THE WIND BLEW SO HARD

How hard did it blow?  So hard that a 10 inch trout didn’t hang straight below the tip of my rod by at about a 60 degree angle!

I check the weather report for Balmaceda this morning and it wasn’t all that bad – partly cloudy with increased clouds and wind later in the afternoon.  Worth the 30 mile drive over with that kind of a report.   I’d fish until about 1:30 and then go to see if the great little eating place was still open.  At the bridge pull off a gaucho was trying to fix a portion of the fence that anglers likely messed up to get to the river.  He needed two more hands than he had.  Hey, I have two.  With gestures and mangled Spanish I helped and then asked if I could fish.  No problem. http://www.findmespot.com/mylocation/?id=47X6i/\-45.89471/\-71.74817

Asking was the easy part.  Fishing was the hard part.  All weathermen lie and thus all weather report are false.  It was a light rain at 10 and wind at gale force.  Two back of fleece and three hat hook ups.   Upstream about 200 yard above the bridge the river forks.  I’ve done about all my fishing on the right descending fork.  It is deeply incised into the meadow so I thought the wind might not be overwhelming.  Not!  Can you say: canyon effect?   No matter what direction the stream meandered the wind was always a gale slightly off my back.  Straight off my back would have made casting a bit more doable.  My fly went pretty much where the wind wanted it to go.   The only element of control I had was with short roll casts.  And to make matters every harder I had a 9 foot 4X leader.  A 7.5 foot 3X would have been much better – not good but better. 

So here is the final score:  Norm 4 nice fish and one 10 inch fish,  stream 8 including one BIG fish.

Oh the little eating place in Balmaceda is still open.  Basket of bread, bowl of beef soup with potatoes and winter squash in it, fish loaf – likely salmon – and mash potatoes, pitcher of peach juice