I suspect Emily Dickenson wasn’t talking about Brook trout fishing when she wrote about luck…but maybe she was!  It certainly is applicable and the photos above and below are ample evidence of the value of effort in determining an outcome.  These gorgeous, native Appalachian Brook Trout were some of our reward for 5 miles of tough hiking, a day of rock scrambling and hours of patient fly casting.  In Brookie fishing fortune’s smile must always be earned, and when it is…it’s contagious.