Friday, October 27 I was lucky enough
for the 2nd straight year to head out for a weekend of some
excellent fly fishing with some
mighty experience buddies who not only have a lot of gear and experience
that I lack, but they are quite
hospitable, patient and a joy to get away with.
Tour guide extraordinaire, Charlie
Sr. and I left at the crack of dawn on Friday, and arrived mid-day at our
campsite in Grayson
Highlands State Park in Virginia, just north of the NC border.
We pitched our tent
and then headed to the stream.
Charlie had fished these parts several times before, but couldn't help
scouting out the area a bit..:)
We finally got our lines wet for about 2 1/2 hrs of fishing until darkness
and Charlie pulling me out of the
water convinced me it was time to go grab some chow. After dinner
we returned to our campsite and
met up with his son, Charlie Jr., his wife Jessica, and their son Jeromy.
After enjoying the campfire and
plotting our strategy for the next day, we caught some shut-eye.
Although we caught some fish Friday
afternoon, Saturday proved to be our best day on the stream.
I managed to locate 16 or so fish
that didn't take too much out-smartin' and Big Charlie hauled in 25
or so. We both landed one
nice size fish, Charlie a 19 inch Rainbow, and I about an 18 inch Brook
trout.
Little Charlie was not "in the
zone" as he usually is, but Jeromy made up in quality what he lacked in
quantity
by landing a huge Rainbow of his
own.
That evening we returned to campsite
to indulge in the cuisine of master chef Charlie Jr. We enjoyed a
great dinner by campfire and listened
to a little evening football on the radio and then packed it in for the
evening.
Sunday we arose at daylight, packed
up camp, and caught a nice breakfast before heading to the stream.
Big Charlie worked his magic early
in the day, but before long, the fish stopped cooperating and we headed
out
for the long drive back to reality.
There's nothing like the mountains,
the fresh air, clear water, and the fish that sometimes let you feel like
you know what you are doing.
If you get a chance to head to the mountains to do some fly fishing, my
advise would be to not pass it
up!
Check out a few photos from the weekend trip