Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!!!!

  With the stream improvements starting on the Arkansas last week, Cat and I decided to take a walk on the river to see how the changes have affected some of our favorite spots. I am not very good with change and so when we got to one my favorite holes, I was saddened by how the structure above changed the way the water was moving through one of my favorite drifts. I started complaining to Cat and with her typical positive outlook; she told me that she believes that sometimes it takes change to make things better. I don’t know if it is because I am such a crappy listener or my ADHD but I stopped listening and my mind drifted off to football. I always tell myself that I think to much about football but more than anything I was thinking about how somtimes chang can be a good thing.

  A few years ago the Broncos drafted a guy named Tim Tebow and I remember thinking what’s up with that. I watched the guy in college but could not see how his skills would transfer to the pros but the publicity and love for the guy was like nothing I had ever seen. I could not turn on sports radio without most of the segments being full of Tebow talk. Training camp started and very quickly I started hearing stories about how bad he was and that the Broncos made a huge mistake. Even though I don’t consider myself an opinionated person (yeah right), I made it known to all who would listen that Tebow will never play in the NFL. The Broncos had high hopes for that season but started out terrible. The fan rumblings and calls for Tebow came fast and furious but the back scene news was that Tebow wasn’t even second string. Well the season tanked and the coach got fired and the new coach went ahead and played Tebow. A few plays here and there but nothing seemed NFL worthy. 2011 started worse than 2010 and the screams for Tebow were too loud to ignore and he finally got his chance. His first game was horrible, I’m not sure he completed a pass until about four minutes to go in the game. Two quick scores later and the Broncos won. The next several weeks were up and down with Tebow mania being possibly the biggest think in sports since a guy named MJ. One crazy come from behind win after another and even a win in the playoffs. Tebowmania was rampant; I even saw one guy wear a WWTTD bracelet. Well the season ended in New England and the star gazers were all talking about how great Tebow will make the team in the next few years. The off season came up and the Broncos began to pursue a guy named Manning and the scream from the Tebow fans was nearly deafening. How could they dump Tebow after how great he was, the team will be terrible now, my mother(of all people) said she would never watch another Bronco game because Tebow is gone. In this instance, I was pleasantly looking forward to Manning in Denver. The season started just a little rocky and the Tebow fans were calling for the head of Manning. Even I, a Manning supporter, turned off the tv halfway through the San Diego game in disgust. Well as most of us know, the lights turned on and the Broncos went on a roll, the forward pass was reinstituted to the Denver offense and huge comeback win was followed by ten wins in a row. Unfortunately, the season and a possible trip to the Super Bowl ended with a poor angle from a defensive back. The Tebow cries seemed to disappear as the season rolled on and we were all blessed with the appearance of a true NFL offense. Not only was it fun to watch, but Manning dominated most of the games he played in and got most of us Bronco fans hungry for next year to start and see the Broncos as world champs once again.

  With the new stream improvements upon us I could not help but worry about how they will affect the river. I have spent so many days guiding and fishing this river that I seem to think I know every nook and cranny of it. It is always fun taking a client into a spot and before they even cast explain to them where the snags are and what direction the fish will run. The expression is priceless when the fish and the river actually follow my predictions. Well once again Cat the optimist reminded me that it doesn’t really matter what happens because the techniques we use work at every tailwater we have ever fished here in Colorado. Cat went out and fished the newly changed area a little on Thursday and was very pleasantly surprised with some of the new structure. In one of the new structures she hooked the biggest fish she had ever hooked but could not get the hog landed. We tried to fish the area on Sunday and again today but it has been difficult to find an open space. I got in the weir this morning and hooked and lost a nice fish right away but very quickly a large group moved in and I decided to move on. After Cat fishing the new structure on Thursday and both of us fishing on Sunday and me for a short time today, I have decided it is time to lose the gloom and embrace the changes that are taking place on this river. It took a little time for us Bronco fans to get used to the forward pass again, but it sure was worth it in the long run. We were so happy with the new rock structure that we decided to name it Peyton’s Place. Yes I know it is a play on the name but hopefully it reminds us all that sometimes we have to usher out the good to allow space for the GREAT!!!!

 

  The river has been fishing off and on very good the last few times out. Sunday was a little more difficult because of the amount of traffic but the fish seemed willing to play if you could get into some fresh water. Today was much the same where I would go and hour without seeing a fish and then catch five in a ten minute stretch. I only caught one fish over twenty inches on Sunday and none today but have caught a good deal of gorgeous 14 to 18 inchers. Fish are moving to eggs, and still on the tiny black midges. As always, thanks for reading. Connell, Cat, Winston and The Drift Fly shop…..