The calendar currently says it is winter. Looking out the window, not so much. We did have a short cold snap in Idaho and we headed out and about shortly thereafter to get in our first camp of 2024. The snow was already melting, the ice at Winchester Lake was already quickly turning to slush, but we’ll go ahead and call it a winter camp anyhow.
We’ve been focused on seeking out steelhead, with some limited success, during the last months of 2023. According to recent stats from the Idaho Fish and Game it is currently taking between 20-30 hours of effort to land a steelhead. That means we’re overdue for our next fish according to my records, so wish us luck as we head out to make the last cast of the year. Luckily as the year draws to a close, the steelhead are still in the river and the fishing continues in January.
Signs we run across while traveling continue to captivate me. See some of our past sign posts from 2019, 2020 and 2022. We covered a lot of miles this year, and ran across quite a few signs along the trail.
The most common theme was “closed for the season”, this is not new for 2023, but you would not believe, no matter the season, how often that sign is put out as if it explains it all. I’m not sure what the season is, it seems to be year round, varying location by location, or even business by business. It seems particularly prevalent in places that collect money that the toll booth never closes for the season, but all the facilities that the fees support are very commonly closed for the season. Yes, I’m looking at you National Park Service.
Anyway, here we go, some signs of the times, 2023 edition:
(more…)