Rainbow trout Dean Umemoto caught on the Henry’s Fork of the Snake River with his grandson by his side
Linda Lyon
His summer adventure locations were more than 8,300 miles apart, but SaddleBrooke Fly Fishers President Dean Umemoto managed to link them through his love of fly fishing when he recently presented at a club meeting. In Zambia, Dean, his wife, and grandson were fishing for tiger fish on the Zambezi River, the fourth largest river in Africa and home to one of the continent’s most sought-after freshwater game fish. These fish are fierce fighters and can reach weights as heavy as 30 pounds.
In Idaho, they fished for rainbow trout at Harriman Ranch on the Henry’s Fork. Dean explained how people come from all over the world to fish for big rainbow trout with dry flies. In fact, Harriman Ranch is considered one of the premier places in the world to fish with dry flies.
Dean was fishing with John McDaniels, author of Fly Fishing the Harriman Ranch of the Henry’s Fork of the Snake River, so he was in great company. John has fished full summers on the ranch for over 30 years and guided it since 1999. In addition to his book on the ranch, Dean touted John’s comprehensive map of the river, which can be found in the vest of every hardcore ranch regular.
Numerous questions from attendees following Dean’s presentation were clear evidence of keen interest in the subject. This was no surprise, as speakers at our monthly meetings have been very well received by our membership.
Our meetings are normally held on the fourth Monday of the month at 4 p.m., but to deconflict with the holidays, our November meeting was held on Nov. 14, with member David Hargis presenting on his multi-week fishing trip down the Snake River. In December, we’ll meet on the 12th and will have a panel discussing fishing on the San Juan River at Navajo Dam in New Mexico.
Presentations such as these, fun parties, a robust mentoring program, and future trip plans are some of the reasons our membership continues to grow, with our numbers approaching 100. We’d love to have you join our ranks! For more information, please send us an email to [email protected].