There is nothing more exciting than sharing steelhead moments with friends. Last week my friend Kurtis stole the show with an impressive display of steelhead-ism. Kurtis is a high school buddy who began making the trip north to fly fish the Brule years ago. He is a native cheese head, Packer loving, fly angler who has made trips to many rivers with me to chase the wily trout. Kurtis was told by the rest of the gang that there would be no chance that he should even entertain the thought of landing a steelhead on his first outing because the fish were too elusive and too few in numbers. Making only one trip a year would surely be rolling the dice to hitting the peak of the run. After his third fish on that first outing he asked me “what was the big deal?” Since that first trip he has gone through the same dark clouds of skunks, long distance releases, vicious break offs and the worst, botched nettings. These tests of fate are experienced by most who have chased this wild population of migratory fish on the Brule. He has weathered the storm and become a seasoned steelheader by his own mental toughness. The buzz this week on the Brule was that fish numbers in the river were low and the trout that were holding, were finicky. Kurtis would not be denied. Thanks for sharing with me bud. Thanks as well to Carl Haensel for the great photos.