We flew into Portland, Oregon on Thursday. Our host, Curt, who is an avid steelhead angler and lives near Portland, Oregon, immediately took us to a local bar for lunch and some good local brew. We then went to the grocery store, and picked up some food for dinner. Curt is single, no kids, and has a sweet house. We cooked amazing pizza in his wood fire outdoor oven and then watched a movie in his gigantic home theater. The next morning we hit the road at about 7 a.m. with the toon in tow. We went to a local fly shop near the Deschutes and were met with bad news. The river was blown out in the section we were planning to fish. Apparently the White River flows into the Deschutes and makes the visibility in the water very poor. We decided that despite the bad fishing conditions, we would head down river and enjoy a good camping trip. We floated for about 2 hours and set up camp. Curt had us set up like a luxury outfitter. We had cots, sleeping pads, and even a gas fire pit. Curt cooked us three meals a day, and we had ample whiskey and beer. He even packed a $100 bottle of red wine. We fished the river hard for three days without a steelhead to show for it. We did pick up a few rainbows (by accident) and saw a lot of wildlife and beautiful scenery. We spoke with at least 20 other anglers, and nobody had caught a steelhead. I wasn't really expecting to catch a steelhead on this trip, so there was no disappointment. I wanted to experience the Deschutes, and we did so, in a first class manner.
