by Warren Masten
"What a time to be picking at your nose!" That's what I thought when I
saw this guy casting to big trout that were hugging the bottom of New
Mexico's San Juan River. He would quarter his cast up-current, and as his
indicator drifted past him, he would be picking away. "This guy is really
disgusting," is what I further thought.
The fishing was difficult. Due to the big winter in these parts, the
releases out of the Navaho Reservoir are higher than normal. On top of that,
the lake is starting to turn over and that is making the water murky. Still,
the fish were there and bouncing tiny chironomid nymphs along the bottom
would bring the anglers success...even the picker. He hooked up with a nice
fish after a long dry spell. I had been fishless for some time and was
forced to wonder if picking was this fellow's secret movement to bring
good-luck.
We all have our little habits. I might hold my tongue in a certain
position if I am working a particularly difficult fish. That wasn't working
now, so picking flashed through my mind as I watched him play that slab of a
fish. And then, of all things and at all times, he started picking as the
fish made a run. It was a good fish, too. I decided I had better move on to
the run above him, since the fish obviously mucked up the run we were in.
As I pushed on past the picker on the opposite side of the run, I noticed
a very peculiar thing...his mustache. He had the tiniest soup strainer I had
ever seen. A bushy little thing set at a jaunty angle below his nose. These
whiskers would have made Charlie Chaplin's seem enormous. On top of that, I
noticed that the picker had a bloody nose. "Well, serves you right," I
thought.
Our eyes met and he said, pointing to his little mustache, "I nailed
myself with a dry fly about two hours ago. I can't seem to get it out."
"Ah ha," thought I, "you have to stick a fly under your nose to have good
luck."
The run we were fishing was fairly deep for a long stretch, and would
take some time to circumnavigate. He saw this, and said it was O.K., that it
didn't hurt much. He was sure he could fish the rest of the afternoon,
working on it himself. Not smart.
He left the run to take the trail through the willows to wherever he
planned to go next. I yelled after him, over the rush of water, that he had
better get that hook out soon. He waved and left, I assumed he would take my
sage advise.
I saw this fellow one more time. As I returned to the parking area, I
saw that he was being helped by what I assumed were two of his friends. His
"mustache" was gone, but his lip was about four times the size it should have
been. They were headed for Aztec to find the local saw bones.
Anglers take hook pricks for granted, but they should be aware of the
dangers that can lurk on that tiny point. Bacteria in the water and on the
hook itself can cause no end of pain. A small hole created by a hook can
release a gang of trouble. If he had used a barbless hook, as he should have
in that area, it would have been easier to remove. A hook with a barb is
just asking for trouble if you don't know how to remove it properly.
Carry a small first aid kit with you while you fish. That will enable
you to take care of the problem when and if it occurs. There are a wide
variety of pocket kits available on the market. I didn't see the "picker" on
the river for the remainder of my stay. I do hope he spends some time
picking through his pockets to collect the change to pay for such a kit.