In Search of the Turquoise Pool

The Pool

I spend a lot of time looking over satellite and topographic map imagery on Caltopo when looking for new streams. I look for things like gradient, impervious cover in the watershed, and tree cover. Most of the time that's all I can really get out of satellite imagery. But sometimes something else catches my eye - a pool. On most of the streams I fish all but the largest pools are obscured by trees. Fortunately, these large pools are exactly what I'm after.

Earlier this year, trapped inside during the cold Minnesota winter, I scanned along a stream in the hills of Western Massachusetts. I knew it would be months before I could fish it, but I needed something to get my small stream fix in the winter.

As I looked at the stream bed of light-colored rocks, I assumed the stream was mostly pocket water and riffles - not bad habitat for trout, but not what I was after. But then I saw a shade of deep turquoise, sandwiched the dark green of hemlock boughs and the light gray of a granite shelf. I had found my pool.

Excited, I marked the spot on my map, then promptly forgot about it. By the time I made a couple trips to the area in May, I ignored it completely. Only this week, when scanning my map for locations to check out this week, did I remember the pool. Now I have a mission. Today I set out in search of the pool. Hopefully reality will meet my expectations, but I'm sure the trip will be worthwhile regardless.