Gone Fishin'

I'm late with my blog today because I had a project to finish in the morning and then I went fishing. The tidal Potomac River as it runs through Washington, DC is an excellent fishery. Check out the video  by Urban Anglers.

The weather report in the morning said thunder showers and, like most sentient creatures, I'd rather not be in a thunderstorm while waving a 9' fly rod over my head. Then I checked the weather again at noon. They had changed their tune. No thundershowers until evening and so I rushed down.

A friend told me about Four Mile Run and I thought I understood where to park. The river was there emptying into the Potomac as he described, but I couldn't get down to it so I moved on to Gravelly Point, a spot I knew for sure.

While it's on the river, Gravelly Point is better known as the best place in the country to watch airplanes takeoff and land. It's border is about four hundred feet from one of Reagan National Airport's major runways. Whether taking off or landing, the planes come in very low. It's exciting and, needless to say, very noisy.

Yet once I began fishing, I didn't hear a single jet even though they were just a couple of hundred feet over my head coming in one after another. I was completely absorbed in watching, wading, casting, and water. I'd like to say that it was also absorbed in landing fish, but they, alas, didn't get the memo. And besides, once I arrived we were nearing slack tide, the great fishing slowdown.

That I've lived within ten minutes of the Potomac for fourteen years and have been fishing so rarely is embarrassing and just a little crazy. It's so relaxing whether I catch fish or not and it refreshes my whole outlook. Writing is easier now than it was this morning.

Next week I'll be in Wyoming fishing the high country streams and lakes with my son and then on my own in Yellowstone on my way to a conference in Montana. Yes, that's fishing heaven, but when I get home, I need to make more trips to my local river, enjoying the beauty, serenity, and thrills just down the street.