Drive to Shenandoah

Sunset over the Shenandoah National Park.

Yak Fishing

I'm just now getting a chance to post after moving from Virginia to Georgia and only recently getting access to the internet again. Last Saturday, dad and I thought it would be a lot of fun to take a guide out on the South Fork Shenandoah River who could teach us a little bit about fishing from a kayak. My dad has never fished from a kayak before and I have only paddled on lakes so both of us were looking forward to trying out some moving water and maybe catching a few smallmouth while we were at it. My dad made all the arrangements so I just met dad Friday night and we drove together down to our meeting point bright and early Saturday morning. It was comfortable (at 7:30 in the morning) which didn't bode well for the rest of the day.

Our guide, Jeff, was a very knowledgeable kayaker and showed us the ropes. We set out and began the day. I did a combination of fly and spin fishing, catching the first couple fish on a crayfish fly before switching over more to spin fishing. We did pretty well fishing and certainly learned a lot about kayak fishing. However, it was HOT! Dad and I both went through 4 bottles of water and I was still dehydrated the next day (felt like I was hung over but hadn't had a drop of alcohol). Those of you that know me know that I take sun protection seriously. I was all decked out and still managed to get a few small burns in the gaps between articles of clothing and on my neck from reflected light. There were some people though that were out in bathing suits or shorts for full day floats and were varying degrees of pink to angry red. I felt bad for them.

At the end of our 10 mile float we paddled our way to the pull out tired and sore but having caught some fish and learned a lot. I'll definitely be making my way out on the water again to fish from a kayak.

Dry River - Part Deux

My time in Richmond is rapidly drawing to a close and I wanted to get in one more trout fishing trip before I left. I've also somewhat recently developed an interest/fascination with bamboo rods and was hoping to fit in a trip to a rod maker in Virginia before I left as well. As this weekend was my last full weekend in Richmond, yesterday I went to the mountains. I decided to head to the Dry River again as the Ramsey's Draft, my first choice, was probably too low to fish. I set out at 5:30 which was just about as early as I could drag myself out of the house. I was streamside just a little over 2 hours later and began the day of fishing. My dad lent me his bamboo rod to try it out and see if I actually enjoy fishing grass as my interest up to this point had really been academic.

The weapon of the day - Thanks to my dad for letting me borrow it

Bamboo rod in hand, I headed to the river. After only a few steps in the water, I noticed my left foot beginning to feel significantly cooler than my right. Probably not a good sign for the integrity of my hippers but I haven't had a chance to check them yet. It was going to be a warm day though and as the day wore on it was kind of nice. I was seeing scattered rises almost immediately but not nearly as many or as aggressive as my last trip. I started fishing drys and within short order began getting strikes. Unfortunately, I just couldn't get a good hookup (like college all over again). I was beginning to get just a little bit frustrated before I finally started getting some of the fish to hand. The bamboo was a lot of fun and it made even the tiny mountain brookies feel like leviathans. I even managed to land a pretty nice fish, keeping him in the water until I was able to fumble my iPhone out of my waterproof pocket. He swam away with rather gratifying vigor after posing for my picture.

The quarry

I came across the improvised wooden troll shelter again, which fortunately remains unoccupied. Managed some good action on dry flies but as noon approached the fishing slowed somewhat. I managed to land one more and called it a day to go try my hand at casting some Rick Robbins bamboo rods.

I found Rick's rods after hearing good things about him from Griz, the bamboo aficionado at Urban Angler in northern Virginia. I stopped in at his workshop near Lexington, VA. It's a nice little place with a commute of about 55 steps from his house. He was kind enough to show me around the workshop and teach me a little bit about bamboo rod making. Rick is a tremendous wealth of knowledge and it was certainly worth the trip. At the end of the trip I cast some of his rods and was quite impressed. I particularly enjoyed casting his 3 piece models and I'll definitely keep him in mind when I finally get the chance to buy my own first bamboo rod...