23 Jul Things Change. Fast.

This afternoon my sweetheart suggested that we go up Provo Canyon so I could fish for a bit while she sat in the shade and read her new book. . . . What a woman!!

It was a beautiful day today and as some of you may know, here in Utah it’s the start of a long weekend. The 24th of July is a state holiday, Pioneer Day, so the canyon was lousy with people. I figured we could avoid the river pressure by going to the lower end of the Lower Provo. We pulled off Nunn’s Park, a park and campground that is pretty popular but which affords easy access to river that isn’t fished too hard. It’s a nice place to read a book and since the river is running high right now, I thought it a good choice because there is a stretch of river there that is flat and wide. I hoped I could fish it without getting into too much trouble wading. What I hadn’t counted on was having an audience.

Fast water can do more than ruin your day.

As I sauntered across the grass to drop down into the river, I passed by a family who were sitting on a blanket just enjoying the shade and the sound of the water. By the time I eased into the water and stripped out some line, I realized the entire family had slid to the riverside and were anxiously watching me. I thought, “Okay, maybe I can entertain them.” The problem was that while the water was littered with bugs, the fish were briskly ignoring them. Apparently they’ve seen it before.

It didn’t take too long before the family grew tired of watching me cast, change flies and repeat. And I couldn’t help but feel like I’d let them down. Eventually, I hooked up with a nice fat 14″ brown. The take surprised me a bit, but more shocking was how quickly my audience was back. And they’d tripled.

The fish took in heavy water and it had me in a bit of trouble right off the bat. By the time I had him slowed, there was a guy with a big black camera with a long lens in the edge of the water taking my picture while a woman watched from behind him. The family was back; a boy of about 10 was clapping and his dad was filming me with his cell phone. Other folks gathered around and my little audience was soon over a dozen. I landed the fish and held it up for the kids to see. When I released the it, the crowd thinned a little but the original family seemed to have new hope. And why not? So did I.

As I started fishing again, I noticed that the little boy and a girl of about seven were now wading in the shallow water of the small eddy where I had entered the water. As I stood there on slick, loose rocks in water up over my thighs, I got the same sick feeling I get when I see a toddler unattended in a shopping cart. The kids seemed okay and their parents seemed pretty attentive but I still worried.

I fished half way back across and turned to fish the bank opposite the family. It couldn’t have been thirty seconds before I heard a shout. I turned to see the little girl, still against the bank, but now downstream about fifteen feet below the eddy. I started for her but realized simultaneously that I wasn’t going to get there through the current and that her mom, who was hip deep in harried had her.

The girl had flip-flops in her hands and tears in her eyes. I presume that her shoe came off and started floating away and she went after it. She was so close to never coming back that once I got my heart rate down,  I packed it in and headed for shore. As the family watched me a little sheepishly and attended to the girl, I took pains to make it clear that I was being extra careful and that it was hard. I wade rivers for a living, and while I never felt like I was in trouble at all (and I have been before), I also know that wading is a skill guides often take for granted. When I climbed out of the water, the little boy’s gaze met mine, I smiled just a little and gave him my best grave head shake.

It’s funny how fortunes can change. I was disappointed that the fish weren’t really active when I got there, but I was feeling pretty good when I caught that fish. Then, within minutes I came within inches of having this become one of the worst days of my life. So, here’s a little reminder to be extra careful wading. And when you’re out with the kids this summer, make sure to keep a close eye on them in tame water and just don’t let them near fast water. Rivers are too great to have them be the source of so much pain.