All kidding aside I never even post internet pictures of fish I catch let alone divulge spots. But boy list rivers you can find on any old map and the feathers sure get ruffled!!

When I was around 9 or 10 my grandfather ,on my dad's side,WW2 vet and John Wayne type,would regale me with tales of fish in far off lands like the Russian river in Northern California in the 1960s,or the Carmel river in the late 1950's /early 1960's when there was a 3 steelhead limit. Historically that river had between 12-15000 returning adult steehead,and it's a small stream. I was instantly hooked and all I wanted in life was to catch a steelhead,and one in the Carmel,my home river,no less.

In 1976,when I was 4,there was a terrible drought ,wnd it lasted into the 1980s. The Carmel was closed ,probably forever. When I was around 12 ,in 1984,I went fishing for what I thought was the last time in my lifetime,as the river was closed to fishing indefinitely.

I had never forgotten my dream of following in my grandfather ,Robert William Ford's,footsteps. In the mid 90s a local grassroots organization in conjunction with some private citizens ,former Carmel river steelheaders,lobbied for several years to once again bring fishing to a river which had seen some improved fish counts and regular winter rainfall.

1998,the Carmel regulations for fishing for anadromous rainbow trout was re-opened to fishing ,catch and release,barbless hooks,artificials only,in a 10 mile section from a certain bridge to the river mouth.

I was excited. I pulled out my grandpa's old rubber waders,leaky as they were,an old steelhead rod and reel,and some pencil lead and set off with some spin and glos,corkies,yarn,beads,and barbless hooks. Hope sprung eternal! Little did I know it would take me 3 years of brush bashing,repeated dunkings,and hours upon hours of fruitless mornings ,flogging away at the brushy little stream,catching nothing but willow sweepers and river bottom.


(To Be Continued...)