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3. Caught or naught?, Page 4

Jonathan, Our local range has a 7 year waiting list (!). So, I made my own. Bought a range-finder and use a large mountain meadow a short hike off the road -thank goodness for public space.

A SEVEN YEAR waiting list??? Does somebody have to die in order for you to get in??? Is it tiny or do you just have that many people who want to shoot there? Good for you to make your own. Hopefully my local range doesn't have such a backlog, and it's supposed to be right near me on the old air base somewhere.

BTW, I meant to ask you about the rifle in the photo of the bunny - is it a Henry? Been thinking about those myself...

Jonathon

Yes, someone has to die -literally.(!)

It's a Henry, a recent purchase. Very nice little gun. Well made, smooth action, and accurate. I get ~5/8" groups at 35yrds, without sandbags. Still finding the best rounds for it. About to fit a sling to it; then she's all set. If you scope yours, you'll need those raised 'see-thru' mounts to raise the ocular bellows clear of the hammer. Lotsa people just shoot them with the irons.

Hey Tony -

Paul and Jonathon can come to. They'll obviously be handy for additional security. BTW, can we swing by the McCloud in my neck of the woods? The historic accounts of salmon and steelhead are amazing!! Of course, the whole world can thank it for the rainbow, so I don't need to talk about them.... And then maybe a stop in Spence's bailiwick to check out some primeval forests and grayling? Heck... before we're done you are gonna have to transfer your motor technology to a moterhome.

Kurt

Depending on how far back we go, we might have to bring some heavy artillery for the saber-toothed tigers and woolly mammoths - should I start shopping for a .500 Nitro Express? Also, a 14-weight for those prehistoric runs of lake sturgeon on the Au Sable. Think they would take a big KBF fished on the bottom, Spence?

Jonathon

Man, you guys must be sick of the snow!!! I've read about this in some of those old mountain man stories. Winter madness from being buried above the eaves in a cabin for months? I'll be on the Yuba tommorrow... In sunny, windless 70 degree weather chasing Skwala slurping rainbows! The short sleeves and sunscreen are ready... Will brief you on Sunday.

Kurt

Hey man, I actually LIKE snow! Been a cross-country skier since I was 14. I'd rather have snow than one of those gray rainy winters like we've been having in recent years - though I suppose those are better for steelhead fishing, which I like considerably LESS than x/c skiiing...might help if I actually CAUGHT one of those damned things...

Jonathon

Sabertooths, mammoths, .... pffffffft. Small potatoes. But...we don't want to go back too far: there are those that suggest that the reason N America wasn't well populated with humans prior to 13500ya is because of the short-faced (bulldog) bear. A huge, fast, predacious bear that was far bigger than a polar bear and could run down horses. Realize that Lewis and Clark eventually decided it was a simply bad idea to shoot at grizzlies -not worth the ammo and adrenaline expenditures. Grizzlies were short-faced bear snacks.

Steelhead vs skiing: Once you catch a good one Jonathan, one that leaps eye level to you -5 times -and then melts your reel ... Nothing else will matter -your skis, your job, your wife and children...

Well, I'm back. Great day yesterday. The fishing was slow except for a few on nymphs sprinkled throughout the day. No surface activity yet, though the stones are starting to stage. The weather was gorgeous, but I admit I jumped the gun a little. Now we're talking about steelhead? Paul is right Jonathon, I was an avid bird hunter until I caught that disease! It's progressive... I managed to do both for decades until I got hooked on spey a few years back.

Kurt

Oh yes...Jonathan, you're in Ruff territory now! Oooooooooo... So little time. Ain't life sweet??

Guys, my opinions on steelhead fishing:

Wife - I don't have one. I won't again until I meet a woman who is:

1) not a complete nutjob (been there, done that);

2) not out to try to change me to suit her "needs", i.e. insecurities and neuroses (been there, done that too);

3) respectful of who I am and how I got here (see 1 and 2 above).

Kids - I have one daughter, 14-year-old Jasmina Jo, who lives with the ex (see 2 above concerning the ex). The only other dependent I have in my life is my cat, who would probably be more than happy to see me bring home fresh fish flesh for her to eat...

Job - since I FINALLY have one now after three years of unemployment, you might or might not be surprised to find out that it is actually MORE important to me right now than fishing, especially for fish that are nearly unwilling to bite and who are only fishable in the dead of winter or among crowds...

Skis - I can go steelhead fishing for days or weeks on end and never even see a fish, let alone raise one or get one on. However, it is IMPOSSIBLE for me to go cross-country skiing and NOT get exercise, fresh air, closeness to nature, and stress relief, and maybe even a little sunshine on occasion. Not to mention NOT getting cold and frustrated.

So, fellas, steelhead fishing poses no danger to my life, although it did once last year, when I took a SWIM in a stream downstate in March. The experience of waders filling with ice-cold water, an inability to touch bottom for at least a solid minute (which felt more like an hour), and trying to stay afloat by paddling with one arm while holding on to my 8-weight with the other, was NOT encouraging, to say the least. I believe my reaction to the whole ordeal was something like, "F*CK THIS, WHY SHOULD I RISK MY LIFE FOR GODDAMNED FISH THAT DON'T BITE?????" Whereupon I resolved that my next fishing trip would be for crappie on a local lake that was thawing out, and indeed they did respond nicely to KBFs launched from a safe position on shore...

Just my humble opinion on steelhead fishing, folks. You can have it, along with the rest of the crowd around here, and I do mean CROWD...not my cup of (nice hot) tea.

Jonathon