That is why they call it fishing, not catching!

Today was a tough day of fishing! The weatherman got it write again! From the time I left the driveway to the time I got home, rain dropped fell on my windshield. But everyone knows that a bad day fishing is still better than a good day working!
The fact is, most of us common folks cannot pick our days off.  Unfortunately, most of us work a set schedule and when our days off come up we cannot just change the weather to fit our needs. So, when I loaded up the car to go out and fish, I knew the day would be tough.  The good news was, I still live in some beautiful country so no matter how bad the fishing, the scenery is still awesome!

I loaded up the arsenal, basically preparing for everything or anything.  I grabbed three different rods, waders, wading boots, backpack, sandals, you name it I threw it in the back.  Why?  Well, I knew fishing would be tough because of the weather. I planned to explore a few new spots as well as hitting a spot I have fished several times before.  So, off I went to my first stop, the Canyon Creek culvert on the North Fork of the Flathead River. This is a stretch of river I have floated through several times and have wade fished many times as well.  Typically, this is a pretty good fishing spot. Any time you have two rivers joining together that is usually a good spot to fish. Plus, above where the rivers come together is a deep pool that holds fish and several riffles that hold fish.  Overall, a short stretch of water, you can usually catch fish in.  As I parked on the side of the road, the rain picked up. Of course it did, it was my day off!!! After about an hour of casting I changed flies, which I rarely do.  I was casting and casting until my arm was about to fall off when a fish came up and took my strike indicator. I instantly cut the nymph I was fishing off and tied on a dry fly hoping he would come back up and take the dry fly.  And finally, FISH ON!!! Today, the fish knew it was raining and were not interested in most of what I threw to them.
At that point I went to plan B. A new stretch of water I saw on Google Earth and it looked promising.  I threw my gear in the back and started driving up the road.  On the map, there is a road that goes off of the North Fork Road that looks like it crosses several promising looking streams.  So I went exploring up this remote road.  My 'exploration trips' are basically all the same. I pick a section of road or river and figure out where I can or cannot access it and if it is worth fishing again.  A lot of driving, scouting and a little fishing. But these exploration trips sometimes pay off.  Usually every third trip produces new water. Almost all the water I fish I have found in this same way.  

Unfortunately, today was a bad day all the way around.  One fish for about three or four hours of fishing.  And to top it all off, the road I thought would lead me to good fishing did not.  The road looks like it is passable on Google Earth, but it is not.  This is part of the game when you go exploring in the Forest Service.  But this will not deter my exploring new waters.  I can assure you that the next raining day I will be out exploring for new areas.  After all, the area I fished today, I found doing the same thing. So many fish, so little time!