Trip

[twinbridges]

Just back from a couple of weeks in Twin Bridges and it was warm, very cold, clear, snowy and a thunderstorm thrown it as well.

Caught a few fish wade fishing the Big Hole and the Ruby but it was slow.  Talked to a few folks who had good days and not so good days.  It is early so that is to be expected.  Got my drift boat out of its box and parked it in the yard which felt good.  Did not float the day I should have and then did not get to float at all as wind and snow were enough to discourage me.  Got a new front roller on the trailer as it seems to get heavier each year on flat ramps.  Sweet.

Following is a brief description from my log on the last day there.  Can't wait for next trip.

Friend Ron "accident waiting for a location" from Seattle  is in Twin for a few days to buy land/home which has become a seasonal avocation that is becoming a lottery pick as to when it might actually happen.  I told our resident realtor Michelle back at New Year's I had a premonition and this is the year so you can start looking for that new cutting horse with this commission check. 

Anyway, today was to be the maiden float of 2010 with wife, Ron and myself from Town to Hell's Canyon.   Woke up, looked out the window and yes dear it snowed!  I'm not sure we are up for floating the Big Hole with cold temps, wind and snow everywhere.  Ron stops by mid morning for a "hey, what's up" and I break the news it " ain't happenin."  I suggest maybe some wade fishing after lunch which he thinks is swell.


We leave at 1.00 pm and in his thirty year old Toyota Land Cruiser, peak speed 50 mph, to head for Alder Bridge as I haven't been there yet this year.  I'm not too excited when there is a car in the lot but what the hell, there aren't five so that's good news, right?

We do the suit up thing.  Trying to increase our odds, Ron does the San Juan/PT thing and I do a s nymph/CJ thing and we head off.  He starts downstream toward the bridge and I head upstream.  It is cold, the wind is blowing and there is some snow blowing around but we are here so let's fish.

The water is a bit low but crystal clear and I'm feeling pretty good about the afternoon.  The first good pool I get to I take a good look at the lower of two pools and see a large fish, no two fish,  yep, two really big ole whitefish lurking.  I am shocked when the Copper John slack floated through doesn't get me one and then I say "hell, I don't want one" so I move on and leave them to  whatever they have planned for the afternoon.

I keep slowly moving along and after a while decide to do the San Juan/PT thing as I am having no love so far.  I get it all tied on, make one step river right and river left a big ole trout leaves the shore and makes a boat wake as he heads upstream across a narrows into a pool.  Damn.  This is a big fish, there is no doubt.

I look into the pool and there are three or four risers!  Eureka!  They are obviously dining on some midge emergers and are quite happy about having lunch.  So I untie my stuff, do a 14 with a post I might can see and a 20 midge emerger behind.  Man, it is really beginning to snow and tying knots with frozen fingers and 6X tippet is not too easy.

As I complete the process I hear a voice upstream of me calling a dog(s) and I am thinking this is not the best time for this stuff, but then he must be out in the pasture, surely no one would walk down the stream where other anglers might be.  Just as I make my first cast, he appears just in front of me, I wave my hand, point, shoose, and say, "rising fish" and point.  He waves his spinning rod and says hello.  Dog one jumps into the water on my side, this is not good.  Dog two however makes a flying ass leap into the center of the pool, goes to the opposite shore and begins to chase a frigging trout downstream.  I stand there rod in hand as the fellow tries to call his old dog who must be deaf because he is not making any move to stop his sport.  The fellow says he is stubborn, that's not half of what I think of him.  Of course I say "no worries" and move along. 

He finally departs and I make a couple of casts a bit further upstream and manage to get my stuff tangled up in the gusting wind now doing about 30 mph.  I get it all straight and walk back to the pool to see if by chance my fish are rising and there is nothing.  They must have just left or have decided they will not eat for a couple of days to see if large furry barking unknowns are lurking nearby.

I head back to find Ron and he is in that known pose of "my stuffs so tangled" and I say "how's it going?"  I get that look and tell him there is some good water we need to get to and to come along when I see his mess and say "I'll see you in an hour or so when that is fixed", another hard look and I head back upstream to avoid more discussions.

I get nothing for a while and decide to go back to the nymph stuff, get it all tied on, can't feel my fingers anymore so am tying knots by sight.  The snow thing is really beginning to happen but hell, we are here so let's fish.  I make about two casts and somehow all that's left I can see is my indicator coming downstream toward me, so I make three stabs into the water and then catch it. 

Ron comes along about this time and I point to the pool around the corner and off he goes.  I decide this is not working out so good and know that knot tying will indeed be a chore.  I walk up toward him, he is upstream of the pool, casting downstream noisily his nymph rig as he tells me there are "risers up there".  Of course, I start to explain that this is just about the worst thing he could do, but hell it is not worse than dogs jumping in the pool.

I say, "you know, I'm not having any fun", and he says "I'm having fun but not any luck", so with mutual agreement we head back to the truck.  Another memorable day on the Ruby River in the snow and the wind.  Did I mention it was cold?                 

[troutphisher]

Thats sounds like a lot of fun....... 0--0

[twinbridges]

A few pics.  Good news is it has been snowing quite a bit.

Old Big Al from Divide had in his blog this morning......

"The forecast for the remainder of the week looks great. As for now it's clear and still. Clear up to your ass and still snowin. But nobody is complaining as this is really helping the snowpack in the high country."

[Woolly Bugger]

good stuff Twin...

[troutphisher]

Images like these just confirm,  Go west young man......go west...... 0--0

[flatlander]

Love it 0--0

[55dougie]

Enjoyed the trip report and photos, thanks.