ilikefishes
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jul 22, 2011
- Messages
- 2,957
So I was in Pagosa Springs Colorado with my family and in-laws this last week. On Thursday I was to go fishing with my BIL. He is a tremendous fisherman and a great outdoorsman. I don't know how many of you know that I had my deck collapse out from under me back in June of '09 and fell 15 feet. Needless to say I broke my leg up pretty good and the recovery has been long and hard. So I get in the truck on Thursday morning and ask him how far he is going to make me hike that day. He says, "Oh it is less than a mile and it is easy." I think to myself, cool, this is going to be fun.
So we get there and start fishing. After fishing for about two (2) hours, we come around a corner and see a waterfall.
The fishing up to this point was less than stellar. The pools all had fish in them, but you really only got a couple shots and then they would all sit down. So I sat around and took some photos of the scenery. This is a really good shot for a camera phone.
So my brother in law gets done fishing the run under the waterfall and we decide to head back to the truck. The entire time I can see him trying to find a way up a 100' cliff wall to the other side of the waterfall. We walk a little ways and he asks if we can go up this scree slope. I look at him and say "What if we get tot the top and there is a cliff wall there?" He does not care and is determined. We both look at our watches and realize it is only 11:30 and we are not ready to call it a day. All that awaits is crafts fairs and a carnival which we have already seen twice. So we start up the slope with his dog Gigsy. I tell him as long as I get to go first. Needless to say, with every step you take you loose a half a step. Then I realize that if I follow the cliff wall it is a lot easier, well not a lot easier but easier. We finally get to the top and look down on this.
We then have to find a way down the other side. This is almost as fun as getting up. When we get down we mark our way out with a totem on a rock. We finally get to the river and start fishing and it is EPIC. We are catching bigger fish, more fish and all Natives. The Colorado River Cutthroat is one of the most beautiful of all species. Words can't explain the colors they produce.
We were having a blast and enjoying the fact that we were probably where few people have made it before us. I am fishing and he says, "Watch out". Here comes a rock about the size of a basketball down the cliff bounding toward us. I think, and react by not moving and the thing goes right in front of me. I asked him what that was from and we both look up to see a cloud of dust at the top of the cliff. We decide we must have spooked something and they knocked it off when the ran. Then it starts to rain. So my dumb ass doesn't have his rain jacket with him because the wife had to borrow it the night before when we were sitting on the deck listening to the rain. So I seek cover as he fishes on. Then we decide we need to probably double time it because we have to make it like 5 miles to a trail that he knows crosses the river. So we hike and fish. Then we get to even a bigger waterfall than the previous one. The fishing here was insane and we pulled about 20 fish out of the pool right below it. I decide to go and investigate a way to get up the cliff to the other side of it and eventually find a route out of the canyon. We go to drop back down in and there is no way. Ahead of us is a canyon of at least 50' cliffs and at the top a waterfall that has to be 100' tall. So we decide to start hiking hoping that we hit the trail and not more cliff walls. Then we will have to go back all the way to the other waterfall and slide down the scree slope. So we hike and hike some more. I am confident with my BIL because if there was anyone I would want to be stuck in the wild with it would be him. He informs me that it is a good sign to see elk scat as they don't like cliffs, so there has to be a way in and out of here. After hiking up a mountain for about 45 minutes we finally reach the top. He likes the line we are on so we start following the ridge line. Eventually we see the trail and I run up and drop down and kiss it. I was sure we were going to be getting back to the truck after dark. When it is all said and done we are home in time for dinner. All and all we ended up hiking more than 12 miles by our estimations.
So we get there and start fishing. After fishing for about two (2) hours, we come around a corner and see a waterfall.
The fishing up to this point was less than stellar. The pools all had fish in them, but you really only got a couple shots and then they would all sit down. So I sat around and took some photos of the scenery. This is a really good shot for a camera phone.
So my brother in law gets done fishing the run under the waterfall and we decide to head back to the truck. The entire time I can see him trying to find a way up a 100' cliff wall to the other side of the waterfall. We walk a little ways and he asks if we can go up this scree slope. I look at him and say "What if we get tot the top and there is a cliff wall there?" He does not care and is determined. We both look at our watches and realize it is only 11:30 and we are not ready to call it a day. All that awaits is crafts fairs and a carnival which we have already seen twice. So we start up the slope with his dog Gigsy. I tell him as long as I get to go first. Needless to say, with every step you take you loose a half a step. Then I realize that if I follow the cliff wall it is a lot easier, well not a lot easier but easier. We finally get to the top and look down on this.
We then have to find a way down the other side. This is almost as fun as getting up. When we get down we mark our way out with a totem on a rock. We finally get to the river and start fishing and it is EPIC. We are catching bigger fish, more fish and all Natives. The Colorado River Cutthroat is one of the most beautiful of all species. Words can't explain the colors they produce.
We were having a blast and enjoying the fact that we were probably where few people have made it before us. I am fishing and he says, "Watch out". Here comes a rock about the size of a basketball down the cliff bounding toward us. I think, and react by not moving and the thing goes right in front of me. I asked him what that was from and we both look up to see a cloud of dust at the top of the cliff. We decide we must have spooked something and they knocked it off when the ran. Then it starts to rain. So my dumb ass doesn't have his rain jacket with him because the wife had to borrow it the night before when we were sitting on the deck listening to the rain. So I seek cover as he fishes on. Then we decide we need to probably double time it because we have to make it like 5 miles to a trail that he knows crosses the river. So we hike and fish. Then we get to even a bigger waterfall than the previous one. The fishing here was insane and we pulled about 20 fish out of the pool right below it. I decide to go and investigate a way to get up the cliff to the other side of it and eventually find a route out of the canyon. We go to drop back down in and there is no way. Ahead of us is a canyon of at least 50' cliffs and at the top a waterfall that has to be 100' tall. So we decide to start hiking hoping that we hit the trail and not more cliff walls. Then we will have to go back all the way to the other waterfall and slide down the scree slope. So we hike and hike some more. I am confident with my BIL because if there was anyone I would want to be stuck in the wild with it would be him. He informs me that it is a good sign to see elk scat as they don't like cliffs, so there has to be a way in and out of here. After hiking up a mountain for about 45 minutes we finally reach the top. He likes the line we are on so we start following the ridge line. Eventually we see the trail and I run up and drop down and kiss it. I was sure we were going to be getting back to the truck after dark. When it is all said and done we are home in time for dinner. All and all we ended up hiking more than 12 miles by our estimations.
