Don't let this happen to you

[fflutterffly]

Imagine it's a busmens holiday and you go off fishing with another guide friend. She has a rod that I covet: a sage center-axis 7'0 3wt. I love this rod. So when I suggested we go fish hunting high in the Sierra in a hidden little stream she suggested I borrow the rod. I snapped up the chance. When we arrived at the parking lot she thoughtfully put the little 2 piece together lined it up and handed it off. She headed up stream, I down.

Oh the beauty and peace of a tiny little stream known to hold goldens and browns. So I made my way throught the quick rushing waters, over tree trunk and bramble bush, picked out a nice hidden hole and cast. Hybrid-Golden.
Since I had no space to tuck the rod between my legs or under my arm I gently laid it down along the edge. No sooner had I turned my back then I realized the butt section had seperated and was off, heading down stream... with the current. Now I'm not a quick gal so I did the best thing I could and began hauling line in hand over hand, working the butt section ever closer to the shore, cussing up a storm and swearing at my pal for not putting that rod together tight. The butting was out of sight and I thought for sure gone forever! By the time I'd pulled off 30' of line and twice that of backing the butt section had jammed itself tight under a fallen Aspen. Finally I could see it bobbing in the side current. All I kept saying to myself, as I tried to untangle the backing from my boot eye-lets and cleets was 'I hope she had a good knot from reel to backing.

Once I made it down stream, retrieved the section, I headed back to the car to begin the process of untangling. my pal came up laughing her head off. We joked about how to professionals could have made such a mistake and finally decided to cut the backing way. This is what I had to work.

Tangled on the spring creek

Good lesson: Always rig your own and double check the rod.

[Trout Huntress]

lol...flutter. My apolgies for laughing but I promise I am not laughing at you just at the way you tell the story. The important thing is a lesson was learned and now all who read this can potentially avoid the same mistake...As I always say" S#@% Happens!