Last week was spring break for us, and my wife and I headed up to
the Gila.

General pics can be seen at http://www.cs.nmsu.edu/~jcook/Pics/gila-sp2004/

We stayed at a cheap cabin right below Lake Roberts, and an
outfitter boarded our horse and mule for the two days we
were up there. I didn't bring the canoe, so the first evening I
took a few casts from the bank of the lake, trying to reach
stockers that were excruciatingly always just beyond my reach...
left a fly wrapped around my truck antenna to remind me to park
further away when trying to make long casts from the bank. Oh
well.

Some good riding the next couple of days in the Gila Wilderness,
the ground was nice and moist and there's still some snow on the
north-facing high slopes. On the second day we planned to ride up
the West Fork but the ranger said we wouldn't be able to make any
but the first crossing. (The outfitter had told us he had to
swim his horses across the main Gila earlier that week while lion
hunting). That's good news down here, it's been a while since
the Gila's carried that much water. So we took a dryland trail
over to the Middle Fork -- crossed belly deep on our horses
where normally it's probably ankle-deep. During lunch break I
tried swinging a few nymphs through some likely looking areas,
but no takes and had to pack up and leave without ever getting
a bite.

On the 5th picture you can see my 5pc Stowaway tied behind me
(relevant to the recent discussion of pack rods on horses).
All in all, it was my best skunked trip ever. Lot's of incredible
scenery, beautiful weather, and general R+R.

Jon.