks...

I get to meet many "fishy" people.
I get to talk fishing with said people.
I work for an organization that does things the right way and is making a difference for the fish.
I drive all over the great state of Washington.

One place that my job does not (yet anyways) take me is Clarkston, Washington. I figured a trip to Pasco on a Friday was close enough though, so I made the drive through "deer alley" to the Lewiston-Clarkston area where I met up with a jump shooting fly angler that goes by the name of Ryan.

Ryan and I have known each other for some time but we hadn't hit the water together. Thankfully that changed as Ryan showed me the ropes on the Snake River.

We had originally planned on fishing the Grande Ronde but sub-freezing temperatures had turned it into a Slurpee of sorts. The weather was brutal as we wandered up and down the Snake, chipping ice out of our guides, and taking full advantage of hand warmers and layers of fleece.

We both experienced a few "bumps" and even saw a fish working the surface (?!?) but neither of us hooked up that day.

Instead, I caught a cold, and a long drive back to Portland. But the experience of big, gorgeous water, and time spent with a friend was well worth it.

Maybe that first steelhead on the spey will come next week, on another new river, in another beautiful corner of Washington.