30 Great Places: Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest

Region: Upper Midwest/Great LakesActivities: Fishing; huntingSpecies: Brook and brown trout; Muskie; Crappie; Walleye; Smallmouth bass; Largemouth bass; Northern pike; Ruffed grouse Where: The Chequ amegon-Nicolet National Forest covers more than 1.5 million acres in north central and northeastern Wisconsin, much of it made up of water. It encompasses the headwaters of three major drainages, 2,000…

Trout Tips: Beaver ponds

I love fishing beaver ponds. My first-ever brook trout was pulled from the bottom of a high-country beaver pond with my grandfather standing watch over my shoulder, many, many years ago. Since then, especially in high-elevation meadow streams, I’ve been on the lookout for beaver ponds that more than likely hold trout. Trout Tips |…

30 Great Places: The Methow

Area: Pacific NorthwestActivity: FishingSpecies: Cutthroat Trout (or Westslope Cutthroat Trout), Rainbow trout Where: The picturesque Methow Valley rests in north central Washington’s Okanogan Country, roughly four hours northeast of Seattle amongst the 4 million acre-Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. The valley, which rests in the rain shadow east of the North Cascades, is home to Winthrop, a…

30 Great Places: Huron-Manistee National Forest

Region: MidwestActivities: FishingSpecies: Brook, brown and rainbow trout; steelhead; Chinook and Coho salmon Where: The Huron-Manistee National Forest stretches nearly one million acres across the northern half of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, touching Lake Michigan in the west and Lake Huron in the east. Home to diverse ecosystems ranging from coastal marshlands to oak savannahs, the…

Voices from the River: Mourning summer

By Chris Hunt As Phoebe danced around the truck, anxious to start the walk up the familiar trail past a few bends in the creek, I donned my wading sandals for what would almost certainly be the last time this year. I was in a gloomy mood. Changing seasons, earlier sunsets and, of course, the…

Native: Arctic char? Or Dolly Varden?

By Dave Atcheson “I cast out and try to be patient, waiting for my fly to sink. On my first cast I’m too patient and snag. On the next I begin my retrieve earlier, an excruciatingly slow retrieve, just a twitch of the line here and there to keep my fly undulating above the weed…

30 Great Places: White Mountain National Forest

Region: New EnglandActivities: Fishing, hunting, hikingSpecies: Brook and brown trout; whitetail deer; ruffed grouse; moose Where: The White Mountain National Forest comprises more than 750,000 acres in the eastern New Hampshire counties of Grafton, Coos and Carroll with a small portion of the forest extending into Maine. The forest includes over 100 miles of the…