Honeymoon Pine River

Here are a few snaps from our time on the Pine River after the wedding...

26.5 x 17

grabin' the prize

24x15

nice stance, nice new rod

settling down for bed

champagne toast at the cabin

the ultimate knot

The ultimate knot indeed...

September 28, 2012

Amanda and Will had their wedding and reception hootenanny at Blue Lake Ranch. Fantastic times with great friends and family. Beers, margaritas, wine, Zia grub, live bluegrass, kids romping about, awkward dancing and high-5 good-times. Thanks to all that made it happen. The images below are from our pre British Columbia honeymoon on the Pine River. Amanda slid into her wedding dress one last time for a few casts and photo opts. She is so stunning to say the least. She also roped into a big brown trout. Those photos to follow...cheers

Season Snaps

Conejos at dusk

Will and Bob on the Pine

Jeff and Ben playing hide-and-seek around Amanda

summer brown

afternoon bow

Few images from the 2012 season...what a season it has been.

what is missing....

one trout, two trout
one tooth, two tooth
to no tooth at all

Aug 1st kicks off "Kids Fish Free" here at Animas Valley Anglers. Bryant Williams along with his two sons Jack and Carter and his father-in-law Gill jumped in our boats for a days fishing on the San Juan this past Monday.

The entire gang did very well with numerous trout jumping on their flies trough out the day. Jack, age 6, was very proud of his first trout from the San Juan River. But he was equally proud of his 2nd front tooth that fell out half way through the days fishing. His dad snapped numerous photos during the day and I choose two that I feel are the best "grip and grin" shots I have seen in a long time. A big thanks to Bryant , Carter,  Jack and Gill for spending the day with us. Thanks for sharring the photos Bryant.

Cheers,

 Will B and Nate Bronson

SNOW-PACK MAPS

Quick look at last years map for April 1 and this years map. We look light, but spring weather will be our ultimate factor in regards to flows this spring and early summer. Some worry about the snow-pack, me? Not yet, we can always go wade fish!





http://www.wcc.nrcs.usda.gov/cgibin/colo_strmflow.pl?state=colorado_river

Fly Fishing Film Tour April 7th Durango Show

It is that time of year again! Time to book trips and go to the Fly Fishing Film Tour hear in Durango. Next Saturday, April 7th at the Durango Art Center. The doors will open at 7:00 pm. Good times, beers, great films, friends and fantastic door prizes. The AVA crew will be there, so feel free to come on over and say "HI!"

New Colorado Outfitter Rule Change for Float Fishing

No more bulky life jackets for our float fishing clients on our Colorado fisheries! Here is the official word from Colorado Parks and Wildlife...

11-3-11
The first change (for December 2011) allows passengers to use specific type III personal flotation devices (pfd’s). It was a concern of the Commission that because type III pfd’s varied so much, they wanted to ensure that passengers were still properly protected. The criteria that must be met to be used by passengers is, “All Type III personal flotation devices must have a minimum of 2 adjustable straps on the side, 1 adjustable waist strap and adjustable shoulder straps, capable of retaining the wearer in swift water conditions. Type III personal flotation devices must be intended for paddling or kayak use by the U.S. Coast Guard and labeled accordingly.”

Kris Wahlers
River Outfitter Licensing Coordinator
Colorado Parks & Wildlife

So, from here on out, AVA will be offing the most comfortable PFDs possible for our guests to use on their trips with us. No more giant, bulky "white water" life jackets with the head flap that catches in the wind. AVA has been working with State Parks and Wildlife for a number of years to achieve this rule change.

Sweet!

Team A-hole (self proclaimed) take on T-hole!

River: San Juan QW
Anglers: Kevin Kuper and Jack Cassidy
Flow: 468 cfs
Visibility: 3 to 4 feet
Hatches: some midges and bwos
Weather: broken sun/clouds
Wind:20-30 mph, gusts 50 mph
Fishing: way too good for these two to handle
*if there were any more thumbs-up during the photo opts i could have hitched a ride to moab ut. most kidding aside, great day with the boys.

piggly wigglys on the San Juan

New to the sport of fly fishing? Not a problem for these two rookie fly anglers from Iowa. Zack and Alex, along with the rest of the big group found out quickly our trout are bigger than their trout. Great group and great spring fishing. Way to go guys.




photo1: Zack and his monster. photo2 Alex and his chucky rainbow

Ben's 10-Day-Old B-day Pics (continued)

More shots from Ben's first day of flickin' a fly on the Animas River Christmas day.







images: 1) Mom checking the bugs. 2) Proud papa planting one on his little noodle. 3) Amanda checking in on Ben, "Is he getting too much sun in there? Is he too cold" Dad, "No he is fine, he is way to bundled up in there." 4) Will landing a keeper on the Animas River. 5) Ben's first tailgate diaper change.

Benjamin Rally Blanchard's first trout

Benjamin was born December 15th, 2010 on a chilly snow-blown day in Durango Colorado. He slid out into the world at 11:48 am after a long 14 hours of labor. Amanda wanted a natural birth and that is what she got. No pain meds to speak of, unless you would really count Tylenol PM the night before. Amanda and Will, maybe a little sleep deprived, still found the energy to take young Ben for his first fishing excursion down on the Animas River. They loaded all the new kid gear, fly rods, dogs and the "little one" and headed for a little fishing on Christmas Day. At ten days young Ben was very impressed with the fact that his mom out fished his dad.

british columbia 2010

images: 100+ foot log on the banks of the upper skeena, flys-r-us pretty much sums it up, the king of the bush, amanda setting up a afternoon cast, adipose fin on lady steel.

KIDS FISH FREE!

That's right August is all about the ankle-biter anglers out there. The 1/2 pints that can not fit into waders, tangle nymph rigs into twisted wrecks and catch fish with reckless abandon are all welcomed to fish for free with Animas Valley Anglers during the month of August 2010. All they have to do is talk their parents, grandparents, kid sitter, older sibling or legal guardian into signing up for any of our great angling adventures.

Just mention you spied this special either on our web site or the AVA blog and you can enroll in the Kids Fish Free program. The trip will bill at our single angler rate. A $50 savings, plus you get to fish the best waters in the West during prime time at a discount. A third angler, adult or child, will be the standard extra $150. Drop us a line today for more info and details on the Kids Fish Free program.

photo 1: David Brake and guide Chris Meyer on the Animas with a sweet bow.

photo 2: Guide Will Blanchard and Carson Dellinger with a pretty Rio brown trout. Carson's first float fishing trout. He caught that frisky trout in the first 20 minutes of the float above the train bridge at Wagon Wheel Gap.

steelies heading home

With cool wet days infiltrating the southwest, I feel hints of fall on most guide days. Some local rivers run high; swollen with rain run-off and some continue to flow cold and clear. Fishing has been good, despite varied conditions, but I find my thoughts turning towards the north. Way north. BC north. A place Amanda and I hope to explore by early October.

BC News:
Todd Stockner reports-"Sounds like Hannah and Wayne might have caught the first steelie on a dry fly last evening . . .. they were fishing in that new micro-low-water pool that forms to the right of the log pile on the island just below sweet deke. They came back all excited about this fish, small around four or five pounds by the sound of it, but bright and "with pink cheeks" .. . . what else could it have been eh?"

From the Babine, Pierce Clegg and Peter McMullan will be offering the book "Babine" some time this month. The book cover the long history of this great river. Fantastic art work, words and images. Get a copy from amazon, or a fine retailer near you. All the proceeds go back to the river. Funds will help in the conservation efforts of this great BC river. Click the link below to find a copy or two.


As for the steelies, it looks like a low water year and numbers look good. Get deke deep!



Expert from "Babine", a contribution to the book by Will Blanchard

Stepping into the Same River Twice

..."Last cast, bright hen - Ejnar’s Last Stand. Snow balls and jet sleds. Jet boat wars. Gorilla warfare in your face, snowball stockpile, broken windows, walls tagged white. Guides and guests. Good vibes surging. Night is back. Campfire burning, hot and high; the firelight glows on bearded faces. Sap snaps on glowing embers as flames lick the night sky. Add a log, tell a story. Dark and deep the night rolls on. One last Scotch, just five fingers. Raised glass, giving thanks. Friendships and tall tales of steelie tails and tail-outs. All the stories from all the seasons, mental snapshots, never fading. All the moments melt together, like the rivers currents."



photo: Amanda ripping a cast late season on the Babine 2009

Summer Grips

photos: (1) Carson Dellinger and Will on the Rio with a sweet trout.(2) Bill Mitchell with a stud upper bow. (3)Courtney, Will and Kispa on the upper Juan (4) Jesse and Kevin hangin' with Guide Josh Curtis on the Rio. Nice fish eh?