stars

We headed out late on a snowy Friday in February with plans for steelhead and stars, and neither was looking too promising. Brand new telescope packed away in the back seat, we hoped to get a chance to see what it would do, but obviously you need clear skies to see the stars. Steelhead, well, who knows. It is getting late in the season, but we were headed a ways up river, and I figure you can’t win if you don’t play!

We arrived after dark at Priest Hole and settled in for the night. We had the place nearly to ourselves, with one other camp a bit downriver that left the next morning. The river had a jump in flows in the day or two before our arrival, but was on the fall. Maybe a good sign? I haven’t ever targeted steelhead on the John Day and have always been on it in the warmer months chasing the plentiful bass. I think I still have a bit to figure out, but what a beautiful place to spend the weekend!