Riding the Rio Grand

The Rio Grand

One more thing had to be done before leaving Santa Fe and heading toward Flagstaff, we had to try some river fishing. We weren’t expecting much success. Our fishing has mostly been done from a boat or our canoe.  We have little experience fishing from shore. We had adapted our spinning rods with some special bubble floats that were supposed to help mimic a fly fishing presentation and theoretically  work like a fly rod would. Maybe we had the theory wrong, maybe the fish weren’t  hungry, maybe we didn’t know what we were doing, but we caught nothing.  We did enjoy the time outdoors, in a beautiful setting, and casting a rod is relaxing in a meditative way, even if you are not hooking anything.

We did get to see many others enjoying the river. Rafting seemed to be popular. We were passed by many groups running the rapids, getting wet and having a great ride. I have done this on the Colorado, through the Grand Canyon and on the Green River in Utah, and it is an exciting way to see the terrain up close and personal.

Running the rapids

Some people like more control and a little bigger thrill by going it alone. No guide finding the way for them, they depend on their own skills to make it down the River…

Sideways is not usually a good idea, but she made it

Of course, most people take the trip down river, following the natural flow of the rapids. This fellow had a different idea, he was going up the rapids, not always successfully…

We were thoroughly entertained by all the river traffic, making up for our lack of action on the lines. We decided that perhaps, since we would be faced with many rivers on this trip, we should invest in some fly rods and learn a little more about how to  use them.  We headed back to Santa Fe ready for one last good New Mex meal before heading on.  Next stop the Petrified Forest.