I’m moving. That means getting rid of stuff. It is a very liberating process. Have we touched that fondue pot any time in the last ten years? No. Is the decorative pewter rabbit dish really “our style?” Nope. Do we need all those fly rods? Yes. Yes, we do. There are a handful of things …
Category: General
Flies, Flies, Everywhere
If I were a man of lower morals, and it was possible to take out an insurance policy on fly boxes, I might be the victim of an unfortunate and devastating fire. Nothing that would damage my home, mind you. It would probably happen in a trash can out in my driveway. The only casualties …
Under the Tuscan Trout, part 3
I’m always fascinated by the dynamic of same/different on the stream. One example is how I can be on a mountain trout stream anywhere in Appalachia, and there is going to be some geological similarities. But if my eyes wander up the banks, the foliage will be completely different north and south. Another is a …
Kicking the Conservation Bucket
I never saw myself as the chain-yourself-to-a-bulldozer, repel-from-a-dam-to-paint-a-crack type. But I wasn’t totally disengaged from the environmental side of fly fishing. As a teenager I had been involved in some conservation. Stream clean ups, seminars, science fair projects – those sorts of things. So I was a little surprised at myself at what I did …
Gone Fishing: “On”
Roads and Rivers
Mile 0 This afternoon I’ll be making the same drive I’ve been making for over six years. Down the east coast, from New England to Northern Virginia. It is the same drive in that the point of departure and the destination don’t change. However, there are virtually an infinite amount of ways to make the …
Native or Wild: Words Mean Things
Wild or native? Native or wild? It is the they’re/there/their of fly fishing. “I caught some native browns from that pretty little spring creek in Montana the other week.” No, you didn’t. Unless “Montana” happens to be the name of some fancy European estate. “Look at the colors on this rainbow! The stripes on these …
Mr. Nice Fly
I was about one hundred and fifty words in. The article was taking form. There were some decently composed sentences, attention-grabbing quips, and plenty of snark. I was writing a piece on the grumps and eye-roll inducing members of the fly fishing public. Well, another piece. My change of heart and plans wasn’t for lack …
Dark Before Light
Fly fishers can appreciate the necessity of the darkness that comes before the light. It allows for rest. We can regroup, recalibrate, and renew ourselves for another day on the water. The night prevents fishing, but provides these important things. It allows for reflection. A bad day can be, to a certain extent, mitigated by …
3 Ways to find New Water
I’m not in the business of looking a gift trout in the mouth. I’ve learned my lesson. There was a time when I lived within a few minutes’ drive of some of the best spring creek and mountain trout fishing in the mid-Atlantic. And I pined for more solitude. A hundred yards to myself wasn’t …