Thank Goodness for Disclaimers

Well, folks............ It's turning out to be a pretty bummer year as far as fishing goes. I have fished several times - wait, I'll upgrade that to many times, targeting steelhead mainly, and have pretty well been skunked. I have one fish to speak of for 2008 (not including the half-pounder on the Lower D). That was back in FEBRUARY - almost a year ago! And it wasn't even in Oregon. If could say one thing about steelheading, it would be "Don't bother!" Ah, of course I'm kidding. Fishing is fun whether you are catching or not. But TIMING is most certainly everything. I did hook some fish in Costa Rica, but the fishing trip turned fiasco is no longer worth the effort of explaining. Suffice it to say that I caught three fish, all on my own time casting from the beach/rocks. Two of them were under 3 inches, and the other was under 12. Still fun to see some results. So, it turned out to be a good idea to post the disclaimer I did before I went to Costa Rica.

Now - in light of this disturbing lack of results, I am quite pleased to announce that IT IS TIME!
It will certainly be refreshing to fish on the Metolius River this winter. Unfortunately it will probably be several weeks before I am able to get out there. But when I do, I'm not even worried about the skunk. Although I'm confident in my knowledge, experience and ability to catch very large fish in that river, I go there more for therapy. It's the smell of the air, the sound of the water, the feeling of just being alone, and the clarity of mind that all of this brings. There's a cliche that says catching fish is a bonus to the activity of fishing. That's true for me on the Metolius. On any other stream I am there to knock the crud out of the fish - I'm talking about crippling hook sets, scorching runs, bent rods, screaming drags, and smoking reels. But for some reason I have a respect and love for the Metolius, and not just the river. It's that whole area. Good stuff. So, thus begins the winter fishing in the Metolius. I've been waiting for this since last May! Stay tuned for Bull Trout Trip I. I'm hoping to be able to produce some good video this year. Tight Lines!