Well, yesterday I got up and decided it was time to check out Rocky Mountain Park! Got everything  ready and jumped in the truck. You know ate breakfast, got a couple of cups of coffee in me, made sure I had some extra bottled water etc. Decided to call a friend of mine who guides up there all the time and lives in Estes Park to get some ideas. “Windy up here” he said! Well I thought I would drive up the Big Thompson canyon and decide where I would stop to fish! As things turned out the further I went up the canyon the more the wind seemed to be blowing. Well, it’s not bad in the truck I thought! So I just kept driving, and looking, let’s call this a scouting trip I convinced myself! Yeah that’s what it is! So I kept driving, past Drake, passed Estes, and into the Park! At the Fall river entrance, I asked the warden if I could get into certain areas of the park as I knew there is road construction going on up there this summer! “If you get in by 9:00 AM you’ll be OK” he said as the roads are closed from 9:00 AM until 4:00 PM daily! See I said to myself this is a good day to check things out! Well I squeaked by  into the area I had in mind, just in time! “OK Joe” you say just exactly where did you go? Well, a feller’s got to have some secretes! Anyway I got passed where they close the road at about 8:50 AM.

Well I drove up to a place where my friend from Estes and I have fished a couple of times and stopped thinking that I might just brave the wind, and it was a-blowin’, and try to fish for a while! As soon as I stepped out of the truck my favorite Hardy ball cap blew off and I had to chase it for a bit, funny how fast an old guy can be when his favorite lucky hat is in peril! Besides that, it was a gift from my friend, who lives in Estes! Have I mentioned that I don’t like to fish in the wind? Well I don’t!!!!! So that was a bad idea! Let’s do some more scoutin’. Maybe things will settle down a bit! So long story short I drove all over the park for a couple of hours, and I have to say that the stream flows look very good this year!  But the wind never did quit! I can’t wait until things settle down a bit and I can get out to enjoy the kind of fishing I like to do. Kinda got spoiled in my old age and I just do what I want to do!

On my way back I thought I could detect the faint smell of smoke! I hope people realize how dry things are up here this year, I thought to myself. I have been in many beautiful areas and the next thing you know they are ugly burned places that will take decades to come back! Well upon getting back home I heard that there was a pretty big fire up by Ft. Collins (4th one this summer!) seems that it was several hundred acres already! Man I thought, and with all this wind? Well by night fall it was up to 5000 acres and still growing at an alarming rate! Today, the last I heard was that it had doubled in size! And the wind is still blowing! So I guess this is a good place to say “Please be careful” if you smoke, use your ash trays, if you’re camping remember that a cold hot dog now is much better than many cold meals in the pokie! Do you really need that campfire that is banned anyhow? And those firework you’re thinking about buying, well if you have to do that …maybe you do need those cold meals and quality time with a cell mate! OK enough said.

Well, I guess I will mow the lawn and get some of those chores off the ‘Honey do’ list! And get ready for next week end! I also need to spend some time in the shop. Never a dull moment.

Did I mention that Joe doesn’t like to fish in the wind?

Have a good summer! And please be careful!

Joe E. Arguello