So I’m back, and I wish I wasn’t. I had 9 days in Trinity this year and it was fan-fucking-tastic. I didn’t want to come home. But here I am. Back to work on Tuesday.

While I was up there I Twittered a few times a day, almost every day. Those updates can be found here or by reading the “Mobile Phone Updates” in my sidebar on this webpage.

All week long the weather was warm and sunny and dry–it felt like summer instead of fall. This was very bad for deer hunting. When the weather is hot the only time we see deer is the first hour after sunrise and the last hour before sunset. So during the day it’s pointless to hunt–unless you’re right on top of the deer, they won’t move. They’ll just sit motionless under a bush or tree all day long.

So I modified my strategy to accomodate the weather. I hunted in the morning and the evening, and did other things during the day–like fly fish.

I’ve always wanted to fly fish Trinity. Over the last 8 years of going up there I’ve always marveled at the waters–it’s EVERYWHERE. Within 30 minutes of the cabin I’ve got my pick of 3 different creeks/rivers/streams. These waters are spring fed and flow year round. Consequently, the trout populations are quite healthy. And the fishing is superb. I got my fill of trout fishing this year. I’m sad that it took me this long to bring my gear and get my line wet. I caught fish every session, and lots of them. Typical California mountain stream trout: 6-10 inch rainbows. Healthy fighters. Beautiful coloring.

I had a spiritual (for lack of a better word) experience in the middle of the Trinity River on Friday afternoon. I had been fly fishing for a few hours, catching fish after fish, playing the trout quickly without tiring them out, and releasing them gently. I had stopped to take a swig from my water bottle and eat an apple and was standing in the middle of the river. The river was cold and the current was strong. Fish rose and jumped all around me. I looked on either side of the riverbank–rows of aspens and oaks swathed a canvas of colors from red to orange to yellow. Above them the Cascade mountains rose, covered in evergreen pine trees. At that moment I felt the most profound sense of peace and tranquility and satisfaction I’ve ever felt. And at that moment I knew how I wanted to feel for the rest of my life.

Didn’t take many pictures this year, except a few of the Trinity river.