Absolutely Worth It

I have always loved the fall season in the Northwest. The days grow cooler and shorter, the leaves change color and fall, and the rains return, filling the rivers again. The season brings on the feeling of a slower pace of life, where a day around the house watching football or reading a book feels more acceptable than the summer months, when you try to take advantage of the sunshine while it's here. For an angler, there is no better exercise in patience and slowing things down than swinging a fly, and there is hardly a better place to feel this slowing of pace than the John Day River chasing steelhead.

Josh, Izzy, and I arrived at the boat launch around 7 am. It had been raining all the way from Oregon City until we made the turn at Bigs Junction. It is chilly out, but still very comfortable with just wearing a base layer and a light puffy jacket. When the sun came up enough to see the sky, a blanket of clouds looked like it could bring some rain. Shortly after we start floating, a sprinkling of rain starts that slowly builds up to the point where we need to break out the wading jackets. The water is warmer than I was expecting to be. After fishing through the first run of the day, the bit of cold I felt in my feet seemed to be equal to what I was feeling in my fingers. I grabbed the thermometer out of my bag, put it in the river, and read it at 49 degrees, which was pretty close to the temperature outside the water. The rain cleared up shortly after, but the fishing remained slow.

 

Around lunch time, we stop at a piece of water that gives every sign that a steelhead would want to hang out in it. All three of us fish through it, anticipating something to happen, with no sign of life. Izzy gives it one more pass through, right where you would think it should happen, and all three of us watch as the line goes tight and the rod tip bends just for a second before it's gone. We continue fishing our way down with no other signs of life but getting a good look at some sheep up on the ridges, which is always a highlight. At the last run of the day, there is a fish in the mood to grab a fly and turn with it. We get it to the net just before the sun starts to set, and we head for the take-out.

It wont be long until winter is here and we have the opportunity to chase fresh steelhead in our local waters or turn west and head to the coastal river. But, if I can find the time to make a trip to the John Day this fall, I would highly recommend it. There are plenty of fish in the river and to purse them in a place as unique as that is absolutely worth it