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9/19  With Al still out of the picture, the team returns to Joe Wright to get some fish on Mikes' rod.  After literally months of correlating wildlife sightings with fish counts, the group discovers the secret…….the MOOSE.  Turns out that alpacas, turkeys, deer and the like are mere pretenders when it comes to fishing predictions.  A new law of Nature evolves---     1 Moose = 33 fish.  In extreme low water conditions, the group cleans up in spite of nomenclature faux pas like 'Big Yellow Honkin' Thing' and 'Sicilian Paintbrush'.  We gotta work on this over the winter!  Chester is high hook but after a while, we stopped counting!!  Sorry Al…………….

10/5 Now feeling pretty confident, Chester and Aug descend on the famous Indian Meadows, home of the algae covered, VW bus-sized boulders.  With everything looking like the cover shot from 'Fly Fishing America', they get skunked but come away with some ideas for future strategies.  And, according to Chester, he even attempted some unusual underwater observation techniques to no avail.  But at least no one died and we have vowed to return when the team is 'ready' (this means Al needs to ditch his ankle high leaky wading boots).   Chester issues a fishing report that will go down in the annals of history (See it here) .

10/11
Once again whole, the 4 man team hits no name spot 101.5 on the Poudre.  Everyone gets a fish, Mike's first in the river on a fly rod.  His investment (now up to $14,175) has paid off.  Al and Aug, acting as an impromptu two man team subgroup, land one on a #20 Trico dry fly thereby proving the value of microscopic gear in landing a decent fish.  Another lesson and further progress in our long battle to figure this all out.

10/19 In an attempt to give the whole team the experience, we venture once again to Lily Lake for a pre-freeze assault.  Too late!  While 3 of us crash through and over the ice Al finds a secluded spot and winds up catching the only 2 fish (after declaring he was heading for the car).  Seems like he always catches 2 fish here but we will not forget his deceptive tactics.  And Augie's proclamation of 'The first guy who catches a fish on a stupid scud wins a prize' still stands.

Mike rounds out a delightful day with home made canolis at Chez Gulizia.

10/24 Fearing it to be the final trip of the season, the team sets out for Pork Chop Creek for one more 'meat fishing' expedition.  Everyone lands fish on worms, spinning gear, hardware and even fly fishing gear on a beautiful day. All rainbows, no browns. Rumor has it Mike even landed one on a leftover Canoli shell affixed with a Sooper Duper treble hook (yet to be verified). 


10/30 Augie scouts Lon Hagler reservoir.  Turns out there are some good looking fly fishing spots down the SW end which might house every freshwater species of fish known to man (except sturgeon).  Suggests we keep it in mind for a warm, lazy summer day and even offers to unveil his 30 year old supply of bass lures for all to try.  At only 4 miles from his house this battle-hardened team won't even need a car to get there!

11/1 With Mike opting out to make an appearance at the Grammy awards, the remaining die hards hit the pools above the Pingree Park Bridge on a day when once again the water and air temperatures are about equal ……. 36 degrees!  Under gray skies with snow threatening the best they can do is confirm their (now) absolute lunacy and succeed in catching no fish (that's starting to sound familiar).  But one needs to ask the following:

Just one year ago-----

Could they have found this place?
Could they make it down the bank without killing themselves?
Could they affix tiny flys to even tinier tippets in freezing temperatures?
Would they have known a Wooly Bugger from a ham sandwich?
Could they have imagined having a Team at all?

Answer those questions and you'll see that the fish count….doesn't count!  And maybe there's 'one more day' and maybe there isn't this year.  But I think we'll all agree it was a hell of a year.

11/11 Lon Hagler  The short-handed Team journeyed 3 miles to Lon Hagler Reservoir in always picturesque Larimer County on a sunny, if somewhat breezy morning. With Chester attending a wedding in New Mexico (and bolstering his supply of San Juan Worms), Al found himself under the weather leaving just Mike and Augie to test out this new territory. Armed with their 5 wts. and a 25 year old supply of bass 'flys' could the two fail to connect? What was that question about bears in the woods?

Mike arrived at Chez Bruno shortly after Di left to donate the ill-fated apple pie to the Sr. Center and proclaimed 'It don't take a half hour to get here'. DUH! But Aug was ready wearing full wading regalia on the front porch figuring to save some time at the lake. Upon getting there, Mike apparently thought we would have a hard time maintaining the level of comedy without our comrades and promptly announced "I can't find my keys". We searched his pockets, his shoes, his hat. We searched the roof of the car (thanks Al), the ground, the floor.....everywhere. Mercifully there was a gust of wind......a metallic jingle......and voila----there they were in the tailgate. So much for saving time!

Aug cut his 'How to Catch Bass' lecture to 17 seconds, Mike picked his favorite bass flies (eenie & meanie) and off they went. The habitat looked ideal...sunken trees, weed beds good wading conditions. Alas, apparently the Full Beaver Moon and the lack of wildlife sightings en route outweighed the idyllic setting. Both started with poppers in close to the structure as Al had highly recommended this technique. In fact he had scoured Boulder County in search of new poppers to no avail. Aug (not known for his patience) then switched to a Muddler Minnow and continued to pound the weeds. As a last resort he sailed one out halfway across the lake and BAM!!!!!! A nice foot long rainbow came to the net and was promptly released. Announcing his success to Mike, some 250 yards upwind, both continued to fish.

But Mike was having equipment problems (kind of like 'getting hit' at the field). His popper was landing upside down. He tried to switch to a frog only to find it had a leg missing......well, it was floating away due to fly failure. His Muddler Mouse floated tail up like a submarine at periscope depth! His Muddler Minnows would NOT sink. Heeding Aug's warning, he began to add noseweight. First one....then 2.... and finally FIVE lead shot. Aug was startled to hear Mike's weights whistling through the air like WWII mortar shells followed by a depth charge-like entry into the water. This from a guy who has watched "A River Runs Through It" 17 times in the last 2 weeks to master the mythical 'Shadow Cast'.
At this point the familiar dueling temperatures (46 air/46 water) began to take their toll and the duo decided to call it a day. Aug seems to have the same penchant for flying and fishing------one per day. So we packed it in and headed for Perkins by a route (advised by you-know-who) that took them through northern New Mexico (hey, I wanted to say hi to Chester). Lunch was good but it wasn't free pie day. In honor of our missing compatriates, an 8x10 glossy photo of each of you was set at the table while we enjoyed our burgers.

During the debrief the dynamic duo decided Lon Hagler deserves another chance in the Spring. Perhaps even a late afternoon attack to a more active fish population? Only time will tell. But Mike is already preparing having scheduled his one-legged frog 'Handicapped Herman' for prosthetic surgery.

The season may be over and we missed you guys. But can Spring be that far over the horizon? WE'LL BE BACK!!!!!!!!

Respectfully submitted,

Aug

Mikes reply was: Totally cool, Augie. However, based on how well I did bass fishing today, I think rather than fix the frog, I'm just gonna fry the legs in a little olive oil and garlic and call it a day!


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