Running and fishing?

It wasn't until we picked up our bags at the carousel that the awful feeling struck me. I left my flyrod on the airplane, parked a train ride away on the other side of airport security. My heart sank like a weighted nymph.

After a painfully slow negotiation at the baggage claim, I was handed a security pass and I sprinted through the airport O.J. style, hopped the train, ran upstairs and arrived at the gate slightly winded. The door had closed and my racing heart skipped a beat. I looked at the United staff with a desperate look. A smiling gate attendant reached behind the counter and there it was! Flyrod safe and sound.

When I got home my wife produced from the pile of waiting mail the latest copy of The Drake, by far my favorite fishing magazine. I love it because this poetic sport deserves a literary journal. I had almost forgotten, a letter I had written this fall about running and flyfishing ended up in the Winter 2012 edition.

I'm reading Trout Bum by John Gierach at the moment on my Kindle Fire. In my opinion Gierach is an outdoor writer of great distinction. With apologies to those who know the sport better than I, and who can write about it more knowledgeably, here's my first published contribution.

I landed in D.C. and headed immediately for the Urban Angler in Old Town Alexandria. I wanted to see what an East Coast fly shop looked like. There I picked up my first copy of The Drake.

I sat in my hotel room that night, pouring over your provocative articles and exhilarating photos. I even read every ad. For the first time in more than 30 years I was reminded of the first time I picked up a copy of The Runner. I was a track and cross country runner in the late '70s, and The Runner had its finger on the pulse of my sport and my generation.

To this day I read its successor, Runner's World, religiously. The Drake reminds me of the intensity and intimacy of those days in running just after the sport's boom, when running culture was being built.

Keep up the great writing. You may well be shaping flyfishing culture for generations to come.

A bass called (Christmas) Eve

Today's 55+ sunny December weather in the Tulsa area would qualify as a nice summer day in the Seattle area. I brought the 6-weight flyrod and some flies on our Texas-Oklahoma holiday journey, and suspected the fish might be active this afternoon.

Finally, on Christmas Eve, I caught two black bass in a pond just outside Tulsa in my hometown of Broken Arrow.

I used a Prince Nymph to help sink a trailing white Wooly Bugger. With the setting sun at my back, I stood beneath a tree at a headwater and cast into open waters. I caught a two-pound largemouth, and then a one-pound black on the very next cast.

Then nothing. But I was happy.

We left Seattle on Saturday, Dec. 17. On Sunday I fished Galveston Bay just north of Galveston. I threw Klausers and saw some small, silver and white fish but didn't get a bite. The little fish (a couple of pounds) were rolling over on the surface near the Houston Yacht Club. I'm told redfish come into the Bay.

On Wed., Dec. 21, I fished Town Lake in Austin. Town Lake, which is actually the Colorado River, has been renamed Lady Bird Lake. I did no advance research. I did observe a few gear fishermen, and saw what seemed to be some swirls out in the middle of the river/lake but didn't seem to get any bites.

Both Galveston Bay and Town Lake were beautiful settings, but they amounted to little more than casting practice.

Yesterday in Tulsa I had fished a smaller pond outside our family home, but did not use the nymph-wooly bugger combo. I also believe that I was stripping-in the line faster than necessary. Today I seemed to find the perfect combo of flies and stripping pace.

I texted some photos to my dad during the brief fishing trip. He's recovering from colon cancer surgery and so it was more than satisfying to catch fish and have a nice Christmas Eve exchange with my dad.

Today is my final day in the South, and I may walk down the Arkansas River to try my hand. Growing up in the area, I never heard of the Arkansas being very productive (even during the summer). But, hey, if it's warm and sunny on Christmas Day why not? Merry Angling Christmas.

Santa Cruz Seal

The sun sets on Half Moon Bay just after 4 pm this time of year. The days are agonizingly short. I had rigged my 6 wt. flyrod with a very pink squid pattern and made my way along the beach south toward the mouth of the San Lorenzo River.

With the Santa Cruz boardwalk's sullen scene of winterized roller costers and carnivals just behind me, I watched the waves crash just off shore in hopes that surf perch might be feeding in the wake, or better yet that I might find sea-run steelhead holding just offshore waiting for a ride into the San Lorenzo river (see picture).

I cast into the orange California sky and stripped-in line to the soft sound, I thought, of barking out in the water. Sure enough, a huge seal skated along the backside of the same waves I was fishing. He or she gave me a disdainful look and just kept swimming by. There is something energizing about standing waste deep in the surf with a large wild animal so close by.

As the sun sank into Pacific and darkness grew all around me I began to notice light bursts. At one moment the light would almost disappear and then suddenly it would reappear. It changed the energy in the water. I wonder what this phenomenon is called? It must be sun bursts or sunlight bouncing off the water. It was a free light show.

By know you know Nimrod's fishing prowess. I caught nothing. I learned a lot, and I enjoyed a new and amazing outdoor experience. But I have no fish to show for it. I do feel that I am getting better at things like casting, fly selection and reading water, but I am hardly a black belt flyfisherman.

Santa Cruz, California, sits on Half Moon Bay between San Francisco to the North and Monterrey to the South. The moment I learned I would be here for a conference I started researching whether a little fly fishing might be appropriate.

What I learned is that fishing is slow this time of year, but not nonexistant. I spoke by phone from Seattle with fly fishing manager Nathan at San Jose's Orvis, and I later stopped to talk with a fishing guide there on Santana Row. You can fish for surf perch with minnow and klauser patterns.  And on Wednesdays starting on Dec. 1 you can fish the San Lorenzo for steelhead. The San Lorenzo slices through Santa Cruz from the ocean up to the state park in the foothills leading back to San Jose. The flies of choice right now are anything pink, plus egg-sucking leeches.

I fished for surf perch on Monday evening, and then again from earliest daylight on Wed. (around 6:30 am) to about 8:30 am. I fished along the pier and then inside the mouth of the San Lorenzo. I improved my surf casting, but as far as I know I didn't get a single bite. At sunrise I saw my seal friend who seemed to look at me more pitifully this time.

Later in the afternoon I decided to drive outside of Santa Clara to find an upstream location on the San Lorenzo. For some reason I could not find the river outside of Santa Clara and instead stumbled upon the Zayante Creek (see photo), which I mistook for the San Lorenzo. I was especially encouraged when I saw a quaint old cafe called Trout Farm Inn.

I may get up early in the morning and try one more time. I'll let you know. I am hopeful but not optimistic. It's been too long since I pulled a fish in. Surely I am due.

Cle Elum @ Suncadia

I drove the family through a fall blizzard over Snoqualmie Pass to spend the night at Suncadia (just off Bullfrog Road near Roslyn).

The Cle Elum River runs just below the Lodge at Suncadia, and there is a gorgeous little trail that invites the flyfisher to try for a rainbow or a west slope cutthroat. The Cle Elum is a tributary of the better known Yakima. Emerald Water Anglers has a nice post about the river.

According to Dave Shorett's Central Cascades Fishing Guide, "fishing is surprisingly tough in this large river, both from the dam at Cle Elm Lake downstream to the river's junction with the Yakima River and above the lake up through Salmon La Sac."

One of these days I'm going to surprise myself and have a big fat trout picture to show for my efforts, but once again this was not the trip. Some positives, though:

• I got a new 9'6" 6wt rod from Orvis (one of the Access rods). It's really a beauty. Got the reel and line thrown in for free. It casts well.
• For the first time I set a pair of split-shot weights just above my nymph, which I had learned in preparation for fishing the Yakima and its tributaries. This gets the nymph down in the water and allows it to appear to the fish as if it is floating just above the bottom.
• I used my new wading stick for the first time. I am in pretty good shape, but I sometimes struggle to keep my balance in swift, rocky water so I got it to help me ford the faster runs. It helped. I also learned how to use it to support from behind when casting.

I fished Saturday evening from 4-5 pm beneath the Bullfrog Road bridge just off I-90. In my rush to fish before dark I accidentally tied on an emerging Blue Winged Olive (BWO). I had meant to tie on a nymph. With the snow softly falling and warm lights appearing from nearby cabins, I felt a decent strike just along the bank in a pool, but I was not able to set the hook.

Sunday morning around 10 am I made my way from the Lodge down to the river. The snow from yesterday was starting to melt but I still had to pass through some slushy snow on the trail down to the river bank. Today I used a red copper john nymph tied about two feet below a split-shot weight.

After fishing several promising areas, I sunk the numph into a deep pool downstream. On the retrieve I had what I think was a decent cutt, but it got away before I could get him close enough for inspection.

I had planned to fish the Yakima on Sunday but winter storm advisories caused me to stay close to the lodge and try the Yak another day. I've learned a few things about the Yakima which I will share in a future post when I actually get a chance to fish it.

Hittin' the beaches

Today was my maiden fishing trip to the south Puget Sound beaches. My goal was sea-run cutthroat trout. Except for a small sculpin at sunrise, I have nothing to show for my effort.

Clocks were set-back an hour this morning for daylight savings. I rose about 6 am, and was on the water at Dash Point (on the King-Pierce Co. border) by about 7:15 am. The temperature hovered just above freezing, but the air warmed a little when the sun hit the water after 8 am.

My only rod at the moment is a 9-foot, #5, which I throw with a yellow floating flyline. I thought I would give it a try, but I had a helluva time throwing the larger saltwater flies with such light line. In fact, on such a clear, windless day I'm pretty sure that I scared away all the trout as I double- and triple-hauled the line in order to get my fly out there.

Yesterday I chatted with Orvis Bellevue's Leland Miyawaki, a local authority on Puget Sound beaches. He sent me out with flies you see below. I didn't tell him that I would be taking the wrong rod. The cool one with white head and feathers is Leland's own creation.

I fished the beach near Dash Point town dock, then Dash Point State Park and later Saltwater State Park. I saw I rise just off the beach at Dash Point State Park, where I caught the sculpin, but nothing else. At Saltwater State Park the boats were out hunting for coho. The pinks were boiling the water. I sensed the cutts were in there, but I didn't find them. Note that you have to fish north of the bathrooms as the area south is a sanctuary.

Two goals before year's end -- get a #6 rod for the beaches, and go out with a guide.



Pan Fish

Like most trout fisherman, I am a catch-and-release guy. Tonight, however, I got to pan fry some nice trout that we had delivered from Surfin' Seafood, a Seattle provider of fresh fish. I am guessing (and hoping) this is farm-raised rainbow.

I was excited to cook some trout since I release everything I catch, and most of what I catch is too small to cook anyway.

The Herbfarm Cookbook offers a nice, simple recipe for trout. I won't repeat it all here, but I simply:

• Washed and sprinkled the trout with salt and pepper, thyme and sage;
• Lightly covered with flour;
• Fried the non-skin side in pre-heated olive oil until golden brown;
• Baked in a pre-heated (400-degree) oven for 7 minutes.

I served it with some cous cous and a white wine. Terrific.

Both Surfin' Seafood and The Herbfarm are locals here in the Seattle area. Below is a photo of the end result.

Izaak Walton

I am reading Izaak Walton's classic, The Compleat Angler (or Contemplative Man's Recreation). The Modern Library edition I am reading has an introduction by former New York Times editor Howell Raines whom I met as a college journalism student in the 1980s. Raines is author of Flyfishing Through a Midlife Crisis.

Reading the book will not necessarily make you a better flyfisher, but it will help to connect you with the origins of trout flyfishing in 1653 in England. And it will situate your sport culturally and even spiritually.

In 1987 I worked as a speechwriter for former Secretary of the Interior, Don Hodel. One of my favorite assignments was to work with Secretary Hodel on a speech for the Izaak Walton League's International Conference on Outdoor Ethics. The speech was held at the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri.

Twenty-four years later I write this post and read Izaak Walton in Tulsa, Oklahome, where I am visiting family. I hope to take my dad, who introduced me to fishing as a kid, flyfishing in Ozarks soon!

Parr for the course

In golf a par is good. In flyfishing, a parr is not as rewarding. Nimrod these days is mostly catching parrs, a  young stage of life for trout and salmon. After hours of fishing without a bite on the South Fork at exit 45, I switched to the Middle Fork in Tanner around exit 32.

As the sun was sinking around 6 pm, I cast into a long dark pool along the eastern bank. A little rainbow parr took my nymph and I brought it in for closer inspection. I was happy to avoid the shutout, but disappointed I didn't have a decent fish to show for the day's effort.

Tonight I looked at USGS to see why the flow seemed so high tonight. The water was murky with river silt. It appears the river flows have risen, fallen and are back on the rise over the past week. Temperatures on this fine fall day rose to near 60. I saw a good bit of insect activity this afternoon.

With some experience now under my belt, there are some things I'm realizing:

•  I need either to hire a guide or fish with someone experienced. I may not imprpove without some help.
•  I need to get some wet flies. My nymphs and dry flies are getting me only so far.
•  I need to get better at reading water for trout lies, and I need to understand better how to cast into those lies.
•  I want to get another rod to learn steelheading and beach fishing.

This is a wonderful sport with much to learn.

Flyfishing in DC

I travel to our nation's capital, Washington, D.C., a fair bit. Heck, I used to live there and met my wife there.

This week I got off my evening flight from Seattle, and headed straight for Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, to visit a new fly shop that has been open just a month. Urban Angler is a high-end shop in New York City that has just expanded into the D.C. area.

My cab stopped outside the fly shop in a historic town founded before 1750.  I rolled  my bag in to chat with the lone manager about local fishing. The very helpful manager told me that decent fishing is 3-4 hours away in Pennsylvania or West Virginia, but there is some worthwhile flyfishing for enthusiasts within casting distance from the Kennedy Center.

The Potomac has been disappointing this year due to bad weather. But come April I am told to fish a 6-weight, 250 grain sink line at Fletcher's Cove near Georgetown. There I might find some good sized American Shad (see photo and link below)

I bought a couple of unique flies thar are supposed to work wonders with DC-area shad. As Arnold would say, "I'll be back."

Spectator Sport

This afternoon Nimrod trapsed along a precarious south bank of the South Fork of the Snoqualmie attempting to get to an inviting pool I noticed from the bridge off Exit 38 at Grouse Ridge. After casting into the runs and eddies upstream from the pool, I decided to move back downstream to swing my nymph from the headwaters down to the bottom of the pool. About that time a gentleman stopped his car on the bridge above me and to my left. Suddenly I had a spectator!

I cast a couple of times short and then stipped out about 45 feet of line for a longer cast that might reach the bottom of the pool. The nymph, which looked a little like this one, sunk and drifted. As I began to bring in the line I felt that wonderful little tap of a trout. My rod tip shuddered and I carefully raised it. For the first time Nimrod felt the confidence to really play the fish. With a spectator looking on, I slowly worked the trout toward me and allowed the fish to stay in the water as I walked a few yards to retrieve my camera.

As I brought the fish to shore the gentleman on the bridge offered a nice round of applause.

I was certain I would catch a couple of trout today but this was it. Not only am I terrible at fish photography (see above and all over my website), but I am also terrible at identifying the fish. I believe this is a rainbow. Any help on the id would be appreciated.

Looking ahead, I will work my way further East on I-90. I also plan to buy a rod or two for the Puget Sound beaches. I really need to get into some bigger fish!

Waders 1, fish 0

Nimrod bought waders and wading boots on Saturday at Creekside. Today I had my first wading experience in the South Fork of the Snoqualmie off Exit 32.

Rising early Sunday morning to Head East, I assumed my fishing luck of the past month would build today. It didn't. I caught nothing. What's more, I'm not completely sure I even got a bite.

But I loved the wading! It was very liberating to look up or downstream, locate a piece of water I wantged to fish and then just walk to it. What a concept.

I parked North of a bridge on Cedar Falls Road and hiked down a slim path to the abundantly clear Snoqualmie. It was overcast and cool. I tied on a dry fly, slid down the river bank and enjoyed my baptism in Simms Freestone waders.

The current was brisk but the waters are still low this time of year. I walked upstream casting into riffles and pools. Nada. The dry fly offered some bright white, which I hoped would stand out a bit in the grey.

I gave up and drove to an access pointn off Tanner Road in North Bend. I tried the dry fly there, switched to a drab nymph and then cast concern to the winds -- I threw a big, blazing fly. Same result, nothing. I worked pools, seams, riffles, rapids, you name it. Nothing.

On my first day in waders I came away with this observation. Flyfishing should be an Olympic sport. It is a real sport. I am a runner, yet I was impressed with how physical it is to climb the bolders, wade up swift currents, keep your balance on an obstacle course. All the while the fly fisherman is looking for promising water, thinking about the right fly and presentation. Good flyfisherman are good athletes.

Like an athlete, I keep asking myself today why nothing worked? What did I do wrong. Today was not a 'game' day but I did get in some good practice.

The First Forays

My first real flyfishing experience was last summer on the Flathead River with a guide out of Whitefish, Mt. We cast for miles along the Flathead in a drift boat but sadly caught very few cutthroat. My son caught a couple and I caught exactly zero. Nimrod!

But the gear, the approach, the fish, the water! Wow, I fell in love.

This summer I bought a 9', 5-weight fly rod (ClearWater) with a Battenkill reel from Orvis. I went into the shop with no pretension -- I just admitted right up front that I knew nothing. If you pretend to know something the sales people will treat you like an expert, but if you make it clear you need help they will go out of their way to explain and answer questions. The salesman was head of fishing operations, and he took the time to show me the options. In the end I felt confident I had chosen the right equipment.

I got a quick lesson on how to assemble my 4-piece rod, attach the reel and tie two basic knots -- the improved clench (to tie on your fly) and the double surgeon (a knot to add fishing line). While practicing knots at the counter, the Orvis fishing manager told me to get out there. He encouraged me not to spend my time reading about fly fishing, but actuall fly fishing.

That's all I needed.

September 5, 2011
North Bend of Snoqualmie River
With a new fly rod in hand, a flycasting lesson and a little practice outside my house, I headed for the North Fork of the Snoqualmie to fish for trout. Sunrise is 6:27 am, and my upbringing told me that the early bird catches the worm.

My son and I would have been on the river even earlier but when you are a Nimrod you don't really know how to access a good fishing spot. All we had been told was go to North Bend and fish the North Fork. Turns out that's not so easy to find. We drove all over North Bend looking for a road that would get us close to a fishing hole with a gravel bar from which we could cast.

We found our spot just off North Fork Road near North Bend. We didn't have waders but instead showed up in sandals and Crocs. The water was bracing but tolerable. What wasn't tolerable was my fear of encountering a bear or a couger after I saw warning signs posted in the natural area's parking area. Then we saw mounds of poop which I could only assume was from a bear. We made noises trapsing down a trail and after a few anxious moments stepped onto the rocky river beach.

We waded up the right side of the stream casting from the center toward the bank. We stunk but our casts got longer and more accurate. The sun began to rise over Mt. Si and we felt the air warm. The bugs became visible hovering over the water. And then I noticed a fish swirl beneath a shady tree.

As a beginner my side-armed cast seemed the most accurate and so I began placing my fly near where I saw the swirl. On the second cast I felt a strong series of bites and saw the fish swirl again. I yanked the rod like I would with a bass on and...nothing. I yanked too soon and too hard.

But my feeling was ecstatic. I had found this fishing hole. I had assembled my flyrod. I had selected teh fly, tied it on and cast to the right spot. I felt like a flyfisherman for the first time!

September 17, 2011
Tolt River near Carnation
Caught my first steelhead! I rose early again and decided to try a new location -- the Tolt. I found my down the eastern bank near King County's Tolt-MacDonald Park. I saw a dead steelhead almost immediately and assumed fish must be around.

One thing I had been reading about is how to analyze water. There are riffles, seams, pools, rapids. I tried the pools below the rougher water. Nothing. Then I decided to wade out into a riffle. I didn't know at this point how to "swing a fly" but I essentially swung a fly by casting upstream at an angle and then let the fly drift downstream. As soon as the fly line extended and I began to pull in (strip) line...BAM...I felt a series of strong bites. I didn't rush it. I held up the rod and held the line firmly. The fish, a small one, frantically surfaced and pulled the fish up onto the bank. I had landed my first fish on a fly rod.

September 25, 2011
Lake Sammamish at Issaquah Creek
Those of you who are actual flyfisherman can look at my location and the date and recognize I should not have been fishing there. This is the weekend before Salmon Days when fish and wildlife prohibits you from fishing within 100 yards of the mouth of this creek because of spawning. But I stupidly waded out there, marvelling at the large, very dark salmon surfacing around me. Fortunately I didn't catch anything. It was a good lesson that Nimrod novices need to read the state fishing rules.

October 1, 2011
Skykomish near Monroe
My son's 14th birthday! I hired guide Chris Senyohl to show us the waters and help us catch some salmon. It was a good investment of time and money. First cast my son caught a good sized Coho on  a spoon. I caught a very small one on a spoon, and then we switched over to led-headed jigs. By short-casting (we were using bait rods not fly rods) and  then giving a couple of quick twitches as the jig reached bottom we managed to catch around 30 pink salmon. It was a big day.

We fly fished for sea-run cutthroat later in the day with a surface spider, but didn't catch anything, although I did get a good bite. (Photos below are guid Chris Senyohl with my son a pink or humpy salmon. Below that is Nimrod with his son and a Coho)

October 8, 2011
South Fork of the Snoqualmie
With a little recent experience under my belt, I finally felt like a fisherman. I visited Creekside Angling Company in Issaquah to get some advice on where to fish and what to fish with. I happened to talk with the local rep for Simms waders and he suggested a few spots in and around North Bend. He also hooked me up with a few new flies.

I took Exit 32 off I-90 and drove around a bit. I found a spot off Tanner and fished the eastern shore of the South Fork. It was an Indian summer day. The sun was hot and the bugs were thick. There was a real mix of water to fish (again, rapids, riffles, pools, seams). I started off with a colorful large fly which I found a little trick to cast. After working that fly up and down the stream with no action, I made an astounding conclusion: hot weather meant warm water which means the fish are at the bottom.

I tied on a nymph, swung it from a riffle to pool and voila! A beautiful cutthroat.

Getting started

I grew up in Oklahoma bass fishing on the lakes and setting trot lines for catfish on the creeks. Fly fishing was not something I ever saw or thought about until moving to America's Pacific Northwest. For nearly 18 years I've lived just outside Seattle, a place where the mountain streams and Alpine lakes are world-renowned for trout and salmon.Last summer my son and I hired a fly fishing guide in White Fish, Montana, during a family vacation. We spent the day on the Flathead River just outside of Glacier National Park catching a few cutthroat and mostly getting our lines tangled in the brush along the banks.

But the hook was set. We vowed then that the following year (this year) we would really learn the craft. But how?

Based on my current experience I'd recommend several sources of learning:

Books
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Flyfishing -- This book is a must. Don't be embarassed by the tile. It really breaks down the a lot of the skills, terms and knowledge you will need. I bought this the same day I bought my first fly rod.


The Orvis Guide to Beginning Fly Fishing -- This guide came with the fly rod I bought for my son -- a pre-packaged set.  Like most things Orvis does, the books beautifully prepared.  It's also quite useful and a good complement to the The Complete Idiot's Guide. I am glad I had both.

Fly Fishing Basics -- My doctor friend down the street is also a fanatical (and beginner) fisherman. He walked this book down to me early in my learning. I love it. The explanations and illustrations are really compelling. And, as in all learning, you will need reinforcement. Author Dave Hughes is a great teacher.

Central Cascades Fishing Guide and Flyfisher's Guide to Washington -- Most if not all states and regions have these guides, and you need them.  My guides are super helpful. They combine geographic and angling background that you need in order to have an informed conversation with anyone about fishing in your area.

Hatch Guide for Western Streams -- Ok, flyfishing is really fishing with bugs. You need to understand the bugs that inhabit the stream you intend to fish. You don't have to be an entomologist but it helps to know whether your stream during this particularly week or month is hosting mayflies, caddisflies, stoneflies or midges (among others). I bought this book to help me match bugs with artificial flies.

Online
There are a lot of good websites and blogs to read. I've listed some of those I liked best on the front page of this blog. In addition, I like the Orvis podcast which you can download from iTunes.

Magazines
Early in my learning I bought a bunch of fishing magazines. What I discovered is that I am mostly a flyfisherman. Many of the fishing magazines emphasize size. You find page after page of huge King salmon or some other large species. What interests me are a variety of trout, salmon and other species that you would find in rivers and creeks. I also like flyfishing in salt water but I want to learn about strategies, strories and species. Fly Fisherman is the one I keep by the bedside to inspire and inform. Fly Rod & Reel is also a good catch.

Trout Unlimited
I received a complimentary membership in Trout Unlimited (TU) when I bought my rod. Perhaps it's because of my early career working as a speechwriter for former U.S. Secretary of the Interior Don Hodel, a conservationist from the Reagan era, but I immediately mailed in my membership, and I'm glad I did. Trout magazine is essential reading, and it doesn't take very long for the novice fly rodder to realize that protecting our lakes and streams is a duty.

Experience
The best advice I got when I bought my first fly rod was go out and fish. You can study and become an armchair flyfisherman or you can go out and fish. Sure, you will make tons of mistakes and you will not catch many fish in the early days. But no cast and no trip is a wasted investment of time. You will learn, you will get better and you will catch fish. Just read the posts that come after this one.

Guides
One of the best ways to get experience is to hire a guide. Over the past year I've hired a guide in Montana, Cape Cod and the Pacific Northwest. I haven't caught a lot of fish with the guides but every fish I have caught on my own is a direct result of what I learned with the guides. They aren't cheap ($400 for the day / $200 for a half day), but you have to amortize the investment over time.

Friends
Once you start flyfishing you are going to find that people you know are also passionate fisherman. They don't talk about it much but once you do they will become important sources of encouragement and information. So talk about your fishing, share what you're learning and how you're struggling. You are going to be surprised by the new friendships that develop.

Why Fly Rod Nimrod?

My blog is about fly fishing from the perspective of a fanatic just taking up the sport. That's the fly rod part of the blog's title.

The Urban Dictionary defines Nimrod as a slow-witted person. That certainly describes my current state of fly fishing.

When selecting a title for the blog I searched fly+rod+Nimrod and found nothing, except this 1955 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette blurb about a novice flyfisherman who hooked a low-flying seagull on the backcast. Nimrod! Sounds like something I would do.

Nevertheless, the Urban Dictionary and other sources also document Nimrod as a "mighty hunter."  Who knows, maybe one day my fly rod will become feared in the lakes and streams of the Pacific Northwest where I live. For now, though, my rod catches more chuckles than chum.

But that's my idea for this blog. As I start out, I want to share my mistakes, stupid questions, stumbles and occasional successes.  To the beginner, fly fishing can be intimidating.  So much of what I find out there is serious, expert and prosaic, even romantic (ever see A River Runs Through it?)

I have learned something from everything I've read, seen and heard, but I also thought it might be valuable to capture what I am learning even as I am learning it. Peer mentoring for the fellow first-time flyrodder! This blog will summarize the books, magazines, podcasts, videos and TV shows I find useful. And I'll share my experiences along the way

Five years ago I started a baseball blog -- CodBall -- because I was learning about how amateur baseball players become Big League baseball players. The blog became popular and I ended up co-owning the Walla Walla Sweets of the West Coast League.  I remember finding very little useful information about baseball players before they were drafted so I decided to learn and to write about it.

I have a couple of goals for this blog. First, it will simply be a place for me to write about fly fishing. Second, I hope it provides a forum for questions and information that helps the beginning fly fisher.

The best advice so far came when I bought my first fly rod. "You can read all you want, but you gotta get out there. Learn by doing."

I have followed that advice. I've had some success but I've also made a fool of myself along the way. As KC and the Sunshine Band would say, "that's the way I like it."