I had a monster Rainbow on in New Zealand and it took a very good run on me and eventually broke me off. Still to this day that fish haunts me and I keep running the whole scenario through my head asking what could I have done better to land that fish?
I was so over hyped about New Zealand from all the books and magazines I was reading and looking at picture after picture of monster Browns I was starting to feel down that all I was catching was 18”to 20” Rainbows. As I was sitting having my lunch and looking around at the awesome scenery it clicked in my head that I was an idiot for not realizing how lucky I truly was to be standing where I was. After lunch it was missed fish after missed fish and the guide was getting a bit pissed at my nonchalant style of fishing. (I was just soaking in my surroundings and missing the odd strike) until I decided to get back into the game and that is when I hooked into the big one. It jumped, it ran, it came back at me and then it took off like a rocked down through some boulders and then it broke off. The guide saw it, my Girlfriends dad saw it and they both said it was a very large trout and bigger then any other caught that day.
So just minutes before I was realizing just how lucky I was to be there and the next minute I was beside myself for losing the fish of a lifetime. I can’t explain why but all I know is that life is way to short and the next 10” trout you just land could be your last so just enjoy every trout you do catch and try to enjoy the ones you missed.