All Abuzz

Going fishing?

They came from all over; Coeur d’Alene, Moscow, Post Falls and Kendrick.  Independence Creek on the upper arms of the Coeur d’Alene River was the final gathering place and the start of another fun filled weekend.  Raina & Dean, Bridget & Dennis met up and had breakfast Thursday morning at a café in Rose Lake.  They caravanned up the river and found a spot in the campground at Independence Creek. 

I went to work and then left for an appointment, after that we headed over Fernan Saddle and dropped into Tepee Creek drainage.  We arrived just in time to enjoy some drinks and a wonderful meal.  The hornets were real bad, but everyone tried to ignore them.  Once the sun went down the hornets went to bed, unfortunately we were so tired everyone hit the sack early.

To the new camp site!

The next morning Raina and Dean went for a hike up the Independence Creek trail.  I started fishing up river and Bridget and Dennis fished downstream.  I hit some good fish.  The big ones were sitting under cut banks, but I drew them out using stonefly nymphs.  I fished about two miles upriver and hiked back via the trail above the river. 

When I arrived back in camp the place was a buzz, pardon the pun, and everyone was packing up and moving to a new campsite.  The hornets had gotten the best of us and while the gang was out on a bike ride they found a wonderful campsite down on Tepee Creek.

Wine in the box, glass on the box.

We made the move in record time.  Once there, everyone relaxed and had a wonderful weekend.  We spent most of our days fishing, riding bikes or sitting in the river cooling off.  Bridget and Dennis were able to relax Friday and Saturday evenings because they cooked a wonderful beer brauts meal on the night we arrived.  Raina and Dean prepared the second dinner, an exquisite meal of salmon, corn and salad.  On the final night Linda and I made fajitas.

To plastic cups that change color! So easily entertained.

Saturday, Bridget and I had a little fly fishing lesson.  The topic was nymph fishing and the correct use of a dropper fly. We worked on tying the dropper on and then we floated some bugs over a slow section.  After that we moved down stream and fished some faster sections. Bridget was getting the hang of it but got a bit of a knot in her line, so she headed back to camp.  I continued down Tepee Creek to where Independence Creek joined together.   I caught quite a few big cuts and had a real great time.

Each night the drinks flowed and the stories were told.  Dennis took lots of night photos using the campfire as his light. It was great to get together with these friends and we decided that this would be an annual summer event.  I am already looking forward to our future gatherings.

Yum!

Salmon on the grill.

It's called Jacob's Slurry.

Breaking camp!