So, I spend three days in Boone, and it was awesome. I didn't want to leave, but for the sake of being on a "journey" I figured it was time. Wednesday was a pretty cool day. I woke up (2 of 3 nights in a hammock) because of a rooster. How sweet is that? The damn rooster is anxious though and he loves to give a preliminary sound off at about 4 AM. "Gandoca", as he is called, then lets you sleep for a few hours and then succeeds in waking up everyone and everything. After the wake up call, I walked down to the Watauga River to do some fly fishing. I recalled that the river was only a quick hop, skip and jump away, but I was wrong. It ended up being a 25 minute walk down a mountain. Not bad, but the distance threw me off a bit and cause me to dread the way back up with wet wading boots on. I made it down to the river and realized how little I actually know about fly fishing. I know how to tie one knot and I picked out the fly I would use, because I liked the colors. I guess that is what happens when either a guide or your dad has spoon fed you outdoors. Don't get me wrong, that dad and those guides are the reasons why I love fishing, but I am completely helpless alone on the water. This helplessness was actually a good feeling. I had to sit there and work through the frustration on threading the line (several times), tying the fly on and then figuring out how in the hell it was supposed to look in the water. I walked up and down the creek, scared a few fish, and casted alot, but it was a blast. I enjoyed just watching the movement of the water and starting over with each cast. Every time I picked up the line, there was something new on which I could improve. I had to relax and just laugh at my mistakes. I put the fly in several trees, and probably looked like an ogor, slipping on all of the rocks. After about an hour and a half of scaring fish, I made the haul up the mountain and went to pick up Grant at his work for some biking. Grant, his friend Will and I went to the China Creek downhill trail, set a shuttle (because I wasn't about to ride up that mountain) and then we did some bouldering to warm up. The bouldering was pretty fun, and I got to try out my new climbing shoes. Then came China Creek. It was basically straight down a mountain, and through overgrown stinging nettles, but it was crazy fun. Close to the bottom, we found a sweet plunge pool and went for a swim. Let the picture above show how sweet the downhill was. That is a burn from my disk brakes. If you have been holding the brakes, be careful getting off the bike!
Now I am in Asheville, I am about get some beers with Bill Donaldson and then I will continue the trip with some biking, hiking, and fishing.
No comments:
Post a Comment