It's a gray and gloomy opening morning. It doesn't look like the mercury will rise much above 55 degrees today, and rain is likely. Perfect fishing weather. Wisconsin has an early catch and release season beginning in March, and The Fishin' Toe and I fish quite a bit then, but we like to go out on opening day and fish as well; not to keep fish, more like a rite of spring. It's a way to set our internal clocks. It confirms that we have finally broken Old Man Winter's icy grip, and soon the lilacs will bloom and the baby geese will make their appearance in the park, chasing bugs through the grass and looking like a bunch of tennis balls rolling across the lawn.
Today the Toe and I will be fishing a well-known stream just west of Madison, WI. It's probably going to be crowded, but hopefully the chill in the air and the threat of rain will keep the less-dedicated away. One thing about me and the Toe; we're dedicated. We fished the early season opener in fifteen-degree weather, picking ice from our guides and beards. We've been known to leave camp in the small hours before dawn and not return until the sun sinks behind the hills. One year we tent-camped in Avalanche for a week. It was so cold in the morning that we had to thaw the Toe's wading boots out under the heater in the truck so he could wriggle his feet into them. That evening we went to buy some firewood from Roger W., God rest his soul, and he asked if we were the fellows who were camped out by the creek. When we allowed that we were, he said, "Jesus Christ, boys! It was twenty-two degrees last night! Take all the wood you need." Roger was a good guy, and everyone who appreciates trout and the beautiful habitat they inhabit should remember him in their prayers.
More to come...
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