If all went well by the time you are reading this, Mike Bryant the president of the Little River TU and I are just getting back from 8 days of  fishing Colorado in the surrounding areas around Vail. Even though I have been sking this area for years I had never made a summer trip to fish so this was an exciting time for me. I reached out to the local TU chapter in Eagle Valley for tips and of course the area fly shops, and just like here in Tennessee everyone could not have been more helpful.

We watched the snowmelt runoff like we were working for the Weather Channel, and despite everyone's assurance our timing was right, we caught the tail end of the big runoff the last week of June. So we consulted with the fly shops out there and even called Dan Munger at Little River Outfitters here at home due to his living and working in that area for a time.

Not to fear,  we spent days roaming the high alpine country finding streams primarily between 8,000 feet and 9,300 ft. Anything below that put you in the valley and in a torrent of river water racing down to Denver and other towns, anything above 9,500 ft still had snow on trails and creeks were not accessible.

Everyday we woke around 6AM, grabbed breakfast, made lunch, packed the cooler and hit the road. The best way to describe the trek was if you took a compass put the point on Vail and then drew a 100 mile circle that was our week. We hit 2 sometimes 3 different streams a day and only repeated a couple because either of  the fish or just the stunning beauty of the stream. During the week there were times where we saw no humans for hours, sometimes all day, The week was filled with 10-12 hour fishing days getting back at dark for a Colorado craft beer and beef at local restaurants. Truly a bucket list trip and I hope everyone this summer or in the future can find their dream adventure.

I had gathered in the months leading up to the trip quantities of information and of course added to it once we were there. If anyone hits that area, I will be happy to share what we learned and may even show you some water that will take your breath away.

While speaking of summer trips please send any shots you have from your summer trips to my email and we will post on our website's slide show. that gallery rotates three pictures at a time. It will take jpeg, gif and the standard formats that everyone now uses. Let us see those summer fun times you are having; it does not just have to be fish.

The month of June is always a busy time for everyone; graduation, vacation, spending time with family, or getting that first summer fishing trip in. It's amazing we are already closing in on the 4th of July, it is also getting closer to our July chapter meeting at River John's on Thursday, July 23rd 2015 (see details below under events).

This will be our second multi-chapter meeting this year and it will be a big one. The Little River chapter has held a summer meeting the last couple of years at River John's and I have been fortunate to help them. This year their members have reached out and extended an invitation for the Great Smoky Mountain chapter to join them. If you have never been to River John's it is truly a hidden island gem just 20 minutes from downtown Knoxville, right in the bend of the Little River.

As we get closer final time details will be sent via email out to everyone, I strongly urge everyone to attend this great event and spend time with our hosts the Little River TU chapter. This event is another step in my dream of a strong TU region using our local three chapters to accomplish great things in our area! Get off the sidelines this summer, get involved with your TU chapter, meet members, fish and enjoy the day at River John's!

John Reinhardt

President

Great Smoky Mountain Chapter #047

Chapter website: http://greatsmokymountain.tu.org/
My email: john711111@yahoo.com