The Float 2014

                                                                                                                                         

Pretty.  The one word to describe this year.  

This year was like all others, lots and lots of fishing, great food, BB gunnin, beer and booze.  Amazing fishing.

Cliffy picks us up bright and early at 6am.  Rain in the forecast did not scare us off.   After a short jaunt to the put in unload and load up, on the river at 830.  The river was the crowded, the most we have ever seen, this did not sway us.  Bob this year boughtin a license and a spinner rod with the hopes of catching the biggest, the most and the best fish.  He was on mark.  First stop Bob catches the first fish.  Damn!  Next stop Bob lands another monster, truly amazing, Cliffy and I are scratching our heads, spinning reel?  It's on.  After many stops we make it to the camping pull out.

We procure our normal spot.  We unpack and set camp.  I am immediately back in the water throwing flies.  My first cast I hook up a massive white fish.  It fought for nearly 20 minutes until I thoroughly exhausted it, we were undecided if I should even throw it back due to how I punished it.  Would it survive after such a battle royal?  Well I gave the big guy some mouth to mouth and revived it back to life and off it went up river, cause that's the way fish swim, to live to die another day.  Cliffy had some stank on his hook a couple of times, teaching these bastards not to F with the H7HT.  We start some damage on the cooler to make props we could put down with the Daisy.  There was also much wikki flowing too, it was so cold, which we welcomed on the scorching desert day.  Cliffy was on fire!  Knocking cans silly, making Bob and me drink over and over again.

Dinner arrived not a moment too soon.  This year was Mexi.  Pork Rojo tacos.  Delish.  After we all helped do the dishes we were back on the Daisy.  Still Cliffy was master, punishing every can like it was his red headed step brother.  These two guys even felt bad for me, remember that time I did all the shotguns?  Well they just volunteered.  Soon enough all of our bottles of wikki went dry.  Darkness fell upon us like goose poo on a golf course.  We sat up by the fire and told stories of slaying ducks and watching stars shoot by us.  After several hours we call it and hit the hay for the most restful night sleep, bellies full of chili rojo with beans.  A light rain lulled us into slumber.

We awake and have an awesome breakfast.  Farm fresh eggs, homemade sausage, griddle cakes with fresh strawberry jam and hot coffee.  We pack up and hit the river for some more catch and release, and there was much to be had by everyone.  Seems as though if our flies were wet there was a monster on the other end.  We get to the pull out high from our river experience.  As we are pulling out we hear other fishermen cursing the river coming out with no luck.  Of course they came out empty the H7HT caughtin all the fish.  

Yet another great float.  Beauty.

Do the DU, Monica is bonafide!

Won't be long now.

Three days from now

I sit on the prow

Of the fishing raft how

I try to fish now

 

 

My Captain Cliff

Bridges the rift

Between my old skiff

And the hunting I wish

 

That my days did hold

And while I still fold

The new dreams are told

Are of fish all cold

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That elude my grasp

 And swim right past

The rod I cast

Never to be last

 

Of my desire to be

A fisherman thee

That gets maybe three

Of the elusive fishee

 

 

Maybe I can win

A fish that can swim

And a beer that gives in

To my ongoing grin

 

I'm not the only one thinking about the annual H7HT fishing trip.  You are too.  You say to yourself, "I wish I was going down the mighty Deschutes river and challenging fish to their final demise", but alas, you are not going.  We are.

All three of the Charter Members will soon be packing their gear and heading to the Warm Springs Indian pow-wow for a 2 day float trip.  We will fish.  We will camp.  We will shoot a BB gun with amazing accuracy.  But most of all, we will represent the H7HT.

It's spring and many people will be thinking about riding their bike or playing golf or working in their garden.  Not us.  We will bond. (disclaimer: I have been thinking of all those things.)  The Fish we catch will fry on the grill with amazing ease and the beer will be consumed with the same fervor. We will teach all other fishermen on the river how to be Men and they will look at us with respect and envy.  Furthermore, we will be Kings.

So just be aware of how you are missing out on this.  Be jealous. Be resentful.

And the following day be happy you are not the one with a big hangover counting the hours until you reach home.  RESPECT.
GBCH.