Dead Drifters Society: A fly fishing podcast
Reeling in Revelations: Jerin Harrison's Chronicles of Fly Fishing and Conservation
As the crisp winter air nipped at my fingertips, I'll never forget the electric jolt of landing my first steelhead - a moment of pure exhilaration that only a true angler understands. That same passion for the reel and the river courses through our latest chat with Jerin Harrison, where we recount the highs, the hilarity, and humbling experiences while fly fishing on Vancouver Island. From Jerin’s personal evolution as an angler to the complexities of local fishing systems, and the amusing trials of teaching our partners to cast a line, our conversation is a treasure trove of stories and sage advice for novices and seasoned fishers alike.
Have you ever wondered how the rhythm of the seasons dictates the dance of the fly in the water? In this episode, you’ll be privy to our deep dive into fishing techniques like euro nymphing and swinging nymphs, and the delicate art of choosing the right fly. We examine the symbiotic relationship between work-life balance and fishing, revealing the soul-soothing effects that come with time spent by the water. Whether you’re an ironworker like myself, or you’re tethered to an office chair, there's a shared understanding of the peace that the pursuit of steelhead brings to our otherwise bustling lives.
With conservation at the forefront of our minds, we tackle the pressing issues facing the future of steelhead, discussing the balance needed between hatchery and wild populations, and the potential restoration of iconic systems such as the Thompson and the Gold. As we wrap up, the lure of global fishing adventures calls, from the pristine waters of Alaska to the wild rivers of Patagonia. So, grab your gear, and let's set sail on these eclectic fishing tales with Jerin, with plenty of laughs, lessons, and the lure of the great outdoors beckoning us to cast into the current once more.
As the crisp winter air nipped at my fingertips, I'll never forget the electric jolt of landing my first steelhead - a moment of pure exhilaration that only a true angler understands. That same passion for the reel and the river courses through our latest chat with Jerin Harrison, where we recount the highs, the hilarity, and humbling experiences while fly fishing on Vancouver Island. From Jerin’s personal evolution as an angler to the complexities of local fishing systems, and the amusing trials of teaching our partners to cast a line, our conversation is a treasure trove of stories and sage advice for novices and seasoned fishers alike.
Have you ever wondered how the rhythm of the seasons dictates the dance of the fly in the water? In this episode, you’ll be privy to our deep dive into fishing techniques like euro nymphing and swinging nymphs, and the delicate art of choosing the right fly. We examine the symbiotic relationship between work-life balance and fishing, revealing the soul-soothing effects that come with time spent by the water. Whether you’re an ironworker like myself, or you’re tethered to an office chair, there's a shared understanding of the peace that the pursuit of steelhead brings to our otherwise bustling lives.
With conservation at the forefront of our minds, we tackle the pressing issues facing the future of steelhead, discussing the balance needed between hatchery and wild populations, and the potential restoration of iconic systems such as the Thompson and the Gold. As we wrap up, the lure of global fishing adventures calls, from the pristine waters of Alaska to the wild rivers of Patagonia. So, grab your gear, and let's set sail on these eclectic fishing tales with Jerin, with plenty of laughs, lessons, and the lure of the great outdoors beckoning us to cast into the current once more.
The first steelhead I ever got on the couch in winter, absolutely blown out First time I drifted to, nearly killed me and my buddy. It was. I think it was at like 3.1. It was like we had no business being out there and it was blown right out. But I had on this maybe four inch, four and a half inch big orange thing and at this point in the day like we're tired, soaking, wet and like I said it was, it was on a strip and it was in this huge back end and I was was just stripping in hard and it blew up maybe four feet in front of me and a rocket chromefish hit. It turned around, started screaming when I know it and I was like Welcome to Dead Road, Dreadful Dead Drifter.
Speaker 2:On this episode we chat with Jaron Harrison. On this episode we chat with jaron harrison. He is from vancouver island and we get to talk in a lot about steelhead and just what's going on in the systems, how we like to target them and all that good stuff, how he got into fly fishing and all that. This was round two of doing the recordings. The first time around the audio file just wasn't up to standard, so he was nice enough to make the time and come back on. So appreciate that. And yeah, we have a really good chat, so I hope you enjoy and I'll see you down at the end. Welcome to the podcast, jaren. How's it going?
Speaker 1:Good man, Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, right on, right on. Well, I appreciate you coming back on for the round two, since the audio didn't work out last time.
Speaker 1:But here we are yeah, yeah, no, it's all good. I got, uh, I got a chance to get out on the water since we uh talked last, so now I got something relevant to talk about. Yeah, how was that? I was good man, um went and uh drifted the local flow there. I took a girlfriend out on her first experience on the raft so, uh, it was good. She, uh, she did good, got a couple trout to hand, so that's awesome yeah yeah, so she's a keeper.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah, what a fish.
Speaker 1:Okay, I'll keep you around, yeah, oh like it was uh, it was hilarious, we were, we're in the one spot and she, uh, I was like, okay, I'm gonna, I'm gonna pull anchor and she goes. Okay, just one more cast. I was like, oh, there it is, you're done yeah, yeah, the one more cast.
Speaker 2:If she said one more cast like that's, that's full-on addiction, I think that right I think, uh, that's the lie we all tell ourselves yeah, that's awesome. I had the different experience I had when I took my wife out for her birthday, which she asked for. It was cool. She fished for half the day and then was done, which was fine, because then I fished the rest. Yeah, not bad, not a bad scenario, so just nice to be out with a spouse you know. Yeah, so just nice to be out with the spouse you know.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I realized the walk and wave is probably a better option on the next one because she's got a bladder the size of a two-year-old.
Speaker 2:Yes, well, and even when I have female guests, it's yeah, I go to be a little more conscious, where I could be like hey, just so you know, this would be a good spot if you had to. Yeah, and or like. I've also noticed that they just don't drink as much water, like they'll say no to water when guys will say yes, but I've had guys just start peeing off the back so yeah, that's, that shows you what a guy will do. You know exactly. Yeah, when in doubt, whip it out, they say yeah, um, so yeah, uh, did you get a couple fish as well, or just the lady?
Speaker 1:yeah yeah, no, we were just over trout, seen lots of uh, lots of uh, mending steelheads, so it was good. A couple big kelts, so nice. Yeah, a couple trout, they weren't crazy active. There was a bit of a hatch going on. So, um, I was tossing a little bit of everything. I brought my lightweight switch just to let Naomi practice some of her casting. We were just doing minnow patterns with that one. It was good they were hitting those. It was good to see that the loons and the skunk cabbage were out. So it's time to start throwing the patterns around and yeah, well, and I've been.
Speaker 2:I've been hearing the, uh, the birds when I wake up, um, to go to work, before, like I mean, the sun's kind of up, but before the lights really hit, and yeah, it's just music to the ears. You know, you hear that like I had my last steel heading day, um, I won't get into a ton of details, but no, I did not catch one and it was a fresh like the beginning of the day was super hopeful and the end of the day I was like screw it. We started seeing like more and more reds, um, just in the slack water and and whatnot. So, but I did get a cool, um, a cool video I actually forgot to post it um of some steelhead. I'm going to send it to you right now because I think you might like it as much as I liked it, but yeah, it was.
Speaker 2:Uh, I was seeing some chrome steelhead, so it was like kind of wanted to keep fishing but at the same time I want to see them later on. So, yeah, it was uh, a lot of side channels. I did not catching fish to steelhead for two years has definitely made me think a lot more about it. I'm sure if I would have caught steelhead every year, or all those times I wouldn't have thought about it so much. But yeah, yeah, they make me think a lot. They melt my brain, man.
Speaker 1:They do. I've seen a conversation being had just like with our weather, weather patterns nowadays, and I won't say the word, the dreaded global warming word, but it seems like everything's kind of shifting, you know, it seems like we're a month later than everything used to be.
Speaker 2:Yes, I've been saying that for a bit, like we're, and that's the thing is. Uh, with the seal heading this year at least on the cow gin, it was just high water, so opposed challenges. Um, it got to the point where all I could think of is next year I'm just going for them. Yeah, it's like, oh geez, it's a good thing, it's the end of the year for it. I'll come back around next year. I'll forget this pain I went through.
Speaker 1:No, oh yeah, you get those first first couple of days in the season out and you're swinging and you're feeling good about it. You're optimistic and steelhead and Island weather just beat you down.
Speaker 2:And like I would love. I would love to really be at the point where I could be like no, today's not worth it. Like look at some shit and be like today's not worth it. Yeah, but they don't seem to really hold to anything. Like it's not. I've caught them in super muddy water all the way to, like you know, the gin clear kind of stuff, and it's just confusing. So this year I tried to get out as much as possible, which I did. There's one week where I went out five times. It was a beautiful thing. Yeah, I saved up a lot of brownie points with the wife. I also have a really rad wife, so shout out her. She holds it down. But yeah, just a couple of tugs and nothing after that. So heartbreaking. So I'm very, very ready to do what you and your, your lady, did and just go catch some trout.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's, it's good, it's just get a couple fish on the board and just not have that pressure like, oh, I need one, I need one, you're just out there having fun I know it's.
Speaker 2:I haven't actually been that like had to reflect on it, how I felt after, because I was like this is so ridiculous that I have like so much build up. Um, I, yeah, and it felt, you know, when you get those certain days where you're like, oh shit, today's the day, yeah, usually doesn't land on that day, but it usually lands on a day after that day, you know what I mean, where you get one, and last year I was so I had a few of those days where things seem so right, even a few of those days I got grabs and, um, yeah, so I will definitely play it differently for higher water next year, just heavier weighted flies and and swinging maybe a little different, and maybe, like certain sections, I won't swing as profusely. Yeah, I think, being more thought about it a lot, especially once it was over, I was like, hmm, I wonder if I should have maybe fish different water harder, yeah, you know it's tough.
Speaker 1:It's like you know, it's like you said, that you think after you know so many seasons or so many days, you kind of bought it down, like, okay, they're holding here, um, but it's. It's never that way and I've had. I've had that situation on uh trips, like if I do a trip up North and I explore new systems, like one of my favorite things to do is explore a brand new system with absolutely no expectations to catch a fish. I just like to be out there, um. But like I go drift a new river and I'm putting in all these time because I'm all excited at the beginning, like, okay, new river. Like, oh, this looks good.
Speaker 1:But like the one river official here is a little, it was a little low, but I was putting time on the top end and just hitting every chunk of water and I'm like, not, I'm losing my motivation. And then I got about halfway through the drift and started seeing all this really nice water and I'm like, oh, I shouldn't waste all this time up top and then ended up connecting with two fish at the bottom end and I'm like, oh, I wonder how many fish I could have got into yeah, I, I guess that kind of makes me think I had a lot of new water that I searched on a river that I've fished for many years, which kind of blew my mind.
Speaker 2:I just went further. I dropped my raft off of some more questionable areas and just floated different sections um, quite a bit. So I got much better feel and next year I have like a solid game plan on where I'm weighing drift, the two places I want to be drifting the most I won't really name them, but a lot less people for a very busy river. Another thing that played against is there's a section of the river that is closed on the other and that is some of my favorite swinging water yeah, so we.
Speaker 1:We did the upper end there and um that corner that blew out. That must have been this year or last year. That was mind-boggling.
Speaker 2:It feels like holy shit or like the water's completely going the other way.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's going backwards, I'm like yeah, how, how, and that used to be a really nice run right there too. But yeah, that's, that is the full aspect of mother nature's power. Right there, it's like okay it's wild.
Speaker 2:I've I've gone through that area so many, so many years after years, and it changed. You know as much as it changes, but never like that was one of the more dramatic changes on a river I've seen in the years that I've been fishing that river. Um, but yeah, you're right, it is a testament to what mother nature can really do.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'll be curious to see what happens with that little area, uh, in the summer, when the waters get low oh, it could almost be like a damn near cutoff point there's a lot of space to so yeah that is true I have started to see quite a few fry, so that's been really exciting.
Speaker 2:I did get a streamer eat that day last, yeah, when I went out, so that was nice. But he popped off because when I my first few strips I threw a loop somehow in it and I like wrapped the ring. It was so fast, yeah. And then my buddy was like it happened. And then, you know, and then I was like it's fucking over, it's already over now. This that was. But it's nice, you know, even when you don't link up with the fish in the net, it's nice to know that that happened. Like I felt him on for a second. Those grabs with the steel head, they bring me a, it brings a certain joy, but it's like I just wanted to feel one, Like I would have loved to have lost one.
Speaker 1:you know, yeah it one like I would have loved to have lost one. You know, yeah, it's for me personally it's, I think, a grab is like I've had. I've had systems where I'll go in and you feel that like light bump and you're like, oh, was that a fish? Was it a log? What was that? Go through again nothing. Go through again nothing. Hit it again and bang and they're like huh, was that first one a grab or was it a rock? Or did I just overfish that spot and like did not catch that one, or did he move in? It's like I get in my head about it. Yeah, but I've had times where I know you get that grab and you know it was a grab, a good, solid grab, and you lose that one, it's like, oh, okay. But the ones where it's like you get them, you feel the head shake, you feel, and then it's gone and you're like, oh no, those are the heartbreak ones, those.
Speaker 2:It's true, those are the heartbreak ones. Those, it's true, I also. So I bought a new reel, um, first click and paw and it's been awesome, but I haven't heard a fish on it. So that was like that was a level of disappointment too. Yeah, that rod has never caught a steelhead and that reel hasn't caught a steelhead, and that realism caught a steelhead in my ownership. So I was like man, that's, that's sad.
Speaker 2:And then, um, you know those moments where you have like a fly that you've tied and it's stuck on a rock, so like lots of the time, and you're pulling it and you're trying to not have it, and then it pops off and you don't want it to get snagged up again.
Speaker 2:So you start doing some weird shit, flailing around ripping line, trying to prevent it from from sinking in two inches of water and snagging up. Well, and that happened to me and I popped off and started doing the crazy arms and it hooked back up on a rock. Only at the same time I kind of dipped my rod, I guessed, or something, and my rod or the the line looped around my rod tip. So when I pulled, it just broke my rod tip. So I broke the rod tip that day and I was like, well, that's of course last day. I knew it was my last day, so I was like last day, that's how it happened, for sure. But for a moment there I was like, oh sick, I'll catch a steelhead today because like something bad happened yeah it's got to get the positive in there, yin and the yang.
Speaker 2:That was so desperate.
Speaker 1:I was like logical, adding logic to this, like random fucking mistake yeah, yeah, yeah, shin the the truck hitch like, oh, that's a fish for sure. I played that card last year. Unfortunately, my dog passed away on the day I was leaving for my trip, but it was the best trip. I've ever had so many fish to hand, the biggest steelhead I've ever caught. It was just multiple fish days. And the guys I was with camping with uh, they were all on it too. You know they were like, oh yeah, get your dogs blessing you, your dogs blessing you. So, yeah, now, yeah, you play. You get those days where you're like I need something in the back, the ace in the back pocket.
Speaker 2:Seriously, Well, so in another, I guess we could almost run through a few things and I'll ask you your opinion on them. I know it's the end of steelhead season, but I haven't got it off my chest yet, so I'm just going to roll with it. But yeah, so this year you float. Do you float a lot, or is it usually walk and wade, or half and half or anything?
Speaker 1:On the island. I would say a half and half. It depends on water levels. For those that don't know, or those listening in, pay attention to that. Learn how to read the charts. Take notes too when you get out there, because, like I like, for me, I got, I've labeled it the bible, and it's every time I fish. You know weather conditions, water conditions, temperature. You know, did I catch fish, did I not catch fish? What did I hit them on? But, uh, play a big point.
Speaker 1:Obviously, when I go out with somebody, we're in the big raft, um, which I hadn't rode in a while and I forgot what a slug that thing was. I, uh, I do a lot of solos in, uh, in my fish cat, um, and I like the solos, uh, because they can rip through. If, uh, there's certain areas I want to get to or touch, um, yeah, but I, I do like a walk and wait too. Um, there's certain certain areas or certain rivers, I'll go fish. I would say most of my fishing is walk and wade. I mean, there's only so many systems on the island you can comfortably drift.
Speaker 2:Yeah, through that I, when I once I once I realized I wanted to um guide, I pretty much started focusing dramatically more on just the collagen um, just to learn it better, know more about it and stuff like that. So yeah, and then having a kid so it kind of took me away from other systems but drifting, specifically this year, my big lesson was smaller sections. Always do smaller sections because you can make a 10-hour day out of a very small section. If you got four or five runs that you can hit, yeah, you can make a full day out of that, no problem. And so every time I would do bigger sections, like go to two, like you know, skip one um, uh boat ramp and go to the next, one kind of thing, uh, we would always be out of time and be just running through a bunch of good water, yeah. So yeah, I guess you're you've agreed the whole time, so I'm going to assume you agree with what I'm saying.
Speaker 1:Smaller sections is yeah, break it down. I mean, and I guess for the guys that you know like just get their first drift boats, just don't, I wouldn, guys that you know like just get their first drift boats, just don't, I wouldn't, you know, I wouldn't put like don't think you got to do it all in one day. That's the kind of thing. You just break a river down and learn it right and, like you said, you know you watch these rivers change year after year and like I got no, like the couch is a great example, like those little side creeks, sometimes those are the best, best water in the whole you'll find all day and it's like, oh, that's a new creek that blew in this year. So, yeah, break it, break it down, and don't, you know you got a six hour drift. That doesn't mean you got to cover 20 kilometers and fish 20 kilometers worth of river in six hours. Break it down to that three, four kilometer stretch and yeah, I like that.
Speaker 2:It's definitely something that I would with certain people I fished with this year. It'd be a little bit more like less of a steelhead day and a little bit more like trout and fishing. Yeah, and I, I would love taking friends out, I love taking guests out, so it's it really doesn't bother me if I'm not fishing a ton. Um, but then you know, when it comes to steelheading, like I want to hit everything and I hate being pushed to go fast. Not not that everyone's like hey, we got to hurry up, we got to hurry up the whole time, but you, when it's like, even when I say I'll be home at like 630. Never, god darn it. Why did I say that? Why didn't I say like it's going to be a super late one? And then just take the argument, you know.
Speaker 1:I think that the tough one too, like is you know when you especially when you're steelhead and like you want, you want that fish. And you know when you especially when you're steelhead like you want you want that fish. And you know it's not like trout where you're like, oh, probably trout all over the place, you're like steelhead, you're like you got this kilometer run and you're like there's maybe one or two fish there and you're like I gotta touch every inch of water to even have that chance. And that's the thing you put. You pull out of a run early and then you go drift down it and you look and you're like, oh, there's a steelhead right in the tail. Perfect, I didn't even swing there yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:So, and that's kind of what I was thinking is, like this year with the high water, and I noticed it the last few times I went out I I looked through the side creeks just to see how it was going and all the side creeks were just full of, uh, reds and saw like many fish. I sent you like two chrome one, one buck and one doe, side by side. Yeah, like, put my my polarized glasses over my camera from my phone. That's cool. You can just see them perfectly. You can see them without the polarized, but the polarized just clears it up. Yeah, I watched them for a bit and they were just chilling and all of a sudden they kind of bumped at each other. They started doing their dance. Yeah, I was like that's a relationship right there. You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:Um, and then we saw my buddy, saw he's like dude. I saw a massive buck all colored up. So, yeah, it was cool to see them. Um, but, like you said, it's definitely one of those like. It's definitely one of those like. So we had our return. This year wasn't as large as last year. I talked to a few other guides and stuff and they said that, uh, it wasn't as big, but I I think maybe just speculation. But going back to that, like month late thing, like month behind, I almost feel like april they're going to come in it's weird, like it's high school.
Speaker 1:Through my yeah and I, I scroll through my instagram feed and I see guys still catching like chrome fish right now and I'm like these fish should be counted out by this point.
Speaker 2:Like it brings up the challenge, though how do you swing for just a chrome fish? Yeah, can't, that's the thing. No, and on the pin, maybe nymphing, you could get them at this point because you could like fish, like certain spots that you think would be a lot less likely to get. A celtic, yeah, or a spawning fish, I guess getting a celt's not the worst, but I've never caught one. Caught colored up fish, but not like a celt, that's like because you can tell with the friends you can tell empty, empty belly, like jelly belly, yeah, jelly belly, yeah, it's not a nice fish at all.
Speaker 1:I don't even think I took a picture.
Speaker 2:I was like, well, you can go back now yeah, my buddy got two or three last year on dry flies so, yeah, at that point they're just eating anything, yeah, but yeah, they were dimes in the river, like I saw multiple fish that were still chrome or that like fully chrome and I was seeing some reds, but I was. I wasn't seeing, like past years, like that whole side is a red, basically, yeah, um, so I think you're still coming in yeah, I kind of noticed what you're saying too.
Speaker 1:Like there were certain sections obviously I know where it's like okay, like I'm not dropping anchor through here because I know this whole spot reds and like, okay, stick to this side. I didn't quite see what I'm used to seeing. I got a question for you, like as a guide now, while you were swimming with my girlfriend, like especially this time of year, and you got the trout. Everywhere too, the trout are spawning and you can see fish everywhere. She's like well, why aren't they biting? Like why can't, why am I not catching all these fish? Like that's not how it works. Do you get clients where you know you're sitting in 30, 40 trout and you get one out of them and they're like well, what's going on here?
Speaker 2:that's how it works yeah, I, I always explain it as you just need to find that one crazy one you know what I mean the one that's just like I don't know it is. It is funny because, especially when it's not like a hatcher, that you can't see like feeding fish, if they're like all on their reds and stuff, um, I don't really try to fish for them. I'll like let clients cast, but I won't actually like pull up and stop and wait to catch those ones. Um, I mean, when I first started fishing, for sure I fished those fish, but as I grew more, more and more respect for them, I just kind of leave them alone a little bit more. But even when you just see a ton of fish and they're not biting, I always think about it as like salmon. You know, out of 50 you're going to get like four on something that's blue, eight on something that's purple, three on something chartreuse, seven on something that's orange. You know I mean. So it's like, in each of those flies you'll get some fish. You just have to find that fish that's crazy enough. We're getting really good at flossing and you'll get every fish. You know what I mean. Uh, yeah, so I think it's the same for like trout, uh, if they're not like straight up just feeding.
Speaker 2:Now, when it starts to get feeding and you see them refusing your fly, that's something that's you know, you got to make some kind of change. Uh, and I, I back in cranbrook. Actually it was kind of cool because because the person I was working or am working for, yeah, so that kind of makes sense. Anyways, moving on, when he was explaining to me how the fishery works, he's like those West Slopes if they refuse a fly and you're sure it wasn't your drift just change your fly, throw something else at them. Yeah, and I was like man, okay, and there's one day where I changed my fly like six times without getting any like kind of grab. And then finally I threw on one fly, got that one fish, ran that through the whole run.
Speaker 2:Nothing changed my fly, got another fish and I was like man, like at that point it was end of the season, but it was like they weren't even, they just were curious on that one. That one, yeah, no, yes, everything norm or that they've been seeing all year round. And then you throw that. They just were curious on that one fly. You know, yes, everything that they've been seeing all year round and then you throw that one oddball and then you know there's times where you throw a nymph through a run and you see them like move away from your fly and you're like what was that about? Yeah, it's tough. I do get some interesting questions. I can't really think of them on the spot, but people are always shocked when there's just like fish there I got.
Speaker 1:I got a cool story about the like fish moving away from your flies or like, obviously, like when you're in especially a boat, you can see if a fish is like refusing or just like dodging your stuff. I took a friend to a West Coast river and this was a summer fishery. And we come around this corner and I spot a fish in the run and I go, okay, this is my buddy, justin. I was like Justin, there's a fish in the center of the run. I was like you see him? He's like yeah, it was a tough spot because we were elevated so we're in clear sight and you're basically surrounded by trees, so no cast. I was like you got gotta just loop some line out. I was like you're gonna have to do a cross shoulder and loop it out to the far side, let it swing down. So he kind of got some line out and it was at the kind of like, at the point where he's like could just let line out and his fly is sitting and just smacking this fish in the cheek and nothing. It's just chilling, didn't even move away from it, just getting hit in the side of the face.
Speaker 1:I'm like weird. I was like okay, strip back. I was like put it like you know, a couple feet in front of me, I was like give it a couple jiggles, like no reaction, like I'm strange. I was like give it a couple jiggles, no reaction, like strange. I was like leave that amount of line out with your foot in front of him. I was like, okay, pull that in caps out to the far side and let it swing like it, cast it out and just that swing motion came out, smashed it like a freight train. Strange, sometimes it's just the way it's presented I.
Speaker 2:There is a point in the spring where euro nymphing I like it it might happen only for a week, it might happen for longer, where I'll notice that your own, I, your own nymphing won't get me more fish than swinging a nymph or just like letting line out there, um, at least last year we had, I think it was a couple weeks, three weeks or so, where it was just like phenomenal to just swing a very small nymph, obviously that eye up so and and or like just feeding at a higher point in the water column, um, and not to say that heroing wasn't getting them. But there's a few times where I'd, you know clients that want to do kind of different things and I would just, I always pay attention and I was like man and I even put the same fly on both just to see, and I think that dead drift was just like not what they were looking for. They wanted to see like random motion and movement that you know you can only get from an unpredictable swing. Yeah, you know, you think your lines over here it's up there. You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:That kind of scenario, yeah, but yeah, so I guess, uh, since last time we recorded we didn't actually get to um or we didn't. Actually, I'm sorry, restarting um last time that we recorded the audio didn't work out. So there's a lot of information, um about yourself that we, yeah, kind of just assumed people now know. So why don't you tell me a bit about yourself? I know you're working um. You got one week off and two weeks on, so what was that? Yeah.
Speaker 1:So, uh, those listening in my name is Jaron, uh, born and raised on Vancouver Island. Um, yeah, right now I'm working up, uh, at site C, uh, the hydro project in Port St John. Um, for all you taxpayers, it should be done this year. It's a cool project. It's a grand scale of things. It's pretty impressive to see the size of it all.
Speaker 1:Ironworker, welder by trade there I take care of all the missed metals and the heavy lifts and, uh, I've basically been an iron worker my most of my working career. I took a little break from it, uh, when I moved back to the coast. I worked on the tugboats for a couple years, super cool job but just uh, kind of missed. Missed what I was doing before and just, uh, for personal reasons, just thought it was best to go back to what I was good at. So, yeah, yeah, no, it's been good. Yeah, the shifts at 14 and 7 um, I know some, some people don't like working away. I've almost always done shift work since I was 17 and working away and you know people are like oh well, doesn't it suck being away from home? I'm like, yeah, but no, like I just went for a drift yesterday on a monday afternoon and I golfed 18 today on a, so it's got its benefits.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I've done shift work a few times and, um, mind you, one was commercial fishing and the other one was paving, so I couldn't really go home when I would get time off. It would just be like I would be, you know, in the port or in Alberta or something and get a few days off. Um, but when you're just working, like, you get in a zone where you're just like next day you wake up, yeah, breakfast, you get your shit ready, you go, you're at work, you're working. Next, you know you're like eating lunch. Next, you know you're heading home. Even if it's a 10, 12, 14, 16, 18 hour day, you just like, it just goes. Yeah, I like that aspect. You don't necessarily have like a super high quality, let's say, of life in those at that time, but then the check comes in and you feel all right, you're like I got another two weeks in me for this, sure, yeah so this, this spot, this spot's been, it's definitely changing.
Speaker 1:The aspect of it's changing. Like when I first started in the patch working up north in alberta uh, building like oil facilities, you know the camps were grungy. You know the gym was 100 square feet, like this place. You know there's a, there's a Starbucks in our camp, there's a hairstylist or a barber, there's a massage therapist, the gym has a running track, basketball courts, like they try to make it, you know, better for the workers nowadays. And then in, in reality, like um sightsee is only an eight minute drive into fort saint john and like there's buses that go like you're not stuck in camp. So this it's been what I call a great week. I've seen guys come in where they're like, well, this is horrible. And I'm like you should see a rig camp in northern Alberta. You know, three hours from there, the closest paved road. That's horrible, yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's perspective, right? Yeah, I've seen some things and I know what I like these days and that doesn't sound terrible. I had a friend that went up to Diamond Mind and he was just cooking, but he'd always Snapchat me. He'd be like, hmm, I think I'll have three yogurts. Today I have two chocolate milks.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know, you can just eat as much as you want and then you just like work out and game with the other guys, yeah, and just rinse and repeat. So, yeah, I don't know, I sometimes think about it too. It's a little different with a kid, like, I guess I'm leaving for three months, 'll be obviously coming home to see him, so there is a break, and then they're coming out to see me, kind of thing. So it won't be like three, three months of no contact. But, um, yeah, even for like camp work. I've definitely thought about it lately because I'm like, man, you're gone for like two weeks and then you're back for a week and I'm like, yeah, I could get a camp job that didn't mind if I only worked half the year. Basically, yeah, yeah, we'd be in business, you know.
Speaker 1:And then, yeah, that one week where you're home you can actually be like very present yeah, that's, that's what I find like, um, you get to come home and be home and just unwind and do whatever you want. For me, I'm, uh, one of those people who doesn't really know how to relax too well, so I'm always doing something but tinkering tinkering in the garage or working in the yard. But it's still nice to you know, I can do what I want when I want. Obviously, I don't have kids, so it's uh, whatever I please yeah, no, it's.
Speaker 2:Uh, it's good, though I mean obviously for fishing, that's a great thing. You might not get all those that you might not get to go every weekend kind of deal, but you could have a week or 10 days or whatever you're shifting off and just go fish a few of them and just chill. For the rest, yeah, whatever you want to do, get some shit done. Yeah, one of the things that's so nice when you don't work Monday through Friday is just going to a bank on a weekday. So it's such a different vibe. It's like during the day and stuff you know, and and or like go get your. I mean, I do my own oil changes now, but we'll just say like oil change or something, yeah, it's like, go do it, you have to, you know. Whereas when you're working those five days a week, it's like sometimes it's like, oh, okay, well, if I take time off to go to the bank to do something that I have to, I lose money on it. Or it's like the peak hour and everyone's there and it's horrible.
Speaker 1:I got some friends now that you know buddies. You have two or three kids and I'm like I'm working in town and I'm like you must be exhausted.
Speaker 2:That's a lot to try to fit everything in and kids and just daycare is like you basically like one, one person, basically like if you're in a relationship, there's one person that's kind of working to pay daycare and some like a bit of groceries, yeah, no, yeah, it's a lot of having. Yeah, we're, we're lucky, we got into a daycare that's super close to our house, um, and then, yeah, it's, but you go to work to pay for all these things and then you don't fish. It's a confusing system to a fisherman, you know what I mean. Yeah, and then your day's off. It's like monsoon season and then you're working for five days and it's like the perfect weather. You look at the water levels they're perfect. You look at the consistency of the last few days Perfect. The lunar charts, perfect, everything's lining up and you're just swinging a hammer or sitting on at a computer. But yeah, it's a, it's a thing. I, I, I'll let you know if I find a way to get paid to fish.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's yeah, Hopefully the the podcast blows up and you're super payment.
Speaker 2:So then you can just see is you fish? Yeah, okay, I'll keep dreaming, I'll keep dreaming. I like that. Yeah, I guess. Back to the steelhead. Oh, we'll finish off a little bit about yourself. So you fished on the island for most of your life?
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, the trips, that's kind of what we talked about there last time. Yeah, the island I've explored a lot of it. There's still a lot I want to see, see. It's a never ending thing, um. But yeah, I've, uh I've gone to the States and fished, uh, like we chatted about last time, like uh, uh, oregon and Washington. Uh, I've, I've seen the Deschutes uh crooked river, which is just outside of band organ. Uh, washington, I've seen the Deschutes Crooked River, which is just outside of Bend, oregon. Anywhere around Bend is great fishing. It's a super cool area Around BC a lot. A little bit in Alberta, not very much. I brought a rod down to Mexico Nothing substantial down there and then I did some fly fishing over in the UK, which was different than how we do things here, but it was cool to just do it.
Speaker 2:Would you run over that? Because that was cool. Where did you go? You said it was like a little island by Italy.
Speaker 1:No, not quite that. I wish it was down there. It's called the Isle of man. It's in between the United Kingdom and Scotland or Ireland.
Speaker 2:Oh, I was so far. I just remember Ireland.
Speaker 1:Oh, I was so far. I just remember Ireland. Yeah, italy was on the hit list of just watching videos of guys fishing in the mountains in Italy. That's where my brain went. Yeah, fishing in Isle of man. I was camping out there. For the listeners in there it's Isle of man TT, it's a motorcycle race, the oldest uh motorsport race in the world. That's why I was there.
Speaker 1:But where we were camping there was a little creek and we were at a rugby club and there was a creek running alongside the property. It was hot and I just I went and, uh, cooled off in the trees. I was sitting beside the creek and I'm watching trout just everywhere rising. I'm like huh, I wonder if I could fish here. And hit Google up and found a guide and said, hey, can you take me out fishing? Yeah, no problem, I'll take you out tomorrow.
Speaker 1:So we went out and that was uh, they had, uh, it's their water reservoir system. Um, for anybody listening that knows Nanaimo, there's like the colliery dams kind of a water reservoir for Nanaimo, the same kind of deal. But they stock, uh, they stock these large, like 20, 25 inch big trout. I think. He said they stock it weekly too, like they'll just they'll throw 100 fish in a week just for people to catch, but definitely different, different fishing. There you're using 15 foot leader three, four dropper rigs on it and uh, three, four dropper rigs on it and uh, trying to trying to cast that and get it going was a bit of a struggle for me and he was, he was bugging me. He said I thought you said you fly fish and I do, but I'm not like this. But uh, he was. He was a cool guy. He was telling me lots of stories about uh, uh, fishing sea trout and stuff like that out there. Show me some pretty cool pictures. That was, uh, probably one of the cooler fishing trips, yeah.
Speaker 2:It's already a hard enough battle to cast a 15 foot leader for most people, yeah, um, let alone with multiple flies.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, I can see that being a bit of a challenge. Um, now, that's cool, man, I would love to just it's a cool story too, because like you weren't there to fish and then you go to fish and turned out pretty sweet. So, yeah, that's cool, I uh. Yeah, I guess I wanted to get back into that steelhead talk and just kind of run through some of the things I experienced and you can touch on it too, kind of thing for sure.
Speaker 2:Um, fly selection was another one that I don't know if it like baffles me or if you really stars do just have to align, like that steelhead has to be like. If something orange comes near me today, snap on it. You know what I mean, because I tried like things that have gone me fish years before. I tried lighter flies, unweighted flies, weighted flies and, yeah, nothing really seemed to to give me a solid thought this year. So fly selection is still a hard one to really make up in my head. Um, but I think next year I'm going to fish just larger flies and just be more aggressive with it. Is that kind of how you feel, or what's your thoughts?
Speaker 1:Yeah, for me. I would say I'm almost opposite of that. It's always been old faithful for me. I have the same setup, I run the same flies. There's maybe three colors I choose from. But, yeah, I always run Old Faithful and I think it's one of those things now where it's like I have the confidence in it because I've always just stuck to it and then I put fish on it and then I'm like, okay, this works. And then there'll be days where I'm like, oh, I'm going to change up. You know the colors, the water color is a little different, a little brighter out today, and you know they say there's the general rule of thumb dark days, dark flies. Light days, light flies.
Speaker 1:I've tried it, I've tried to follow it. You know, change sizes and even the sizing. Like said, you know you're gonna you go to go with bigger flies and in the winter I could see it, especially with some color. Yeah, okay, we'll size up. But I've had days where, um, I'm fishing a fly hard. I've been fishing it all day and it's it's losing feathers and it's getting more and more sparse as the day is going. I'm like I should really change this thing out. And then all of a sudden it's like bang. And I got this. I got a picture of a steelhead with what looks like just a hook and they're hanging off of it and I'm like, oh can't. They're hanging off of it and I'm like, oh can't can't argue with that.
Speaker 2:Yeah see, it's hard to really like formulate thoughts about it, especially when you don't actually catch one, so there's nothing to really go off of the grabs I did get, though this year there was one fly that got me multiple grabs and it was falling apart and I took it out. It was good enough to keep fishing. I should have just kept fishing it like you're getting grabs. Why change it?
Speaker 1:stupid that's and so that's like with me, with the old faithful, like it was just one of those things where it's like I was putting fish on that setup, that fly, and it just kept happening. So I was just like this works. And then in your head you get that confidence where it's like I know I've put fish on this fly, it's it's, this'll do it.
Speaker 2:You know what? Next year I have a game plan. I'm going to fish muddler minnow from day one to the end. Just see what it does. Why not? I didn't catch a fish this year. I tried a bunch of shit. Why not just like be, like, tie up, just you know, maybe different weighted ones as well, some weightless ones, but like, all the same, just a sparsely muddler minute, because then you're getting at least other trout you know might get, might get some brown, get this like you'll have them.
Speaker 1:That's why I don't like going super huge, like I've always like, maybe that two inch, two and a half inch, because you'll still get, you know, some trout grabs and stuff like that, like if you get a whole little two graphs but at the same time like that, like if you get a little too aggressive at the same time, not to like backpedal my own thing, but like the first steelhead I ever got on the couch in winter, absolutely blown out first time I drifted to nearly killed me and my buddy.
Speaker 1:It was, I think it was at like 3.1. It was like we had no business being out there and it was blown right out. But I had on this maybe four inch, four and a half inch big orange thing and at this point in the day, like we're tired, soaking wet and like I said it was, it was on a strip and it was in this huge back end and I was just stripping in hard and it blew up maybe four feet in front of me and a rocket chrome fish hit. It turned around, started screaming, line out and I was like yelling at my buddy. I'm like grab the boat. Like I thought he was going down the next set.
Speaker 1:I was like we gotta go, we gotta go got him around, but it was, it was. That was probably the biggest fly I've ever fished and now nowadays, with a couple more years under the belt, I like non-weighted flies. I like to use different sinking heads to get me where I need, or maybe I'll change up my leader length a little bit, but I'm a non-weighted fly guy. Yeah, tubes, I'll fish tubes sometimes okay, but um, the heavy-weighted flies I just. I get tired of getting like always stuck on the bottom or I get frustrated.
Speaker 2:That is, and that's a good point, because I don't really fish weighted flies and I did a little bit more this year and I found the same thing, like a lot of my friends fish weighted flies and they would be, like you know, stuck on the bottom and I would just be like gliding over stuff. But then it was in my head that, like I was like, oh, they're fishing deeper not that they were getting fish, but they were still fishing deeper. And then I've talked to some other people and they're like, do you not think that the fish would move a foot up if it wanted something? Yeah, so yeah, it's kind of crazy to think that I went, you know probably what, let's say, once a week. So that's four, eight, maybe almost like 16 times in three months.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and how many grabs did you say you got?
Speaker 2:Solid for sure 100%. Three um. Solid for sure A hundred percent three and then two that are in the 73.77%.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean. I'm like, hmm, yeah, seems it was definitely a fish, uh, but there was like two grabs that were like like chewing on my fly this year, yeah, uh, and I just I froze, didn't move anything and it just stopped. So I'm going to try next year, always carrying a loop in my hand and dropping that loop If I feel that yeah, um, because that's the only thing that I've been. I've talked to a few people and that's the only thing that came up as something worth trying. In those situations I think we we went over this last time because, like, when you're on the swing, the fish grabs it and even if they stay still, the line is still in motion. So eventually that fly will end up in the corner of their mouth. Therefore, you hook them good time, um. But then when we're, when it's straight down bank, and they grab it, but they don't turn and run right away and you don't want to pull against them because that pulls the hook out of their mouth. So having that loop when you let go line travels past them and pulls it towards the, and then they get pissed off and and bolt, kind of things. That's the only thing I can do the few grabs I got this year.
Speaker 2:I well two of them out of those three that are for sure were like me knowing there would be one there. So that felt good because I was like I know that area, I know that there's like a little bit of a pocket, and I was looking at the water and there's folders around. I was like there is a hundred percent of fish in this run, willie Gregg. And it happened twice where I kind of predicted that. So there's improvement. It just didn't happen this year. But now I'm I'm thinking I'm going to have to like learn some some magic or something, do some kind of dance before I go there's a, there's a secret dance.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know it. Yeah, I do know the dance.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we'll end the podcast here. Um, yeah, man, I it.
Speaker 1:It's, uh, the left field and he's thinking about topics here, something we didn't talk about last time. What, uh, what's your thoughts on hatchery, hatchery, steelhead and like are they good, are they bad? Like for me, okay, you go first. No, no, no, no.
Speaker 2:No, you go ahead. No, you had more going on in your head, I'm sure.
Speaker 1:Well, I look at, we'll talk about, like the Chilliwack, you know, you look at how big that fishery is and how many returning numbers they have, and they're nice fish too, and even then their wild have a pretty good number coming in as well. And I've heard a lot of guys you know I'm no biologist, I'm no scientist by any means I've heard a lot of guys talk about how hatchery fish will ruin a system. It ruins the bloodline, I can see it, but I think nowadays, like most, most brood stalking comes from a completely different system. Anyways, um, I just I look at it in like I think some places could use it where it benefits the river, it benefits the fishermen, it benefits the economy.
Speaker 1:For example, like the naimo river used to be to what I've heard, used to be a legend, it used to be one of the best steelhead rivers on the island and now, like I I'm from the nine, I don't fish the nine river at all, I don't bother. But, like I've heard, the guys that do catch fish out of there catch very big fish. But it's one of those rivers and it's like well, why they have a hatchery, like why are they not doing a steelhead enhancement program, like the nine was a big enough river. It could be driftable. You could have guides out here. You know the. The fishing shops will benefit from this, hotels will benefit from this, local businesses, local restaurants, like. I don't understand why they don't pump it out then, in a general sense, like what's your, your thoughts on your?
Speaker 2:programs as you, uneducated Basically, though, right, not educated in this specifically. So, yeah, I think that I definitely don't know enough about it to really make judgments. I haven't been on systems. Like I know, the couching used to have a hatchery and I was talking to another guide and he said that they still catch the audit hatchery, but it's probably coming from another system, meaning that steelhead, can you know, follow another one, or maybe, because it's a hatchery, it just was tormented and had to leave home.
Speaker 2:I don't know, but you would think by now and it's making me think of the US, but you'd think by now they would have a hatchery program that would keep the wild bloodline going stronger, or something. I mean, I don't know why. It just seems like if they were able to make the hatchery ones from the wild ones, then they would be wild, just bred in captivity. Captivity, and maybe that's what it is, and I just am uneducated in it. Uh, so I I agree, though I mean it would. You know, more numbers in fish would definitely improve, would draw more attention and and all that stuff. Um, but I think mostly because it they stopped it because it was being a problem with the wilds. They stopped it because it was being a problem with the wilds fighting for spawning grounds, maybe, but from what I know is a hatchery. When they drop them in they go back to the hatchery, so I don't even know that that's. That's a good one.
Speaker 2:I haven't thought about it a lot. I have talked to a few people about it and heard their speculations, but I can't repeat what they said because I don't fully remember. Uh, to be honest, I would love to see, I would love to learn about it more, um, but I would love to see, like a fishery that has a hatchery on it, I actually go fish it for myself and and enjoy it, just to see, like the difference. Because I mean, in perspective, last year we got like a thousand steelhead or so, whatever. It was the collagen, um, but for the length of that river and all that, and compared to rivers all around us that could do the same numbers, they don't really right, yeah so. And then compared to rivers on the mainland that do really good, but then the, the amount of river there is they have, you know, it's almost like we get more.
Speaker 2:It's kind of like how the, how the us, like florida, has as many people as canada, you know like it's a massive river so there's a lot of people, but realistically, we have a lot of steelhead in the cow gin already. Um, but yeah, I do wonder if, uh, like, what is the issue, um, that wild or that the hatchery ones actually pose to the, uh, the wild ones? I wonder what that is. It's probably something to do with spawning grounds and like fighting for it and like, potentially, I don't know. That's the only thing that makes sense in my head, pondering it.
Speaker 1:I just think of, like the systems that have died out, like sadly, you know, like the Thompson, the gold, and it's sad, like I don't know if you ever got to experience the gold in its glory days, or you know, I never did either. I've only heard of the legend, and same with the Thompson, but it's like, how do you get those systems back? And it's, it's one of those things I don't think you'll ever, ever will at this point, without some kind of enhancement.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I think ever will at this point without some kind of enhancement. Yeah, yeah, I think obviously, once again, uneducated, uh, but I would assume we would have to first figure out what's going on. Yeah, um, you know, it's probably not just happening in the rivers. Maybe some, like bad forestry practices or some mining or whatever might have caused the issue at first. But a system that could hold them and that doesn't have any of those issues should be able to bounce back. If you know, the fish just were given the chance. But the fish that are in the pacific northwest, like lower down in the states, from what I've gathered, um, from other people just talking with them, is that like their steelhead kind of sit more in that area where ours go up more towards alaska and do a loop and so they're kind of hitting more towards, like, um, japan and stuff.
Speaker 2:So the fishery, the fishing out there in the wild, wild west, who knows what's happening on? Yeah, so, yeah, it's, it's an interesting one, is it? Temperatures of the ocean? Is it this, is it that? But you know, salmon are on basically, let's say, averagely, a four-year cycle. So you know, 16 years. You could, in theory, have an insane run, mm-hmm.
Speaker 1:If you try.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I.
Speaker 1:I guess you know what I mean and they've done it before yeah, and it's like, without getting into fucking politics and all the bullshit of it all, it's like something's gotta change for sure. And for me, like I go ocean fishing and stuff, but it's not quite the same. Like I said, like I got my book, I call the fishing and stuff, but it's not great to see them. Like I said, like I got my book, I call the Bible, and it's like these are rivers that I've been fishing for 20 plus years now and you see the changes and you see you know I have documented proof of the changes and what's happening and like I see it first hand. Yeah, yeah, there's definitely some certain things that gotta happen. They're gonna change if we want to see it.
Speaker 2:Carry on, yeah and I think, like I know anyone that gear fishes will will hate me for saying it, but I mean something like steelheading should almost be like fly, only on the swing, you know you're getting you're getting to the point where it's the fish need some kind of break come some kind of break, you know, and as much as that's like bias, because I like to swing for them um, but really it's's like you know, pin setups.
Speaker 2:They can catch so many fish, but then that all wraps around back into you know. Now you're taking away from guides, you're taking food off people's plates, lowering business. So, yeah, it's a lot of politics. That's something I really noticed when I got into guiding. Uh, was the politics even my second year?
Speaker 2:So in year one, I learned I was like blown away. I was like, oh, I mean, I gotta hold myself up in a certain way. I gotta, you know all these different closures that happen for kind of weird reasons or like the way they're doing it isn't the most efficient for what they're trying to actually make happen, and seeing things like that and then hearing people that you know have good reasonings and and just hearing a lot of stuff really, um, all the way to like you know how someone holds a fish in in a picture, people can like bark down your you know. So there's a lot of kind of when you're actually kind of in the pilot's guide, you're, there's a lot to kind of consider. So I'm getting there, I've made mistakes and I've only learned from them, so I'll keep doing that. That's the best I can do.
Speaker 1:I mean, if you paint it with a broad paintbrush, you look at the big picture, it's like, yeah, like guys will get mad about the way you hold the fish, or you know, oh, he's got gloves on. It's like. I think it's almost a frustration of the fishermen barking at each other because we don't have the answers that should be provided to us by the powers to be. Well and it's we're just coming up with these. He's killing the fish because he's holding the note of water.
Speaker 2:Like it's like if you go for your hunting license, like you go to, I haven't done it, so that is something coming up. But I've talked to some other people and they're like, yeah, I mean, you got to know your hunting seasons, you got to know um proper ways of handling your, your kill and all these things. And then it's also like where are the vitals on a deer? You know? Like if you can't point at vitals on a deer, you shouldn't be shooting at it, kind of deal. And so I think the same should go for fisheries, like just a simple test, or like sure you know, or identification identification.
Speaker 2:First one yeah, no doubt, but then also just like hey, so proper fish handling, if you're planning on not keeping, pinch your barb, you're planning on keeping it, leave the barb. You know, I guess I'm in different story. In the, the ocean still barbless, but it should be a little bit more like that. So people you know, and then like how to keep trout alive, keep them in the water no more than five seconds or so outside of the water, get them back in that kind of whole deal, because I've seen a lot of like. If you look at it, kind of like you said, you know, paint it with a brush. If you painted each generation of fishermen, from you know, our grandparents, all the way to now, not only would you see like the traditional fly fishing vest all the way up to like 2000 and I guess that like sins yeah, and then the guy's just wearing this like crazy gear with all these fucking things hanging off of him rod's fucking massive, hot, bright colors on his reel just crazy.
Speaker 2:But what you'd notice is like they used to fish for food, yeah, um, and there was, you know, fly fishing. That was people were weren't weren't catching for food, but it was more so for food. So now we're getting into the realm of like not catching for food, um, and releasing them for multiple reasons, either just to keep them alive and let them grow more, um, or, you know, because that's just the law. But at the end of the day, you're if you learned from someone that you know used to catch 20 steelhead in a day and bonk each one, fill a freezer. And now he's like you know well, this is how you handle a steelhead. And he's like you know well, this is how you handle a steelhead. And he's like throws it back in the water and you're like, oh, okay, well, that's how you're going to learn.
Speaker 2:So I think social media, for that aspect, has brought a bit of you know. Now, kids you know my age or younger are watching people like you and me who hold the fish in the water, who have a rubber net, who pick up trash, who do all these things. So it's almost more appealing than seeing someone like drag a steelhead onto rocks and like kick it back. You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:Yeah for sure, and it's almost one of those things, you know, some people say, uh, social media has ruined fishing, or you know blowout spots. And then, at the same time, it's like, well, in certain aspects, uh, the fishing community is benefiting from it because, yeah, you can get those proper practices out there. I, I for me'm, I'm on the fence about it. You know, I've seen certain systems get blown out because of social media and it's like, okay, like you see the, the disrespect happening on the river and just seeing poor practice, and at the same time, like you said, you know, people, people are watching, people are learning from the examples that we put out. Like I, I started a fishing page because I was just like I'll keep my normal life and my fishing life separate and I never expected to have I think I just passed like 900 followers. Like I never expected that and you know that's 900 people, that you know, not everybody's going to be a professional or a seasoned vet.
Speaker 2:You know there's probably some young guys there watching and learning from what I post yeah, yeah, I, even just with the photos aspect of things I don't take, I was for a bit there like taking every photo. You know, when I first got into fly fishing, every fish got a photo and then eventually I went to the big ones and now it's like probably still the big ones, but really it's like the ones that mean something, where I was like that was crazy, let's get that one. Or this happened, let's get that one. Or, you know, steelhead would get a photo. But I don't post a lot these days because I was like well, it's for me.
Speaker 2:And then I kind of realized I was going for likes. I was like how many likes, how many likes? And I was like that's not what it's about. Um, it is cool to like have people talk about it and stuff, but I posted photos that have blown up spots that I like just didn't think people would recognize that small snippet of a tree next week. It's like I've never seen people up here. That's crazy. You know what I mean. So, yeah, but like, keep fish wet, that movement. Now people hashtag that and like you know. So there's, there's those aspects. You're always going to find the negatives and the positives. I think, like you know, people are like all the good spots get blown out by social media. I just fished my home river in multiple sections. I've never fished before. If you're willing to like go where other people aren't, you'll find secluded areas, oh for sure, yeah, you know I.
Speaker 1:Even if there is someone there, there's more, uh, more spots, you know yeah, I mean, like we talked about on the last last one a couple winters ago now, but I was on a big skunk. I was on like a 50 day skunk, on like on water days, 50 days, and I think I put round trip from Nanaimo, like I think it was like 1300 kilometers on my truck, but I hit, I think, nine different systems. So like I was out there and yeah, there was, you know, eight of those systems.
Speaker 2:I'd never seen another soul so yeah, yeah, and that's the the nice thing about the whole adventure is is getting to see that new water. I wish I lived in the nine low. You're in a good location for the island. It's the central, yeah, it's the central. You got rivers below you, above you.
Speaker 1:For me it's pretty much above, or that way or that way, kind of deal, yeah, um I've heard guys said that like I had a buddy who lived in bick and he's like, yeah, it's nice being in a bigger city, but he's like you're always driving north you're always driving north and then being on an island.
Speaker 2:If you want to go drive to the us, you got to get on a ferry and then that's an expensive day right there. You know, yeah, I would love to be up in that area. Just for the simple fact of, yeah, there's so much more water, I'd go search for, uh, steelhead. I do like the last handful of years with the kid and all, I've just been focusing on the couch and but right before I had my kid, um, we were starting to go like further up island and so much beautiful water and yeah, like, if you saw someone, chances are they were leaving or you're leaving.
Speaker 2:Yes, it was in the like main area that you would see someone. It was rarely would someone walk up on them, on us in the bush, being like, oh, you know what I mean. So, yeah, it's, it's cool. I love the fact that you can go do that. It just sucks that gas is so expensive right now I can't. Even I. I I now like I always budget for my gas, but I now really budget for my gas and that's like work gas and then play gas and then I have to take that play gas and move it out of there because I'm like you need money other places.
Speaker 1:It's horrible how unpredictable it is, like you know, like 35 cents in a month. I know it's like how do you budget month?
Speaker 2:I know how do you budget for that? How do you budget for that? I mean, when I bought the truck, it was 100 bucks to fill. Now it's like right now it's literally 194 dollars to fill.
Speaker 2:Yeah that's why I drive a diesel, so it's not cheap no, no, nothing, nothing is, but yeah, it's a good place to go explore up island like. You got quite a few beautiful. You got to do your research. But even if you don't see fish, you're going to see some absolutely incredible stuff that only a very handful of people have seen.
Speaker 1:Yeah, one of the it's probably about four years ago now a friend of mine and myself we like, hey, let's just do a weekend trip up island and we had two systems in mind and we ended up the main system we wanted to go fish was actually blown out like badly. Um, I was like looking on the maps and kind of doing some research and we're like, oh, we could go try this, try this area and uh, it ended up being a great trip. Um, it was the most remote place I've ever been on the island. It was a super cool system. Uh, it was a beautiful old growth forest and we got multiple fish to hand. It was, uh, it was a great trip.
Speaker 2:Yeah, just getting out there and seeing it it's uh, yeah maybe that's what I'll also do next year is just like not go to the couch and for for steelhead and just like not go out every weekend. But when I go out, go for like, yeah, two, two full days of fishing and yeah, because it's there's so much to see out there and those I love. Being further up island, it is super cool up there. Yeah, there's no gate.
Speaker 1:It's just nice. You get past camp wherever there's no gates yeah, and that is like huge.
Speaker 2:Port Renfrew really got gated up, as you know. Yeah, the old-growth protests going on. What was crazy about that old-growth protest is that the people that were there protesting, when they would leave an area, it would just be like garstroid yeah, like disgusting. Yeah, an area it would just be like dark, destroyed yeah, like disgusting. Yeah, I talked to a couple cops um, down there and stuff, because a few times there was like cop blockades and they're just like seeing what we're up to if they would let us pass or not, kind of thing, and and there's slightly horror stories on what the people were doing up there.
Speaker 2:But yeah, there I was like, what about the garbage? Like he's like, oh well, we have the city has to pay or someone has to pay to like have people come up and clean up the garbage after the people protesting to protect the forests? That's like that's outrageous, very counteractive, bit counteractive, very counteractive. And it's like, yeah, I mean you could probably fight a better situation in a court. The amount of money that they were actually getting was substantial and there's like some fraud, shit going on or some shit going on where people, the people higher up, were like banking money. The people of the protest were like just raking in money, and I think one wasn't even like from canada. Yeah, I don't know, I heard little snippets of stories. I don't know how factual they are, but I wouldn't even doubt it. So it's like, yeah, just kind of wild to think that you know you're out there protesting as a person and then you just like leave a tent. It looked like a festival, it looks like a little mini festival.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I, I think I drove out that way before it got really bad. And, yeah, one of those folks tried to stop me and I was like listen, you're not stopping me from carrying on here. That's like you don't want me to get out of my truck. But yeah, it was. Uh, just like the scene I saw at that point. That was way early on. I was like what are you guys doing here, like you're not helping?
Speaker 2:no, that's just like yeah, just a crazy little scenario. But long story short, so that area port ramp crew has gone a lot harder to go find steelhead and you don't even find the steelhead because those are already hard enough. When you're going in those systems, timing is so dramatically important. But, um, just getting through gates or, like you, one way you knew, and then you can't go there and there's other ways to get there but then it's like a four hour drive around to get to the other side and it's like you can't do that. So I did float last year as a river up there. That was just beautiful. Um, I did post a little reel about the waterfall that was there. It, it was gorgeous.
Speaker 2:But we found the fish. They just didn't want us and the we were drifting down. So by the time we found them, we were like already facing them, kind of thing. Yeah, they saw us, we saw them, kind of deal. We see them scurry away. And then we sent one guy down. It was like he could see them. And yeah, it's cool seeing those fish. They're like when you've learned to respect them, you know our level and then you just see them. It's cool, even if you're not watching them. You're like hey, I did some part of it worked out. You know, I found fish yeah, that's.
Speaker 1:It's one of those things you kind of, as you've gotten a couple fish to hand, you're kind of just stoked to just see them and watching them spawn or just battling it out. I've had the pleasure of seeing fish actually moving, like summer fish coming up, falls, and that's a cool thing to get to witness. That would be a cool one. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, because the steelhead, as far as I know, can jump the highest as well, like higher than Cove.
Speaker 1:There's some systems that are kind of near the areas that we've touched base on, where I've walked deep into canyons and found falls where it was like there's no, this isn't passable. But seeing fish you know a kilometer up from that, but like seeing the falls and then like what the fuck is this?
Speaker 2:like how, how, how it's cool too, because when they jump into it you see them like stop for a second, yeah cold, they're like vibrating, and then they eat up.
Speaker 1:That's where my argument, especially with steelhead, the whole like, oh, don't hold them out of water. And I'm like I've first hand seen these fish out of water for a good you know, I've seen the hang time they get yeah, oh my god, and they're exerting themselves in that moment exactly.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I think it's, uh, it's a cool, cool area to explore. I haven't explored enough of the mainland or down in the us, so that that's to come, uh, or I know us.
Speaker 1:Us would be cool. Yeah, washington state would be cool. I had a friend that just went down to do some winter fishing. Um, he's a, he's a pin fisherman, but he, they couple really great fish. I had a friend that just went down to do some winter fishing. Um, he's a, he's a pin fisherman, but he, they couple really great fish. They had a good weekend. Nice.
Speaker 2:There's still some true beautiful systems down there with really big fish yeah, I know there's definitely a handful on the island that have the big fish, and cow gin is definitely one of them. I've seen some very big fish in the cow. I've seen the photos of some of the ones from other systems and it's like, ooh, yeah, you bring your eight-weight out. You know, yeah, maybe even a nine-weight. No, yeah, yeah, nine-weight wouldn't hurt the system, it wouldn't hurt your cause.
Speaker 1:Yeah, well, my one last year was my biggest fish and yeah, it was pretty big hands and it was full grip and I'm a 240-pound guy and that fish looked big beside me and I was like, okay, that's a good one.
Speaker 2:That's a hefty one. Yeah, well, on that note, enough steelhead season. So yeah, get on with it. Uh, what's the other style of, uh fly fishing that you enjoy? So we know you like swinging flies. Yes, it's the next thing that, uh, so I'm.
Speaker 1:I'm uh, some, some of the old faithful guys will cringe at it, but I love your own thing too. It's, uh, such an effective way to fish and it's it's fun. I've I've had such a blast doing it. Um, just getting into systems, systems, uh, at certain times a year, you know, it's just like bang, bang, bang, bang. It's just all day long fun and uh, yeah, it's. I've tied my, uh, my own rods I think we touched base on that last time. I've I've made a couple rods, huh. So, uh, the nymphing rod setup I have. I run the uh, the uh shadow two, which has been a great rod. It's super fun, it's super nimble, um, it's just a fun way to fish, like you know, when you get real good at it and you literally bounce and off the rocks and you can it. You don't think you would be able to, but you can.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, it's a super fun way to fit.
Speaker 2:You level up and start realizing what's rocks and what's you know. Or you can see the structure and you actually lift your hand and follow the structure, or you're like I don't know. Guests get impressed when I'm like, oh try, right in that scene, I just I know there's one, yeah, yeah, I say that because to me I know there's one in there, do I know if he's going to grab? But then they're always like, oh man, you called it. And I'm like, yeah, I guess that's my job. But it's's also like you know where fish are. We're dark steelheads, so now we're back to knowing some shit. Right, they make us look uneducated. And then Rainbow Trout, the little guys, the residents, they make us look smart Rockstars, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like rockstars. It's wild. Yeah, like rock stars, but it's uh, wow, like the galveston's, obviously a well-known river. So when, say we're blowing it up like the browns, I know exactly where to look for them at this point in my life, like I could walk in and be like right there and yeah, with that system, yeah, or just bang bang it's.
Speaker 2:I have a hard like I can get browns on my own. I know where browns are, um, to an extent I can definitely do a lot more. Um, field work on that, no problem, but it's a hard thing to get guests to be able to get them. Yeah, because that is a challenge. Uh, you know, depending on how well people cast, they might have just learned that day. Um, you know stream.
Speaker 1:I just experienced that like with my girlfriend because I had her on the euro set up right and she never fly fish like she's tried my single spay and like stuff, but she's never done that before, so that was a full like from scratch. Here's what you do. I couldn't be a guy to tell you that I yeah, I start in.
Speaker 2:I start in systems. I like I break down things. I didn't learn so well in school because they always tried to teach me stuff the same way and never tried it at a new angle. So when I teach I teach in a different angle if it's not working the first time. But I break it down.
Speaker 2:I really start with a few things. One is I teach people about your rod. So not so much how it loads, like since you're on, we're not really casting Sometimes if I'm doing like dry flies, I'll teach them that too. But I'm more talk about like how using the backbone puts so much more pressure on the fish so that they get that. Once they got that, I teach them how to strip by holding the line, having them stand there, or sometimes I'll do it on the water, or I'll just be like okay, strip, and you know whatever way I do it, and then I get them to grab the line from their hand and toss it back and forth.
Speaker 2:Because that's something my fly casting lessons taught me was just to like pick up your line and throw it back in your hand multiple times just to get them a little bit of muscle memory, and I'm like if you're really good at it, you can do it without looking. So I'm like that's your goal. If, by halfway through the day, you can have that down, the next part of your day is going to be a lot, a lot easier, cause when I yell strip, you're going to be like, okay, here it is, you know. But then I, then I get into the actual like casting of it, and I always just get people to bring it up right up high and just flick it. So not really a cast, but a flick. And then, once they got that, I teach them the angles of where I want them to hold the rod um, you know, based off of where their fly is, their fly is and then I go into, like deeper and higher, how to read that, and then work, fine-tune everything.
Speaker 2:So it's a tough one, though, because if I teach my wife how to fish, it's not as effective as if you probably taught her. And so that same scenario, you know, like if I never euroed and you took me out and taught me, I'd probably be have an easier time learning, because you're not, I'm not with you every day, so, like what you say, I would have full years. But yeah, I've talked with a few people about trying to teach your spouse, and it's like it is, um, it's almost more effective to absolutely not do it. Yeah, no matter what, like whether you know your spouse is the most intelligent person in the world or not, it's just that initial, like you're two situations, um, but yeah, I find that people get hung up on different things, like it's never consistent. It's not just this, it's not just that, and then usually it's just how they're looking at it, what they're thinking about it. So another thing I like to touch on is like I imagine my fly when it's in the water.
Speaker 1:Do you do that, yeah, with the imagination and the feel.
Speaker 2:Yeah. So like when we're swinging, we're imagining it's now there and moving over it's swinging when we're Euroing. I really tell them to like imagine where your fly is. When we're Euroing, I really tell them to like imagine where your fly is and you know. If you notice something that points out that that's not what's happening, then go for a recast. You know whether your line's belling underwater because you didn't keep it taunt enough or because you cast it too far down, or whatever. I'm like, pay attention to these things and then eventually I'll just see the change and I'm like, oh, you got it now. Yeah, it's like that and they're, it's all perfect. So, and then the next battle is how to keep a freaking fish on holy moly. Um, yeah, but yeah, I'm really excited for streamering this year. Do you do streamer fishing as well?
Speaker 1:I do a little bit. Yeah, not as much as I would like to. Um, usually by that time in the season I like I ride motorcycles, so it's usually kind of take a little break from my fishing um this year in may, when the rest of the river opens up, you should come out. Yeah, I think that would be great.
Speaker 2:I have one other buddy that I would bring, and that's three people that can row. No one needs to be good at rowing, we just need to be able to keep the boat in roughly the middle of the damn river and let me cast. I've never had, oh actually once.
Speaker 1:Once I went out with a buddy who we went on his drift boat. But every every other time I've ever been out I've always brought my friends.
Speaker 2:I'm always the guy rowing yeah, and that's where I it's. If you ever want to get on people's boats, this is just a for your information. If you want people to take you out on their drift boat, their raft, their whatever, learn how to deal with their shit, learn how to row it. Yeah, you could show up and be like do you know how to row? Yeah, yeah, you could show up and be like do you know how to row? Yep, all right, come on, come with me.
Speaker 2:If you ask a guy randomly like, hey, take, can I come down on your drift boat, and they're like, can you row? And you say no, lie to them, say yes, and they'll take you, let them find out you can't row, or just just be like I thought I was really good at this. Teach me more, you know. But yeah, it's, uh, it's a big thing. Like when I first got my raft, I had quite a few people message me, asking me if I could take them down the river, and I was just kind of like, oh, I've never really talked to you. No, not that I went with you, but I see that you want a drift.
Speaker 1:Yeah. And even if it's like, if you can't row, it's like back a big, hefty lunch. I'm eating well, drinking well, you've got to bring a good conversation.
Speaker 2:Exactly, bring some flies. Yeah, it is a thing. So, yeah, we should. Uh, it is, you know, because when your friend with the boat goes home, their day's not done. They're not unloading their boat, they're, you know, cleaning it, getting it ready to sit for a week or longer, depending on what. What it is. Um, but yeah, I would. Uh, I want to hit up um streamers pretty hard in that one opens, because I just been drifting past that section, constantly crying deep down inside.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, I'd love to do that.
Speaker 2:That'd be great yeah, that would be a fun one, or you could bring your lady out.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I could bring my raft too. We could do a double drift anything to that.
Speaker 2:We got options.
Speaker 1:That's what we're getting at there's options, what we can do.
Speaker 2:It, yeah, the whole menu of what we could do, that's right.
Speaker 1:Uh, dry flies too. So like I I don't fish a lot of dry flies, obviously, like when I was a kid, when I first started out fly fishing, like it was, it was kind of just like like I had a box with a couple mayflies and mosquito patterns and like it was that, or it would be like little leech patterns or, um, yeah, I can't think of the name right now but just little sub-creatures, but dry flies for the guys that haven't done it, there's nothing that beats it. I have a friend who I kind of brought into fly fishing and it was either steelheading or euronymphing fishing and it was either steelheading or euro nipping and I was like man, I was like you gotta learn how to throw a dry fly and like see that big dry fly, eat. Like obviously for you, like on the west slopes, like nothing beats, but you get on those days, or like this is insane.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's super cool and I think you know I experienced teaching a friend that had never fly fished at all how to streamer fish, and he didn't fish. That was on the bow river, so fishing on the bow river is pretty good, yeah, but he knew nothing and learned how to do it. So it's like people are like, oh well, don't start on the hardest, or whatever they may say, but it's like if you just learn from someone that knows what they're doing, if you want to get into fly fishing, find someone that knows what they're doing, even if they just know 10%.
Speaker 1:The Bow River, for I have a friend, a set of friends, that just moved out there. But I met another friend on a steelhead trip and he lives in the Calgary area and he fishes bow a lot, is it Joe? Yeah, so yeah, joe, and you can see the quality of Browns. But I actually set him up with another buddy, buddy, his instagram swisher, sweet swag. He is the.
Speaker 2:He's the brown whisperer yeah, I've, I've talked to him and he will eventually be on. I stayed with joe. Um, yeah, and victoria, they're awesome I hope they hear this. You guys are awesome, yeah, going. Um, yeah, I had loads of fun with joe and it's a great system. I mean, we swung in, we caught some big fish. I got a 31 inch brown which just blew my fucking socks off. It was so cool. Um, and then I got like a 28 inch brown, so both my personal best on browns, yeah, at night on the swing yeah, the nighttime thing is super cool.
Speaker 1:I wish I would love to try that. I talked to a friend on the island here who used to do it on the cow. He's like that, he's like you just literally throw it at the bank and bounce it off the bank yeah, yeah, no, night fishing is sweet.
Speaker 2:I enjoy it. It's more like you feel, more like you already feel like you're some kind of mickey mouse impersonator, you know, fantasia style, whipping shit around, but then when you go in the nighttime you're like a jedi. You're like, yeah, fucking honing in on sounds around you. You're seeing things and then making calculated decisions, catching the bush behind you, breaking that branch off because it fucked up your cast, you know, and then you finally link up with one um, yeah, that's that's. It's a good time. I would love to go do.
Speaker 2:I did a night drift on the, on the bow, uh, and got some good fish. So I would like to do that again. But what I would really like to do is do a drift down in, like Montana or something like a three, three to seven day drift camp, you know. But that'd be super cool, almost like, yeah, it would be super cool to be able to do a drift at night, like have someone that knows the area well enough that you could just like go down at night and camp during the the day. I don't know, I'd do it reverse. You know all the fishing it would be.
Speaker 2:But yeah, mouse eats at night are super cool because you see them like chase and like nibble out your fly as you're ripping it in. And and then, yeah, streamers are super effective at night. I mean, when they get to a certain size, they're nocturnal hunters. And the fact that they take nymphs during the day it's pretty much because they don't close their eyes so they're just hardly resting when they see that flash or whatever. Yeah, it's a good time. I also really like the hatches that happen, like the gas hatches that happen like right before uh, dark, like super dusky, you know it's about to to get to the point where you need a flashlight to walk around. Yeah, that's a cool time to be out. But I.
Speaker 1:I experienced that for the first time on, uh, when I did that trip down to oregon. I was on the deschutes and it was I don't know if it was caddis, but like they were pretty big, it might even been during, uh, what I think they're called salmon flies. Um, it was raised, the sun was going down, I was getting cold and I was watching the river. Maybe an hour before sundown the river was kind of boiling around.
Speaker 1:The section of the Deschutes I was in is very well-renowned it's blue ribbon. There's fish everywhere. But as it got cooler and it was dropping off, I was watching the banks and it was just this and you're looking and all these bugs are just falling off the trees because, just that cold snap that just happens, bugs start dropping, all these fish just move to the bank. And I was like, well, this is crazy. I had a uh, a nymphing setup with me so I ended up just throwing in. But yeah, I was catching really good fish, but it's pretty crazy to watch those hatches kind of happening and it's like this is nuts yeah, no, it's a good time.
Speaker 2:Like I said, I'm so, so ready for this season. From the winter fishing. Um, you know, I've been getting a few streamer meets yeah, now getting some fishing, a lot of minnows as well, since obviously that's the time of the year. Getting those labs are always fun. And then, yeah, I one of my friends got a dry eat a bit ago. Another guide got a dry eat like the week last weekend.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, um, I was like, oh, so it begins, but I, this year I'm going to fish a lot more bigger dries. Like I would like to do a day of one person on dries and one person on streamer and switching that back and forth, so everyone's happy. But, and just like, have one person constantly tossing a big dry on the money spot as we go down the whole day and just see because I did it partially on some sections and got more fish that weren't even feeding on the surface, or at least at that time I didn't see them as we're moving past. So I was like, maybe there is a little bit more dry fly action on the couch. And then we know, yeah, but when it's like a prolific hatch nymphs work so much better than a dry, yes, it's, yeah, yeah and that's I guess that's not uncommon like, if you're fishing dries, you're probably wanting that style to eat, but I've definitely noticed that it's like it's much easier to just catch the catch, the fish subsurface.
Speaker 2:Then, yeah, you know, or I or I go the opposite and I do not try to match the hatch, and then I get, yeah, sometimes it's close, but sometimes, like another one I found was like a chronomid emerger, um, oh yeah, like a chronomid style body with the cdc thing at the top and just letting it swing through. Um, that dead drift gets the grabs and the swing gets the grabs and then when it sits there in the riffle, it gets the grab. So I got a lot, a lot of things I want to play around with this year. Um, I would like to get a two-hand rod, but it's not in the the books right now. I need to save my money for other things.
Speaker 1:So yeah, that's like we're uh like on the topic of extreme rates that we were talking about last time like the dream trip to alaska, like mouse patterns for those big bows yeah yeah, dream about it every day it's gonna be a reality for you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I I've, I've put in a motion. It's happening. Um, there's very little that would prevent it from happening. So, yeah, just four days, four fishing days. Okay, lady up there, geez, I will. Uh, is there then I'll let you know. I, I plan on on. It's wasn't even that much for the flights to Alaska and I have that buddy that's moving away. So that's why I was like hey, now we've got you.
Speaker 1:There's a system up there. I've kind of sort of looked into the chip. You may know the system I'm talking about. I'm not giving it away, but it is well-renowned. It's back on the steelhead route but it's a small system. You fly into this town and they got everything. You get a vehicle, a drift boat, everything you need. You just go. Alaska is so high up on my list of places to go check out. Let's wrap it up, because we did do the bucket list kind of thing.
Speaker 2:Alaska is so high up on my list of places to go check out. Well, let's wrap it up, because we did do the the bucket list kind of thing, yeah, last time. So let's wrap it up with that, because somehow we've almost nailed two hours that flew by, but yeah, what's the bucket list? So Alaska, mousing Alaska.
Speaker 1:Alaska mousing, um, alaska steelhead too, but Alaska mousing is a huge one for me. Um, there's, you know, uh, down South, like getting into like Patagonia uh area down there would be absolutely insane. Um, and then, uh, back in Canadian waters, uh, uh, to go out to the east coast would be huge for me to go, uh, fish atlantic salmon. I think that's a super cool fishery out there. The fish are huge, they're active, it's, you know, it'd be like putting a chinook on dry flies. It would just be the craziest thing. I don't know. I watch videos of it and I'm like this is nuts. So that's a, that's a big one. Um, and then I think, uh, the other one is just a.
Speaker 1:Greenland, uh, the fishing there, you know, arctic char stuff, like that would be a super cool. Like the Arctic char. I see the photos of like the Arctic char when they're in the spawn and they're just red and blue and orange and it's like that's pretty cool. And then you're just in, like in this absolutely foreign landscape and you know, black ash, volcanic rock, can. I think that'd be a super cool fishery yeah, I like that.
Speaker 2:That's all all the things. That's good. I haven't mentioned this on the podcast yet, um, but you mentioned patagonia and I'm thinking maybe it's it's worth just mentioning. But, um, I have a buddy who's from Chile and we've been working on getting a hosted trip going. He's actually in tourism business and then I've wanted to do hosted trips out there, so we're motioning towards that. I've already got a couple of people that said they're in, already got a couple of people that said they're in, and so everything accommodations, uh, food and all that will be taken care of.
Speaker 2:But then, uh, this first round is going to be more of a like get out there and and test out the water and stuff, yeah, I go see what it's. So, yeah, if you're interested when more things formulate, yeah, okay, okay, I'll keep you in the loop, I'll keep you in the loop. And if anyone else is, uh, is curious about that and wants to hear more about it, um, just shoot me a message. But, yeah, it's, it's going to happen and I'm hoping next year is the first year I do it. Yeah, next year is the first year I do it. Yeah, it's exciting, and then I would like to just keep doing that. So yeah, we're, we're in cahoots with the lodge and the whole nine. So yeah, it's pretty much just about finding the right people that want to do this. And then, and then my buddy is like he's almost more pressure than I am.
Speaker 2:I like it'll happen, it'll happen yeah it's like, dude, I got freaking diagrams and shit going on here. He's like let's go calling. He's on calls with fucking people back home. Like he's like, okay, I got these two plans. He has like a whole website not for this. But he's like this is where the section will be blah, blah, blah, like all the information. I was like, all right, all right.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, we're going to be getting together pretty soon here sitting down and actually having that serious conversation, budgets, all that, to figure out exactly what it would be, what the cost would be, and then gear and equipment, which I feel like most people that are doing this would want to bring their own. That being said, um, one of the last things to kind of wrap up is is getting making sure we have the right guides out there. Uh, which I know another guide out there, so he said he would be. Yeah, things are in motion. Um, that was super cool, man. It would be super cool.
Speaker 2:Uh, thinking the trip would be brown trout trip, but then, if there is enough or if the weather's right for it and it's the right time, because, depending on when we do the trip, it could be only a brown trout or it could also be a salmon, rim, brown trout thing and catch a few kings and, yeah, drink lots of mate and drink lots of pisco and and have some good times, eat good food and and and just fish our little hearts out. Probably for, like I don't know, I'm thinking probably around seven days. Seven days seems right. New country.
Speaker 1:You need time to oh for sure it's a, it's a, it's a decent travel down there too.
Speaker 2:So you kind of, yeah, first days, you know, just kind of getting your grasp on things yeah, it would be fun too to do like, you know, yeah, some days of fishing, but I also want to do like a day of like visiting shit. You know, maybe not like the straight tourism stuff, but like my buddy would be with us in a, in a guy or not a fishing guide, but like our guide kind of thing, like he knows the area, um. And then another cool thing is he he's done a lot of like the company he worked for back there it's called lippy, so he's done a lot of um like video creating and like, yeah, sponsorship stuff and like all sorts of different things. So he has connections to um people that we can pay to like follow us in film, um, so that's another thing is I wanted to make like a little patagonia video, not serious, but just a fun one with the boy kind of thing or girl if there's a girl, boys and girls, everyone's included, everyone's included.
Speaker 2:But yeah, so that's like three and I think, including myself, that's only two other spots left and everyone's pretty serious about it and has the finances for it. So there's really not much left. Yeah, yeah, he's even talked to the airlines and everything it is. It is a fully ball rolling type situation and I've. I keep to my word when I say I'm going to do something like I'm still going to catch a steelhead?
Speaker 2:yeah, not this year next year. You gotta give everybody else a chance first well, I didn't want to take all the fish from everyone no, that's a lot of time, um, yeah, yeah, so, yeah, that would be a really fun one.
Speaker 2:And to to go, like I was thinking about it and it's like, yeah, you're, you want to catch the fish, but it's really the journey to just go out there. You're going for it, right? You know, if we got, if everyone got, skunked, it would be a sad day. But at the same time, like we're too good for that, we'll get fish, yeah for sure. Well, I'm not cocky.
Speaker 1:I just that's one of those places too. It's so prestigious that it's prestigious for a reason like you're going there, and it's definitely different fishery or harder fishery, but they're there, they're catchable.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and what I've really heard from a lot of people that have gone down there is yeah, you're still catching a brown trout or a salmon, but it's just the setting you're in. It's so different. Yeah, and the same thing from going up island or going down island. Your river systems are different. You know, are you going for summer runs now? Your systems are really different. You know clear, clear water and big old pools.
Speaker 1:So yeah, I'm at the point now where my fishing well, not even at the point now, but like fishing's always been like my like escape and like my reset, because you know I had a shitty week and I fucking just get a day out on the water and I don't need to catch fish all the time. It's just getting out there and you know, being on a river and yeah, just, you know, like, for example, like patagonia is one of the most beautiful places in the world. To what I've seen I've never even been there and I know this about it um, but yeah, it's just some of those settings and even now, like in the explore, you have the island or northern bc.
Speaker 2:Um, it's just beautiful places out there, yeah yeah, well, let's, uh, let's say this is, yeah, it's pretty official um on my end, so I guess it'll be official on this, but yeah, it's, it's going to happen. We've been talking like I work with him, so we talk about it quite a bit and, yeah, um, kind of been working through some details and stuff and just things that I brought up that need to be addressed, because I've obviously talked to a lot of other people about how to do hosted trips and what's like the real gig about and stuff. So the first one is like the test is the test subject make everything kind of go smooth, see what doesn't kind of work from there. But the people I'm looking for are people that just want to go like, have a good time out there, yeah, and so, yeah, that's, that's four people.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, there's two more spots, um, not hard to fill, because I know more than two people, I think. And I've only I've only meant that everyone I've mentioned it to so far now has said basically yes, so yeah, I've only met, I've only meant that everyone I've mentioned it to so far now has said basically yes. So yeah, I've been, I've been picky with who I've told, but now it's not out there so, sir, now you're gonna get an influx of everybody's like, yeah, I'm in, yeah, well you know, put your money where your mouth.
Speaker 2:Basically, that's that's the main thing. I've talked to other people and it's like you definitely have to have like everyone locked in somehow. So that's always a key with any type of business. Stuff is business stuff. But just you know you need people to follow through when they say something. So that's pretty much. Do you like fishing and will you actually do it? That's pretty much. Do you like fishing and will you actually do it? That's the two things, yeah. So yeah, I'll figure out pricing and we'll get to that point before it ever becomes, you know that, 100% official status. But yeah, we've got quite a bit in the works already, off to a good start. So, patagonia, here we come. I honestly might not come back. Yeah, why come back?
Speaker 2:yeah, you know I'll change the scenery, I'll learn a new language. I can ask for cervezas already, so I'm halfway there. Yeah, that's right. Yeah, well, man, I definitely appreciate you coming on. Yeah, sorry again that the audio didn't work out last time, jaren, but here we are, so I appreciate you coming on for round two and sharing your side of things. Yes, no worries, man, I'm talking to you, so yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely yeah. We'll keep in touch.
Speaker 2:We'll get out to streamer fishing here in about a month yeah, well, yeah, let me know when you um, when you have your schedule, or if you already have your schedule for that point. I guess you kind of do, because it's seven days off, seven days on. Yeah, it's always planning. Yeah, it'd almost be real nice to do it two days in a row. One day. Streamer fishing isn't good enough, you know that's, that's nice.
Speaker 2:When, uh, you got a whole week off, I can do it as many times as I need yeah, and then I I guide quite a bit in may, but there's still quite a few days left in april and may that could get filled. Um, so I have to be, I'm going to pick days and I'm going. Those are fishing days. Yeah, that's the only way. Last year I took a few days off for for fishing and it ended up getting booked up um, which was good for the bank account, not good for my rod. That didn't get used. So yeah is what it is. But yeah, you have yourself a good night man, and I will amen. I will keep in contact sounds good.
Speaker 2:All right, cheers man and there you have it. That was Jaron Harrison. If you want to follow along on his adventure on Instagram, go check out Island Fly Fishing all one word, and you'll find him. Besides from that, as always, if there's anyone else you'd like to hear on the podcast, just shoot me a message over at Dead Drifters Society on all the different platforms that I use, and I'd be happy to try to get them on. So till next time I'll catch you later.