Sunday, December 7, 2014

The Red Cliff Adventure

When you go for a weekend trip to catch big trout, you must pick the right location.  And last weekend took me to such a place.  Surrounded by bright, red cliffs in a high sagebrush desert, the Green River in Utah has been my nemesis ever since I first fished it several years ago.   I've fought tooth and nail to net the few trout I get each time out.  So, when a couple of buddies invited me out to fish it, I was very excited to get some inside scoop from those that fish it consistently. 



The first day, we waded.  Mostly rainbows, with a few browns to the net.  A good start.  Even had a double with two of us with a fish on... and later almost had a triple.  Way fun!


The second day was floating through the B section of the Green.  The A section takes you from the Flaming Gorge Dam to the Little Hole takeout.  Then, there is the B section from Little Hole and ends at Browns Park.  And C takes you down to Swallow Canyon.  B was on the agenda and I was so overly excited to finally see a lot more of the river that I couldn't get to by foot.


The best part about the float was fishing with two guys who know this river.  It was such a learning experience.  We were let off the boat to wade about 5 or 6 times along the 7 to 8 mi stretch of river.  And those spots produced big time.  


Along the way, we had to float through the Red Creek Rapids.  Oh... I was like, so glad that I am with an experienced guide!  And as we went through the rapids and manuevering this way and that, I wasn't even nervous.  Sure, I had on my life jacket on, but the fact that we slid through almost perfectly without a rock hitting the bottom or even getting close to boulders was truly amazing.  I was impressed.  And it was better than any log ride at Disneyland!  Footnote: You can ask the guide to let you out of the boat to walk the trail past the rapids and then get back in.  That's what Howard would do...



But, most of the float was calm waters.  Simply breathtaking red cliffs and green water that it is famous for.  


Yes, I finally fell in love with the Green River.  


And near the end of the journey, I came across the "boss" brown.  He was hiding in the "jungle".


Thanks to my buddies, Ryan and David for an amazing two days on the water.

You can find Guide, David Schneider at the Flaming Gorge Resort in Dutch John, UT...
I highly recommend him!!!  He is an amazing teacher of the water and a super nice guy to boot...

A recap... to The Red Cliff Adventure!

6 comments:

  1. Looks like a phenomenal trip and I am jealous of that big Brown you caught. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Sorry... on the river today. I love Brown Trout! They are my favorite... This will go down as one of my most satisfying fishing experiences just because this river has always been tough for me. So, yay for one good day!

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  2. Emily that's some "big" water.
    Awesome fish.

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    1. The Green River is a wide, long river for sure! Sometimes, very complex. And I am there again today and the flows are up... so a bit tougher than last week. Funny what a few days can do.

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  3. Really sounds like you are having a wonderful time on that section of the river. My only experience down on the Green was an Easter weekend trip several years ago. We did not have a guide and fished water from the Dam down to Little Hole. We did get into some nice Blue Wing Olive and Midge fishing back then. Thanks for bringing back some memories for me.......

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  4. You know what, Mel? That river can kick your but! It is more technical than people give it credit for. Just when you think that you are dialed in one day...;. the next day will throw you a curve ball. I got back today (Why I didn't write here) and this trip out was much tougher. Glad you have good memories of it. Hope I will be able to say the same thing someday! Haha

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