Discover Walla Walla

I went fishing on Rock Creek yesterday-near Missoula, Montana. It's a world-famous trout stream full of colorful cutthroats and feisty browns, or so they say.

Before I made the six-hour trek from Walla Walla, I checked in with my Montana fishing consultant, Matt. He always catches fish, or so he says.

"Fished Rock Creek a few days ago," Matt said. "Caught fish all day. They're eating gold-ribbed, pink-flossed flipsy doodles in sizes 10 and 12."

"Gold-ribbed flipsy doodles? I don't think I have any of those."

"They're the latest. Stock up before you come over to Missoula. You won't find one in a fly shop over here. All sold out. They're killer flies! And check out the new flexi-fluorocarbon leaders. They're killer! And get that new fast-action fly line with the kryptonite imbedded in the butt section. That line almost casts itself. It's killer!"

"Really?"

"Water's come down on Rock Creek. The stream is wading easy. Temperatures have finally warmed up. Those fish are hungry. You can't miss, Sam!"

Why did he have to say that?

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What do fly fishing and chamber music have in common? If you are in Walla Walla in June, the answer is Tim Christie, Founder and Director of the Walla Walla Chamber Music Festival. I was fortunate enough to meet Tim in 2009 and discovered that we both share a passion for chasing trout with a fly rod. I also thoroughly enjoy the beautiful Chamber Music that Tim has brought to Walla Walla. We agreed that when Tim was back in Walla Walla this year we'd make time to visit the water and commune with the fish.

Unfortunately Mother Nature wasn't cooperating with our plans to visit the Walla Walla River in mid-June; heavy rains had theriver hig h, muddy and un-fishable. Luckily Walla Walla is a supportive community and a friend, Max, offered to share his private pond just south of town with us. Max has a beautiful home on five acres including this great little pond that he stocks with trout. (Being a superb host Max even suggested the right flies.) You know it's going to be a good day on the water when your first casts resulted in a both Tim and I hooking-up with nice trout. The fishing was so good that before long Max decided to get his rod and join us; we all caught fish into the early afternoon. Max even demonstrated a new technique for us - catch & release dry fly fishing for Bull Frogs - impressive!

So, if you live here, or are just visiting Walla Walla in June, remember that you can choose both, fly fishing and world class chamber music. That is if incredible wine, delicious food, sweet onions, exciting baseball, and scenic biking isn't enough for you....

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Fly fishing, fly tying and good wine . . . a few of my favorite things in life! It's not often that I can combine all three at once. Now, toss in good friends, some great food out of a Dutch oven and "Wow!" - we've got an event that you can only find in Walla Walla. The Walla² Fly Fishers just held their 2nd Annual Fly Fishing Fair at Waterbrook Winery, and now that it's over I can't wait for next year's. Really, in a community named for its many waters and now known for its wine, doesn't it make sense that we are finally putting these two things together?

If you weren't one of the almost two hundred people lucky enough to enjoy the event in person, let me tell you about it so that you can put it on the calendar for next year. We started-off with expert fly tyers demonstrating their skills, added a few incredible fly casting instructors sharing their knowledge, and staged it all in a beautiful setting, including a pond stocked with fish (at least purportedly). Did I mention that this was also a family event? The fly tyers gave away their flies and there were casting games with prizes for kids and Waterbrook wine for the adults.

So, that's how we put it all together this year and had a great day for all involved. As it turns out, I'm not the only person who enjoys my favorite things. . .

Find more details about Walla² Fly Fishers and our events at - http://wallawallaflyfishers.blogspot.com/2010/05/fly-fishing-fair-2010-at-waterbrook.html

Photo courtesy Waterbrook Winery

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Beautiful, at half the size.

I’ll be honest. As a trout fisher, it was an adjustment leaving Alaska.  But the Walla Walla Valley has many great things going for its fly fishing: beautiful and accessible water, a long season, and no grizzly bears wanting to take your fish. On the other hand, you don’t normally find a trout, twenty-five inches long and shaped like a football in the Touchet (did I say, Alaska is a fly fisher’s paradise?).

During my last, local fishing excursion my fishing partner and I only caught a few fish and the best trout was less than fourteen inches long; but I remember thinking as I released it ‘Wow! What a beautiful trout.’

I once read something to the effect that when you start fly fishing you just want to catch a fish, any fish. As you progress, you want to catch a lot of fish and then you want to catch a big fish. Finally you want to catch a lot of big fish.  Now I think there is another stage having to do with appreciating fish on an esthetic level.  I also think that Walla Walla has helped me achieve it.

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It's that time of year! Days are growing noticeably shorter, the angle of daylight has shifted from that of the high summer sun, evenings are cooler, there's the scent of dew on freshly mown grass, and... I've got a knot in my stomach!

I grew up playing football. It was my passion and it paid for undergraduate and graduate degrees. By the time I was a graduate assistant coaching college ball my senses were conditioned to such a degree that the smell of dew on newly mown grass in late August and early September threw my stomach into turmoil. My body dreaded what was to come...two-a-days, blood sweat and tears, and counting the days before it was all over and we could start hitting someone other than our buddies.

I went to school in Gunnison, Colorado, elevation 7,708 feet above sea level. School started almost 5 weeks after we reported to training camp my senior season. Two-a-days lasted a couple of weeks allowing for three weeks of time to fill after practices... time for fishing. And boy did we fish! It was incredible. Evening temperatures were just right. Rivers and streams cooled as the oncoming winter began its annual embrace of the high country. Bugs were hatching. Fish were fresh, thick, and aggressive having lost their lethargy from the" dog days of summer". Aspen and cottonwood leaves began their annual turning providing backdrops and settings that burned their beauty into my memory. That fall a transition began to take place helping me survive the passing of my youth and days spent on the gridiron. The shift from summer to fall began to signify that it is time to hit the water and throw flies in earnest.

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"... it can take a lifetime's worth of attention to learn even half the secrets of a good river, and in our quieter moments that's all a lot of us want for ourselves: something modest but fine."

John Gierarch
Standing in a River Waving a Stick

Why fly fishing?

When asked this a number of folks simply say it's because of the places it takes them. For others it's respite and therapy from the stress of life. For some it's the "purity" of the sport and the connectedness one has to nature. Still others say it's the aesthetic or the art of it all, the grace of casting or the imitating the natural order of things through tying one's own flies.  And for some, there's the sense of tradition and timelessness conjured up by images and memories of cane rods, silk lines, and wicker creels.

The same can be asked of our area, "Fly fishing and Walla Walla? Why?"

The Walla Walla Valley and the foothills of the "Blues" with their rivers, streams, and pastoral landscapes provide ample opportunity to answer the "why."  For me the answers started coming shortly after moving to Walla Walla. My first year here I spent more time fishing for personal enjoyment than the prior five years combined guiding in Colorado. It was a no-brainer in Colorado, what time was available to fish was spent guiding to make a buck. Don't get me wrong, I loved every minute of it, but guiding is way different than fishing - with one you watch and with the other you catch. With the waters here I learn or discover something new about the area, how to fish it and how to appreciate it, every time I am out. And, it doesn't hurt that I'm catching a lot of fish.

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The memory of it eludes me... that first time there was a fish on my line. I'm sure time and distance play a big part in it's being lost. What has remained over the years are indelible memories that make up the tapestry of my love and passion for fishing... my father bringing home a burlap sack full of fish from deep see fishing, fishing from the pier in Oceanside, CA with dad, catching my first Sea Trout, going to Lake Isabella with my grandfather introducing me to crappie and blue gill in Lake Isabella, beating Sam in a Crappie Derby, trying fly fishing with a bobber the first time at Edison Electric Sub-Station #4 with the High Sierra looming over me, winning a Fenwick Fly Rod in billiard game and trying to throw line with it...

What is it about fishing and catching a fish that delights so many of us? It seems that every time I turn around there is a public interest add in a magazine with a child or adult exhorting a parent or loved one to take them fishing. Often I see kids heading to a local park with rod, tackle box, and worm can in hand.  It never grows old taking someone out for the first time and watching their reaction as they catch their first fish. Is it the anticipation of catching the "The Big One"?  Is it the thrill of having something wild at the other end of one's line? Is the companionship experienced with others? Is the setting, being outdoors and connected to nature? I'm guessing it's a little of each of these with each of us having our unique and personal reason... the fact of the matter is, there are a lot of us that enjoy catching a fish.

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