THE RUNNING OF THE PINKS

To quote the Redheaded Stranger (thats willy nelson, fool) "Turn out the lights, the party's over"... well almost. The bulk of the much touted and participated humpy run is winding down. sure there are a few bright ones coming up the river but nothing like it was a few weeks ago. Soon the masses with their omnipresent pink spoons will forget all about the humble pink salmon and turn their collective meat lust towards other critters that are easy to take advantage of. And the humpys themselves turn from smallish-shiny salmon to lycanthropic - tooth covered, hunchback creatures born for redd protection.

And why is it that fly fishermen in some circles scorn the pink salmon? I have heard some people bragging about how they managed NOT to catch one during their outings on the rivers. I suppose every sport fishery has a bastard stepchild. Warm water species have the bluegill. The disciples of trout have the brookie. and the salmonid fisherman have the humpy. all three of the afore mentioned fish are regarded as kid stuff; meaning they are great for beginners, easy to catch, and so plentiful even the most devout soap box screaming advocate for catch and release will say: "oh what the hell, lets take some home and have a fish fry, just don't tell the chaps at the club".

I however love them. I have caught so many that it almost stopped being fun (and there in lies the crux). And I am proud of it. soon I will petition to the Official Board of People Who Name Things -OBPWNT- for a name changing of the pink salmon. Even the fish's name sounds insignificant and demur... Pink (goes with out saying as pink is not the color that manly sports men indulge in) and Humpy just sounds like the name of a cartoon character or dog with an over active yet unrecognized libido. I think "The Super-Aggressive-Alpha Salmon" has a nice ring to it... maybe I will work on that one a little while longer.

In the mean time if you are looking to have some fun with a fly rod there is still a little humpy-fun to be had. and who doesn't like to have fun? Just try not to take yourself so seriously.