GONE FISHING

GONE FISHIN’

Reports From the Field

Linda’s South of the Border Paradise by Doug Hale

Linda Friedman and several of her fishing buddies just returned from another trip to saltwater fly fishing heaven. Where? Oh just south of the border, an easy flight from Oakland, on the gulf of mexico complete with fabulous food, lots of fish and world class sunsets. Where is this little slice of paradise exactly you might ask? Linda promises to tell you if you ask her nicely. She just won’t tell me mostly because she knows that I’ll end up telling everyone!

Above: The editors of the Irideus are not in any rush to encounter grasshoppers this size!

Mum’s the word when it comes to Linda and where she landed this Tarpon.

One of those world class sunsets you’d get to experience if you fish with Linda more often!

Inyo in April - A Cautionary Reminder to Check Your Gear! by Zach Wong

Wind and rain played havoc with the latter half of my trip with my fianceè after leaving the Grand Canyon the day before while breaking down camp in the middle of a snow storm we hadn’t seen in the weather reports. A near constant stiff wind of +30mph at Death Valley made setting up a tent near impossible and as adults with a bit of spending money we opted to stay at one of the four places offering shelter in the park for a nominal (read large) fee. I think that when we left Death Valley and entered the Owens Valley on the eastern escarpment of the Sierras, we hoped that the wind had stayed behind. We set up camp in Tuttle Creek and cooked dinner. That relief was to be short lived. As soon as we wanted to start a warm campfire, the appearance of droplets soon made us put most of our gear into the back of the truck and hunker down. In my entire life I have never anything like a spring rainstorm in the Eastern Sierras. This was quickly realized when now our little tent was the only barrier between us and the thick droplets of rain and wind gusts of up to 50mph! One moment we’d be reading and the next, the wind will have hit the side of our tent with such force that it nearly pancaked us inside! The whole evening was spent with all our bags and things propped up against one side of the tent to prevent from being nearly smashed again. One harrowing night later, we woke up to find the entire campground amazingly bone dry. But the entire Inyo range nearly 50 miles away from us was covered in snow. It wasn’t before! Needless to say, I wasn’t putting on leaky waders to get into Hot Creek later that day in 8” of snow. Before leaving on any adventures, always make sure your gear is up to the task: • Check beforehad that it is clean and free of damage, if there is any damage either repair or replace the item. Our neighbor in Death

Valley had his entire tent torn to shreds the night before and he was sleeping out on the ground. • Check first aid kits, make sure that everything is stocked up and still within expiry. • Always consider it a worthwhile expenditure to put a little more money into your gear.

While the 50 dollar tent from a bigbox store may sound like a good idea, I’ve found that these tend to break down a lot faster with repeated use due to cheap materials. • When breaking down camp, try to keep organized. Sometimes this can be difficult when you might need to pack in a rush, but still take the time to make sure you don’t leave anything behind. • Clean your equipment as you go! If you roll up your tent full of bark and other debris from the forest floor, it may tear the netting or panels while in transport. • When you get back from your adventure, be sure to make sure your tent is dry before throwing it into storage. Damp is a big tent killer especially if it’s sitting in your closet at home! This would also be a good time to inspect for any damage you need to repair.

As always, happy camping!