Current Trip Today

[ozark trout fisher]

Since this topic seems to have gone to falling, filling waders, breaking ankles, and that kind of thing, I've got another one.

I was on a medium sized mountain stream in western Montana a couple years back, and saw a good size brookie rising in the seam along the opposite bank. Problem was, from where I was standing, I was getting a terrible drag, and the fish wouldn't look at the fly. I figured if I waded out and stood on a rock in the middle of the stream, I could probably keep enough line off the water to at least get a half-way decent drift. I get out there to that rock, and in the process of getting my foot-hold, I realized that it was way too slippery too late. I slid backwards, and hit my lower back so hard on that rock that I felt my vision starting to dim. I was able to crawl bank to the bank, and while I'm not sure I went out altogether, it was close, and when I finally came to my senses I realized that my back hurt like a son of a biscuit eater, and that my rod was drifting downstream in the general direction of the Big Hole River. It slowed down my fishing a little for the next couple of days, but no permanent damage was done. Never did find the rod though. It sure as heck didn't seem funny at the time, but you I can't help but laugh about it now.

[Njardar]

Since this post was hijacked by the starter... how about close encounters as well? This spring the Big Thompson, past Estes Park, was up... really up, and the guide decided that the week we were there it was just starting to become wadeable...barely. To make a long story short, he took me out into the middle of the river, with me hanging on to him, where he left me... to go work with my friends... up river. Which didn't bother me at the time. This was after several hours of fishing and my legs were already like rubber. Fortunately, thye guide loaned me a Simms wading staff, and I had to use both hands to maintain my balance in the current while still preserving my new rod and old dignity. Fortunately I made it to the bank and promptly bought a wading staff that afternoon in town. It took all I had to get out of that river and in hindsight, it was probably dumb not to have stayed in eye sight of someone. Sometimes we don't realize how dangerous a situation is until we are out of it.

- Charlie

[Ill Trout Bum]

Ah yes, the dreaded ' Dance of the Trout Stream". I'm happy to say I have not had the experience for several years, but the last time I did the "two step" was memorable. I made the classic rookie wading mistake of lifting my back foot before my front foot was firmly planted. The date was March 1st, the water was high and swift. I all too soon realized my mistake as cold water filled my waders. I have to say that I did fare better than a guy I saw earlier that morning who took a complete header, nothing floating on the water but his hat!!!

[cnr]

I took a complete plunge on a Steelhead stream in Michigan in March. The water was up and stained and I could not see the bottom. Having fished this section many times I was a little cocky wading down stream and stepped into a hole that went completely over my head, one step I was knee deep and the next I was bobbing down stream. My buddies thought it was hilarious to see my hat floating and me disappear in one step. Sure did make me a little more cautious after that! It's inevitable for all of us stream junkies to take dip eventually. Why does it always seem to happen in Winter?

[Al Agnew]

This past spring out in Montana I had the worst mishap in quite a while. I was fishing the riffle I call "whitefish city" because you can catch whitefish all day long with the occasional trout. It's an easy riffle to wade. River splits around a gravel island and this riffle is at the downstream end, about 2/3s of the river flowing over it, very wide, no more than knee deep all the way across, drops off abruptly into about 4-5 feet of water which is what makes it a great riffle to fish...I still haven't figured out why there aren't more trout in it. Right next to the road so it's easy to get to, but I know a lot of other easy to get to places that have lots of trout.

Anyway, I'm slowly fishing my way across the riffle when another car parks up on the road, and three guys come down off the bank. I go ahead and wade on across to fish the channel on the back side of the island, where I can usually pick up a couple of trout. Instead, I'm into mass quantities of whitefish, catching one right after another. Finally one of the guys wades on across and walks up to me and asks me how the heck I'm catching all those fish, because he and his buddies are new at fishing the Yellowstone and haven't been able to catch anything. I show him my nymph rig and how to drift the nymphs and mend and such, and he goes back and huddles with his friends and soon they are all up watching me pile up the numbers of whitefish. Finally they agree that I'm a real pro and go back down to the riffle to fish.

So I'm feeling really smug. It's time for me to leave, so I start wading back across this easy riffle, just in back of the three guys, and they are chatting with me as I pass them...when I suddenly slip on a rock. Trying to salvage the situation without falling down in the water and looking stupid, I somehow get my foot wedged in the rocks, twist it violently, and feel something pop in my lower leg. PAIN. And I get wet anyway. Limping badly, hurting, very cold, and somewhat embarrassed, I clamber on across the riffle, where I have to climb a 20 foot bank to get to the car. I didn't think I was going to make it. Turned out to be a high ankle sprain that took two months to heal.

[stlfisher]

Very entertaining stories!

[steve l]

Canoeing on the Jacks Fork with my brother Matt, who is a pretty big guy, quite a few years ago. We stopped at a bend to fish, and may have caught one or two, I don't remember exactly. So Matt is getting in the canoe, and it begins to swing around in the riffle. About half way it hits a rock & comes to a dead stop. The canoe that is. Matt just keeps going, launched out of the canoe totally airborne. Made quite the splash when he came down. Oh man, did I have a good time with that one - just sitting here typing this I am laughing. That spot is now known as Matt Falls.