Chocolate Candy Milkshakes and Cutts in the Crystal Clear

    The majority of my past weekends have been devoted to writing the last couple papers to finish school (for now). I decided to reward myself with an afternoon of fishing to revamp the sparkle in my soul. It's tough--with such little time--to know where to invest my hall pass this time of year. The past couple fishing trips had a sparse amount of actual catching involved in them. With the warmer weather last week I knew Candy Canyon would have open water and according to the flow charts, it appeared to be at a good flow. The only problem was that this stretch of the Sevier River adds an extra 30-45 min each way to my drive; but I decided to pull the trigger and left Cedar a little past noon.
   After downing a 44oz soda in the space of a half hour I had to take a pit stop in Beaver. When I returned to the van (that's right VAN, mini-van that is!) I found myself locked out with the keys uselessly lying on the floor inside. I thought I would be saving some money on gas and a few miles on the Jeep GC if I drove the van. But after spending $40 for the kid in the tire shop to pop the door open (in a matter of seconds) I was rethinking my decision.
   When I arrived at Candy Canyon, I was sad to see a rush of chocolate milk greeting me. I geared up and decided to try my best at the conditions dealt to me. After about 45 min I decided it wasn't worth my trouble and reassessed my plan. Snake Creek was nearby and I hadn't fished it for a number of years. The DWR recently restored it after ash from a fire washed through about 5 years ago and killed all the fish. I wasn't sure what to expect, but when I arrived I was happy to see its true namesake rang true as it was crystal clear and flowing at a perfect rate.

 I almost left the #3 Blue Halo at home but luckily threw it in last minute. I've never fished the section of stream I decided to try. In the past I always went to the same spot and usually did well. But I spotted this section en route and it was too tasty to pass up. Although the fish were small, they were plentiful and many of them ate on the surface. I got what I came for.