What Did You Do This Summer?

By Jimmy Harris, Unicoi Outfitters

Isn’t this the first question you get when you run into a friend whom you haven’t seen during the summer vacation period? So, what have you done this summer? For trout anglers in Georgia, summer is the time we dream of fishing in the majestic Rockies out West where waters generally remain cool, the trout grow large and the insect hatches are as dependable as a Timex watch.

I’ve been fortunate to fish Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Idaho and Montana over the years, and they all have a magic of their own. Year after year, however, I find myself planning a trip to the Yellowstone area. My first trip there was 1987, the year before the big season of fires in the Park. I’m so glad I got to see the Park before almost 800,000 acres were scorched, but I’m just as grateful for all my return trips to see the mysteries of regeneration. Mother Nature is a tough old girl.

I’ve made so many trips to the area in the ensuing 33 years that I now feel very much at home out there. There are certain streams I know I’ll fish; the Madison, the Lamar, Soda Butte and others. But it’s also exciting to try new streams or new sections of old familiar streams, particularly those that don’t see much angling traffic. The opportunities are virtually endless if you’re willing to wander away from the road a ways.

Just last year, I fished a small stream that I have driven over more times than I care to count. In my arrogance I assumed it was full of tiny fish, not worth the steep hike down into the canyon it had created over the eons. It was a rough and tumble little stream that averaged maybe 20 feet wide in most places. Some boulder hopping was involved, but mostly just negotiating around the huge rocks that towered overhead until you could cast up to the next pool. It was about as much fun as a person could have while standing in a stream, and I found myself actually disappointed when we reached a 90-foot vertical drop waterfall that prohibited going any further.

As we hiked out (the part I was really dreading when we decided to go in), I had enough adrenaline pumping through me, along with several handfuls of wild huckleberries, to get me back to our vehicle with a skip in my step. The little creek is now on my all-time list of favorites, and I plan to hit it again this month when I once again heed the call of the Rockies.