T.F.M. Spotting - Fishing Poet In The PNW

Matt Smythe, who writes the Fishing Poet blog, recently took a trip to the Pacific northwest. Besides a few T.F.M. Spotting photos for the contest Matt sent along an excellent write up complete with more photos from his trip.

True, I was making the trip out west to fish. Equally as important, I was making the trip to get my head and priorities back in order. I was reconnecting with an old Army bud who lives in Portland. Someone I hadn’t seen since we were stationed in Germany...17 years ago. It was like no time had passed, except for a few signs of maturity (and I use that term very loosely here).

Three rivers were on our 7-day agenda: the Fall, Deschutes and Crooked. But since the Crooked was running at four times it’s fishable level, we substituted it with the Metolius…a serendipitous choice that wound up making the whole trip for me. Funny how things work out.

The Fall was beautiful, but tough. Tough like, I’d have a better chance casting to goldfish at a carnival-tough. Thin, wide water with no place to hide. Plus it was sunny and 70, which doesn’t bring already spooky fish out to play either. We didn’t catch a thing. But we sure as hell ate well.

Bad weather showed up our first morning on the Deschutes. So did the fish. We spent the day fishing primarily BWOs for rising rainbows and browns. The canyon and river were exactly as rugged and difficult to navigate as you’d hope Pacific northwest trout water would be. We fished hard and ended the day tired and very happy.

The Metolius. Bonus river. I had all sorts of intimidating preconceived notions about it before we pulled up to the Wizard Falls Hatchery. But the day and a half we spent on its banks and gravel bars fishing into massive pools and smaller off-current chutes and eddies turned out to be some of the best time I’ve ever spent on the water. Add a couple beautiful rainbows and a big-shouldered brown that elected to avoid my net at the last minute…my trip was complete. Can’t wait to go back.

Check out more on this trip on Matt's blog, Fishing Poet.