Bill Kiene semi-retired
05-06-2011, 10:08 PM
Our old fishing buddy Tom Hayter passed away, I believe in Florida, around Christmas.
He was in his mid-80s and had a wonderful, exciting life.
Tom flew in the air force and I believe put in the 20 plus years.
After that exciting career he became a CPA here in Sacramento.
He was part of the "great generation" and was a really cool guy.
Like old Joe Shirshac, these guys waded the larger trout streams always looking for those really big ones in the deeper runs. They both fished a 6 weight fly rod with a floating line, 9' leader with a strong tippet and a big #6/8/10 weighted nymph or streamer. They fished this way before the onset of the indicator system by casting upstream and letting the fly sink and dead drift for a while then letting it swing out and up at the end. They caught big trout......
Many years ago, before it was popular, Tom showed me the first 'Prince Nymph' I ever saw which was naturally not a bead head because it was before that era too.
Tom was also a Shad maniac who was retired and fish for them almost every day. When the VHS video cameras came out Tom bought an entire system with remote microphones and a tripod. He asked me to go down to his favorite spot at Lower Goethe park on the Arden Pond side to fish for Shad with him so he could make a movie to send to his brother back east. We shot lots of tape off the tripod with remote microphones. After that he went out taping the next day or so by himself. Tom was landing a Shad when a Striper eat it and proceeded to spool him. We might have the tape around here if you want to watch it. We usually dig it out about this time of year. It is funny because it has sound and it is pretty wild.
Tom use to go up into the Sierras in the winter when the stream froze and the water was very low and with special tools he would pick gold nuggets out of the cracks in the bedrock. One day Tom came into the shop with a sack the size of your fist full of gold nuggets. He also showed me a big nugget he had around his neck on a gold chain that was the size of half a walnut meat. I got very nervous with all that gold on my counter and told tom he better put it away. I think he did that so I would know that he did not make up this stuff......
Tom was lucky and married a lovely airline stewardess and they had a great life together.
I introduced Tom to float-tubing about 25 years ago and he went wild for it.
I told his wife today on the phone that Tom probably had as good life as possible and was a lucky guy. She agreed.....
.
He was in his mid-80s and had a wonderful, exciting life.
Tom flew in the air force and I believe put in the 20 plus years.
After that exciting career he became a CPA here in Sacramento.
He was part of the "great generation" and was a really cool guy.
Like old Joe Shirshac, these guys waded the larger trout streams always looking for those really big ones in the deeper runs. They both fished a 6 weight fly rod with a floating line, 9' leader with a strong tippet and a big #6/8/10 weighted nymph or streamer. They fished this way before the onset of the indicator system by casting upstream and letting the fly sink and dead drift for a while then letting it swing out and up at the end. They caught big trout......
Many years ago, before it was popular, Tom showed me the first 'Prince Nymph' I ever saw which was naturally not a bead head because it was before that era too.
Tom was also a Shad maniac who was retired and fish for them almost every day. When the VHS video cameras came out Tom bought an entire system with remote microphones and a tripod. He asked me to go down to his favorite spot at Lower Goethe park on the Arden Pond side to fish for Shad with him so he could make a movie to send to his brother back east. We shot lots of tape off the tripod with remote microphones. After that he went out taping the next day or so by himself. Tom was landing a Shad when a Striper eat it and proceeded to spool him. We might have the tape around here if you want to watch it. We usually dig it out about this time of year. It is funny because it has sound and it is pretty wild.
Tom use to go up into the Sierras in the winter when the stream froze and the water was very low and with special tools he would pick gold nuggets out of the cracks in the bedrock. One day Tom came into the shop with a sack the size of your fist full of gold nuggets. He also showed me a big nugget he had around his neck on a gold chain that was the size of half a walnut meat. I got very nervous with all that gold on my counter and told tom he better put it away. I think he did that so I would know that he did not make up this stuff......
Tom was lucky and married a lovely airline stewardess and they had a great life together.
I introduced Tom to float-tubing about 25 years ago and he went wild for it.
I told his wife today on the phone that Tom probably had as good life as possible and was a lucky guy. She agreed.....
.