Monthly Archives: August 2011
Mark and Kate Rutherford – Father/Daughter Guide Team out of Alaska
Here’s a video of Mark and Kate Rutherford, father/daughter guide team in Alaska fishing for salmon, rainbows, and grayling. R.A. Beattie produced this a couple of years ago, but it’s definitely worth watching if you haven’t seen it yet. Kate’s full of spunk (and sarcasm). The fish are gorgeous, but it’s the family dynamics that make this video entertaining!
Kate and Mark – Father / Daughter guide team in Alaska from RA Beattie on Vimeo.
Kate’s also an amazing climber (think National Geographic and ESPN) with big name sponsors – check out her blog. Look for Mark in the Nervous Water DVD produced by R.A. Beattie in the ‘First Descent Alaska’ featured film.
Steelhead Dreams
It’s hard to believe summer’s flown by so fast, but the cooling temps have me thinking about fall steelhead fishing. While daydreaming about the gear I’d love to acquire before my first steelhead foray this year (like the 11′ 7 wt switch rod that’s on my wish list), I stumbled upon a couple of articles in the Bitch Creek section on the BloodKnot.
Here’s one from Camille Egdorf-
“For years I listened to friends talk about British Columbia and the steelhead gracing the rivers there. I drooled over pictures, was entranced by stories, and dreamed of one day being able to partake in a B.C. steelhead adventure of my own. This October, my dream finally became a reality.With road maps, road food (chips and Twizzlers), and uncontrollable giddiness, my dad and I blazed our way to Canada. We’d been planning this trip for nearly a year and had picked the brains of every steelheader we met to make sure we had all the right gear and knew exactly where to go. Even with all this preparation, we still managed to drive 100 miles in the wrong direction, lose keys, and miss several turns. Oops! Like I said, it was an adventure.”
The rest of Camille’s post about her first trip to British Columbia for steelhead with her dad can be found on the magazine’s site under ‘Gracing British Columbia’. Check out Camille’s blog, Rip Lps, for more of her fly fishing adventures.
This one’s by Mia Sheppherd, co-owner of Little Creek Outfitters-
Reckless, so I’ve been told.
In my youth, I found myself searching for ways to escape the dull, everyday routine of a boring 9 to 5 job or attending community college—looking for something better than what I had. Eventually, I found my soul in a beat up 1976 Chevrolet Nova. We drove over snow-covered passes in the Sierra Mountains and we eventually parted ways due to a blown transmission. I spent hours and days on the snow, curving through open meadows of light, fluffy powder and charging down narrow chutes, with no room for error. Then, I found steelhead.
Read the rest of her article ‘Steelhead: A Moment of Freedom’ or check out Mia’s blog site ‘Metalheads‘.
Cutthroats of Colorado
A few months ago I flew out to Colorado on business and was able to tack on a day of fishing. I talked Tucker into sharing his ‘spots’ and chauffeuring my co-worker and I on his day off. We opted for starting the day at the South Platte on the ‘Dream Stream’ section. After a few hours on the road (and a quick stop to photograph pronghorns), we arrived at the parking area where two vehicles’ worth of anglers were already gearing up. We pulled on our waders, strung up our rods, and made sure to give the other anglers a wide berth. We dodged gopher holes and navigated our way over to the water. Tucker put me into a stretch he knew to be fairly successful and suggested a two-nymph rig on 7x tippet ending in a black size 22 midge.
After spending a few moments to admire the scenery –blue skies framed by mountains, golden plains with grasses bending in the breeze, and old run-down buildings dotting the landscape – I finally cast my line out over the water. I was a little rusty (okay very rusty) and it took a number of casts to position my indicator so the flies weren’t pulled downstream. With some ungraceful mending, I managed to get a somewhat drag-free drift and watched as the presentation I had struggled for went unrewarded. After a number of other drifts through the pool, I moved on.
Tucker pointed out another hole below a steep bank where three currents met before a drop-off. The breeze kicked up a notch, and under the watchful eye of my fishing partners, I managed to nearly hook myself in the back of the head with my flies causing my indicator to land 5 ft. downstream of where I had intended. I sent the guys away because they were making me nervous (had to blame somebody) and eventually managed to place my flies and indicator between the two main currents so that they drifted perfectly towards the waiting trout. My indicator was sucked down into the water – fish on!!! But I failed to set the hook and he shook off.
I moved on again, fishing my way up to Tucker, and found a nice run just below him. After only a few casts, my indicator dipped down again and this time I managed to set the hook. The fish took a few short runs and I soon managed to bring him in to the net. I’d caught my first cutthroat and he was absolutely gorgeous! He was a beautiful gold color with rosy pink cheeks, red-orange fins, and a violent red slash beneath his jaw. I snapped a couple of close-up shots and Tucker took the camera from me so I could pose for a few grip-and-grin photos.
Eager to catch another, I moved back downstream to a section with a collapsed bridge in the middle of the run. Tucker suggested I try casting up against the far bank and let the indicator drift downstream between the bank and a crumbling concrete pillar. My casts got progressively closer to the overhanging bank and as I watched my indicator swing through, a fish sucked in the small midge, yanking the indicator down, and took off downstream. I set the hook quickly before his run ate up the slack and he began peeling line off the reel. Luckily, he changed directions and swam upstream before I had to launch myself into the water to keep him from shredding my line on the pillar. I frantically reeled in, hollering to Tucker and John to come quick. As they approached, I turned to flash them a grin and beg for the net. The fish flipped around and took off downstream again, freeing himself with a pop and sending what remained of my leader flying over my head. That fish was huge compared to the last one and I lost him because I got cocky and took my eye off the ball. I had a blast though fighting him on light tippet and watching him rocket through the water!
