Well I don't really consider myself to be "royalty"..........but being on the river, fly fishing with Preston........was just what was needed at the end of a very busy month.
The Kosi River - See the elephant crossing in the distance?
While I was back in the US, Parker and I and my mom drove from New Orleans to Gonzales,a town just outside of Baton Rouge, La (for all of you that are not familiar with the US) to Cabella's Sporting Goods.........and I purchased two new fly fishing rods and reels.........the rods needed to break into four pieces each to fit in the suitcase..........the ones we had at home were three piece rods and they were too long.......
I didn't grow up fishing in a moving river..........with crystal clear water......growing up in south Louisiana, the water is typically dark.....or salty.....nor did I grow up fly fishing.......that didn't happen until I was 40 I think......
Fly fishing, for those who have never ventured to try is truly an art.......and I am no artist by far....self taught and still am amateur at best......but I love the challenge of outwitting an animal that at times, despite the small size of it's brain, is smart enough not to be fooled by whatever is being offered on the other end of the line.
While I do not have a picture of the Mahseer that I caught, I will never forget the experience.......it was the first time that I have ever caught a fish......on the fly, in a river similar to the trout streams and rivers that exist in the northwest United States.....
Words simply cannot describe the feeling of standing in a stream........water rushing over the small boulders.......the sounds of the rapids.........the pressure of the force of the water on your legs.......the coolness.......watching the surface for signs of fish feeding........a fin breaking the surface.......ripples in a calm pool formed by an eddy...........and trying to place an artificial fly, the size of ....well a "real" fly.....and just as light......in just the right place......in just the right manner.......
I must have made a hundred such casts until I felt that familiar tug and I saw that Golden Mahseer shooting like a rocket across the tops of rocks......my pole bent in that all familiar arc.....doing my best to keep my line tight while I fought the weight of the fish and the force of the current......
What size.......I would guess around 2.5 - 3kg......5 lbs......nice fish...felt like he was 15 lbs fighting against the rapids......
My day on the Kosi.......will long be remembered.....it was a great day.....
While I do not have a picture of the fish I caught.......I had witnesses........but what about Preston.........he too landed a beautiful Golden Mahseer.....he just didn't make much of a scene to announce his catch......
Linda claims that anyone downstream knows that I caught a fish..........I was yelling for Preston, who was about 300 yards downstream.......but he couldn't hear me over the sound of the rushing water........Linda was about 100 yards further downstream..........on the deck above the river and behind the hotel, watching us......and heard every word...
Catching that fish.......and fishing alongside Preston....... made me feel like the River King!
Enjoy the pictures!
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