Those fisher-folk who prefer fresh water to salt, and streams over lakes, will need to hit the road this summer to find good places to fish. For me that’s nothing new, because there aren’t many day-trip choices for good fly-fishing near Sonoma anyway.
But, before we hit the road for overnight trips, there’s one more consideration. Dottie, my wife, best friend and favorite travel companion, fishes, but with some caveats:
We must stay in a really nice place that serves good food, in a comfortable setting, with places to sit and read when she’s not fishing. Interesting shopping nearby is a bonus; a Nordstrom’s nearby earns me triple bonus points.
But the fishing must be good, and the weather cannot be too cold or too hot, and there cannot be too many bugs (although those make for better fly-fishing). She prefers having a guide that will not only tie on her flies, but net and release the fish so she doesn’t have to touch them.
Our friend Katherine Culligan calls it “princess fishing.”
Still, Dottie is still my first choice in fishing buddies. Over the years, we’ve managed to find spots that fit most of her requirements, although I’ve yet to find a Nordstrom’s near any of them.
One of our favorites is Sun Valley, Idaho. Known primarily as a winter skiing resort, it is also a great place to spend a week or two during the summer. We usually stay in the town of Ketchum, through which the Big Wood River flows. As rivers go, it’s more of a creek, but in spite of being in the middle of a crowded resort, it offers surprisingly good fishing. If you go in late September, after most of the summer crowd has gone, and the skiers are at least two months from arriving, the fishing becomes outstanding.
There are lots of vacation rentals and hotel lodging available, some right on the river. Silver Creek Outfitters, a fantastic fly shop in the center of Ketchum offers guides who can show you the best places to fish on the Big Wood, as well as take you to Silver Creek, the intriguing, ice-cold, meandering spring creek southeast of town. The waters are gin clear and must be fished from a float tube, which the guide provides.
Ketchum is also loaded with great restaurants and lots of interesting little shops in which Dottie can spend the better part of a day, perhaps several days, when she doesn’t feel like fishing.
It’s about a 12-hour drive to get there, or you can fly. We prefer the drive, although the scenery, much of it on I-80 through the high desert of Nevada, isn’t that interesting. Compared to the stress of air travel these days, though, driving is far more relaxing. It slows down time and we spend it listening to audio books.
Our favorites for road trips include the Harry Bosch detective series (20 or more) by Michael Connelly, or the Dave Robicheaux novels by James Lee Burke. I’ve also managed to interest Dottie in a series of novels by Keith McCafferty about a fly-fishing artistic private detective, helping solve crimes near some of our favorite fly-fishing rivers in Montana.
Listening to the captivating tales as we cruise to and from a pleasant fishing location makes getting there part of the enjoyment. We’ve been doing these princess-fishing trips virtually ever since our last kid left home, and my best fishing buddy is still willing to go with me.
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