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The Steelhead With A Thousand Faces
Maybe if I take five more steps, throw one more mend, skate one more fly, a hero will appear, armored in chrome, and dance to the music of my singing reel.
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The Birth of A Fishing Town
Calf deep now in the cold river, Trent’s completed his prelude of silky false casts and is ready to start the show in earnest.
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In The End, Style Might Be All We Have
Over the course of 6 trips, in and out, and nearly 40 miles, I question whether or not it’s worth it.
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Banded
Folding neatly the greenhead splashed soundly onto the water. The old lady made quick work of the retrieve.
Pop Quiz: 1) If a carpenter in San Juan County purchases a New Mexico fishing license for $25, and a hedge fund manager from Connecticut purchases a lifestyle ranch on the San Juan River for $6.8 million, which purchaser acquires constitutional protection of his individual rights? A) Neither. Rights can’t be bought or sold, Read More
The line stopped in the tea colored water. A quick head shake and the trout headed up stream. Minutes later we had a gorgeous brown at our feet. The sun was just coming over the horizon, we began fishing only moments earlier. Swollen and slightly off color, we thought the stream would be tough, Read More
There are tears in your eyes. Or maybe it’s sweat. In either case your vision is a salt-stung mess. The watery glimpses of black dog that you catch – cresting the ridge directly above you and birdier by the stride – quiver and bounce like a glass of water in Jurassic Park. There is, Read More
As we put the holidays in the rear view mirror many of us begin to wish we had a flight booked to the Bahamas. Snow and freezing temps get to the best of us. Before you know it days or weeks can slip by without getting out. It’s great to spend time behind the vice,, Read More
I knew dawn, when it finally broke, would be anemic and gray – little help in driving the cold from the house. Too bad, I thought. I needed all the help I could get. The sun hadn’t cleared the mountain yet, but already I was behind: behind on the errands, the house chores, the, Read More
She must have heard me talking about a new puppy. Or maybe it was just her day. In any case, the old lady was in rare form, even by her high standards. Our hunt started conventionally enough, but by mid morning it was clear she meant business. Her nose led us from covey to covey. The gentle breeze and fresh snow, Read More
Seven or eight miles of heavy brush brought us to the last forty-five minutes of daylight, and a fork in the trail. A warm truck and cold beer waited down the right-hand path. Straight ahead lay more half-frozen river, drifted snow and one last crease of thorny cover. The reassuring bulk of roosters cradled against, Read More
“How are the fish doing?” a small voice piped up from the back seat. “Huh?” I replied. “You know…how are their homes doing?” “Oh…you mean where we helped on that project last summer?” “Uh huh” Seven months had passed, but it is remarkable what sticks in a five year old’s mind. My daughter and, Read More
Action was scarce all morning. One firm hook-set on a sunken stick was about as exciting as it got. Your thoughts turned to the afternoon football game, the expense report waiting in your inbox, and the chance for a hall-pass rain check if you raced home and cleaned the garage. Maybe you could get, Read More
To say he wanted to hunt badly would be an understatement. I wasn’t sure we were going to make it a reality. Until we did. Despite his enthusiasm he conked out in the backseat as we headed down progressively smaller roads, for an evening deer hunt. We pulled up to the ranch and began glassing. Ignoring, Read More