One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Brown Trout

Never in my life would I have thought I would ever have anything to do with Fly Fishing.

The most I even did think about it related to this:
And lets be honest... He made this sport seem oh so romantic and gave the need for everyone to want to grab a rod and spend some time on a river.

However... for some reason yesterday my personal beliefs changed. I can have the new friend Chip to thank. He has helped me to push aside the idea that fly fishing was more than just something that old men did to pass time and that it was something that is actually pretty cool.

You see he is a guide for a local fly shop called Trout Bum 2 and he loves this sport almost as much as he loves snowboarding. He is also the only guy I know that spends 2 weeks out of his summer in no man's land Alaska just to go and fly fish. (Supposedly this is also known as the Mecca for fishermen and I hope to see it one day) Aside from that he fishes at least 3-4 times a week and raves about it!

Now here was my delemia. I like to be supportive of my friends and all that they do. But really when a pretty young, handsome, hardworking, LDS guy spends all his time fishing I couldn't help but be a little curious as to why he wasn't out on the "wife hunt." I then decided to investigate.

*Side note I also am hoping for a job in a far away land that has a ton to do with fly fishing and wanted to really know what this was all about.

Putting all of these factors together I asked Chip to take me out and teach me how to fish. (The last time I asked a man to help me learn a "man sport" (golf) I ended up with a 6 ft 6, 250 lb guy running at me with a golf club!) I figured since he was a "guide" he knew how to teach me and we would be fine. Therefore early Saturday moring aftering getting my fishing liscence this is what I looked like pre-geared up in the parking lot somewhere in Heber, UT on our way to a fishing spot called "The Bunny Farm."
Moments later I was decked out in waders and in route to catch a fish. (I love them! They make is so fun to tromp through everything!)







Along the way to the "Bunny Farm" we ran into a few of Chip's guide buddies who told us that the fishing was tough and slow. (I didn't know it could go anyother way!) They said for us to give it a shot and have a good day and on we went.

Now... as mentioned before my idea of fishing related to Brad Pitt romantically swinging a pole through the air creating a wonderful swishing noise before landing graciously in the river waters below. This is NOT what I would be doing! It is called casting and I did however learn the basics and after a few bad casts I start to get the hang of it. Sadly I was getting the hang of with and the fish didn't care.

Being the persistent person I am, to those fish it meant nothing. They were not having it. Not to mention that Chip was a little way down stream and having no luck as well. You see as a guide your job is to make sure your clients catch fish. That is why you get the privilege to be a guide. This outing was putting him to the test and he was not going to let me leave the river getting "skunked." (Catching nothing)

Realizing that our luck there was nonexistent we decided to change spots. We went back to the truck, climbed in, and drove to a medow of cow fields. At this point I thought this man was crazy. He parked next to a few empty trucks opened a cow gate and said, "Follow me!"
"Yee-Haw," was all I could think! But I trusted him. I don't know why, but I did know his passion for this sport and oddly enough moments later we went up and over a makeshift bridge on to a river's bend. It was almost sureal to me. It was so unbelievably beautiful I was almost in shock. To me, this place was straight out of a movie. It was someplace that unless you knew just where to go would never find it again. Moments after my shock passed Chip exclaimes, "Fish away!"
About a second after this picture was taken all I heard was, "You got a fish!" I looked at Chip and screamed, "I did? Don't break my camera!" I then felt it tug pretty good began, to reel it in, and was shown how to "net" a fish!

Here he is... my first fish ever. A Brown Trout.
He was a little guy but Chip says that it still counts! I was so excited and loved the adrenaline rush of holding this little guy... and wanting to put him back in the water! I can't even imagine what it is like to catch a big one! Here, on my face, is where you can see that as far as fly fishing is concerned I am officially hooked.

We spent another hour or so out on the river with not much luck. I got another fish on my line but I didn't hook him. (According to this book I am reading if you don't' hook them fast enough they just spit it out!) On our way out to the car we ran into yet another fellow guide who told me that the conditions were some of the toughest to fly fish (high river and really windy) in and that I must of done great if I caught something!He only fed my desire to want to do it again!

Yesterday I feel in love yet once again. I just can't wait to learn all about different bugs and nymphs,rivers, and fish. This is one of the most amazing things I have ever done!It takes so much time and willingness to learn how to tie knots and flies and I am so sorry that now Chip is going to have to teach me everything! And also allow me to take a million photos in the process!