As I have most recently written, I had a great time with my son, Tony at East Lake. And as I said, one of the reasons was the experience of meeting truly kind and happy people. Tony and I witnessed a father and son team that exhibited all that is special with our sport of flyfishing. Dr. Mike Miller and his son, CJ, were in perfect harmony in sharing special moments (these amazingly beautiful fish, the elements, the exuberance of ‘the moment‘, learning new flyfishing techniques). They were out there at first light and last light. They both braved harsh weather. And they both basked in eachother’s glorious moment. As you can see by Mike’s expression, that was an amazing fish.

A fun and interesting story re CJ’s fish: I am told Mike and CJ were fishing over near the Hot Springs cove and CJ was possibly lulled into a moment of daydreaming, at least a focus deficit,  when his quiet time was interrupted by that beautiful Brown. What a way to wake up!!  Now, I am always stressing presentation should at least be given equal weight to fly selection. However, here CJ seems to have demonstrated great faith in the pattern and unless there was a secret method with that presentation, this may prove to be the exception to my rule. Always exceptions aren’t there? Both fish were caught on the steadfast Black Woolly Bugger and I believe both used a clear or camo Intermediate Line. Both of the fish were caught along the Southeast part of the lake in about 10-15 feet of water. Both fish were released. Kudos to both Mike and CJ and a big thank you to them for sharing these photo’s and letting Tony and I share in their excitement.