ADAM’S DAY ON DRY RUN CREEK BY JOHN BERRY

[Kevin]

ADAM’S DAY ON DRY RUN CREEK

BY JOHN BERRY

I picked up Adam at his hotel at 8:00 AM. His parents, Susan and Rusty, followed us in their car to Dry Run Creek. Adam is fifteen and an avid fly fisher. His parents heard about the creek from some previous clients of mine that live near them in Kansas and were eager for him to fish there. We were the first ones there and we quickly donned our waders. I took a few minutes to carefully rig up Adam’s rod. I used one of Joe Nicklo’s hot melt glue sowbugs, 5X tippet, a bit of lead and a brightly colored strike indicator.

 

We walked upstream to one of my favorite spots. I adjusted Adam’s strike indicator for the proper depth, put him in the best casting position and explained to him how to get the optimal cast and drift.  He picked up his first fish, a modest rainbow, a couple of casts later. At first, he missed several trout but over time he began hooking up often. When the action would lull, we would change flies and tie on a hot pink San Juan Worm. We rotated between the sowbug and San Juan worm all day catching maybe sixty percent on the sowbug. When that spot stopped producing we moved to another spot nearby and fished there. Over the morning we rotated between the two spots.

 

About 10:30 AM, we hooked our first trophy, a solid twenty four inch rainbow. I called over to Adam to put the big trout on the reel. I grabbed my big boat net and jumped into the water to keep the trout from making a long run down stream. Adam did a masterful job and kept the rainbow close and carefully fought him with constant pressure. The big trout eventually surrendered to the net. Susan and Rusty rushed over and took several pictures and we carefully released the fish. We continued fishing for a while and continued our success. Both Adam and I lost count with the constant action. Fortunately for us Susan had been watching and carefully been keeping up with the count. When we stopped for lunch, we had netted forty trout, all rainbows.

 

I set up lunch at a picnic table with a good view of the creek. We ate our lunch and watched some other anglers fish the creek. When we finished we headed back upstream to a spot close by where I have had clients catch some really nice fish. We stuck with the same flies and were rigged the same way. Adam was able to hook quite a few fish including two more trophy rainbows about twenty five inches long. Both were slightly longer and a bit fatter than the first big fish. Adam fought both well. He took his time and did not rush the process. We took a few moments to take a few photos and then gently release them.

 

The creek was getting busy. There were more anglers on stream and they were crowding us a bit. There is something about a successful angler that draws others into his water. We gathered our gear and headed back upstream to the spot where we started. I was pleased to find it empty and was eager to give it a fresh try. No one had fished it in our absence and it had been properly rested. Adam was into some good fish almost immediately. We fished it for an hour or so and caught several nice trout but no more trophies. About this time we noted that other anglers were beginning to make their way up there. Adam had spent a lot of time here and despite catching a lot of fish was ready for a fresh challenge.

 

We began walking along the creek and carefully searched the water for more fish. When we located them, Adam would cast to them until he hooked them. This type of fishing, sight casting at specific fish, is much more challenging than what we had been doing, which was basically to prospect heavy water that held a lot of fish. You have to be able to cast and you must get the proper presentation, a perfect drag free drift. When you get a take you must set the hook quickly. Adam did well and we caught several in this manner.

 

I glanced at my watch. It was now 4:45 PM. My wife, Lori, and I were scheduled to teach our basic fly fishing class at 6:00 PM that evening. I knew I would have to end the day in fifteen minutes in order to load my gear and drive to ASU in time for the class. I discussed the situation with Susan and Rusty and they agreed that it was time to draw the day to a close. According to Susan the count was a solid eighty and she and Rusty thought that Adam had enjoyed a great day. I suggested to Adam that we finish the day with a search for a last trophy. He agreed.

 

We walked the bank and saw several nice fish, before we settled on a monster rainbow. He was in a shallow run with little cover but we could see that he was really large. I put Adam in a good spot to cast for him and adjusted the strike indicator for the proper depth and made sure that the hook on the sowbug was sharp. Adam began working the fish and after a half dozen casts got a solid hookup. When the fish rolled I gasped. It was much larger than I had originally thought. It was around thirty inches long, with a substantial girth. I estimated his weight at fifteen pounds. It was a big hook jawed male. It struggled violently and I hopped in the water with my big net. It never took a run but kept shaking its body until it was able to spit the hook. Adam was heartbroken. I analyzed the fight and saw no errors on his part. This time the rainbow got lucky. I was impressed that Adam had been able to hook him. We called it a day. Despite his loss at the end Adam was happy and ready to do it all over again.

 

To catch a monster like that you just have to get luckier than it is. Adam had landed three of the four trophy fish that he had hooked. That is a high percentage anywhere.