fly fishing the south platte river

we took a drive down south near deckers, CO so luke could do some fly fishing with his new rod from orvis. our friend matt, fly fishing enthusiast, gave luke some pointers on the best spots for good biting and less crowds

it was a beautiful drive, winding along the river and seeing interesting things along the way

after driving along and stopping here and there, we found a nice secluded spot

we are so happy to finally have boulevard beers available in denver at our local wine store, corks. i insisted on bringing some zon summer beer along

have you ever heard of lilypond? they have the greatest bags for women. the bottoms are hard like a cooler and perfect for any outdoor lifestyle. see my other handbag here. lilypond stemmed from fishpond, a fishing gear company based out of kansas city and colorado

i wonder if this little guy will be eaten by a trout sooner or later?

 

this is truly a man in his happy place!

(and don't worry, we recycled our bottles and didn't litter in the river)

fly fishing big thompson

we went on a little road trip to go fly fishing with our friends matt and april

(who recently got hitched at planet bluegrass ranch in lyons, CO this summer. it was seriously the raddest wedding i've been a guest at, to date. they really know how to have a good time!)

matt was kind enough to let us borrow his fly rods

(he used to be a guide and is quite the experienced fisherman)

matt, luke, and myself (way down yonder)

this was our first experience fly fishing! we tried this place out for a bit and then headed towards the big thompson river in estes park

just a little outdoor humor

once we stopped, i couldn't believe how beautiful and peaceful our surroundings were. i had never been to estes park before or near big thompson. there is a famous story about the big thompson river that 145 people were killed in a major flood on July 31st, 1976. eery to think about!

luke was in heaven

 i think he looks like a natural, don't you?