Rain, Fish, and Vermont

Today dawned so dark I thought my clocks were wrong. At 7AM it was dark enough I needed headlights, and the pouring rain created trenches of water prime for hydroplaning. It’s kind of oddly fitting for my final day at Orvis. I’m picking up a little U-Haul trailer this afternoon, loading out in the rain (probably wearing waders, if the skies stay this wet), crashing in a hammock tonight, and pointing the Subaru West early tomorrow morning. It’s a bittersweet leave-taking; I’ve been lucky enough to work with some awesome folks here in Vermont and will miss that more than anything.

But looking forward to getting back West. Already making plans to fish early next week; trading in the 3-wt. for a switch rod and little brook trout for big brownies. Going Western. Going back to home turf. In one of those rather ironic little life moments, I went to a little local stream Monday for my final fishing session in the Northeast. I was hoping for some of those hungry little brookies that have salvaged so many rough days, and tied on a Parachute Red Ant just for something different. After a few minutes I had a take—one that felt different than the bouncy brookies. This fish fought better, too. Brought it to hand only to find it was my first Roaring Branch brown trout of the season, nicely colored up with a line of red dots on his dorsal fin.

And that was enough. I still had another hour on my lunch break, but somehow ending on a brown trout seemed fitting for my time in the Northeast. I put the rod away and went for a dirt road drive. Here’s to the next brown, pulled from a Montana river.

I’ll be out of pocket for a few days as I drive and then set up in Bozeman, but be sure to follow along on Instagram. The blog will be back soon enough.

Tags: Fishing