The weather broke mid-week and I had to get out in the woods. I threw my camping and fishing gear in the trunk and headed down to work. Around lunch I had finished enough work and cleared my calendar such that I could make a mad-dash for Noontootla. I soon realized I forgot my sleeping bag, but I wasn't going to miss this opportunity. I drove 2 hours to the creek, set up camp, and started fishing. The water was much lower and clearer than I expected. I missed a number of subtle takes and finally got a couple to hand. I then started gathering firewood and at around 7 p.m., talked to a guy who was fishing upstream. He had just caught a 16 inch bow and I had a pretty good idea where he was fishing. I awoke the next morning and slowly worked my way upstream from my campsite. I only had about 30 minutes to fish, but as I was making my way upstream I saw a large tail in a pool just above me. I stood still and watched the water - sure enough, a very large rainbow about 7 feet in front of me was feeding. I put some line out and threw my rig about 6 feet in front of him. I highsticked the drift and saw the bow go after my fly. At the last minute, he darted away and moved upstream. I figured that was my only chance, and I needed to get back home, so I packed up and drove back home. It was awesome to see a fish that size in a creek that small. A wonderful, albeit short, getaway, which I desperately needed. I hope to make it back up there this Fall.
