Boring Oregon, Not Really - Days 97 - 98

I shall sleep soundly in Boring, OR tonight. Boring is a small town just outside of Portland.(Actually, Boring was so un-boring that they didn't have any vacancies, so I am in the town next door that doesn't have an interesting name so it wouldn't make a good first sentence or title for this post.) I checked into a comfortable, clean, almost luxurious Days Inn. I plan to have a very boring evening: watch boring TV, eat boring Domino's Pizza, and update my blog with this (hopefully non-) boring post.

I spent the last couple of days and nights in Umatilla, OR, on the bank of the Columbia River with CaptCuzBill and First Mate Jerry. In a period of less than 36 hours we spent more than 18 hours fishing on the Columbia River. As I sit here typing this I see the screen bobbing up and down. I confirmed with the fishermen yesterday that this is to be expected. After spending a long time on the river, when you get back on solid ground, your vision continues to mimic the bobbing up and down that is felt while out on the rolling river.

Previously I had guessed that this trip would make my mental Top 5 list for Greatest Adventures. Perhaps if I had landed a record setting walleye, or done something as amazing as winning the ID State Walleye Championship, I would put this into the Top 5. But it is not.

But that doesn't take away from how great this adventure really was. I loved it and it gave me knowledge and memories that will last forever, or at least until Alzheimer's sets in next year.

We set out at 7AM, right after I obtained my first ever fishing license. With nearly our first cast, CaptCuzBill and I simultaneously caught some small bass. A good fishing omen. Shortly thereafter, Jerry caught 2 consecutive elusive walleye, the big one weighing in around 4 pounds. His Secret Walleye Fishing Manual was paying off. A great fishing omen. Around noon a lightning storm (that caused 3 new OR wildfires) rolled in. An overarching bad fishing omen.

Following the storm we had two, 6-hour fishing expeditions. Nary a fish was caught. Certainly nothing worth writing about. And there weren't many nibbles. The most fishing excitement came when someone got snagged on the bottom, when fishing lines got crossed or when CaptCuzBill ran his new prop aground in shallow water.

But that doesn't mean that the trip wasn't fantastic. The actual catching of fish may have been mundane, but being out on the water was exhausting and tiring, yet, strangely exhilarating. CaptCuzBill has a "catching" fishing fanaticism. He is 100% into the chase of more fish. CaptCuzBill once took a trip with just his kids and spent 12 straight hours on this river (though some was just swimming). He said, "It was great. With the two kids in the boat, I was allowed to drop three lines into the water." Avid fisherman (and great father).

But with our lines getting no action, the fishing, like the 100+ heat, was stagnant. FirstMateJerry summed it up well: "After a certain point of no fish, it just isn't fishing any more; it's just stupid." CaptCuzBill readily agreed and had already begun thinking the same thing himself. We all decided the trip was over.

Thanks Bill! I will gladly be your Gilligan again. Keep me informed of your trips in the future. Who knows, I may be available for photography and trolling driving.

I took the scenic route around Mount Hood. Just another stunning landscape that deserves more mention and perhaps a real visit with camping involved. And I rest here near Boring, OR, certainly a misnomer for this beautiful state.