Walleye Fishing

Down river view

First, Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms who are reading this post. . .I wish your two legged and your four legged friends and family make your day extra special!

Bob and I haven't been fishing in a long time. Last fall the trip that we had planned was rained out.  Scott, who Bob roomed with in college, called and set up a walleye fishing trip. The guide, Touché, calls his business Fly by Nyte Fishing.

His wife, Kathee, manages the booking part of the business. Touché and Kathee have been married 52 years. When they talk about each other, they do so with love and respect. They are each other's best friend. It is cool to see relationships like theirs exist in this day and age!

Across the river view

We were up early last Sunday morning. (I got up at 3AM.) We drove about one hour and 45 minutes to be in Rufus Oregon by six in the morning. Well, Bob drove and I slept! I find that the time passes quickly when I'm reviewing the inside of my eyelids! Bob has teased me for years about how long trips take me! 😴

Rufus is a tiny town on the Columbia River near The Dallas in Oregon. It is part of the region called the Columbia River gorge. It is almost always windy in this area and sometimes, the gusts are

View from the dock

so strong that fishing trips are canceled. On our day, the weather was beautiful.  Right away, I snapped a few photos because the river was like glass. Usually, the water would be choppy and there would also be lots of other boats on the water.

The most boats we saw at any given time during our 7am-3pm fishing excursion was five. I was really surprised.

Girlie resting as we traveled to another fishing hole

This time of year, the hills are covered with spring green new grass which makes the hills appear to be the texture of velvet. I enjoyed the views from the river almost as much as I did catching fish and getting acquainted with "Girlie," the guide's dog and sidekick.

Girlie is a three year old Australian shepherd or in that part of the country she is called a cow dog. She was so well behaved and such an expressive dog that she was fun to be around.

She and Touché are joined at the hip. The inside of the boat is like her living room. She knows all the stops and routines of the day. While we traveled to the various fishing holes, she rested.

Girlie's "Is it lunch time yet" look

When we were getting close to lunch time, she looked right at Touché as if to say, are we there yet? It was obvious when we were arriving at her swimming hole and squirrel chasing area because she was primed to exit the boat as efficiently as possible!

Touché was a great guide. He has been fishing and hunting his whole life and has been a fishing guide for at least the last 20 years. He told us he was 80 years old. . .If I would have been asked his age, I would have thought in his late 60s! His boat was comfortable to ride in. On a windy day, the cover would have been extra nice!

He shared lots of fishing tales in-between netting our catch. He told us often not to worry about snagging the bottom with his fishing gear because that  was where the fish were.

Girlie's "Are we there yet" look

This was my first time to walleye fish. Bob has been a couple of times. It is a delicious white meated fish. I thought fresh caught Alaskan halibut was the best until I ate walleye!

I managed to catch two walleye. When they bite, their bite is so light that you might miss it; but, you need to reel the line in, otherwise, they take your bait and live another day!

We hadn't had our lines in the water long before I had caught the first fish.  Touché estimated it to be about five pounds which he claimed was a nice one. To me, any keeper is a nice one!

He said the spawning season had ended so the female fish were a little fatter. In general, the fish this time of the year are smaller than those caught in February or March; but, these fish are better eating.

Patty, Scott's wife, caught the next fish. She had been on five guided trips and this was the first fish she had caught. It was cool to see her catch a fish. Feeling the fish take the bait and then run with it is such a thrill. Some fishing trips no one catches anything. My dad always said that was why it was called fishing rather than catching!

River view of Mt. Hood

We each caught another walleye and then Scott caught one. Next he caught a bass. I lost a couple bass and he lost a walleye. Just because you manage to hook a fish, doesn't necessarily mean that you will successfully land it!

After lunch, we all had a few more bites; but, Bob was the only one to land a fish in the afternoon. Even as our day was ending, the river was still calm. I never tired of seeing Mt. Hood from the river. I have a different view of Mt. Hood from our property. Touche' turned the boat so I could get a shot of Mt. Hood, the river and the hills. Notice how few boats are on the water.

At the end of the trip, Touché loaded his boat and we drove the couple miles back to his shop where he cleaned, filleted and vacuumed packed our catch.Bob and I both agreed that we would like to take another trip with him. We  had a great time catching up with Scott and Patty who live a few miles away in The Dalles. I hope another fishing trip is in our plans!

Catch at the end of the day