Last night I went to the 11 pm Christmas Eve candlelight service at my church. It started with a short video. A man wakes up to find he and his wife covered in Christmas wrapping paper. His shoes, coffee mug, briefcase and car are also nicely wrapped. The shower and faucet have bows on them. The point of the video is that we have much to be thankful for even before we see what’s under the tree.
I felt the same way as I headed out for a quick Christmas Day trip to the Farmington River. A couple of hours isn’t much, but enough to remind me how much we have and to be thankful for all of it.
Forty degrees may not sound warm, but by Connecticut standards it’s downright balmy. With no wind, it seemed like a real Christmas gift.
Yesterday I found out the hard way that my waders have a leak in the seam of the foot. I grabbed a pair of neoprenes off the wall. It has been at least 2 years since I’ve worn them, but they did the job. I felt a like Santa in a chimney when squeezing into them, which told me that this has been an enjoyable and prosperous holiday season. A reasonable diet and training schedule will resume Jan 1.
Upon driving a quick loop of the upper river I discovered that I’m not the only one who likes to fish on Christmas Day. There were plenty of liberated elves. I was able to find some water of my own and quickly seized it.
After getting into the neoprenes and rigging up, I put Tippet in the backpack and we headed to the river.
I had a size 10 thinmint woolly bugger tied on. Within minutes, a nice brown was in hand.
After releasing the fish, I looked around and realized that we have so much to be thankful for. Even in winter, the river has a beauty and serenity that overtakes all other thoughts.
This will probably be the last FinFollower post for 2019. Although my frequency of posts has declined, my love for the sport has not.
Tippet and I wish you and yours a healthy and prosperous 2020, with tight lines and more fishing adventures.
Enjoy!
Walt Franklin says
Good going Leigh & Tip, and all the best for merriment in 2020!