Grants Pass is where I was born. I spent many summer
vacations there away from New Mexico where I grew up and went to school. You
could also say it is where I spent many years ignoring or was simply oblivious
to the Rogue River and all the fantastic fishing it had to offer. Granted, I
was more into golf and draining birdies than worrying about a drag free drift
or slaying steel. If only I knew then what I know now. I have a feeling things
would have been a little different. I definitely wouldn’t have had a one
handicap, and I probably would have landed a lot more steelhead and half
pounders. But, I digress. My life was in a transition stage and I just so
happened to be staying in GP for a few weeks. While there, my intent was to get
to know the Rogue a little better.
Winter had set up camp and wasn’t going anywhere. It was
cold, wet, and the, “It’s The Climate” banner that GP prides itself on hung in
irony downtown. One Sunday, out of the blue the weather shifted into being
sunny and warm. The section around GP was pretty high and murky, so I decided
to let my spey rod rest and try something new. No luck with the steelhead thus
far. It takes about a thousand casts between each one, and I think I was only
up to like 400. So I took my 3-weight and headed out to what is known as “Holy
Waters.” Holy Waters flows right out from under Lost Creek Lake Reservoir. This
is where the Rogue River more or less begins. Its headwaters are actually above
Union Creek. I knew the water up there would be a good temperature, and clear.
I had been allured by stories of husky rainbows in this particular section of
the Rogue. Off I went to find out if the stories were true.
Taking highway 62, I headed towards the fish hatchery. Above
the hatchery dam is where I intended to try my luck. As I made my way up the
road a man made barrier of large boulders hindered me from traveling any
further. I got out and like every time before getting all my gear I scared
myself into thinking I forgot a necessary item. Not this time. Through the
scattered blackberry bushes and scrub oak I went down to the river. It was no
special section of the river. To me, it wasn’t really ideal for fishing unless
there was a major hatch with rising fish. Which actually in the summer/early
fall there is a prolific salmonfly hatch that occurs there. At this point
though there was no hatch and the river was flat and lifeless. So far, I was
not impressed. I scoped it out for a while and tried fishing to a couple of
large guppies that were sad excuses for rainbows. Of course the water was
barely moving and about two feet deep and they knew I was there the whole time.
Slightly frustrated, I began to search the river for another spot that looked
more promising. I looked upstream a ways and suddenly I saw the reflection of
the sun off of what looked like a good riffle. Seduced by the water I headed up
river.
Upon reaching the upper section I came to the conclusion
that this is where I needed to spend some quality time. It was an ideal
section. There was a large riffle with some speed that tapered off into a deep
pool. There was also a seam in between the main current and the stagnant frog
water. If those husky rainbows did exist, this was the spot they would be
lurking. Not to miss anything I started up at the top of the riffle. No dice.
Finally I got to the seam where I thought there would be some action. My strike
indicator suddenly shifted and I set the hook. Sure enough it was what felt
like a nice size fish. After it took out about 15 yards of line I knew it was
no 9 incher. This one rolled a time or two and revealed it had some shoulders.
Nice fish. After playing the fish for a bit I got it into the shallows and
attempted to land him. Then, just like that, no fish. My barbless, size 20
midge decided it couldn’t hang on any longer. Dang. So I did what any fisherman
in my situation would do, I cast out to the same spot. Sure enough two casts
later I hooked another one! I swear it was the same fish. This time I got the
better of him. It was a beautiful 16” rainbow. After a brief moment of
satisfaction, I was eager for more. About 4 casts later, it was fish on again.
At first I thought this fish was stupid because it felt like the same one. This
one proved that it was most definitely not the same fish. This one was a hog
and fought with a pugnacious vigor. It was the nicest rainbow I’ve ever caught.
After one more nice fish from the same hole, I decided that I had had enough.
Plus, my 3-weight was a little tired. It had gotten used to the Crooked River
and 9 inch trout.
Holy waters proved to be worthy of all the stories, and now
I have my own story to tell. Like I said earlier, my life was in a transition
stage. Now its off to New Mexico where the story, and the chronicles continue…
Equipment:
- 8' 4" 3-weight
- Double taper floating line
- Tapered 5X fluorocarbon leader/tippet
- Size 16 Morrish's Anato May
- Size 20 Copper Brassie midge
