Family traditions begin almost by accident, at least ours did. Thirty-seven years ago Dennis recalled visiting the Rocky Mountains with a friend's family when he was 11 years old. They went to the Poudre Valley and stayed at The Trading Post, a collection of cabins beside the Cache de la Poudre River. He wanted to go back to try his hand at trout fishing, so we did.
We stayed in a rustic cabin. It was furnished with a bed, a table and two chairs, a sink with cold running water, a two-burner hot plate and a gigantic wood cook stove. Calls of nature took us to the outhouse. Dennis didn't catch many trout, as I recall, but we had a grand time.
Over the years we have returned many times. Friends and family members joined us there. Dennis became a proficient fly fisherman and taught others all the tricks. Now Oz and his sons Grant and Logan are proficient and catch many fish. My brother Holmes, too, is a regular. Sometimes wives accompany the fishermen; sometimes we don't, but regular as clockwork, male members of our family congregate for fishing the Poudre the first week of August.
Most of us now stay in the Trading Post's modern cabins that have bathrooms and real kitchens. This year will be a banner year, with three wives, one daughter and one girlfriend in attendance in addition to the male fishermen.
I'm going up tomorrow. Some are already there. More are coming. No television, no radio, no internet for more than a week. It's our family tradition.
The Trading Post Office and Store
We stayed in a rustic cabin. It was furnished with a bed, a table and two chairs, a sink with cold running water, a two-burner hot plate and a gigantic wood cook stove. Calls of nature took us to the outhouse. Dennis didn't catch many trout, as I recall, but we had a grand time.
Over the years we have returned many times. Friends and family members joined us there. Dennis became a proficient fly fisherman and taught others all the tricks. Now Oz and his sons Grant and Logan are proficient and catch many fish. My brother Holmes, too, is a regular. Sometimes wives accompany the fishermen; sometimes we don't, but regular as clockwork, male members of our family congregate for fishing the Poudre the first week of August.
Most of us now stay in the Trading Post's modern cabins that have bathrooms and real kitchens. This year will be a banner year, with three wives, one daughter and one girlfriend in attendance in addition to the male fishermen.
I'm going up tomorrow. Some are already there. More are coming. No television, no radio, no internet for more than a week. It's our family tradition.
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