Fishing the Rio Puerco, July 1, 2016

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We have been looking forward to this trip for many weeks.  The fishing the first two times Byron and I went was phenomenal.  Two years ago I even caught a couple trout without ever having practiced casting.  Last year Mark came along, at the end of the day he wanted us to leave him behind so he could fish through the night until someone dragged him home the next day.  We weren’t certain his wife would have appreciated us leaving him there so we took an unhappy fly fisherman home with us.  I am excited at this trip because I want to see how I do on this river.  I have been able to catch a consistent one to two trout each time out so my expectations are higher.

Cloudy and cooler weather is forecast for Albuquerque, only mid 80’s.  Since we are going into the mountains I am expecting mid 70’s, clouds and possible rain.  I was right on two details; rain and clouds, I don’t think it got above 65.  We donned our rain pants and jackets within the first hour of arriving at the river.

Columbine

Byron had loaded up with water; he read somewhere how much water should be consumed for a hike of this length and duration.  His pack was heavier than when I would carry all my camera gear!  He certainly was not going to be thirsty.  I on the other hand decided to leave the DSLR at home opting for my point and shoot.  It saved me a few pounds but overall I was not satisfied with the images.

We manage to dodge most of the holiday traffic by being on the road by 630 the Friday of the official holiday weekend.  The trailhead parking lot is full so we are not the only ones enjoying the long weekend.

Upon arriving at the San Gregorio Reservoir we see where most of the early hikers have come.  There must be 20 – 30 people along the bank fishing with one fishing from a float tube the middle of the reservoir.  The overall water level is higher than we have seen but the trails are dry in comparison to previous hikes.

Mark and I rush on to get on the river Byron however takes a leisurely stroll, stopping to photograph birds and anything else that catches his attention.  As we are hiking I notice that the birds are singing as normal, maybe they are also enjoying the cool, damp weather.  I notice different flowers blooming as we traverse this part of the wilderness.

We make it to the river in two hours; stop to make sure there is water flowing; then assemble our equipment.  The river is down several inches from last year but the meadows are lush with almost waist high grasses and corn lilies setting flower heads.  It has been cloudy almost the entire hike but to this point no rain.

We gather up our equipment and head to our favorite trout pool(s).  On my second cast I hook one, thinking I may have caught the first one of the day; I turn around to announce I have one, only to see both Byron and Mark already unhooking their first catches planning where to cast for the next trout.

“There’s a bear!”  Mark shouted “He’s in a meadow on the other side of the river about 100 yards away!”  Oh shit, now what… Several years ago I visited British Columbia to intentionally see bears.  What did the guides say ….. Oh, stay cool, DON’T run, ummm……, hmmm…….  “Yell at the bear to scare him” I call to Mark.  Evidently the bear saw and heard Mark, taking off in the other direction deciding he didn’t want anything to do with Mark.  Neither Byron nor I saw the bear so we are not convinced there was actually a real bear.  “Could it have been a man in a bear suit?” we ask jokingly, diffusing the tension.

Indian Paintbrush

In spite of the bear sighting we keep on fishing.  After 10 minutes Mark and Byron decide to cross the river going to another favorite pool.  Did I mention this pool is in the same direction where the bear I mentioned in the previous paragraph was just seen???   They ask if I am interested. “Ahhh, no thank you, I am fine right here”.  For the next 15 minutes I continue upstream catching several cutthroats and start wondering if they are okay.  No panicked calls over the walkie-talkie so I am relatively certain nothing has happened.  So, I too cross the river in the direction of where the bear was last seen.  Within two minutes of crossing I see both Mark and Byron happily casting and pulling in more trout.

We continue fishing for the next several hours with rain coming and going with occasional pea-size hail.  My day is going well; I am catching more fish than losing flies to the trees. First, I had concentrated on the open pools; as I became confident in my casting I moved to the narrow stretches of the stream lined with trees.  I first notice I am hungry sometime after 1PM.

Rain appears more frequently and with greater intensity as the day continues.  The winds increase with the rain and the bottoms of the clouds lower to below treetop level.  I am using polarized sunglasses for a better view into the river; but I consider going back to my regular glasses because it is quite dark with the sunglasses and the ever thickening clouds.  Towards the end of the day clouds were enveloping us with occasional rain.

With the fog limiting our view we decide to call it a day.  We don’t want to get caught in dense fog and or heavy rain with a four plus mile hike back out.  On our way out we see only two groups of backpackers already set up, prepared for the weather.  There are only one or two people fishing the reservoir as we pass by.

The drive back included quizzing Mark on the bear.  We are certain it has grown with each telling of the story; a true fisherman.

We had a great day.

Thank you for stopping by,

  

Mark