The Shokuryoshi Experiment
The month of August brought plenty of opportunity for new challenges and great fishing, as well as a chance to fish with a friend.
Week 1
The first week of August, I got out for a short session after work. I just hit the local creek. It wasn't the best time to be out there, I fished the best I could, and also got creative with ways to fish a few spots that I normally don't have much luck in.
Week 2
Going into the second week, I was able to get out on the local creek again on one of the mornings. The water was quite a bit cooler and I wasn't expecting as much action near the surface so I decided to try my hand at tight-line nymphing - which is something I'm not particularly great at. It was good practice, and I was able to land 5 fish total in the hour, 4 of which were caught while nymphing.
Week 3
On a quick little weekend get-away to the Eastern Sierras, I took any opportunity I could get to explore new waters, and revisit some familiar ones as well. I can't say the bite was hot, but the fishing was still good. I'm always in awe of the beauty that the mountains hold. As it pertains to the fishing, I had the set my heart on trying for a Sierra Grand Slam. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to meet that mark, but I still enjoyed the time I had to fish! You can read more about my attempt in this month's journal entry post, which you can find below...
Outside of trying to get the slam, I was also able to put a couple brookies in the net, which is a treat I don't often get to enjoy. This outing wasn't recorded though, as it was more of a leisurely way to spend time with the wife.
Week 4
In the last week of the month, I was able to get out fishing with a friend who I hadn't fished with yet. It was a good morning on the water.
Moving through the week, I had a bit more time to fish, and intended to take full advantage of that. Even though I wasn't feeling very motivated, I took the time to drive out to one of the furthest access points on the river for an evening session.
I wanted to try to cover a certain distance between two points - the first being where the access drops you into the river, and the end-point being where another little creek feeds into the river. This turned out to be just a little over half a mile. It turned out to be the most productive session I've had this season. Even though the fish are generally smaller, the numbers were great. This session really boosted my average fish per hour. With 16 fish to the net in two hours, it was a great way to wrap up the month of August.
Stats Update
With the same amount of outings, and the same amount of hours fished in August of last year, I definitely made more use of my time on the water. Maybe it was due to the spots I chose, but I also fished on a river that I have never fished before. Regardless, I'm looking forward to the next few months of this experiment. I'm hoping to be able to sustain these numbers.