Year in Review 2006
Once again we find ourselves at the close of another successful year. Unwillingly we break down our rods and stow our gear away in anticipation of more great days astream next season. We had many great experiences with all our guests this year, each contributing his or her special touch to east visit. Memories of mountain scenery, gin clear water, and big trout rising to dry flies will stay with us forever.
Not to say that this year was always smooth sailing. Mother Nature had a few tricks up her sleeve for us. We had our share of rain this year, winter storms that normally don't beset us until much later in the year. The river rose and turned color, as all the feeder streams from the high mountains brought with them glacial deposits from years past. However, with patience the river dropped to fishable levels, and the fish returned to looking for dry flies to snack on. Hoppers, Chernobyl ants, and larger stimulators kept fish looking to the surface all day long, with caddis and mayfly droppers taking those fish feeding a bit deeper.
In spite of the cooler weather and larger amounts of moisture, the insect activity was as strong as ever. The only difference this year was that every hatch was a bit later than normal. Hatches that normally were finished by the New Year were still going on near the end of January. This did not reduce the intensity of any of our hatches. Nightly flights of caddis, often 2 or 3 varieties at once, kept fish splashing on the surface near dusk. Stoneflies were meaty morsels for larger fish. Mating swarms of mayflies covered the evening skies. Often we had all these different hatches occurring at once, so it took some deduction to find what the fish were keying on.
