Searching for apex predators and flyfishing in the smoke

My plans to head over to the Oregon Coast and down to Mt Shasta got derailed due to all the wildfires.  So I spent several days in the Kootenai National Forest in the remote northwest corner of Montana, home to grizzlies, wolves, and cougars… none of which I was able to see, although I did find wolf tracks and scat and saw one black bear.  Besides going on long walks and motorcycle excursions in search of these animals, I spent much of my time flyfishing in high mountain lakes.  I’m new to flyflshing and its a bit of a learning curve to get the hang of it, however I’m happy to say I landed my first 5 trout using dry flies and enjoyed a good feast with my dog.  It is quite exciting to watch the trout aggressively strike the flies as they float and shimmy on the surface.  I was a bit skeptical about the idea of fly fishing being this greater art than traditional spin casting, but I’m starting to see the light.  What I like about fly fishing it that it requires a good deal more concentration, and intimacy with the prey you seek.  You have to really study and watch the fish, observe how and what they are feeding on, and adjust tactics accordingly.  Setting the hook is also more important in flyfishing I’ve noticed.  The fly hooks are small enough that the trout can just spit them back out once they realize they’ve been duped if you fail to promptly set the hook.  A treble hook on a traditional lure makes this less imperative.  I will continue to flyfish as long as the weather allows to try and get ahead of the curve and get a good workingman’s grasp on the art.  I spend my mornings and evenings reading and doing yogic practices.  Fishing and observing wildlife is a great daytime occupation.

The amount of smoke in the air in the forest lately has been very impressive.  Sometimes you can barely see the sun.  You can both smell and taste the smoke, and see it sweeping through the air like mist.  The nights, especially during the recent new moon, were eerily pitch black.  The smoke hid all the stars.  During the daytime, everything is dreary and grey, and its hard to tell what the weather actually is, whether its about to rain or not.  Being in such a remote and wild forest haunted with predators, the smoke really set a spooky and mysterious tone, especially in the areas where previous fires had already decimated the forest.  I felt like I was in an Edgar Allen Poe story, walking through barren, burnt forests in a thick fog, seeing and hearing only the occasional raven or two observing me from the dead branches.  

Today I’m heading down to Salmon Idaho to check out Goldbug hot springs, a set of natural thermal pools up in the mountains.   There’s some good fishing in the area as well, and wolves also inhabit the place, though they are heavily hunted.  Perhaps I’ll get luckily one of these days and catch a glimpse of these sacred, mystical beasts.  From there I plan to sweep around the back side of the Grand Tetons and visit the park for a few days before journeying over to Reno for my pistol course so I can get my conceal and carry permit.  That course is the last obligation I have, the only item on my “schedule”.  I look forward to exploring the Redwoods of California and the beautiful rock formations of southern Utah after that.  Then perhaps I’ll start hunting for land and a cabin in New Mexico.  I had a meditation vision that told me that the place I seek will not be available until 11/12, so I haven’t started seeking yet.  It’s amazing how detailed and precise information can be transmitted mysteriously while in a quiet state.  I was sitting on the edge of a canyon in the Badlands in a state of deep tranquility, when suddenly I heard and innervoice that very specifically stated this information.  It also said that after that time, the place for me will be presented to me.