Took a trip down to Shawnee State Forest to visit the area. First stop was Rock Run which is a short but strenuous hike overlooking the Ohio River. After that it was a drive over to Copperhead Fire Tower.

I had planned a trout trip down to the Red River Gorge on New Year’s Day but waking up with the flu the morning of put an end to that idea. 2 weeks later when I was finally feeling better I still had a strong desire to get on some trout so I hit a local stocked creek that is open to the public.

I brought my newly-repaired tenkara rod and a pair of wading boots and fished everywhere that wasn’t frozen over. There was a lot of slush but the deeper spots were still fishable. I experimented with a 10.5’ level line for the first time and then a 10.5’ furled line which I’ve used before. Both were great, but the water started freezing to the line as the wind picked up so I tucked the rod in my boot, lit the cob pipe and starting making my way back to the truck.

I put the nymph I was using in my pocket because it was so thickly encased in ice that I didn’t want to put it in my fly box until it had melted. Even after the 20-minute hike back to the truck, it still hadn’t fully melted as you can see in the photo.

I am looking forward to getting back out on a slightly warmer day and hopefully snagging a rainbow or two. I talked to another fisherman the last time I was here and he assured me the trout are in there. Our fall was long, warm and dry so I’m guessing this isn’t a banner year for catching winter trout out of this watershed. That won’t stop me from trying though.

We finally got a decent snow and temps are staying in the single digits. I figured chances of catching any fish were slim but any chance to get out and explore was worth it. I worked on my technique a bit on a small stretch of water but the vast majority of the creek was well frozen and covered in snow.