Well I have not been all the way up to the lake yet but last night I went up to the Togiak National Wildlife Refuge for the first time. We drove up river and floated down. I got into three rainbows all of decent size for these parts, but back home these things would classify as trophies.
Saw my first bear up close in personal a few nights ago. It was me, Mike, and a guide named Whitney. We were floating down hammerfing big bows on mice and as we pulled up to a gravel bar a 600-700 lb bear wandered out onto the gravel one bar below ours. From a distance of roughly 50 yard he did not seem overly large but when sized up to the surrounding bushes, it was a large critter and made fishing mice through the bush only that more intense.
Throwing mice is no easy chore and much harder I am finding to throwing a large bass bug.
These large wind resistant flies with trailing hooks don't take kindly to be hurled through the air in the first place and then the minute they hit the water the current rips them into snags and the technique to getting a real "natural" mouse presentation is something I have not mastered yet.
I did manage to move a few fish and hook into one nice one.
Well I also came upo here with the intention of checking a few species off my list. I have since been into a nice Dolly or two, a bunch of Grayling, Sockeye, Pink Salmon, King Salmon, and Dog Salmon.
Hope you all are well and fishing hard.
Don't worry about me up here as things are good, the work is tough, but the fishing is good. Hope to have more pics up soon. Here is to screaming reels.
cin cin,
