Older and Wiser

On April 28th, I officially became one year older. Having a big celebration has never really been my style, but doing a little something to acknowledge the occasion is fitting. This year, things kicked off two days before the actual date on a Saturday at the shop. Along with all of the birthday wishes from the community around the shop, Jen and Joel brought in my favorite kind of cake, which is more than enough to make for a great birthday.

An unexpected surprise came from a man I have recently come to know since moving to the Portland area in October of last year, Richard Harrington. He created a print showing a man with a Spey rod casting in the rain, a piece I had told him how much I liked months ago when I first saw it. I can honestly say I have never had a better day while at work, which was completely due to the people around Royal Treatment.

My official birthday was on Monday, and since the shop was closed, I would spend it fishing as I would on any other day off. I planned to float the Clackamas with my good friends Anders Martenson and Jonah Ward. We got to the boat launch just after sunrise, and it looked like we had the river to ourselves. We fish the runs where we know they should be and try some spots that are unproven but look like they should hold a fish, trading off on who goes first or who gets the top or bottom section of the longer runs.

Around lunchtime, another boat came down the river, which turned out to be some familiar faces. Bryan Stinson and Jeff Hollamon drop anchor next to our boat and break into an impromptu “happy birthday” song which I’m sure you can imagine was pretty funny.

After lunch, the sun comes out, and the temperature rises. Enough that the jackets get traded for sun shirts, and I pull up the neck gator to keep the reflecting sun off my face. We are getting toward the end of the float and pull into a run that looks especially fishy. I start on the bottom half, taking five or six steps between every cast, trying to find where the slack water on the inside picks up enough to give a fish somewhere to sit. It takes about three of these casts before I hit the Goldilocks zone in the run and slow down to two steps between each cast.

A few casts later, on the inside of the swing, I feel a soft tug on the running line resting between my fingers, followed by heavyweight. A second or two later, a silver tail comes out of the water, followed by the buzz of my reel. The fish goes on a run, tail walking and head shaking. Luckily, it stops before the crossover into the next run and gives me a chance to regain some ground. The fight continues for a few minutes, giving Anders and Jonah time to reach where I am. After a couple more bursts of energy, the fish gives up, and Anders grabs it by the tail. A beautiful dime-bright summer hen. She catches her breath as we snap a few pictures before splashing us as she kicks back into the deep. It is a perfect way to end the day while enjoying the rest of the boat ride.

Aging is a constant and progressive thing that happens every minute of every day. It is easy to be unaware of it because it is always happening. Much like how you can always see your nose, but your brain blocks it out so that you don’t constantly feel like there is an object in your field of vision. I think birthdays can serve as a timestamp, giving a memorable event to remind us of where we were in life in the past and how far things have come since that last date. I may not be able to recall what I was doing every day during my life, but I guarantee I will always be able to remember exactly where I was on April 28th, 2025. I was part of a fantastic community of friends and anglers, kneeling in the Clackamas River, holding a steelhead on the day I turned 31.