Taking it on the chin...

Well I took it on the chin today. Well not totally but it sure felt as though I missed the bus and was late for the show. You know that feeling you get when you just retie your rig after casting in a tree only to snag bottom and break off your very next drift. Well that kinda summed up my day. Let me rewind...With a favourable report coming from my home waters the day prior I convinced myself that I should make the drive up the lake and get a nice relaxing Sunday morning drift in. I had not put any huge expectations on the outing...Just wanted a few nice fish and some decent fall weather and scenery. The exact recipe to get my head in order to return to work Monday. As per my usual MO I arrive very early and make the 25 min hike back in the dark of the night. I arrive at my starting point and have the river to myself. I wait for decent light and start fishing the big wintering hole. With the water somewhat subsided from the blow out and running on the clear side I figured there would be a few fish held up in this local. After beating it to death to no avail I decided there was a lot of decent water to cover so I slide up to my next choice. The water looked grand with an ever so faint tinge of green. Convinced this would be my saving grace I relentlessly drift every square inch of the run but once again to no avail. Now I start to get that uncomfortable feeling. You know the one where you just know that no matter what you do it's gonna be one of those days. After shaking it off I decide it's time to put the leg work in and find those fish. Before I could get out of the run I began hearing the gun shots in the distance. Norland had told me that the early shotgun deer hunt started on Monday but after hearing multiples of 3 and 4 shots per session I was pretty much convinced it was on today. These shots were well off in the distance so I proceeded on my way with a goal in mind. I reached the river crossing run to discover a couple of fellow drifters beat me to the punch. No worries there is lots of river for all of us so I proceeded to the top end. By now the gun shots were getting louder and in the general direction of my travel. Convinced they were still a ways off I decided to trek on up and try my hand at the Sausage Run as we refer to it. Arriving there I could see that nobody had fished it this morning so hopes of redemption ran high. About 6 drifts in and not so much as a snag my spirits began to wither. The 7th drift the tiny drennan breaks the surface and disappears. I set up hard immediately followed by a chrome missile launch from the run and a hook and float at my feet. First fish of the morning and I blew it I thought to myself. It was a small 2lb fish but nonetheless a very fine specimen and much better than anything else I had on my line that morning. I shake it off and move 1/2 way down the run. Another 8 or 9 drifts and my float dips below the surface again. This time I set up and the fish runs straight at me. Determined not to blow what could very well be my redemption I scramble to keep the line tight and start to walk backwards. As I regain control I see that it is yet another small chromer. With lady luck on my side I managed to bring her to a shallow gravel area for a quick pic and brief admiration before releasing her back into the run. By now I'm beginning to think that this morning just may be salvageable and the gun shots ring out again however marginally closer. I slide down to the bottom end of the run where it empties into a somewhat smaller swifter run. First drift through and my float dips. I set up to yet another miniature chrome missile that spits the hook followed by more gunshots. Starting to get an uneasy feeling about running into Jed and Jethro with guns I decide to return down river and fish along the way. At my first stop my cel phone rings and my wife informs me that work has been frantically trying to get a hold of me and that both sites have been calling for assistance. Figuring I'm over a hour and a half away from work there isn't much I can do. I tell her that there really is nothing I can do for them and they will have to wait until I return or get someone else. Ten minutes later and the phone rings again. Work wants me to call them. So here is my predicament. I'm on my day off in my happy place waist deep in the river and work wants me to call them long distance on my cel. I have to chuckle to myself as it kind of fits right in with the theme of the day so far. My day can't possibly get any worse so I give them a call. As it turned out they were looking for some reassurance on a fairly large asset they were troubleshooting. I told them what they needed to know and we parted ways. Another 10 mins pass and the phone rings again. Oh yes...work again wanting me to call them when I get home to see if I can come in. By now it's about 12:30. I have only managed to land a baby chromer. I got chased out of the shire by gun shots and it's not looking like I'm gonna manage a decent fish so I decide to cut my losses and make the hike out of the bush. On my way out I see an odd fellow walking the bush with a hunters orange hat and blue coveralls on in the direction that I need to go. Oh great I think to myself. These guys are now driving the bush that I have to walk through to get back to my car. Now I have that feeling back in my stomach that just won't go away today. I cautiously make my way up the steep hill constantly checking all directions. I managed to get to the summit and see no hunters. Cautiously I high tailed it out of there without incident. I went looking for solice and comfort this morning and found stress, angst, frustration, and work LOL!!!!!!! Well at least the weather and scenery were beautiful.