I recently returned from a 4-day trip to the Rio Grande with my long-time friend Randy. He drove up there from Arizona and I drove down there from Denver. We both headed to Creede with high hopes. But, in fishing, the higher the hope, the easier it is to be dashed. The fishing was lackluster,…
Here in Colorado, we’re lucky that we don’t have a designated “trout season”. Legally, we can fish for trout all year round. Notice I said “legally”. That’s because we have another season that’s a de facto “off season”: runoff. Anyone who lives and fishes in the West is familiar with runoff season–that time in early…
If you told me that one day I’d be waving a tenkara rod in the heart of Manhattan with a girl from the Dominican Republic, I would have asked you for some of whatever it was you were smoking. But that’s exactly where I found myself just a few days ago on a week-long trip…
It’s been a long, dismal winter fishing season for me this year. The few places with open water were crowded with desperate anglers trying to get a drift before their fly snagged a miniature iceberg or jagged ice shelf. Most of the time, I was so frustrated by the crowds, low water, and lack of…
Twelve years. That’s how long it had been since my friend Randy and I fished the San Juan together. He had been there a few years ago and we fished together in Colorado since then, but we were overdue for joint venture. So when he first mentioned reuniting on the San Juan a few months…
I rarely post trip reports unless there’s something noteworthy, and today was one of those trips. I finally got to fish with Karin Miller of Zen Fly Fishing Gear. For those of you who don’t know, Zen Fly Fishing Gear is a Colorado-based tenkara company that has been consistently producing quality, innovative gear since they…
We’d been having a bit of a dry spell–my fishing buddy Dennis Vander Houwen and I (he goes by the pseudonym “Dennis Michael” in the entertainment world). We’d been through more than our share of fishing fiascos and I’d been having less than a stellar year (to phrase it diplomatically). Timing, high water, weather, and a seeming raft of…
I took the day off from work today to hit Clear Creek thinking the water levels might have come down a little since I was there last weekend. Nope. Still running high, but fishable. I also wanted to check out what condition the recent flooding had left the stream in. Unfortunately, two of my suspicions…
Today was one of those days where the fishing was so good that you shun all mortal needs until your body just can’t take it anymore. And all of a sudden, it finally hits you: you’re starving, dehydrated, and really (really) have to go to the bathroom. I headed to a section of Boulder Creek…
I got to give my Oni rod and Tenkara USA Ayu II a workout today on clear creek again. This time, with avid tenkara angler, Phil Echelman. It was a great day with lots of fish caught, and some neat streamside discoveries. I actually started fishing just above tunnel #1before I met up with Phil.…
A few posts ago, I wrote about my initial impressions of the Tenkara no Oni rod and this weekend, I finally got a chance to give it a workout on Clear Creek outside of Golden, CO. Not only was the fishing great, but my field test confirmed a lot of what I had expected of…
I hit the South Platte today since it was one of the only rivers that isn’t frozen over right now. I didn’t expect to catch much because, well…it’s the S. Platte in December. And, my expectations were met. I only caught one (small) rainbow. But I can’t complain. After all, it was a frigid day…
It was a gloomy day on Bear Creek today. Surrounded by dark waters, cold grey rocks, scraggly leave-less trees, dead grasses, and overcast skies, I felt like I was fishing in a Tim Burton movie. Luckily, the fishing was better than the weather… It’s been an eternity since I’ve fished Bear Creek. For much…
My daughter Emma doesn’t know it yet, but she’s the world’s youngest tenkara angler. I say this because even though she’s only four months old, she embodies the spirit of tenkara. She takes pleasure in simple things, lives completely in the moment, and basically just takes a beginner’s mind approach to every experience. My wife…