Written by: Jon Hill
When the skies were clear, the views and the water were nothing short of spectacular.
Photos by Jon Hill
Shawn, Tom, and I hiked into the Holy Cross Wilderness Area in Colorado for a few days of chasing cutthroat trout. To be honest, this wasn’t the best trip we’ve ever taken. With 23 miles of hiking, crazy thunderstorms, and hail storms that rolled through everyday, and not-so-stellar fishing, it was a bit of a struggle the whole trip. But that’s the way it goes when you are above 11,500 feet: you never know what to expect, so you just have to make the best of it and enjoy being out in the wild.
Given the conditions, the anglers were happy for any fish at all, and this was a beautiful gem.
Jon Hill lives in Littleton, Colorado and works in the digital-graphics field. But he spends almost all his spare time chasing trout in the high country, and his photos have been featured many times on the Orvis News. (See here and here for just a taste, or visit his blog, Ramblings.) He’s also a former Trout Bum of the Week.
Nothing like a bit of hail to make your high-altitude trip more bracing.
Shawn landed the cutthroat of the trip, as thunderheads loomed above.