A Trip Abbreviated
Every trip is a gift. The longer I live, the more I realize how precious each opportunity is. Each time I break down the fly rods and slide them into their tubes, I wonder when and where I'll assemble them again. These are thoughts I hadn't visited until recently. With age and experience come introspection and epiphany and mine is this: fishing as in other pursuits of passion is a privilege instead of a given.
Never was this reality more pronounced than on my latest fly-fishing excursion to my "home waters" in Arkansas. I ventured north from Gulfport for a quick trip wedged between the end of Spring term and beginning of Summer term. I planned two days fishing and of course, was at the mercy of the weather and the fickle generation schedule of the USACE.
Arkansas has had an unseasonably wet spring, even for them. The tailwater reservoirs (Bull Shoals, Norfork and Greers Ferry) were all in flood pool and the Spring River was blown out. The reports were not promising. Despite this, I went anyway. After numerous calls to all of the fly shops in those areas, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the generation pattern on the Norfork was providing wadable water in the mornings.
By the time I arrived at Mountain Home that afternoon after my normal ten hour drive, the USACE had already turned on the water at Norfork, and the White, of course was running four units. There would be no fishing today. I found a motel and bedded down for the night.
On Tuesday, the skies were blue, temperatures crisp and the promise of a great day in the Ozarks was making me feel like a twelve year old kid ready to fish. When I arrived at the Norfork, the parking lot was so full I had a difficult time finding a place to set up. Undeterred, I assembled the rod and bounced down to the river.
I had a great morning catching more fish than I deserved. I got in on a caddis hatch and for a while found the trout looking up. I took several fat rainbows on an elk hair caddis and a couple others on partridge and green soft hackles before the brief insect activity ceased.
The next morning I got up with the chickens. I grabbed my phone and saw a text message from my sister telling me my mother had fallen and broken her femur. Surgery was planned. Question was: Could I make it back to The hospital in south Mississippi in time to see her before she went under anesthetic?
Never was this reality more pronounced than on my latest fly-fishing excursion to my "home waters" in Arkansas. I ventured north from Gulfport for a quick trip wedged between the end of Spring term and beginning of Summer term. I planned two days fishing and of course, was at the mercy of the weather and the fickle generation schedule of the USACE.
Arkansas has had an unseasonably wet spring, even for them. The tailwater reservoirs (Bull Shoals, Norfork and Greers Ferry) were all in flood pool and the Spring River was blown out. The reports were not promising. Despite this, I went anyway. After numerous calls to all of the fly shops in those areas, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the generation pattern on the Norfork was providing wadable water in the mornings.
By the time I arrived at Mountain Home that afternoon after my normal ten hour drive, the USACE had already turned on the water at Norfork, and the White, of course was running four units. There would be no fishing today. I found a motel and bedded down for the night.
On Tuesday, the skies were blue, temperatures crisp and the promise of a great day in the Ozarks was making me feel like a twelve year old kid ready to fish. When I arrived at the Norfork, the parking lot was so full I had a difficult time finding a place to set up. Undeterred, I assembled the rod and bounced down to the river.
I had a great morning catching more fish than I deserved. I got in on a caddis hatch and for a while found the trout looking up. I took several fat rainbows on an elk hair caddis and a couple others on partridge and green soft hackles before the brief insect activity ceased.
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| Pick of the litter: 16" rainbow caught looking up |
Long story short, my mom is doing well, albeit a long rehab ahead. She's a trooper and one of my biggest supporters. I'm a pretty big fan of hers, too.
In summary, don't take anything for granted. Thank God for every day, every opportunity, and take time to tell the ones you love that you love them. Tight lines.
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