Recently, I spoke in Utah and was able to take a day of hiking and fishing with my wife, Leslie, near Park City. It was spectacularly beautiful, even though it shattered the harmony of my marriage.
First, about the trip. As many on this blog know, I love Utah for its natural beauty and endless trails. Staying at the Montage resort in Deer Valley (and not paying for it) was a particular delight with its soaring views and lovely grounds. The altitude does impact many people, even with staff handing out water and air bottles.
Leslie and my son Jack went with me and we enjoyed a trip into Park City during its weekend “Park Silly Market” with wonderful foods and vendors. We had a great breakfast and walked around the little town with its outdoor art and even a “birdman” showing off his owls and other birds:
One of the greatest surprises was caught by my son Jack. As we walked through the concert area, one of the sponsor signs was for Five Wives Vodka, which I once represented.
Leslie and I went on a hike in the mountains that are criss-crossed with ski trails and covered in wild flowers.
It was a wonderful time and our marriage remained rock solid … until we hit the stream.
We decided to take lessons on fly fishing and went to one of the trout streams in the area.
It was a huge amount of fun and we both caught fish. However, there was a slight difference in the size of the catch. Leslie nailed a particularly large trout that even impressed our guide. I, on the other hand, caught a fish that I dubbed “El Diminuto” — a small but crafty trout that I believe was far more challenging to catch than the ostentatious, lumbering beast captured by Leslie.
I will note that it was a very, very large net so the proportions can be deceiving.
Both fish were released. The only harm was done to the much maligned husband who had to watch his wife show everyone from the hotel to the airport to the taxi the comparative pictures.
I will no doubt become something of a legend in the area among the casting crowd along these streams. My capture of the elusive trout was due to a mix of skill and focus. I will certainly admit that it was a challenge to look through a stream teeming with trout to spot “El Diminuto” like Harry Potter snaring the Snitch. However, this is no fish story.
Both “El Diminuto” and I will always have this bond that few but Hemingway’s Santiago could understand: “It is better to be lucky. But I would rather be exact.”
The battle for “El Diminuto” was vividly captured in this highly accurate reenactment:
Thank you for all of our new friends in Deer Valley and, most of all, my nemesis “El Diminuto” who once again swims majestically through the streams of Deer Valley.
Deer Valley looks lovely. With those steep slopes, that hike must have been challenging. What a perfect end to a long walk through alpine meadows for Mrs Turley, catching a fish orders of magnitude bigger than her husband’s.
I do have a soft spot for the underdog…I mean underfish. El Diminuto lived to swim another day.
Yet he will grow to a mighty Monster of a fish, the size of which will amaze and confound future fisherman. El Diminuto will be able to brag to the other fish in the frying pan, “I was once caught and escaped from the clutches of the Dean of Deans of all Law school Professors, Jonathan Turley”.
Take that Leslie.
*. They’re working on sloppy programming, AI. It produces what humans call evil. Sloppy programming produced DEI. We’re all in for a rough ride unless all effort is put into reprogramming the AI. Media was put in its control. Cherish anything written by humans.
Quanta magazine , August 13, 2025, sloppy coding produces evil. That simple idea can also be applied to humans?
Fix something broken tomorrow. It’ll all add up. Fix that squeaky door or that broken fence.
Signing off from the United States.
Lol😆
I love Utah, although like everywhere it’s being overrun developed and exploited. The only thing I would say to this article as I have spent much time with my family there, is to take a moment to remember the “Desert Drifter”, Andrew Cross. A remarkable young man that explored many of the Utah canyons home of the Ancient Ones ruins across the reaches of the West. He was struck down months back in a horrific accident at the age of 36, he was an ethical and inquisitive young man and although I never met him, I shared in his adventures and his wonder of the past civilizations., his Youtube podcasts were awesome.
Rest easy Andrew, there is no doubt where you are.
Professor,
Even though your catch was el diminuto, you’re still El Jefe to us here on the blog! Congratulations to your wife, except…………… I am compelled to say, with all humility, that being a Texan, I can almost top her impressive story. (Forgive me, Mrs. Turley)
Honetlawyermostly (my hubby) and I were, for reasons that escape me now, vacationing in Galveston when I was 9 months pregnant with our daughter. He wanted to do some pier fishing, and to his dismay, I wanted to fish also. Hubby gathered all of his expensive rods and reels and we headed for the pier. On the way, we stopped at a convenience store and he bought an old-fashioned cane pole for me. The pier, of course, was packed with righteous, seasoned anglers, many of whom were surprised (alarmed?) to see a walking beached whale of a woman who was 9 months pregnant carrying a cane fishing pole. None of them were in good moods because no one was catching anything………UNTIL I ARRIVED. After fishing for about 30 minutes, I caught a 3 pound Gulf red fish (red drum) on my cane pole. To the dismay of all of my pier mates, I screamed for joy at my catch! There was barely a smile returned. Hubby tried to act happy for me, but then said, “Well, we really need to get back to the hotel, honey. I know you must be exhausted.”
I kept my “trophy fish” in our freezer until we moved to Austin.
P.S. Our daughter loves fish!
Dear Mrs. Bragg/HLM: despite the lack of smiles, there’s no doubt you were admired amongst your piers.
Yours,
Uncle Henry
Thank you, Uncle Henry! (:
LOL…….good one, Uncle Henry! Thank you for believing my story, and for not thinking it sounded a little too “fishy”!
That is such a sweet story. Thanks for sharing.
Karen….thank you. We only had one child, so everything about that pregnancy was special, and of course our daughter was and still is the most special to us! This story became a favorite in our family. Glad you enjoyed it.
OT, CNN correspondent thought Trump was president of Ukraine. A member of the Ukraine parliament had to remind him that, no, Trump is president of the US. A wee bit embarrassing.
https://x.com/devorydarkins/status/1956389072353845410
Fun article for this late summer day.
Kids, the moral of the story is: if you want to avoid being compared to Hitler, you should kill only 5,999,999 Jews. Then you should be safe.
I retired from a company that had offices in Vernal and in Spanish Fork, Utah. Very interesting terrain indeed, I wish I could have spent more time there. BTW, I own a rubber landing net that looks very much like the one that the good Professor has shown in his photo. Mine is about 14″ in diameter. If it is the same net, the size of Prof Turley’s fish might even call the species identification into question, as it could be a minnow or a dace, or, if actually a trout, possibly a newly hatched fry 😉
Leslie nailed a particularly large trout that even impressed our guide. I, on the other hand, caught a fish that I dubbed “El Diminuto”
Your story is a great segue to a wonderful article in the Times of Israel written by David Horovitz. It’s about being one of the 36 (Lamed Vavnik) which Jews on this forum will likely recognize. Maybe it was Leslie’s turn to be one of the 36 for that moment in the stream, considering some readers view you as their beacon of light in this dark moment in America.
Driver’s ed with one of ‘the Thirty-Six’? An inspirational story, in a time of crisis
It’s taken me a few days to write this piece, and I’m still trying to make sense of all of it. I’ve told a few people the story, and one of them ventured that perhaps Uri is a Lamed Vavnik, one of the 36 unheralded special people in each generation who, according to Jewish mystical tradition, sustain the world. I have no doubt that he would ridicule the notion.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/drivers-ed-with-one-of-the-thirty-six-an-inspirational-story-in-a-time-of-crisis/
Whether you are Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, Agnostic or even an atheist, it would do the world good, especially right now, if we were all to cast our nets into America’s troubled waters in hopes of getting a catch and saving a life, a El Diminuto or otherwise.
In the new year, may we all live as if what we do and what we say and how we act can change the world for the better. Perhaps it will efsher? Perhaps it will.
– Rabbi Raymond A. Zwerin
THE 36 – WHO ARE THEY?
“…a beacon of light in this dark moment of
America “, Estovir? A personal request, Estovir, please use United States when possible and not America. Perhaps people will gain a better understanding of where we are? Por favor? It would read..a dark moment in the United States. Gracias. Loved the story, thank you.
PT, looks like a great trip!
Oh, please, seenyor.
English is the official language of America—the nation of the American Founders who “secured the blessings of liberty to Themselves and Their Posterity” and restricted not only the vote but also immigration, a restriction that, incidentally, was never legislatively abrogated.
Perhaps people will gain a better understanding of where we are?
What is your address, anon? I’m in France currently. I’ll send a thank you letter.
Muy bien
*.
“We the people of the United States”…
Thank you, personal favor and without infringement
*. If that isn’t enough add El Diminuto. Keeping with the theme is obviou.
Reference Quanta magazine, August 13, 2025, article Sloppy Code Misalignment produces evil.
Clean it up as in United States if you can, Sloppy.
Chai X 2
My family is from Utah, although I am not. My grandfather lived in Park City, had his own small home, back in the 40’s and 50’s, long before Robert Redford (also has a home in Utah) developed the Indie Sundance Film Festive that has called Parl City home since inception. Redford also owns/owned the Sundance Ski Resort.
Isn’t that comrade Robert?
Oh, Dr. Turley, this is just wonderful. You are such a good photographer; thank you for sharing. I am married to an avid outdoorsman, who loves to fish, hunt, hike, sail – you name it. In his 70s he has hiked 1,600 miles of the Appalachian Trail. I will certainly share your story and photos with him. Needless to say, you are also an excellent writer! 🙂
Fishing in AK with an AK: now that would be a fish story.
If the Alaska summit was so productive, then what was produced, other than a lot of jet engine exhaust?
“If the Alaska summit was so productive, then what was produced, other than a lot of jet engine exhaust?”
If we could harness the hot air that comes out the mouths of leftists like Gigi, we wouldn’t need any more power plants. You clowns just love the sound of your own voices. The rest of us, not so much.
Your mama.
“If the Alaska summit was so productive, then what was produced, other than a lot of jet engine exhaust?”
Gigi, I was looking for the list of Biden foreign policy accomplishments, and after some digging I finally found it:
Dr. Turley,
I enjoyed this post. At least you both caught a fish! They say that size doesn’t matter!!
I dare say a time and place to get one’s battery recharged – which I hope that you did. Entertaining post.
That he’s lived long enough to grow so big yet still get caught by a novice suggests the one has been caught-and-released many times. And, as crime fighters know, catching the dumb ones is easy. But that little fella, well his capture may be attributed to his inexperience, not lack of savvy, so good on the professor for his putting aside his ego and opting to educate the young even while on vacation.
Trees are cannibals. They eat the decomposing leaves of their bretheren. How beautiful.
The small ones are much more challenging, Professor. As we say in target shooting, “Aim small, miss small.” 🙂
Reminds me a little of my son-in-law who had never played poker before. Shortly after starting play, he drew 4 of a kind…
The very best memories of my father who I already ever saw and didn’t really know and my brothers were fishing trips to Maine, Canada, Carolinas, well, everywhere. Preserve your memories, they’re all that’s left you.
Those must be lovely memories of fishing with your family.