May 11, 2012 Report

Some potentially useful information for Driftless Area anglers: (1) vegetation strong knee-high; still not too bad but coming on; (2) water still pretty turbid; somewhat surprised to see even smaller water still around one foot visibility; this was quite a rain event, must have put a lot of fines in suspension; (3) we keep bitching and whining about clear water being a hindrance...  now is the time to get out under camoflauge: fish can't see you; they will eat what you show them; (4) streamers did well today, especially danced over riffles up above the fish so they could look up at the bright sky and see the silhouette of your dark and shiny bugger.

Lord knows I can work with constraints.  It's a given that my trout fishing is shot.  I won't see any good hatches; I won't get much at all really.  But it goes with the time is what all the scowling parents out there would say.  I might say something different but for now arguendo, let's just say I accept it.  So that's how it is.  So I have just 3 hours to fish today.  I can manage that.  In fact, I looked at my clock when I got in my car and it was 29 minutes past the hour.  When I crushed the skull of the fifth trout to fill out a heavy creel it was 5 minutes past the hour.  That means it was 96 minutes from ignition key to full creel.  How the hell you gonna top that one.  You ain't.  That's a fact.

Piscatori was at my side, understanding these constraints and he granted me two fish on one drift.  See first pic.  This is third trout double I've logged in my life.

I especially liked this fish because it was seated in a riffle (second pic below, there in the shade), and it did not strike with violence; rather it came up into view and simply took the streamer as I danced it over the top....   I slowly came tight and the fish was on.

Trying to think of a better start to the weekend than that pictured below.  Can't.  Now taking kids to the old river for two nights.  That beer is 9.3% BTW.  And I'm already deep into it.  And the ramps are on the way out but the bulbs are still good.