It had been a tough morning. I was fishing with Jared Willadsen of Tenkara Genki – and we had limited success on the two streams we hit before lunch. Summer heat was in full swing, and the streamside vegetation is five feet tall and fairly hostile this time of year. We were having a great time hanging out, but just hadn’t moved a lot of fish. Jared suggested we hit a well shaded tributary creek he knew nearby, and once there, we both started getting into some decent trout. Neither one of us had bothered to take pictures or film so far, the vibe seemed complete just fishing with a friend.
The stream wandered through the classic, woodland-adjacent-to-fields land typical of the Driftless. We reached a section where the far bank gave way to a long, slow run along a grey sandstone bluff, which sat at the base of a lush green pine relict covering the hill above. As I took in the view, Jared asked, “Mind if I film you fishing through here? The scenery is too good to pass up.” Sure thing man! It’s a very cool view.
I worked my way along the near bank, staying close and using the high vegetation to mute my profile. A gentle rise under an overhanging branch along the rockwall caught my eye, and I put the fly a few feet upstream of it, expecting to pull a strike from a TDB (Typical Driftless Brown, 10ish inches or so). Instead…
Notes:
- It was one of those beautiful, lazy, confident takes where the fish shows no urgency.
- You can see how often and how quickly I changed my mind about tactics while landing the fish.
- I am happy with the line control I maintained during the landing process, but I am not so happy with my line control post-catch. 😉
- I’m fairly certain this is my personal best for Driftless Brown Trout! (*So far).
- This was a catch that will stick with me. I still get goosebumps thinking about it. Big thanks to Jared for capturing the action!
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