While I am waiting with baited breath to see if all this cock-tosterone will evolve in to a WWF throwdown............Here is some current Rock creek news
***********IMPORTANT Stream update for floaters!!! There is a VERY DANGEROUS situation at around mile 27; the log jam that had been there previously has broken loose and moved about 1/4 mile downstream TO THE LEFT channel. This is important is because everyone took the left channel before! We had previously reported that you should stay to the extreme right, but new logs have appeared in this channel and there is no way to avoid the jams in either channel - DO NOT ATTEMPT TO FLOAT THROUGH THESE JAMS - YOU MUST AVOID FLOATING THROUGH THIS AREA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*************
June 11, 2009 8:21 AM Yesterday, thankfully, what could've ended in tragedy didn't. I've mentioned the log jam at mile 27, but have failed to mention the danger at mile 4. I guess because it's been there for so long, it's easy to assume that everyone knows about it.
In the late morning a fellow stopped by the shop - he had his rowing frame on top of his rig. John & Rivers Perry were here; the fellow that stopped by said he was going to float and asked about the take-out at mile 4. John told him to be sure to get out and physically walk it so he was aware of how he would need to approach it because if he missed it he would run into trouble. The fellow said he had looked as he drove by and it looked like an easy approach. John again told him it was not as easy as it looked and stated that he should go walk it. The guy stated that he was experienced and didn't think he would have any problems.
Last night I received a call that someone had missed the take-out at mile 4, and had flipped his raft. Life Flight & ambulances were there, and a person was missing. It took until this morning before I could find out what happened, and if everyone was safe.
The missing person had floated downstream, and was picked up by the guy that lives next to John Perry; the other 2 in the raft were safe. No one was injured. And yes, it was the same guy that had stopped in earlier in the day. Thankfully, all are okay. His raft is still hung up on the log jam, and I suppose all his gear is gone. But, no lives were lost.
The obvious moral to this story is that no matter how experienced an oarsman a person may be, this creek is ever changing and what may have been good last year (or even last week) is not necessarily so today. The few minutes it takes to assess a situation is worth the time to keep from getting into a predicament that you may not be able to get out of.
Okay, now that I've said that, it's time to let you know about the bugs. 2 days ago there were none - yesterday morning when Joe drove up to mile 22 they were EVERYWHERE, so they emerged overnight. I had several people in the store yesterday, and there were salmon flies, goldens, and green drakes hatching. The fish were not tuned in to any of them yet though, although that will change quickly too. I'm sure this week-end will be a zoo up here, once folks find out that the bugs have finally appeared and they are moving fast!
Action yesterday was still best on the SJW thrown in to the calmer (if it could be found) water. Stream flow this morning is 1770 cfs - that's about half what it was 4 days ago! Stream temp is 49 degrees - warm enough for the bugs to hatch, but still very cold if you go in the drink!
Joe has run into a little snafu on the job, and ran out of materials just when he thought he would be able to finish. So he was out of the house by 6 AM heading to St. Ignatius for more siding material. The salmon flies are tormenting him - he NEEDS to get finished!
That's it for today. Be sure to stop by if you're in our neck of the woods...
Deb & Joe
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Also, I spoke with my friend who lives on the creek last night.............the water is finally out of the pastures and the stoneflys are everywhere..........the next week should be extremely good..............It will be the normal bumper-car-raft run...............lots of fishermen and lots of fish...........remember, pay attention for the log jams.........know what is going on....................
Now back to the cock-tosterone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!