That may be stretching it a bit, that even the fish enjoyed the day. If you were a fish and ate a tiny little bug that came with a hidden hook and attached to a fly line you might think your day really sucked, right? But in this case, instead of being landed, scaled and gutted to become dinner, you were landed, the barbless hook removed and you’re gently placed back in the lake to swim another day.
It may not be enjoyable for the 3 minutes it takes to be caught and released, but a whole lot better than ending up on the grill that evening.
One of my favorite distractions is fly fishing, and somehow I stumbled upon this private club north of the city about an hour away. A private lake stocked with rainbow and speckled trout, but far from shooting fish in a barrel so to speak.
A small group of folks are members, so the lake isn’t crowded except on weekends. Normally there’s just 5 or so fishermen or women, but you may see 10-12 people on a weekend. Still not very crowded, and still offering a great deal of solitude.
Trout are finicky eaters and wiley fish to begin with. Fly fishing with barbless hooks for easy catch and release makes it more challenging. You have to match your artificial fly (meaning lure) to what is the available food source at the time. Aquatic insects or larva make up the vast majority of the trout’s food source. If you don’t know what they’re eating you’re going to have a hard time catching any.
I arrive at the lake very early in the morning, the traffic is down to nothing at 6:00 am, so it’s an easy drive. Stop, sign in, and unlock the gate to access the main lakes.
A short drive on a dirt road takes you to the back of the property, where the natural springs join up to fill the lake. A 20 foot high earthen dam creates this little corner of heaven.
I don’t know another place where I can simply forget everything there is to forget, my only focus is on casting and casting and more casting until all of a sudden you feel the slightest pull on your line. They call fly fishing the sport of a thousand casts. A thousand casts to land one fish. Well, unless you know what you’re doing.
This is what I’m rewarded with, if I have done everything to perfection to please the trout, enticing them to hit my fly. The one pictured is a speckled trout, pound for pound a better fighter than a rainbow. That morning I caught and released 10 more of these, along with an equal number of rainbows.
Landed and released quickly so it can recuperate from the short lived battle, to swim again.
But that’s my entire focus while I’m there, getting worn out from the constant casting and being on my feet. When that happens I take a break, sit and sip my coffee or smoke a cig, and take in all the beauty that surrounds me.
Beautiful and profound in all its splendor.
My worries, depression and health take a back seat.
The pain driving back home will be my payment, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Without this respite, I would finish my trip to insanity.