It turned out to be a tough 5 days. The weather and the power company that controls the Swan Falls dam 20 miles upstream didn’t cooperate. We were greeted with strong flow resulting in dirty water and lots of floating vegetation. We found fish here and there and finally toward the end of the float Roger picked up a beautiful 17” fish just across from the ramp. The total for the morning was 29 smallmouth.
Tuesday we launched 5 miles downstream and started where we had left off on Monday. We found fish almost immediately and a Zoom Super Fluke fooled this 17.5” smallmouth, which was Roger’s best fish of the week.
A short distance below we found a riffle that was loaded with nice smallies. Roger latched on to this very tank like 17” fish that fought a great fight before being released back into the Snake.
A short time later I connected with this 19 inch fish that turned out to be the biggest of the week. It came from the same riffle. Fifteen other fish were landed from this spot until the sun broke over the canyon wall and the action ended. Fishing was only fair from that point on and we ended with 40 smallmouth for the day.
Wednesday we were chased off the water by the weather. Thunder, lightning, wind and rain won the day and we headed for home around 10:30. The rest of the day was spent telling tall fishing tales and exploring Meisselbach reels. We ended with only 16 fish.
Thursday we found we still had to fight high, dirty water and lots of floating weeds. We were able to bring 19 fish to the boat before we decided to give up for the day. We headed to one of our local rodeos that evening and enjoyed watching the broncs and bulls win the evening. Our Idaho Governor and his wife rode around the arena showing their skill on a horse. I doubt if many other states had a team roping pair like that. They look at home on a horse and wearing a cowboy hat and boots.
Friday was our last chance to leave our mark on some of the Snake River smallies. The river conditions were still not ideal but it was clearing up a bit. We landed 60 fish for the day, with Roger having the best fish at 17 inches. With a bag full of reels and a worn out wrist, Roger flew back to Atlanta on Saturday morning. It was a pretty fine week, even if the river didn’t cooperate to its fullest.
