Bruce Baker
Steelhead
he text message came early Friday afternoon. It was from an acquaintance of mine, Tony. “Wanna join me at Brrrr Lake on Monday?” There was no hesitation on my part. “Sure” was my reply. So on Monday (President’s Day) we headed to Brrrr Lake. The drive was pretty uneventful until we gained some elevation and started seeing snow on the sides of the road and in the hills and as we got closer to our destination, there was slush on the road and lots of snow to be seen. A few minutes later, we come up to a snow plow. We’re not in any hurry, so we hang back at a safe distance and follow. Eventually he pulls off and we continue on. We run into another snow plow coming from the opposite direction. Was that a good sign or bad? Well, when we got to the turnoff to the lake, it was pretty much the end of the road. The road had not been plowed and the snow was too deep for his vehicle to make it to the launch. We decided to hang out and see if the plows would come back and plow the road.
As we were waiting, a Jeep that we had passed earlier pulled up alongside of us. The driver rolled down his window. To my surprise, it was a local YouTuber that goes by the handle Fly Fish Dan (FFD). Dan decided to head down and check out the launch. A little bit later, we see FFD coming back up and see the snow plows heading our way. Dan was going to help us get to the launch, but now with the snow plows, it was not necessary. So we rig up while the snow plows do their job. We invited FFD to join us and he asked if it would be okay if he filmed during the day for his YouTube channel. We told him it was okay.
The parking lot and launch had about 8” or so of snow on the ground. Dan was ahead of us and tried to make a trail and pack down some snow at the launch. After a few attempts at backing the trailer down, we launched the boat and were on our way.
What a beautiful day. NO WIND and the it was nice and sunny. I had to take off one of my layers because I was getting so warm. So Tony and FFD fish this lake a lot and know it very well. So, I had no issues with them outfishing me. It was a day to be outdoors and enjoy nature (we saw two elk and one coyote). I also found out later that success can be dependent upon boat position and the angler at the stern can have success, while the angler in the bow will not.
When we reached our first spot, I had the first hook up, but the fish came off. Moments later, I hooked up and landed one. From then on, it would be a long day for me…lol. I was a happy camper when the sun was out and not so much when it disappeared as it really got chilly. Mainly, my fingers were getting cold from stripping in line.
Tony and FFD were having an awesome day. Hook up after hook up. Believe me, I tried switching things up and emulating them, but no cigar. I got a lot of practice making backhand casts. One of the epic parts of the trip was FFD dry fly fishing and setting the hook a fish based on Tony’s reaction because the boat changed direction and I was blocking FFD’s view.
Before heading back to the boat launch, we stopped at one more spot and I hooked my second fish of the day. Only a mere 20+ behind the combined total of Tony and FFD….lol. Just before we head back to the launch, it starts snowing. And what was cool about was that when looking towards the upper end of the lake, you could see the wall of fog approaching and the interacting between that wall and the surface of the lake was incredible. I cannot properly describe it.
It was an epic trip. FFD was a very cool dude and both Tony and I made the cut in his video. Enjoy! --
I would like to thank Fly Fish Dan for allowing me to post some of the pictures he took from the trip.
As we were waiting, a Jeep that we had passed earlier pulled up alongside of us. The driver rolled down his window. To my surprise, it was a local YouTuber that goes by the handle Fly Fish Dan (FFD). Dan decided to head down and check out the launch. A little bit later, we see FFD coming back up and see the snow plows heading our way. Dan was going to help us get to the launch, but now with the snow plows, it was not necessary. So we rig up while the snow plows do their job. We invited FFD to join us and he asked if it would be okay if he filmed during the day for his YouTube channel. We told him it was okay.
The parking lot and launch had about 8” or so of snow on the ground. Dan was ahead of us and tried to make a trail and pack down some snow at the launch. After a few attempts at backing the trailer down, we launched the boat and were on our way.
What a beautiful day. NO WIND and the it was nice and sunny. I had to take off one of my layers because I was getting so warm. So Tony and FFD fish this lake a lot and know it very well. So, I had no issues with them outfishing me. It was a day to be outdoors and enjoy nature (we saw two elk and one coyote). I also found out later that success can be dependent upon boat position and the angler at the stern can have success, while the angler in the bow will not.
When we reached our first spot, I had the first hook up, but the fish came off. Moments later, I hooked up and landed one. From then on, it would be a long day for me…lol. I was a happy camper when the sun was out and not so much when it disappeared as it really got chilly. Mainly, my fingers were getting cold from stripping in line.
Tony and FFD were having an awesome day. Hook up after hook up. Believe me, I tried switching things up and emulating them, but no cigar. I got a lot of practice making backhand casts. One of the epic parts of the trip was FFD dry fly fishing and setting the hook a fish based on Tony’s reaction because the boat changed direction and I was blocking FFD’s view.
Before heading back to the boat launch, we stopped at one more spot and I hooked my second fish of the day. Only a mere 20+ behind the combined total of Tony and FFD….lol. Just before we head back to the launch, it starts snowing. And what was cool about was that when looking towards the upper end of the lake, you could see the wall of fog approaching and the interacting between that wall and the surface of the lake was incredible. I cannot properly describe it.
It was an epic trip. FFD was a very cool dude and both Tony and I made the cut in his video. Enjoy! --
I would like to thank Fly Fish Dan for allowing me to post some of the pictures he took from the trip.
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