Ralph Rainbow

If we hadn't seen Ralph, a brightly colored rainbow of 16 or 17 inches, Asher and I would have left the Owens River content with a few bass we'd caught and a handful of other strikes. We did see him, though. In fact we saw him very clearly, holding in a current line where a spring branch flows into the Owens. He was right across the stream from us and holding steady.

If you fish much, you likely know where this is going and may have a similar story. Short version is that Asher and I spent probably 45 mintes of our day standing in one place and making short targeted casts to present lures to a single fish, which actually hit a Rebel Micro Minnow once and which turned on other offerings just often enough to keep us interested. I couldn't help but think about how pretty Ralph would look in pictures. In truth, though, the motivation to keep casting was much less practical than that. Being boys, Asher and I simply wanted to win.

We didn't win, and we left Ralph Rainbow sitting in the same spot where we first saw him. In truth, though, the game of trying to make that one fish bite might have created a longer lasting shared memory for Asher and me than if we had caught the fish. At least that's how I prefer to think about it!

#RebelTroutTrek

Flannel and Fishing Destinations

Duluth Trading Company Men's Free-Swingin'
Plaid Flannel Shirt.

With cool weather creeping into much of the country and many people thinking about fall and winter activities, Duluth Trading Companies decided to compile some "flannelytics" and figure out the nation's hotspots for sporting flannel for work and play. They even compiled a list of America's Top 10 Flannel Cities, providing fun insights about the flannel culture in each city profiled.

Of course when I think about flannel shirts, I think about fall and winter fishing, and when I think about cities or destinations of any sort, I think about fishing prospects in those areas. With that in mind, I decided to list where I'd want to fish and what I'd want to target in or around each of the Top 10 Flannel Cities. Interestingly, excepting a little ice fishing in mountain lakes just west of Denver, I've never fished any of these waters.

10) Chicago - Steelhead or brown trout that run up various streams that flow into the big pond known as Lake Michigan.

9) New York City - Jumbo stripers in the surf at Montauk, preferably with a big chugging plug.

8) Los Angeles - Trout or the giant bass that eat them in the little lakes that dot Southern California.

7) Washington D.C. - While Potomac River bass and crappie certainly offer intrigue, I'd have to try my hand at catching a snakehead if I was in the area.

6) Philadelphia - Susquehanna River smallmouths or Delaware River largemouths, I believe.

5) Denver - Rockies trout. I'd better plan for at least a couple of weeks to hit all the streams and lakes I'd want to fish, through.

4) Minneapolis/St. Paul - If flannel season refers to summer evenings, Mississippi River smallmouths. If the flannel is a layer that will go under a heavier suit, put me on some little metro lake with big bluegills or crappie in it with ice rod in hand.

3) San Francisco - Get me that close to Eastern Sierra trout lakes, and that's where I'll be headed.

2) Boston - If you read this and know where I should fish around Boston, let me know, because I'm clueless. Maybe in the Atlantic?

1) Seattle/Tacoma - Drop me in the Pacific Northwest, and I'm going to have to find some opportunity to catch steelhead or salmon. I don't know the specific destination, but I'll bet someone can give me some direction.

5 Favorite Waters that I've Never Fished

If you read my blog from time to time, you most likely know some of the waters I most like to visit on fishing trips: Santee Cooper, Reelfoot Lake, the Buffalo, White and New rivers... That list actually could go on for quite a while, I suppose.

Rarely mentioned are the waters I fish vicariously through web articles and photos and daydream about from time to time. Of course, when I dream about places I've never been, the fish are always biting, and I unfailingly choose the right baits and presentations. My wish list could go a lot of different ways, and top spots shift from time to time. Lately, though, I've been dreaming about trout waters, mostly in the Western U.S., where I've never done much fishing. With that in mind, here are five that really intrigue me.

Eastern Sierras - I've actually been to this astounding region once, but I didn't get to fish. It is a trout culture like none other I've ever seen, with a mix of catch-and-keep bait fishermen hitting heavily stocked high-country lakes and fly-fishermen working pristine high-country streams. The towns and the resorts are all about trout fishing throughout the warm months, and there are fly shops, outfitters, fishing resorts and bait shops everywhere you look. The scenery is splendid, and the trout grow big. You could spend all summer in the Eastern Sierras and fish different waters every day.

North Platte River - Rising in the mountains of Colorado and flowing north through Wyoming, the North Platte begins as a spectacular wild trout river and pauses in a couple of reservoirs, emerging to form a couple of the nation's most productive tailwater sections, with big and abundant trout of several kinds in more than one section. It can be waded or floated, offers good prospects year 'round and varies enormously in character and in how it fishes based on season and water levels.

Middle Fork Salmon River - I admittedly don't know much about the Middle Fork except that it's supposed to be wild, remote and tremendously beautiful and that it supports an excellent population of native cutthroat trout. Trips typically are set up as expeditions, floating multiple days in rafts or drift boats between canyon walls and camping by the river.

Provo River - Like the North Platte, the Provo has multiple sections, each quite different from one another in character, and each with its own intrigue. I'm extra aware of this river, which doesn't get talked about as much nationally as some other western flows, because of a friend who spent time in Salt Lake City and used to slip off into the mountains to catch trout whenever he got the chance. Like a lot of western rivers with special regulations, the Provo gets heavy use by fly-fishermen, but I don't think its rainbows and browns see many jigs or plugs.

Chile - If you're going to dream, you might as well dream big. Right? I don't know stream names or specifics about the region because I don't have reason to believe I'll ever travel to Chile. As far as exotic international adventures go, though, none intrigue me more than this part of the world, its river and its big and beautiful trout.