There Goes The Sun
It was a perfect day on the Blue River in South Central Oklahoma yesterday. Only one problem; those smallmouth bass I was baited with? They were nowhere to be found!
What Is a Perfect Blue Day?
A perfect Blue River day for stocker sticking is ice, or snow on the ground, and overcast skies. If those skies happen to be letting out more ice and snow? All the better in my opinion. If your guides are freezing? Niiiiceee, real nice.
It was none of that yesterday, with the exception of early high clouds. Air temperatures on the water hand us pealing off layers before 11am, and sweating by 2pm. Plying the shadows along the banks and the cuts only lead to some very small stocker sticking. The highly oxygenated falls pools had the same confusing results. ONE WOULD THINK these conditions, a pre-cold front clearing sunny day? would trigger some predatory feeding. Maybe these monster smallies are eating one, and only one time a day – dining on dinky (there are some real dinks) rainbow stockers. I wasn’t after monsters, but even small smallies were not to be had.
Scotty’s Blue River One Stop Has It Now
I have not had the courage to wade into Scotty’s Blue River One Stop corner store since my recent return to the Blue River. Being a tagalong yesterday was the perfect excuse to follow my nose and friends into the store and see what has changed. The short answer: Scotties is now catering to any new fly fisher who shows up on the Blue and HAS ALL of the basics a fly fisherman needs for that location! I was amazed at their fly fishing inventory and conventional tackle as well. Someone really beefed up the gear, and also the crazy fun stuff, like a huge sticker collection that is comical and a bit creative.
Blue River Research
Obviously, the Blue River is going to take more research and a lot more effort. And not so obviously, there are a lot more distractions to document along the road to Tishomingo – when going via I35E instead of cross-cutting into Oklahoma via HWY377. Not only is the growth along that “corridor” staggering, my jaw literally dropped at what I saw happening in Downtown Ardmore, Oklahoma. The topic of Oklahoma – and its potential – seems to be leading me up the road to some huge and lengthy distractions this year.
Category: Adventure, Blue River, Culture on the Skids, Fishing Reports, Fly Fishing for Trout, Fly Fishing Oklahoma, Oklahoma Report, On The Road, TECHNICAL
