Opinions, musings, ideas, pearls of wisdom
What A Great Club We Have!
By Dougald Scott
What A Great Club We Have!
By Dougald Scott
I'm lucky enough to have been the one to scan and organize the hundreds of pictures for our annual slide show on January 8th. I'm lucky because I've been able to relive a year of fabulous events and fishing trips, some I was on, and some I enjoy through the pictures. Read this summary of our club events, come to the slide show on January 8th, and plan to sign up for 2004 fishouts.
Our first event of 2003 was the annual dinner, held for the first time at the Seascape Golf Lodge in Rio Del Mar. This was a fabulous evening with good food, a plethora of wonderful raffle prizes, many bargains in the silent auction, and best of all, a chance to mingle with our fishing friends.
Next came the Confab in February. This all-day event at the Soquel Grange Hall included a lot of serious fly tying, a casting clinic and contest, a swap meet, and some serious eating at the potluck. There were many fish stories. Rumor has it that some weren't even exaggerated. We also have pictures from memorable fly tying classes throughout the year.
March brought the Pyramid Lake fishout. This fishout produced so many pictures of club members holding big beautiful Lahontan cutthroat, I could hardly sit still while scanning them into my computer. The pictures also reminded me of the stark desert beauty and rapid weather shifts that are part of the Pyramid Lake setting.
Many club members pursued bass in the small ponds on Roostercomb Ranch in April. The ranch is situated in the oak woodland hills east of Gilroy, and the timing of the trip was near the peak of the wild flower bloom. In this magnificent setting, the ponds produced plenty of bass, bluegill, and even a giant catfish.
The other April fishout was to Los Padres Reservoir in Carmel Valley. Unfortunately, there aren't any pictures, nor were there a lot of fish caught. But the trip did turn out to be "Tim's Big Adventure." You will have to ask Fishmaster Tim Loomis for further details.
In early May club members traveled by plane, train and automobile to the Green River in northeastern Utah. There are many wonderful pictures to document the incredible fishing and scenery on this river.
There weren't any fishouts over the summer months, but the slide show includes many pictures of club members' on their travels to fishing venues around the world. I'm not sure that there is anyone left in the club who hasn't seen the picture of our President's magnificent trophy bonefish, but just in case, we included that picture as well.
The fall season was packed with fishouts. First there was the High Sierra Pack Trip, which took club members to a little jewel called Lake Genevieve. There were many day hike and fishing opportunities from base camp, which was at 10,000 feet The slide show will confirm that this location offered many splendid photo opportunities as well beautiful trout.
Next in line was the Mammoth fishout. This is probably the club's most popular and well-attended fishout. Needless to say there are lots of pictures to show the numerous fishing opportunities available in the Mammoth area. Fall colors were in the aspens, making these pictures especially striking.
The Delta fishout was a huge success with good numbers of stripers being taken by all. Most of the fish were on the small side, but we do have a picture of Markus showing us how big the fish that got away was.
The last fishout of the year was the Mount Shasta trip. Here club members experienced good fishing in uncrowded waters lined with trees in full autumn color. It was a great way to close down the 2003 trout season.
Now that you've read about what wonderful opportunities our club provides, don't miss the slide show on January 8th. Also, make sure that you check out the Fishout Schedule in this newsletter. Fishmaster Tim Loomis has organized several exciting new fishout locations for this year. If you have never gone on a club fishout, be sure to do so. It is the best way to get to know club members and learn new techniques and locations.