Living here sucks!

March has been a very busy month and it feels good. My inner groove has enjoyed every single one of this stupid weather patterns gifts, the weather has been honest to goodness tremendous. The other end of this weather teeter totter is the suffering we may go through this summer, but like I said, the skinny monk that I am is gonna enjoy stuff in the moment, day to day style.

The float season is on the porch and ready! The Fork has been mighty nice to me this month, midgezilla, BWO's, rizzers (as Imbach would say), and visibility...no bitchin, no lie. Hell I've even avoided the crowds somehow. It helps to take Saturdays off to spend around the dojo with Kitty and "chain saw" (sam), but it seems I've picked the least busiest stretch for 3 weeks now. I know its early and I'm sure everyone is saving up the grenades but I'm actually getting smiles and real data from locals. Minding my own business tryin to rip lips with Trip last Sunday I started playing hop scotch with a 2 man local jam, magnum March beards, camo and all. Truth be told they were havin a better day to my good one. I'll be clear as I can and promise you, I never asked. About the time I made it to Killers Island ( whitey hole ) they had to tell me anyways. With the oddly perplexed look of 2 dudes just givin a late St Paddys day blessing they shrugged and said.......streamers. It was cloudy, precipitating  and shitty but the water temp never got over 40. I admit,  I agreed with their looks, it shouldn't have worked and the manuals say so. Damned to the last half of a good trip rowing around with my head in the sand, we chucked single black buggers on a 5wt with a sinking leader and got it done with the our new best buddies. I felt like I owed them a tug off the bottle of Makers or worse, my tip. Beatis is about all the rest, of this delicious mess I care to fess up on.

Trip from the hip on the Fork. That one made a bobber move.

The Eagle has been OK. Not much to talk about if you know what I mean, I'd wash the car or pound that shipment of girl scout cookies instead. It still has nothing to do with purple, matter of fact gray, brown, yellow and olive anything, definitely will just get snagged on the bottom only to be lost forever. Don't get smaller, lighter or longer and avoid shallow fast water at all cost. Green is good, brown is bad and Pats dead till that water boils up for real, right around the time I expect the egg shipment. On a happier note the ghost ship is ready and I'm just 50 cfs away from a 2 man bump and run. Sometimes it really sucks living here, especially when the weathers like June.

For the 3 clients I have, 1 of which I hope reads this, please consider making your trip to my neck of the woods a touch early this year. If you love the boat ride down that pin ball game hucking drys' I'd have a BBQ at home for July 4th  and come in June this year, maybe early June. The snow gods have not been kind but Mothers day caddis from the Bus sounds like fun to me.

A special shout out to the readers of Chi Wulff for their kind words and for nominating my net as one of the "greatest innovations in fly fishing". Humbled and broke, thank you.

Way to hack up a good memory

Got to chatting with Jmac the other day about teaching people how to hold fish for a picture. I dug around and found a few examples of how not to.

Classic pose by most dudes from south of the Mason Dixon line. Least his stubby fingers were not in the gills.

The full hand cover.

 The Hug.

The Stiff Arm. Damn you have giant hands and short arms, BTW you need a manicure.

The squat.

The Drops.








Ultimately it's on me to show peeps how to hold a fish. I show em once and if they botch it the rest of the day they can be bummed when I send them the pics. Handling fish is the main reason we hurt fish and when there are other dudes on the river I'm just not going to leave fish in the net for an hour.

Be very careful wearing stupid glasses while there is a camera around

Dont Flush it

Small, loud and proud....not sure where he got that from

Governor Hickenlooper,

My name is Bob Streb, my little family lives in Minturn, Colorado on the banks of the Eagle River, just one of the incredible places we enjoy in the mountains we call home. One of the other places is the Upper Colorado River. I am a fly fishing guide and I spend many days showing friends, both new and old, this very special place. The Upper Colorado River has become part of me and I often feel a deep need to be in a boat feeling her currents under me. The loss of this freedom is a very real possibility if any more of her water is diverted. I understand this situation has economic implications for everyone but, I hope you understand the spititual and emotional impact it will have also.

Four years ago my life changed forever with the birth of my son Sam. He now comes first in my life, without condition. We try and answer every question he ever asks and that can be challenging with a child who's main hobby is being curious. He is very aware of what his daddy does for a living and already knows how important water is. Sam has officially stopped flushing the toilet so he can "Help Save the Colorado". His prayers, which used to include his dog and spiderman, are now for our River. He has never asked to save Daddy's job, only the river. Sam has no perspective on the economic impact this has on everyone, only a simple love for one of nature's most incredible water sheds

We very rarely journey to Denver, we live in this state for it's natural beauty and the city just offers a view, not the feel we have grown to love. We felt a strong need to leave our mountains and come to one of the many rallies for the river on the steps of your office. I don't like cities, and I especially don't enjoy going there for a fight that seems has already been lost. Sam sat on my shoulders and screamed proudly as loud as all the adults. "Why are we yelling Dad?", "So a man up there in his office hears us and does something to help son". We painted our faces blue, like water. That was not an attempt to hide our identities. It was so we had no resemblence to the generations before us that contributed to so much destruction of nature all over the great American West. My family has no desire to be recognized as part of a generation that destroys the Colorado River. I hope you feel the same way. I hope you are not remembered as the Governor who sucked the Colorado River dry. I do not envy the position you are in and how hard it must be, but know there are choices and answers that will help. Little Sam has already figured one way out so if need be I am sure he is willing to sit with you and figure this whole mess out.

All of us who enjoy that River hope you will at least slow the process down some more, absorb all the data, explore every option and educate your fellow state officials on all the facts. Conservation of water is the way. Conservation will lead to preservation of this place. Our 4 year old already understands how to help do his part and now its your turn to lead by example. I am blown away at the realization of how many people in this state just believe that water comes from the tap. Knowledge is power and you currently sit in a seat fit to educate the growing front range on how valuable a resource water is and where it comes from. This river can not give anymore of her blood and continue to be the heart of this state's image. I know some look at the mountains when they think of this state but last I checked there isn't one named Colorado, there is a wonderful body of water with it's name though.

All things start at the top Sir, everything flows downstream or at least should.

Sincerly,
Bob Streb

Its in the mail Hick, lets go for a float this spring, I promise I wont wear the war paint.

KISS MY @#!%

In honor of St Valentines day....

Ballet dancers do it

Jmacs full of love

Big Lew isnt scared of showing his love

The "Premiere float guide" on the Colorado is no sucker.

Is Zim french?

One for the ladies

Dry fry

This one kind of freaks me out

Happy Valentines Day.That will teach all of you for posing Jimmy Houston style. 

Fork You, its Feburary

Just finished scrubbing things up for a float on the Fork tomorrow with a couple of my favorite clients, Alan and DJ. These guys only book trips in the winter.....for good reason, its crazy good. It's certainly no secret and it can be a trick to schedule if your weak when it comes to the weather, but if you take the risk, the rewards can be great on this world class fishery. No pressure, clear water, plenty of bug life and fish who love to eat the egg. Honest report to follow.

Alan with a fine Roaring Fork Bow from last February

I will never understand some fly fisherman's reluctance to fish egg patterns, it is certainly nothing that I suffer from. One day last year I was wade fishing a spot with a couple of clients and we were having quite a day. A local fishing the other side of the river finally broke down and asked what we were using, "eggs" I replied. He shook his head and said he didn't have any so I offered to walk a few over to him but he explained he never fishes them. 20 minutes later he disappeared leaving me to try and explain to my clients there wasn't any controversy or ethical boundary we had crossed. They must have been convinced because they stopped asking questions and went back to railing fish.

Small molting Golden Stones are a favorite winter snack and a good point fly for those not willing to toss Egg a Muffins.

Another bad choice.

 On a positive note our coldest months historically are past us. The most snow usually comes in March and April but the bitter cold should be about done. There are some killer deals on trips this time of year, mention this stupid blog and I will sweeten it some more.

The Magic Button

One of Davie Mcphail's emergers and a new favorite guide tie. Quick, easy and deadly. 

Remember that kid back in the day that could pick up any stick, club or ball and make it look like he'd dated it forever? Smooth, effortless motion, speed and strength screwed firmly on a clear head under pressure. When I was in grade school it was the Burke brothers of the 19th ward. Junior high was Steve Anderson and in high school it was Tittle and Kermie. While everything came naturally to these .001%ers the rest of us practiced and worked hard to be at least good enough to be on the team when something great happened. Some guys would skip the work expecting the magic button to turn it's self on and end up with a sour taste for the experience.

 The challenges of fly fishing require practice, dedication and attention. When you put the work in you are rewarded be it with fish, incredible natural beauty or a set of perfect presentations. Two dudes putting the work in right now are my friends Theo Anest and Brandon Soucy. They both make fishing and guiding seem effortless, I have been witness to both. These youngsters are that .001% of our sport but they have worked hard to stand there by spending hundreds of days a year with a rod in hand  Lately they have decided to take the show to the limited competitive fly fishing circuit and have been racking up wins for a few years. Their latest win came last weekend at the Frostbite on the Ark. To go along with the "huge" prize money ($1000, plus $250 for the big fish by Soucy) they were rewarded with a few grenades. I'm not going to be that guy to add to the drama with specifics, some other ass munch on a losing team beat me to it. The tournament is in existence to raise money for TU, not to make fly fishing legends of a bunch of Wanna Be's who simply don't have enough game. Do you need a reminder of what's really important (water & fish) and who helps protect that (TU)? The reality of it is our sport is filled with more punters and high school golfers than dudes willing to go in the corner and take a hit. If you are going to enter and compete bring your version of Tigers old game, practice hard and  shut it.

  Everything worth doing  requires work; tying flies, parenting, running a business, guiding, rowing or enjoying a great relationship takes time, patience and practice. I thought the other day as I continue to teach my boy to skate that "this is going to take a while", then I took him to the High School game and thought about how soon it will be. Unfortunately in my world  most people show up without practicing and that's fine, but like learning to skate, expect to fall. I guide in a tourist trap, not north of here, and its my reality that some people think they can shoot a few pars on their first trip. My boat has no room for the magic button, I bring the jelly beans instead and  normally only share with those who try. Thankfully the experience is worth it and most people have no expectation of catching  fish like Theo and B, hell I dont.

January??

If you can make it.....Go

We need snow real bad here in the Mountains of Colorado and not just for the ski industry that we rely on so heavily to put clothes on our ankle biters backs. Or for Denver (see above). As the early winter that wasn't continues we have made the best of it. The team has managed a failed float, 2 trips to local tailwaters and a 5 boat float on an ice free Big Mud, all in January.

The failed float turned into an incredible afternoon on the Frying Pan. The Pan is a delicacy I don't treat myself to enough and I always leave wishing I could guide there. As usual we arrive at the Dam with a boat in tow from some put in down stream that was jammed with ice. It at least draws attention away from my truck covered with stickers from that "other valley". It was crowded so we didn't get the best beats but it didn't seem to matter, we all had nice eats.

The rest of the report is  standard, typical winter fare. The Blue through Silverthorn is still my favorite place to go shopping. This fishery is very healthy and equally as popular on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Don't believe all the reports, I found plenty of fish in real fast water wedged between people fishing classic runs and pools. Take what you can get at the tailwaters. The float was your everyday January float.....except it rained cats and dogs. Nice to guide with my old buds Pete Mott, The Big Zim, Will Sands and Kyle Holt, true professionals.

Yet another shitty fly for the winter. By all means do not attempt to put traces of blue ice dub and Ostrich in your winter midge patterns