What's Been Going On

Well, the holidays have come and gone. So have most of the guests and staff. There are a few of us left, and aside from the guests on the weekends, it's pretty slow around here. Not to worry, there is plenty to keep one busy!

First of all, there is tons of great beer to be had around these parts. This past Monday, had to drive a friend to Denver International early in the morning. Had another friend tagging along and we had decided to make a day of it off ranch. We had heard of a neat little brewery in Golden, CO. And no, it was not Coors. The brewery is called the Golden City Brewery, the second largest brewery in Golden. The only way to describe it is neat and little.

We sat down and ordered the beer sampler, which was a great deal for $7. The two beers we fell in love with were the seasonal Black Hops, which is a DARK IPA. The other was their flagship beer, Evolution IPA. I was not really a fan of IPAs before heading out west, but these people are really onto something! Had to get a second sampler, and left with a growler of Black Hops and a 22 oz of Evolution. We also managed a tour of their brewery, which was pretty cool!

We've got other breweries on our radar, the Odell brewery being the one I look forward to most. There is also one to never visit, atleast in my opinion, Grand Lake Brewery. Arf...


I've had to find other things than fishing to occupy my time on days off. It's just too damn cold, plus the rivers are frozen. Cabin fever is starting to set in and I'm nowhere close to seeing the end of the tunnel. Oh well, we've been doing some snowshoeing to the top of Baldy, which is the mountain with ski slopes right here on ranch. I'll tell you, the return on investment is VERY low when skiing without a ski lift. Before I was shown the "fast" way, it took me at least an hour and a half to get to the top, just for a 5 minute ride down. Now that I've found the "fast" way, it only takes about 45 minutes, still not sure if the juice is worth the squeeze...


But, once you get to the top, you are treated to some really breathtaking panoramas! Clear days on top of Baldy really can't be beat, you just have to be willing to put forth some effort.




And to keep from offending my fishy followers, here is a pic of my new stick. It's an Orvis Hydros 9ft 5wt Tip-Flex with the Battenkill Large Arbor III reel, and Olive Dun Wonderline. I got this rod for Christmas. Had Christmas Day off of work, so I HAD to wet a line. The only problem was, it was about 10 degrees. Undeterred, I rigged up. I made one cast, caught one brown, unrigged and took it back to the ranch. I've always thought it bad luck to catch a fish on the first cast. Weird, I know, but a superstition nonetheless. Anyways, I'm sitting on a 100% catch-rate with it, which isn't bad I don't guess!

On a sour note. I have since realized the rod is flawed and has been sent back to Orvis for fixing. The grooved O-ring the reel seat fits into was backwards, so the groove was facing the butt of the rod. I don't think it would have made much of a difference, but I didn't want to have to find out the hard way after hooking a behemoth!


I'll be out in the western-world for a good long while, I've been hired to work through the summer, which seems very distant at the moment. I am ready for the snow to melt and the weather to warm, but that too seems very distant. But, you won't hear me complaining! I'm stoked to be out here living the life I'm living! I just NEED to go fishing, or at least hurry up and learn how to tie flies!

Take Care People,
Muddler