Russian River in the early morning cool air
I had the opportunity to camp at Quartz Creek recently and get some fishing in on the Russian River. To top it off, I used fly fishing gear which rocks because learning how to fly fish has been on my bucket list for a long time!
A friend of mine invited me in January of this year to come fishing with him on the Russian River. I’ve not been able to fish with him before and he has invited me numerous times a year. This is the year to do it and I said yes! Quartz Creek has also been on my bucket list for stopping at and at a minimum, looking around, this was perfect!
I’ve read a good amount regarding “off the War” and have been working in ways to incorporate it. I’ll tell you what, Quartz Creek did it for me and I could feel a sense of grounding when I was there. After setting up camp I wandered over to the creek itself, sat down on the boardwalk along the creek, let the sun soak in and I enjoyed the view.
I’ve listened to quite a few books from Thich Nhat Hanh along with other authors on mindfulness. I worked hard on it along the river. I just gazed upon the mountains, listened to the creek flowing by, and worked on my breathing.
Later on, I wandered over to the banks of the Kenai River and enjoyed the beautiful colors of the water as I sat on the black sand along the water. It was amazing!
I did some reflecting while I sat on the waters edge. I’m very appreciative of the path my life has taken. It’s been a rough road the last 18 months, but it has been worth it. It has felt like most of my life has been an uphill struggle and around last May things just started clicking. I’ve also completely relaxed on stuff and am at a point of just following the path in front of me. It’s been wonderful!
Around 0300 the following morning I was up and making coffee and ready to hit the Russian with my friend and his family. We headed out and were on the water shortly after 0400. There were about 10 other people in the area but thankfully, it wasn’t packed in combat fishing. The people upstream of us were working a hole and were slaying the fish. I watched some Salmon swim past my legs and head upstream, so I know the right spot, time, etc. were dialed in and I just need to keep working on my fishing.
We went back to the campsite, and I was off and wandering again. I could feel my back and shoulders weren’t appreciative of my newfound habit and they wanted to share their insight. I thought everything was good to go but, that evening we got out on the water by 0030 in the morning and my body reminded me that I need to go slow. So, I fished for a bit longer and then called it. No worries, I think this will be a lifelong pursuit for me.
I was a bit dismayed driving back from the river to the campsite because it started to rain. I knew that that I perfect weather for fishing. I also knew that my tent was dry and ready to be packed but I would now be drying stuff out. Following the path then I said okay and took it as an opportunity to get some sleep before I packed up and headed home.
Life is good! See you on the road, trails, river, or campsite soon!
Leave a Reply