Find Your Adventure

Alvin Montana, ADK Trout Bum...

Spring has long passed, and summer is fading into the splendor of autumn. I find myself sitting at my desk before my next camping trip realizing that time has flown by this year.

We sit in 2025, a year full of wonder for the future. This spring and summer were different for me. Life has changed forever. I look back over the past 18 years as I saw this little girl grow into an amazing woman. “Bella” my youngest child graduated high school this year. As with any parent there are many emotions in this time. The wisdom I wish to pass down to this young lady, maybe found in the words below.

 I have had this story line in my mind for the entire summer and have just not written it. I am not a procrastinator. It has taken me a moment to come to terms with the magnitude of this event. I feel I’m not alone and maybe the following words will encourage us all.

This summer was hot, dry and Canadian Smoke often filled the sky of the Adirondack Mountains. This created challenges for fishing. The local streams were too warm to fish or had too little water. As the summer progressed, I knew I had to find another adventure. By early August It was time to get out and find some brook trout.

I have made friends with a Catskill legend “Ed Ostapczuk” over this past year and put this new friendship to work. Ed is an avid fly fisherman, fly tyer, author, and fellow Trout Bum with a passion for conservation. During a few conversations, Ed pointed me in the right direction in the Catskills to find a new place to wander.

August had begun and it was time to put this information to use. With a newfound excitement of exploring a completely new place my childish personality shined through. The drive took me through areas that I had not seen since I got my first car and roamed the back road of New York. I saw sunflower fields, rivers, and mountains as I listened to my favorite songs. This trip was to find a new place to explore.

The road continued through the mountains along famed water ways; The Susquehanna, The Esopus, and The Neversink. I could feel the anticipation build the closer I got to the parking area. Alas I arrived and the parking area only had a few cars. I took one last look at the map and slid my pack on and hit the trail.

A short mellow trail led up the mountain to a divide that leads down along the river. As I came to the camping area, I met a couple that told me about a camping spot upriver. Walking along the creek it felt timeless. In this place, time stood still, the river valley was alive with flora & fauna. I took a moment to soak in the magic. It is important to slow down and enjoy what is in front of us. Time waits for no one.

I quickly got to work on setting up camp, a short task. I hung my hammock with no rain fly. I left my pack hanging on a tree, and strung lights for the night. With my JP Ross Rocker Hopper in hand, I headed out to explore this new wilderness.

It was midday and the water was cold as ice as I waded into the stream. Cast after cast the stream seemed to be asleep as if these mountains were saying step back and take in the awe of where you are. I found a beautiful mountain meadow filled with flowers. I kept exploring and soon came across Chicken of the Woods (a wild edible mushroom) and a few of these made their way into my pack. Yet cast after cast not a hit. I meander back to camp and make lunch. For a moment I meditated along the stream bank using the flowing water to keep me grounded as to what an incredible place I was in.

I am not sure if it was lunch, meditation, or the fact that it was now dinner, but the stream came alive. The first cast was right by camp. I got a hit from a large brook trout that I was just too slow to set the hook on. I was using a stimulator in size 10 with a dropper size 16 prince with a red-hot spot 10 inches down. I continued to wade upstream with a newfound enthusiasm which I fully accepted as I took a little stumble into the river. I am quite sure it was like a ballet dance full of grace as my camera and mic went for a quick swim as if to cool off. It was at that moment I realized it was going to be a spectacular evening. Perseverance always leads to greatness.

Then next river bend held a beautiful little run. I knew that this would hold a fish. I readied my camera gear, got into position, and cast. The magnitude of this moment could be felt. The fly line sailed through the air in slow motion as if it was suspended, like it was part of the clouds; back then forward. Like the delicate touch of a butterfly, my line and stimulator landed on the water. A moment frozen as a beautiful wild Catskill brook trout took my fly. Instinct kicked in and before I realize what has happened my first Catskill brook trout was in the net. A “YA BABY” could be heard off into the distance; just not on my camera as the mic needed to dry out.

After releasing this wild treasure, I stood taking everything in. I carried on and fished well into the evening catching numerous brook trout too many to count. Some on camera, others not. It was an evening I will never forget.

The path back to camp was a three ½ mile hike filled with stream views and a fading sun. Arriving at camp I got the fire roaring. An open fire dinner, venison fajitas paired with an IPA that I stashed in the stream to keep cool. Mountain dining at its finest.

It was about now that I realized I left my net somewhere along the stream bank. Looking back at camera footage I was quite sure I knew the spot. This would require a nice 3-mile hike to get there. It was not long before night came, and I settled into my hammock to slumber. Stars danced overhead throughout the night.

Morning came with the songbirds acting as nature’s alarm clock. I brewed my coffee and then hit the trail to find my net. Coming up on the bend I could just make out my net handle. The trip was a complete and total success! I was thrilled to have my net. On my hike back to camp I took a different route where I stumbled on to chaga growing on a birch tree. This wild mushroom is great for tea; a little piece found its way in my pack.

Back at camp it was time to pack up and hike out from this adventure. I will be back to this place I will hike its mountains and explore its steams once again.

Reflecting on this brings me back to my daughter’s graduation and life.

To Bella.

When life gives you hot dry weather and smoke, find a new place to explore. When the fish are not biting, do not get lost in it. Enjoy your surroundings, live in the moment. Take every opportunity to make new friends, you never know where it will lead. When you stumble in the stream of life pick yourself up and keep going as the next bend may hold what you are looking for. After a long day and a lost net, never lose faith all that’s lost can be found, do not lose hope. Take a change and sleep with no rain fly so you can see the stars.

Live your life like the river, never let life’s rocks detour your path, bend and flow around obstacles, carve your own path.

The Adirondack Trout Bum

Alvin H Montana II