DFoster

Thanks Kevin- with all the rain we've had this year I've gotten pretty good at "down and across" LOL!

For what it’s worth Steve I always thought you did a great job with the site. 20+ years is a long time to stay committed to what I’m sure can at times be a thankless position, so thank you for all the work you’ve done here. A love of fly fishing and fly tying is the common bond that brought us all here in the first place, the site might regain some of its allure once you get away from “job” side of it for a while. Best wishes!

We had a lot of rain on Friday, I went fishing late afternoon yesterday and the river was up a foot and ripping. The only real option was an across and down presentation. Even that proved difficult as the locations I could wade to were very limited. I did manage to catch this one brown on a marabou muddler pattern. Not a big fish but because the take was 60' downstream from me in fast water so it was a long hard fight.

Nice looking fish!

I hate hearing about physical limitations sideling a passionate fellow angler. You are fortunate to have fished so many wonderful places, perhaps you will again someday. I wish you well.

Nice water and fish Norm!

So not so close -LOL- but still not all that bad of a ride. I'm fortunate to have a few wild trout streams within a 30 to 60 minute drive. Granted they are not trophy producers although I do have the Swift River at about hours drive. The Swift is the best brook trout fishery in Mass and arguably the second best overall trout fishery as it has some huge bows and browns. The down side is that it's heavily pressured and on a typical day at the better pools you will have other fly anglers all around you. But if you don't mind the company you do have the chance to catch some really big trout there. I fish the more popular areas of the Swift a few times per year but on most days I prefer the solitude of a blue line even if the fish are small.

I should add that's some beautiful looking water there George, you're lucky to have that close to home.

George, I have nothing against anyone travelling to fish, I pack a fly rod when I travel. I look forward to exploring new locations and/or targeting fish species that I don’t have locally. Travel angling can force one to learn new techniques or skills, all of which makes one a more complete and better angler. But my primary motivation to fly fish is really satisfied by the water and fish that I have nearby.

I've never been to Montana but If I get the chance I'll have a rod with me.

For me the greatest joy in fly fishing is to catch stream bred wild trout. The size of the fish matters little, for me it’s about holding a beautiful jewel in my hand for just a few moments before setting it free. A dollar sized Brookie or Brown is all I will ever need and within a reasonably short drive from my home they can be found. As the saying goes “trout don’t live in ugly places” and the woodlands of Massachusetts and New England still take my breath away. For these reasons I have never had the desire to be a destination or trophy angler and so my answer is probably a little boring for most. My favorite place to fish is on any of my local streams. I don't have a favorite local stream as they each have their own character but I do have my favorite runs and pools on each, here are some of them.

Yesterday- All 3 of these fish came from this beautiful pool on 3 different flies.

That's a great tip, thank you!

You just got to make time to get out because it's going to be a long winter!

I don't know the name, it was one of a handful of hoppers I bought on our recent trip to Colorado. As a fly tyer I hate to buy flies but the guide at the local fly shop out there was adamite about using hoppers and I didn't have any in my dry box. Very basic, tightly wound yellow flash dubbing around the hook, a black 2mm foam body tied over that in 3 segments. 6 tan, barred rubber legs and a white antron yarn wing. Floats like a cork. Honestly though I think that day almost any modest sized terrestrial dry fly would have worked. The stream is a small tributary into a larger river and overgrown. Tough, tight quarters casting combined with what are mostly small trout means it is generally ignored by most. Yesterday I knew I would be working in an area a 20 minute ride from that same stream. I threw my trout vest, a short 3 weight . I hooked 5 with 3 reaching the net. They're not large but there is satisfaction in being able to catch wild trout in places where most get frustrated.