What is Your Fondest Memory When Fishing?

RCF

RCF

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After 70+ years of fishing I have had a lot of fond fishing experiences:

Fishing with my dad on numerous excursions.
Catching my steelhead on the Dose on 'boo.
Taking others out and introducing them to fly fishing and catching fish!
Supporting a grandfather to be able to connect with his grandson while fishing.
A 25"+ brown on RC.
Having our annual 4th of July with our long-time friends out fishing when all 4 of of us catching 20"+ fish at the same time. The father trying to explain to his 2 sons this is not 'normal' LOL.
Taking HBMCC out fishing for the best time he had every experienced.

Yes, there have been a lot of fond memories. We all have had them...

My fondest memory is fishing with my dad at Rivers Inlet; the last time we ever fished together. He had Mesothelioma and Parkinson's. He had his doctor 'glue' his lungs to his ribcage so he could fish one last time. I never knew that until after his burial... We caught our limit on our first day of 5 days there. To see his twinkle in his eyes, his patience while fishing, and the joy brought me back to times gone by when fishing the OP. The resort let me know the next day we have not met our quota. Seems everyone had fresh salmon the night before. That continued the rest of our time with them.

Many of us help others with support to Fly Fishing clubs, volunteering for endeavors to improve the habitat, helping others e.g. Veterans, working in jobs and/or education.

What is your fondest memory or one that you are working towards?
 
After more than 77 years of fishing and 70 years of fly fishing that are oodles of memories of exceptional fish (some large and others not so large) and memories of special trips and days on the water.

My oldest son was introduced to fishing (more than 50 yeas ago) at a young age (3?) and for the first few years I made sure (scouted out the site, methods, etc.) that the fishing was a slam dunk (fish caught early and often). Would occasionally take him steelhead fishing (when there were such critters) starting at age 6 and it wasn't until he was 12 or so fish were caught every trip. In short, he became my main fishing "buddy". My fondest memory was a few years ago on morning on Puget Sound chasing salmon when I realized that in our fishing our roles had been reversed. In short, our fishing had gone full circle, and I treasure each and every day we get a chance to spend time with rod in hand and sharing stories of past fishing memories.

curt
 
Taking my 14 year old youngest son years ago to fish the Ayakulik river on Kodiak Island . We put the trip together with some friends spent a week floating the river on our own . Caught a lot of king salmon on that river . It was fun to watch that 14 year old chase a king down the river getting it in .

Or that same son ,on a backpacking trip in the high Unita's in Utah . At the time he was only 4 ,nearly 5 ,was taking his older brother , but thought he was a bit too young to go . He worked on me long enough , and talked me into it. Told him he had to carry a small backpack ,and his rod . Well we got to the lake we were going to , not terribly far . Anyway we got there ,and he comes up to me ,and looks up at me ,and says told you dad I could make it . Pretty memorable , that was over 40 years ago .
 
Every outing with Dad.
 
Never met my biological father, and a succession of step-fathers with no interest in the outdoors cycled through what was a rocky childhood.
So when I became a father, married to a wonderfully supportive and loving woman, nothing was more important to me than providing our kids with the home life I had longed for, and introducing them to camping and fishing in the mtns on weekends and summer vacations was a vital part of it.
So many fond memories of doing just that with what are now adults closing in on or already 50.
 
If we're talking about a memory of something I myself did, it's probably the few times early on when I put it all together to find my first fish in a creek/lake/whatever. Where I said, "I think there's a fish in Y spot, I'll use this fly, and try to cast to X so the fly drifts through Y". With all the things that make fly fishing a complicated game, it really feels like a big win the first few times it comes together for you (and, TBH, any time you tackle a new species/etc).

But overall fondest memories? It has to be any time that I got someone into their first fish (or first "big" fish). You simply can't top the feeling you get watching someone else feel that stoke that we all find in this silly hobby. At the top of that list are the times my kids have fished with me. They aren't super into it as teens, but I'll always have the memories of their younger days hiking to the wild trout creek with me or chasing bluegill in a pond. The look on a 4 year old's face when they get to touch a trout with their own fingers and feel a living thing wriggle in their hands... that is a connection to wildness that is absolutely magical.

jack-fishing.jpg

And it's not like the days are completely gone with my kids. Last month my 16 year old said that he wanted to come fishing with me on the bass boat for fathers day. I think he was mostly just doing something nice for his dad (and wanted a chance to drive the boat for the first time). But even so, it ended up being a great stretch of bass fishing. I got to watch him hook into some real nice smallmouth and get the adrenaline jitters from the hookup and feeling that strong tug. Hard to think of much of a better way to spend a morning.
 
There are many, but underneath Wright Creek Bridge on the N Umpqua with family has to be at the top.

And the Wright family is a relationship of mine as well. A lot of family history in the area and it will be my final resting place when the time comes. 😁
 
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Best memories are always wade fly fishing the saltwater when the salmon, bonefish, trevally, etc are being regularly hooked up in the company of good fishing buddies.
 
-a giant cutt taking a floating Royal Trude on the Snake River
-my first King on the fly, a 30# chromer, taking a Clouser on the swing in tidewater
-having a migrating Hegben Brown as long as my arm grab an egg sucking leech on the Madison
-meeting a rancher in the Methow Valley who gave us access to his private lake filled with XL's
etc, etc, ....surfing and fishing, you only get back what you put into it
 
I took my son to Montana. He had never been to the West. Not only was the fishing really good, but he was awed by the scenery. Part of the trip was to Yellowstone and as a Microbiologist he was amazed at the colors of the hot spring pools. After talking with the rangers he was able to purchase a book at the ranger station on the Microbiology of the park. That trip was about 10 years ago and he still talks about it. I suspect (hope) that it is something he will remember his whole life.
 
The accumulated memories of literally hundreds (no exaggeration) of day and camping trips made with family to a specific flyfishing only lake in NE WA over the past 60+ years. Have photos of our children and then their children sitting on the same lakeside rocks.

Hoping to one day introduce some great-grandcildren to one of my favorite places on earth.
 
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After 50 some odd years, I have many a fond memory of our sport. I have to admit, a large majority of my fondest flyfishing memories ended up as humor stories or cartoons. Afterall, flyfishing is danged funny when you think about it.
 
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