January 27-29, 2026

Last year was a rough year for my fly fishing. Thus, I haven’t posted a fly fishing report in quite awhile. In fact, my last fly fishing trip was March 2025 and it was cut short due to weather and health issues. I had three trips scheduled for August-October but had to cancel them all due to health issues.

For those not in the know, I struggled with health issues from August 2024 through 2025. I was treated for sinus problems multiple times (2 procedures and 2 surgeries). I was finally diagnosed with relapsed Mantle Cell Lymphoma (in my sinuses, soft palate and throat) August 4, 2025. The rest of the year was focused on preparing for and going through CAR-T Cell Therapy in November. Since then I have been in post treatment recovery. Fortunately, I’ve been doing well and am getting better. I’ll have a PET scan in a few weeks to confirm that I’m in remission.

This is background to say that I have been both anxious and excited about making a fly fishing trip. Excited—because I really enjoy fly fishing and have missed being on the river. I have wanted to be back on the water.  Anxious—because I was not sure my body was up for it, though I am doing well. But at times, I had begun to wonder if my fly fishing days were over—I was doubting my body. I had planned a trip for a week or so ago, but the weather interfered. Last weekend, we had quite a cold spell….at least for us in Texas. But the weather forecast was looking good for the middle of this week.

So my inaugural test trip was January 27-29 on the Guadalupe River with fly fishing friend and mentor Joe Nicklo. We stayed at the Hideot on the Horseshoe lodge on the river. We arrived on Tuesday afternoon and got settled. We had a beautiful view from our balcony looking out over the river.

Wednesday’s weather turned out great. The sky was blue and sunny. The morning was cold (30’s), but it warmed up to about 60 degrees in the afternoon. Perfect weather for trout fishing. The water temperature was in the low 50’s. The water flow was about 95 cfs (cubic feet per second), which was up considerably from the prior weeks when it averaged about 65 cfs. The water was a little cloudy. That made it hard so see the trout but also harder for them to see us. Good conditions for nymphing under an indicator. 

We met our guide about 9:00 a.m. Wednesday and headed down river. I was in the front of the raft with Riff (our guide’s boat dog) under my seat and Joe took the back. The fishing on Wednesday was fabulous. I lost count, but our guide estimated that I landed 20+ fish—and I hooked and lost another 10 or so and missed even more. Joe caught quite a few as well. The fish were fast at taking the fly and quickly letting go. It took me awhile to get a little quicker and more aggressive on setting the hook. The fish were not too big this year, but the ones we caught fought like they thought they were big. With the sunny day, the cloudy water helped us. Some of the fish I caught were probably only 5’ or so from the raft. The last fish I caught was maybe a hundred feet from the take out—a good way to end a float trip. Overall, it was a wonderful day—good fishing, great weather, fine companionship, beautiful scenery. What more could one want?

On Thursday Joe and I did some wade fishing in the river behind our cabin. I was anxious about how I would do wading. The water was murky, making it difficult to see the river bottom and thus making the wading a little tricky at points. But the good news is that I made it fine (no falls) and gained back some confidence. The fish didn’t cooperate as well that morning, but it was great to be wading in the river and fly casting to Iikely spots for trout to be hiding.

As we ended the trip I was encouraged and hopeful that I’ll be able to make more trips in the months and years to come. A great inaugural come back!

As I mentioned, our guide has a dog named Riff (short for Riffle) that rides along. He laid on the floor right under my seat. Watching him get excited got me to thinking about a dog’s life and what I could learn from him. Both of my children have dogs. Judy and I had a dog, but currently we are dogless.

I want to live life like a dog—celebrating life’s small moments. Think about it: If you grab your keys, your dog celebrates. If you grab the leash, your dog celebrates. If you open the fridge, your dog celebrates. If you grab a treat, your dog celebrates. When you walk into the house after being gone, your dog celebrates.

Dogs approach life like it’s worth getting excited about. They wake up happy to be here. They run around and sniff the air like it’s a miracle. They chase a ball in the yard like they are in the Olympics. They roll in the grass like it’s a 5-Star Spa. They nudge your hand just so you’ll rub them behind their ears. Each day is filled with celebration!

Dogs remind us that life doesn’t have to be perfect to be wonderful. They remind us to wake up and notice the good stuff. And that’s the kind of life I try to live.

On this trip I got to celebrate: beautiful sunrises, the sound of running water over stones in a river, trout rising to the surface to eat, trout jumping out of the water, an indicator moving just enough to let you know a fish was taking my fly down on the bottom, the sound of oars moving the water to guide the raft, the feel of cool fresh air on my face, the calmness of drifting along in slow moving water, the thrill of floating down a fast run, Osprey fly overhead, deer and turkeys walking along the bank, squirrels chasing one another in the cypress tree roots, the joy of watching a released trout swim away to live another day, watching my partner catch trout, observing other fly fishers cast and catch fish, good companionship, conversations about trout habits and techniques for catching them, sharing fishing stories, learning new techniques, savoring a shore lunch with friends and Riff, feeling the water on my legs while wading, sitting in front of the fireplace in the evening, and experiencing even more gorgeous western winter sunsets.

Yes, I celebrated many times in those three days! Like Riff and other dogs, I am grateful to wake up and enjoy life each day!

“Gratitude is not a mere word; it is not a mere concept. It is the living breath of your real existence on earth.”

            ~Sri Chinmoy