West '05 Trip - Day 30

Posted: 2007-06-15
By: Randy Cochran

It was too cold to fish after waking up in an ice-encased tent, so I decided to move on to another access point on the Green while the morning heated a bit.

Ron from Southern California was out and about today. Who is Ron from SC? I'm not quite sure, other than someone visiting his brother in Wyoming. After a small chat it was time for me to leave. The remaining 2 subspecies of Cutthroat were still to be found if I was going to complete the Wyoming Cutt Slam.

Starting low on a small creek in BLM lands, I quickly realized how tough the Cutt Slam really is. Rainbow after rainbow came to net, and while they were very healthy and brilliant, they were not what I was after. I soon found out that piscicides were used upstream in the area in order to clear out the stream and make way for reintroduced Colorado Cutts.

This was partly good news, since I was tiring of eating the same ol' same ol'... if I found any more rainbows, I would be putting them on my grill that evening.

Up a feeder creek I caught many 'bows in the 6-13" range, and then something funny happened... I started catching browns. Not just any browns though... big ones. Evidently, a spawning run (or pre-spawning, anyway) was up from the Green River, up from the small creek, and into this TINY feeder to do their business. I wasn't about to complain. After catching quite a few browns over 20", the time had come to say goodbye to this spot and move on to find the aforementioned 'desirable' cutthroats. Those plebeian browns were getting in the way. Ha!

Moving back to the main creek's upper reaches, I noticed a palpable absence of fishy presence. The treatment must have worked this far up. On to the next location, in search of Bonneville Cutthroat this time.

Waning daylight proved a roadblock in my efforts, with no fish raised or sighted.

Recent memories of cold mornings spurred me to seek shelter at lower elevations.

2 moose crossed directly in front of me as I drove on out. I took the best pictures I could - all blurry - and then continued on after peeping 2 more moose in the shrubbery. Nee!

Lots of antelope around along the highway to Fossil Butte NM, where I ultimately ended a jackrabbit's life... he darted left, steadied into a rhythm on a straight line ahead but off to the left of my car, and then right into my path before I could react. Thump! Sadness ensued.

No camp to see in Fossil Butte, and I nearly hit 3 mule deer while sleepily searching for a place to bed down.

Frustrated, I beat a path to Kemmerer, got gas there and pooped out in the valley of the Ham's Fork at a public access site.