Chill Challenge Embraced

December fishing on the Nantahala River. Photo by Asher Samsel.

Duluth Trading Company proposed a Chill Challenge -- a test of one of their Flannel Shirt Jacs against the elements during my winter fishing excursion. Two rounds into testing, the Shirt Jac has moved to the top of my favorites list for when I need a seriously warm layer that fits comfortably. Beyond casual coat wear on cold mornings around town, which it also works well for, I've used it for a few days of trout fishing in the North Carolina mountains and for a recent ice trip to northern Minnesota.

The trout outing brought snow and sleet on two different days, and pretty cold brisk lows. My hands reminded me of the cold when I fished without gloves, but I was how impressed by how warm my body remained. Same story in Minnesota, where lows hit close to zero and the highest high in a few days was somewhere around freezing. I admittedly wore an insulated ice suit for kneeling on the ice and fishing in fresh falling snow, but the Shirt Jac provided the most important body-warming layer.

The DTC Flannel Shirt Jac seems somewhat heavy when you simply pick it up because it combines 8-ounce flannel as an outside layer and 200 gram fleece as an inside layer. The cut must be perfect, though, because it is amazingly comfortable to wear despite the weight in hand.

Of course, the Chill Challenge has only just begun for me. Existing winter plans include trout in Missouri and more ice-fishing in Minnesota and most likely will include several days in local trout streams and on nearby ponds, plus some other ice fishing, possibly in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and/or South Dakota.

Lots of unknowns about fishing plans for the rest of the winter. What I do know is that I'll remain plenty warm!

Full Force Flannel Season

Looking at photos from my last few days in the creek, I can barely tell one day from another. It hasn't been intentional, but it seems that with the cool mornings that are the norm this time of year I've repeatedly reached for the same shirt. Freshly delivered from Duluth Trading Company, I suppose my new plaid flannel has just stood out as the best shirt to wear when I've open the closet. I like the classic look for photos, which is an important consideration because any time I have a fishing rod in my hand I'm thinking about gathering materials for stories. Beyond that, it's warm, soft and comfortable and therefore well suited for the any fall fishing trip, and the pockets are just big enough to hold the little lure boxes that I like to have handy when I'm trout fishing.

When cool turns to legitimately cold (as it looks like it will for a couple of days this week), I'll switch to wool or fleece, at least for stream fishing, because wet cotton cuffs and really cold temperatures are not a good combination. As long as it's fallish and cool, though, I suspect I'll keep reaching for the flannel because it does the job mighty nicely.

I actually grabbed the same flannel shirt again fishing this morning, but those photos won't look like the ones from the trout outing because I was out in johnboat fishing for bluegills and bass.

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.