Gone Fishin'

This past week we made our annual visit to Hampshire County, WV to fish and kayak on the beautiful South Branch of the Potomac.  We visited with my best friend from grade school and her husband (love you too G) who now live in Maryland.    Her sister has a wonderful cozy cabin just a mile or so from the river so we have a great place to stay ( thank you K!!).  Some years we float the 6 mile "trough" but this year the water level was down a bit so to avoid dragging our kayaks through numerous riffles, we opted to launch at the Trough General Store and fish the section just below the trough.  We were fortunate to see bald eagles, herons, and ducks and I saw a mink scamper along the rocky shore.  As usual, the fishing was great for smallmouth bass and the weather was HOT but we tried to avoid the hottest part of the day on the river and hang out in the air-conditioning in the late afternoon...not something we have the option to do at home so it was a treat.  Pictures say it best though.

Getting ready to launch.

Gazing wistfully up-river towards the end of the "trough".

My smallie...it was bigger than it looks?

Don's smallie...it WAS big.

Action photo.

Here are a  few photos from a previous trip down the trough.  The trough, a 6-mile-long gorge with limited access is a famous section of the South Branch.  There is no vehicular access along this stretch so there it is a pristine float. The Potomac Eagle Railroad offers scenic trips along the gorge for those who can't or don't want to take a float trip.