Thanks for sharing that great story! Don ----- Original Message ----- From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Saturday, December 01, 2001 5:16 PM Subject: Rod Replacement
> Thanks to all who offered advice about my shattered Orvis rod. I'm consdering > my options, but I've almost concluded that because of my innate aptitude for > seeking out slippery boulders and falling on my backside, that maybe my best > choice in a rod replacement might be to tie guides on an old broom handle. It > would only handicap my casting ability a tiny bit, and it could also double > as a wading staff. A postscript: A week after I fell and broke my rod, I took > my nephew fishing at Money Creek, near Stevens Pass. He fished down stream > and I went upstream. It was one of those glorious, warm, cloudless days and I > was having a great time fishing dries through the pocket water in search of > the small, wild rainbows. With the brim of my hat pulled down low over my sun > glasses, I was boulder hopping along, intent on getting to the next inviting > looking pool. What I failed to notice was a football-sized hornet's nest that > was attached to a vine maple branch that hung out over the water. Of course, > with my luck, I scored a direct hit on the nest with the side of my head and > my right shoulder. A swarm of enraged hornets were on me in a flash, looking > for bare flesh in which to imlant there stingers. I can't imagine a more > supercharged catalyst to get you moving. I reacted with my first impulse, > which was to run damn fast to deeper water. Running in chest high waders over > moss covered boulders in knee deep water with an army of ill tempered hornets > in hot pursuit, with much yelling and cussing and flailing of arms- well, > let's just say that I don't recommend it as a way of ending your fishing > trips. After a few a blundering, splashy steps, I encountered another of > those pesky slippery rocks and did a balancing act that must have resemble d a > hog on ice. Of course, gravity won in the end and I took a very ungainly, > graceless tumble on the rocks. The bees had pretty much left me by this time, > most returning to their nest undoubtedly to share their funny stories about > the hapless human trespasser who got just what was coming to him. After > looking around to see if anyone might have been a witness to my clown act, > and had ruptured themselves laughing,I checked for hurts - a few scrapes and > a very sore hand ( which was later found to be broken ). Oh yes, And the > hornets had zapped me 5 or 6 times on the back of my neck. Ah, but this time > I had'nt broken my rod . I had dropped it right under the bee's nest along > with my hat, my sun glasses, and two fly boxes. So, while soaking my sore > hand in the cool water, and swabbing the back of my neck with a moist > handkerchief, I waited for about 20 minutes or so to make sure that those > damn hornets had calmed way down before I slowly, stealthfully crawled back > to retrieve my things. And I got them all too. The fly boxes and my hat were > still floating around in a back eddy. My rod was unscathed this time, and I > only had to bob for about 10 minutes, with one eye warily on the nest above > my head, before I found my sun glasses under two feet of water. It was a > memorable day and the fishing was pretty good too! Good luck, and stear > clear of those nests. Bob Martin >
