Wednesday, May 6, 2015

Back In The Saddle Again

Tuesday Morning with Yuki and I on the way to Cat Creek Rd to fish the Middle Fork of the Cosumnes River (a creek really). Yuki has been itching to fly fish so what better place (while the water lasts) than Cat Creek (remember that's here the Juan Lopez monster was created) to get Yuki started.

On the way up and after a coffee stop at Cooks Station we hit the creek at about 9:00. I have to tell you it's a damn site farther than it was from the old house. That's OK though, makes you appreciate the mountains again without raking pine needles, shoveling snow (when it snows), and splitting firewood for the wood stove.

On the way we talked about different types of flies, what to use where, and leader size. If he was planning to purchase a rod, I suggested something already rigged like my 6wt Streamlight that came with everything. It was also the rod he used yesterday and I used "3".

I wanted to demonstrate the cast, show him how to follow the Sloan's Paralyzer we were starting out with, and wouldn't you know it, a fish (all of 3 inches if you stretched it) on the first cast. Boy, that got his juices flowing. We were in the pool below the pool below the bridge. If he was going to catch one, it would be there.   

Yuki at the beginning
Well, he didn't bring one to hand, but he had at least 5 hits. Those little buggers are fast. After a period of time and no further interest, we moved upstream and hit all the good holes.Almost every hole got Yuki 2 or 3 or 4 hits, but they were still faster than he was. It certainly kept his interest.

At the end of the "good" holes my back started reminding me that I used and abused it for the last couple weeks and I had to call it a day. By the time we got back to the truck, I was pretty much destroyed, BUT you can't walk away from the pool below the pool below the bridge without one last shot at all those earlier hits.

While Yuki was down at that hole I dropped an orange Stimulator into the pool below the bridge and low and behold this one grabbed it. Haven't had much luck in that pool, but this one was a good 6 inches of native Rainbow. I didn't want to hold it up to take a picture so I took a couple while it was still in the water and then turned it loose.
  
Going that way

Back this way

Around in circles


Back that way again
And finally Yuki working those speedy little guys again. I know it looks like the same picture as the one above, but he just happens to be standing in the same spot.

Toward the end of the day
All in all I think Yuki got at least a dozen hits with a couple coming off on the jump. You'll probably be seeing more of him with a fly rod in hand.

Stay tuned.

12 comments:

  1. Sounds like a great day! Glad to introduced someone else to the addiction, err, sport of fly fishing.

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  2. Mark, thank you very much.
    You are very patient and an excellent mentor.
    I'm heading back to that creek today again.
    Take care of your back.

    Oh, btw, folks, Mark's new house is beautiful and perfect in every aspect for him and his wife. I'm very happy for them.

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  3. Mark
    I think you got Yuki hooked for sure!!--------------glad to be able to read some fishing post from you

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  4. Welcome back Mark...and with a fly rod. Good for you on mentoring Yuki.

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  5. So happy to see you back on the water. River, Creek, it doesn't matter as long as you have a chance at catching/hooking a fish. I am assuming that you told Yuki that fly fishing is addicting. Kudos to you for showing him the ropes.

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  6. Get 'em, Mark! Yuki will get into fish on the fly yet and when he does, it will change his life as it did mine!

    Fishing next friday?

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  7. Well, that is fun! You with a fly rod... haha. Well, fish can be quick on the bite and if that "set" isn't right at the split moment.. gone. Oh, got to love it!

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    1. Ok. I went back there the next day and took the same route, but without Mark. I had about 20 strikes and hooked up with three stupid ones. I let all of them go. So small.
      They were my first fish that I ever caught with fly rod. Very memorable ones. I took a photo.
      Yuki

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  8. Very nice. Fly fishing, beautiful water, friends, sounds like a perfect day. I can't see how Yuki can't be hooked!

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  9. Way to go, Mark! Good to see you out there with the fly rod, again!

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