Tara's new job doesn't start until August so we are spending the interim in Oregon, visiting family and hopefully spending some quality time on the water.
This morning I planned to tag along and while Tara and my mom went for a short hike, I would try fishing on the coast fork of the Willamette River. When we pulled up to the park entrance we were informed that the Lane County Sheriff's Department was conducting search and rescue training on the mountain. With their hike aborted and an afternoon BBQ already planned I had to think fast to squeeze in some fishing.
I borrowed a bicycle and hit the bike path along the river in town. Sunday morning had brought out the weekend anglers but I found a quiet stretch of riverbank and rigged up my rod. On my second cast a small trout took my fly. I had done everything right - a stealthy approach and a nice drift along the edge of some slack water but the strike took me completely by surprise. I played the little fish up to the bank where I got a good look at it before the hook came free and it darted back into the current.
The arrival of a couple of rock throwing children ended my fishing prospects for the morning but the taste of success remains. I'm sure I'll be crawling along the banks of the Willamette again soon.
