This is the second installment of a two part post – check out last week’s Fly Shop Lost. “Do you know what happened to the sporting goods store downtown on Main Street? It must have closed down about 15 years ago.” She kept pouring my coffee, but the waitress gave me a look. It was …
Years ago, it went out of business. It was one of the first fly shops I stepped foot in. Like many other storefronts on an old main street, some combination of modern economic factors caused it to shutter its doors after decades of service to locals and out-of-towners. It had the reputation for catering to …
It the short history of Vedavoo Vise Night, the monthly fly tying event at the Vedavoo workshop, we’ve seen the creation of some impressive flies. Seasoned tiers have produced microscopic midges, cutting-edge saltwater patterns, and intricately articulated streamers. Plus, someone tied a fly that lights up. And another guy wove mop material. And a few …
Believe it or not, I do other outdoor stuff outside of fly fishing. I run, I (enjoy it when someone else tends to the) garden, I hike. I’m even comfortable enough to spend a whole day doing one of those things, even if it means that I am “giving up” a day fishing. That doesn’t …
I was looking at reels for a long time. A long time. Across the counter, he couldn’t have been more than three feet away. Not once did he look away from the computer monitor. Now, I shouldn’t have been surprised. When I walked in, I didn’t get a “hello” or even a head nod. When …
I grew up in the western suburbs of Chicago. Fishing consisted of bait under a bobber for whatever happened to be nearby. I can’t remember a point in my childhood where I became aware of fly fishing. There really wasn’t any reason for me to. No fisheries capable of sustaining trout longer than the cooler …
The other day I thought to myself, “Why don’t you conduct a brief, informal survey of complete strangers in the mall?” I know that thinking such things isn’t normal. And that carrying out plans like that is even less so. However, I had a few too many cups of coffee and I wasn’t going to …
“There is an appointed time for everything.” That is how the second chapter of the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes begins. What follows is the list of things for which there is “a time.” A list, if you weren’t the Sunday School type, you may know from The Byrd’s cover of Pete Seeger’s “Turn! Turn! …
Mention Southcentral Pennsylvania to a fly fisher, and chances are they will understand exactly where you’re talking about. In the angling world, it isn’t just the middle third of the commonwealth’s bottom half. Within this portion there is a valley that is bordered by the ridges of North and South Mountains, and in it lie …
We’ve all been there before. Standing in front of the rod rack at our local fly shop, trying to justify another 5-weight, and you hear the voice. “Kids these days! With their sling packs and their Twitters… no wonder I can’t catch any fish!” The shop employee is nodding along, but at a rhythm that …
