I'm not sure who decided flannel was a good idea, but it was probably Jacob, those Scottish genes. I can remember haphazardly putting together my original line up of rod bags. Near the top of the list was Flannel Lined Bags. It was the first or second order I received. It's still the most popular bag.
Read moreFishing Bamboo
Years ago, for Christmas, I gifted Jacob his first bamboo rod. Ever since then it's been a steady stream of learning to build and gathering all he could find. He completely immersed himself in the art of bamboo.
Since then, I've learned more about 'boo' than I ever thought I would, but it was still his. I've cast a bamboo rod from time to time, gave them the 'wiggle test', and admired from afar. I've got my glass rods, they catch fish just fine. I figured bamboo would be a world in which I was always an outsider and even a 'boo widow.'
Read moreConfidence
One of the first lessons I received when learning to fly fish was confidence. "You've got to have confidence in that fly, in yourself," Jacob's words have remained with me all these years. It's why I fish certain patterns, choose long casts over short rolls and why I move through the water the way I do. It's all about where my confidence lies.
It's a funny thing when you lose your confidence. Perhaps you've spent some time off the water or had one too many bad trips. Maybe it was caused by a harsh word or unfounded judgment by a fellow angler. Then again it may have just disappeared and you have no idea how it happened.
For a while now my life has been filled with surgery, doctor's visits, high water, and more doctor's visits, with strict orders to stay out of the rivers and off the mountains. My body became fatigued during the process and my mind weak, resulting in a catastrophic lack of confidence.
Shout-out Saturday - 2017
This year has been a year of discovery, cultivating new friendships, and inspiration from those around me. With 2017 coming to an end, I figured that I would make a short list (in no particular order) of those that have impacted me this past year.
Read moreOdd Ways
On Thanksgiving morning Jacob got a phone call from a fellow rod builder, just to say "hi," happy thanksgiving, and to see if he'd gotten some supplies that were recently dropped in the mail. The conversation turned, inevitably, to what our dinner plans were for the day.
"We're gonna go fishing."
"That's kind of an odd way to spend the day..."
That comment stuck with me all day. Mostly because I wondered if our "odd" ways were possibly a bit too odd.
We spent the entire day, knee deep in cold water, throwing wet flies and catching an array of football shaped brookies and rainbows. We were basically the only two on the water, and it was pretty great. We finished up the day eating frozen pizza, Jacob heading downstairs to plane out a rod and I found my way to the sewing room to pop out some "hurry up" orders.
It wasn't what you'd call a conventional Thanksgiving. We didn't have any turkey or watch any football. We didn't pull dressy clothes out of the back corner of the closet. We didn't spend the day with relatives we rarely talk to out of obligation. Instead, we spent the day doing what we're most thankful for with the one we're most thankful for.
I'd say that's a pretty good day.
Role Reversal
The other day Jacob and I took an adventure to a stretch of water we hadn't fished before. It was a long drive up and around the mountain, ending in a small town; not even big enough for one stop light.
Somehow Jacob wound up with the camera this trip and we ended up reversing our normal roles.
Being the one who's typically behind the camera this was more than a little strange for me, being the "subject" is strange and uncomfortable for me. Probably as awkward as it is for Jacob using a bulky DSLR. Overall, I think he did pretty well, and adjusted better than I.
I'm looking forward to our next trip, back behind the camera, where all is well with the world.
