Unreel Fly Fishing

I just spent two delightful days with the smiling anglers you see in the photos above…and what fun it was. They were long time friends, true gentlemen and as you can see when you scroll through the pictures, skilled anglers as well. We caught Brookies, Browns and Rainbows of all sizes, using a variety of methods and in weather that varied from 37 to 75 degrees. We fished in rain, wind, sunshine, you name it. The only two constants were that these guys kept catching fish and they were a true pleasure to spend time on the water with. I hope they take with them fun memories of fish caught, fish lost and time spent together. I’ll take with me deep gratitude that I can spend time with quality people, on the stream, catching fish and call it work.

I do! if I can be with awesome people like these. I always say you don’t get cold until the fish stop biting. Well, we never got cold yesterday. The water was high and off color but the weather seemed to have kept the fair weather folks at home. That meant we could pick our spots, move around freely and enjoy everything the river had to offer. If you fish these conditions monitor stream conditions carefully, pick your spots, fish with a friend and wade within your limits. I can’t remember a more fun trip but I admit, I did take a long hot shower when I got home!

…because that’s how big it is. I know you see a lot of pictures of big trout on my website. Okay, it’s good marketing. But I love and appreciate appreciate every fish. I always wince when someone catches a beautiful but petit trout and shows disappointment because “It’s a little one.” An 8 inch fish isn’t a defective version of a 12 inch fish. It’s a perfect version of itself. Small fish like this in a wild trout fishery are a sign that the fishery is healthy and productive. This is a native Appalachian Brook Trout. It will probably grow to a maximum adult size of maybe 7 or 8 inches…and it will still be perfect.

What a super fun outing we had today. We caught fish and laughed all morning. The thing is, I think we would have had just as many laughs if we hadn’t caught any fish. It’s too easy to get wrapped up in the “how many, how big” mindset of measuring the success of a fishing trip. If we were in search of protein that might be appropriate but we are catch and release fishing for the pure pleasure of it. One of life’s greatest pleasures is the gift of being in the company of good people. I was lucky to have that today and what a joy it was.

Okay….a few nice fish like these didn’t hurt either!

I had a blast yesterday morning fishing with this grandfather/grandson duo of trout masters. As you can see, we braved the rain and did it ever pay off. Maybe the fish appreciated the fact that we were as wet as they were. Maybe the rain and rising water had them on the bite. Or maybe these guys are just good? I suspect it was a combination of all three. I love photos of fishing bringing generations together. This young angler is rightly proud of his catch but that grandfather is even more proud of his grandson!

Today we did fish through the solar eclipse (which was 87% here in western North Carolina.) We caught this fish during the eclipse and another only one minute from maximum coverage. They didn’t seem to mind all the celestial goings on at all. As a matter of fact, they didn’t even seem to notice. We kept alternating between our fishing glasses and our eclipse glasses to make sure we didn’t miss out on either the action in the water or the action in the cosmos. Great people, real spring-like weather and the eclipse made it a day to remember.

Yesterday we had sleet, last night we had snow and today we had…great fishing! It feels a lot more like early March than early April but I’m not complaining. It was near freezing when we started this morning but we fished our way up into the 40s and didn’t mind a bit. As I always say, you don’t get cold when the fish are biting. Today they were biting and I had the good fortune to be out with two super-fun tenkara aces. If this is spring…I’ll take it!

March is always a guessing game for weather around here. Yesterday we found a gap and got a morning of fishing in before a heavy rain swept in during the afternoon. Fishing was tough and we had to earn every take. Luckily I was with an excellent fisherman who made good on his chances. This was certainly the fish of the day. He took a tiny midge pattern on 6X tippet but patience, touch and good fish fighting allowed us to get this quick picture to top off a super fun morning.

The second Tuesday of March and April I donate a trip in support of our local chapter of Trout Unlimited. Today was one of those days. The weather was cold, but the fishing was hot! These two awesome members of the Asheville based Land O’Sky Chapter of TU were rewarded for their shivering with some amazing fish. Isn’t it funny how you can forget all about the fact that it’s 27 degrees when you’ve got one of these bruisers on the line. I always enjoy helping people catch fish but there’s a particular satisfaction in knowing that the folks you’re fishing with are both active and involved in helping to protect our wonderful trout fisheries here in western North Carolina. Do good…get good!

Take a look at this tenkara ace! We really had to work for that fish. My young companion was patient, focused and ready when opportunity knocked. The result is a great smile and a fish well caught. I normally use 10 as a minimum age for guiding. This is really a practical limit as I don’t stock waders in childrens’ sizes. But this guy brought his own and I’m glad he did. It was a pleasure to spend some high quality stream time with him and his proud dad.