-
Virginia project frees a stream — and trapped trout
Finding 45 brook trout in a single pool in a small creek may sound like a good thing. In the case of a small stream in Virginia’s mountains it was anything but. The fish were trapped in a small plunge pool beneath a perched culvert on Railroad Hollow, a small brook high in the Dry…
-
Your next secret spot might be right under your nose
“He was right!” My friend Sam Dean exclaimed this as the 10-inch wild rainbow jumped around the small pool trying to throw Sam’s size 16 Copper John nymph, which it had mistaken for actual food. “He” was the guy who had told me a while back that a certain non-trout-looking creek was actually quite trout-y.…
-
Returning Thanks
During the Beaver Creek Invitational, veterans understand the therapeutic nature of rivers. “There is always something therapeutic about being on the water. The river is so beautiful, catching fish becomes a bonus. The amount of support and love given to us veterans is truly amazing. I’m grateful for all the time and energy given by…
-
Finding trout ‘hiding’ in plain sight
Remember the approach we took as kids when fishing? “The big ones are all out in the middle.” So we’d cast as far as we could because, well, we wanted to reach the fish that no one else could. We know now that such an approach is (usually) misguided on a literal level, but it’s…
-
Terrestrial bugs offer great dry-fly fishing on small creeks
Late summer and early fall offer some of the season's best dry-fly fishing on small creeks in the east. This isn't hatch-matching fishing. It's terrestrial season
Most years, Virginia’s small mountain trout streams have become unfishable trickles by August. This year has been a bit different. Massive rains in May and June meant the streams were in great shape heading into summer’s peak, which was a good thing because July brought record heat and a strange lack of the almost-daily thunderstorms…
-
Summer is for sun(fish)
Before trout came bluegills.Not in a biological evolutionary way, but for me in a fly fishing evolutionary way.I grew up in trout country in Southern Oregon but wasn’t a fly angler. My trout rod was a little Eagle Claw ultralight spinning rig, my tackle box full of Pautzke Balls O’ Fire Salmon eggs, Velveeta cheese,…
-
TU and Forest Service team up to reconnect trout stream in Virgina
By Dylan Cooper An important historical site in Virginia got a long-awaited face-lift after more than 70 years of being hampered by the presence of man-made barriers to aquatic organism passage. Bob Downey Branch, a Class III wild trout water, is once again open for trout thanks to efforts by Trout Unlimited and the George Washington…
Tag