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Sunny Days
I always look forward to the transition to wet-wading season. Here in the mid-Atlantic that usually hits in mid-May, unless you’re fishing a tailwater just downstream from a dam, in which case waders are still a must. Even with neoprene wading socks, the first steps into a chilly (but not frigid) trout stream can be…
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How to Read a River
Reading the water is an acquired skill. It's an ability that's honed over time, and one that takes into account not only a river's physical characteristics, but how certain stretches might fish at certain times of the year ... or even certain times of the day. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcBIq5gWfjE Above, RIO's Simon Gawesworth helps shorten the learning…
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The Pecos is fishing great … for now
The lifeblood of the Village of Pecos, the Pecos River flows through public and private lands in a narrow canyon flanked by in aspen, Gambel oak, and mixed conifer. The Pecos boasts a fun salmon fly hatch in early summer, and I love how spooky the fish are in autumn, when elk bugles echo, the banks blaze with yellow cottonwoods, and the water resembles the air above, cold, clear and…
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Trout in the Texas Hill Country
GRTU president Mark Dillow in his element on the Guadalupe River. Trout Unlimited has 4,000 members in Texas, all part of one Texas-sized chapter: Guadalupe River TU (GRTU). Amazing for a state that has no native trout, and relatively few trout streams. When I lived in Colorado, it was commonly believed that all anglers residing…
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Fathers
Photo: The Steelhead Whisperer and his daughter on California's Big Sur River. I spent Father’s Day this year not fishing. That was fine with me, though. My son was with me and we were at 7,500 feet in the Sierra Nevada range, where winter had not yet gathered up all of her train. And we…
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How to tie flies with foam
Foam flies revolutionized dry-fly angling a couple of decades ago. Flies that absolutely must float—think grasshoppers, big salmon flies and other terrestrial flies, like ants and beetles—got a big boost from the foam incursion into the fly-tying arena years ago. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtXeLjg6i8Q While foam can be really effective to use in any number of patterns, it…
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Voices from the River: From toys to necessities
The UPS man came to the door the other day, a pretty big package in his hands. It was from Simms. Not too long ago, the arrival of orders from outdoor gear retailers would make me giddy. Soon, I’d have my hands on a new rod. Or a new reel. Some cool flies or lures.…
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