BOOMMMMMM!!!!!!

I've been asking my boss to go out with me (fishing that is) for a year now but he always dodges me. Until today. He picked me up this morning and we headed to the river. He fishes a decent amount but I don't know that he ever really targets big fish exclusively but he did today. Right away I spotted 2 really nice Rainbows that were holding in a deeper pool and told him to punch in but he insisted I go first. He didn't have to ask me twice. Within 10 minutes I had hooked the big buck and the real work began. After about 5 minutes I got him in the net. We took a few photos and then I revived him and he was straight back to the hole he came out of.

My boss is capable of putting a fly into a pool but his accuracy needed a bit of work and he was getting frustrated with not being able to put a fly right in front of a specific trout's face and the wind wasn't helping. After about 45 minutes of me shouting out behind a bush when to set the hook and whether or not to adjust the cast at all, he finally got into a Bow that was pushing 20 inches. Unfortunately, she was really hot and got away but he was thrilled and it was cool to see.

Next I found a sweetheart of a Bow laid right up on the bank. I had seen this fish as soon as we got to this spot an hour before. She had something in her upper lip. It looked like a big streamer but it was hard to tell. I told my boss I wanted to catch her and see if I could help out. After a few casts, she took my fly and I got her in the net. As soon as I saw her I was furious. In her upper lip was a snagging hook that some jack ass had used because he/she didn't possess the necessary skills to fish ethically. Wish I would have seen the individual. I would have done some snagging of my own. I got it out and she revived ok. Hopefully she'll make it. She was really stressed during the process and left all these in my net. Now normally, it is considered very unethical to fish to trout that are spawning. I am still not sure what is/was going on with this particular fish. In some parts of the US, Rainbow trout will spawn from spring to very early fall but here in Colorado, they spawn in the spring. I need to ask a few guide friends what the hell was going on here. I felt bad once she dumped a load of eggs but it was worth it to get the snagging hook out of her.

This is the big ole girl that I did some surgery on. You can see her dorsal fin has seen better days. When a trout spawns it will make what's known as a redd. This is basically a bowl shaped indentation on the river bed where the eggs will eventually be laid before the buck comes in and makes his contribution. The hen will dig the area out by using her whole body. Sometimes the sides of the fish will be all torn up.

Here she is again.

This is the first Bow I got. Another really nice fish.

This is a rod that my boss just got from his Grandfather. He brought it along to show me. It was made a long time ago in Denver. He didn't fish with it and I don't even know that I would. It would look killer on a wall though with an older reel.

Thanks for checking in.