For Wild’s Sake is Back!

Hey, my favorite video series is back – For Wild’s Sake from Tight Loops!

    

They’ve been on a bit of a hiatus (haven’t we all, my last post here was over two months ago). However, they premiered a new episode last night, which was pretty awesome. Man, those Rio Grande cutties are absolutely gorgeous! 

If you enjoy this sort of fly fishing film making, check out their Patreon to support them on their future endeavors. 

I mean I just paid 20 bucks this past Saturday night to stream The Northman from home, and I can tell you supporting Tight Loops would be a FAR better investment of capital…

A Creative Writing Call to Action

It took a week or so, but all of the stuff sold! No longer having the need to have that little garage sale as the main post, I can get back to writing again. (Hooray?)

Bring on the Forced Creativity

I was thinking of focusing at least one post a month (and even that feels ambitious) to doing a little creative writing. Even though this blog has been around for what, like almost fourteen years, I've never really fancied myself much of a writer. My style is more blunt. More direct. And honestly, a lot of narcissitic rantings about me and what I'm up to. Not much waxing poetically or caring much for sentence structure.

Now, I'm not exactly sure what this creative writing will entail. Probably very short stories, mostly fiction, beats me... Maybe I'm just amped up from watching that Hemingway biography on PBS last week. Don't worry, I won't start going by "Papa".

So that's it, I'm going to give it a shot. I certainly have a few nice fishing trips lined up to (hopefully) add some fuel to the creative fire. With a trip to Western North Carolina this upcoming weekend, and a ramble to the Driftless Area of Wisconsin in May, fly fishing will certainly be on the brain (and Pfizer flowing through my veins).

Want to Play Along?

Back when outdoor blogging was more of a "thing", there were communities that used to toss out weekly or monthly creative prompts to try and stimulate both interaction and productivity.

So fancy yourself a writer? Have a blog? Or a notepad and pen? I'm certainly up for reading your original works too... assuming that's not already your style. So consider this a prompt to get in the game. Heck, start a free Blogger blog and spit out some otherwise hidden genius. Let me know the URL and I'll even link to it. 

I mean after a while, reading the typical fishing report gets a little stale, am I right? 

But hopefully I'll have a few of those to share as well.

Parr Marks

"parr": Juvenile salmonid fish which have dispersed from the freshwater spawning site and are characterized by vertical striped markings ("parr marks") on the body.

Social media has some sort of odd bias against small fish. Perhaps it's because they don't make for the same sort of jaw dropping grip-and-grin photo as a 30+ inch kype-jawed brown trout. 

Small trout are regularly referred to as "dinks," "guppies," and even "bait". I don't think all of it is negative or made with ill will, much of it merely playful ribbing between anglers.

These parr marked gems are some of the most beautiful creatures in nature. Kind of makes any negative remarks, even when made in jest, look foolish. At least in my opinion.

Give me parr marks any day.

Pondering Valley Creek

Has it really been since 2017?

I think so...

When I lived in Pennsylvania, I used to fish Valley Creek in Valley Forge National Historical Park virtually every weekend. Those were probably the best days of my fly fishing, living so close to that water was something special. It's where I pretty much learned to fly fish; first streamers, then nymphs and dries, figured out line management, clicker reels, roll casts, I even caught my first fish on a tenkara rod there. So many good memories.

It's not a secret stream, not in the least. It actually gets quite a bit of pressure, especially on the weekends. And not just from fishermen... hikers, joggers, dog walkers, and horse riders all come out to enjoy the trails by her banks. Rightfully so, considering it's one of the more picturesque (and few) wild trout streams in the greater Philadelphia area. And those Valley Creek browns, they might not be the biggest, but damn if they aren't pretty fish.

Reflecting on Valley Creek makes me yearn to go back. The last time I was there was two years ago, and even then it had changed so much since my heyday of the early 2010s. Would I still recognize it? Would it fish the same? I guess there's only one way to find out...

The 2019 non-resident (gasp) Pennsylvania fishing license has been purchased. The return is inevitable.

In the meantime, here are some of my favorite pictures of Valley and its residents.

The Best Trout Stream in the World

"The Best Trout Stream in the World" refers to a chapter in John Gierach's Fool's Paradise, to which I'm currently listening on audiobook.

I bring it up because my mind has been meandering non-stop, potentially just like said stream since this afternoon.

The beauty of such a concept, "the best trout stream in the world," is that it can never be proven. Such a place is 100% undiscoverable and equally undefinable, no matter how much one might try. 

It's true, an angler might experience one of those magical days where they catch fish after fish all afternoon... the bite never slowing until their arm gets tired. 

But water, being ever flowing, is never the same the next hour, day, week, or year. That fantastic trout stream fished yesterday, the one with the cool, gentle flows can easily present itself as equally stubborn and harsh today. 

Not to mention the features. That beautiful slick pool, for years ideal for drifting dry flies, can be permanently altered in an instant by downed timber. It doesn't take much.

How does one compare an eastern brook trout stream to a western cutthroat stream? Each holds unique jewels that once uncovered are best not graded. Don't believe me? Ask the golden trout in California or the marbles of Slovenia.

And don't ignore man's role in this difficult equation. They say everything fished better "back in the day" and likely for good reason. Not only do recollections grow fonder in time, but environmental impacts do too. The better something is perceived, the more fragile it is likely to become.

Can "best" even be quantified as a characteristic of a stream itself, or could it be heightened by something external? Be it an arduous journey, a great companion, or success in spite of a difficult situation what actually enhances the experience and "quality" of the water?

That's why I choose to think "the best trout stream in the world" is the one I'm currently fishing, regardless of location. 

Each and every time.

And fortunately, nobody can prove me wrong.