Browntown Getaway

It had been a while since the family and I have been able to get out and fish. After working eight days in a row, I was itching to get outdoors. The plan was to go to a popular river on Cedar mountain and chase some browns. It was a Wednesday, so I was hopeful we wouldn't see anyone else on the river. With endless baby gear in tow, we prepared for whatever could (but hopefully) wouldn't happen, and set off for some much needed mountain air.

Emma enjoying the surroundings

As usual, I rigged up a streamer on my old Fenwick fiberglass 7wt. I have come to realize this is a great streamer rod. I love the bend and flex it gives when fighting fish. Also love the craftsman and old school appeal it yields. The streamer I tied on was tied by Oskar Hagelin. Check out his website here. He is what you call a "streamer junkie" or addict. The guy really understands how to imitate baitfish. I actually won the fly from a contest through In Pursuit of Trout. For the wife, her favorite, I rigged a dry fly. Elk hair caddis to be exact. We readied our gear and put Emma into the new pack we received. It's not the most comfortable pack, but it does the job. Emma wasn't too fond of it at the beginning. She's an adventurer and just wanted to play in the river.

We walked downstream and found some fish rising in a slow moving pool. I told Natalie to let loose and I would stay in the rear and capture the event. Watching my wife creep up and ready her cast was really fun to watch. I would rather watch her catch fish than me. Her drifting caddis was slurped up on the second cast and the excitement in her face made me smile. We got Emma out of the pack to experience in the fun. Natalie held her and readied for a picture. Emma turned out was not very pleased with the fish. She expressed a face of disgust as if to say "why would you put this slimy stinky thing in front of me". We laughed, and eventually sent the fish back to the depths.

Initial moment of disgust

Meltdown

Natalie hooked three more fish on this slow run. It was so fun to see the excitement on her face. Emma finally seemed to actually grasp the beauty and wonder of fish, and sparked an interest in them. As her dad, I was grateful to see this. As passionate an angler I am, I really want my daughter to enjoy the sport.

Eventually, we made our way downstream a ways and I began throwin my streamer. I came onto a long run and hooked into a solid fish on my third cast.

I had a couple more follows on my streamer, but never brought anymore to the net. It's awesome to see fish chase down a streamer, even when they do not connect every time. It was now time to eat so we all headed back to our bbq site and Emma took a nap in her carrier.

Grilling chicken over fire 

We enjoyed some fire grilled chicken and cold fresh fruit for lunch. After we ate, we let Emma play in the river for a while. She absolutely loves water, and does not seem to be scared even a little. All in all, it was a successful day. Fish were caught, good times were had, and we didn't see another soul on the water.