smaslar's blog

After years of trout fishing in various stages of life and with different people, I’ve developed a set of criteria to determine whether or not it’s time for a fisherman to lose weight.  If you find yourself described by more than 5 of the descriptions below, you may want to hit the gym.

You look like a frog, even before you put the waders on.

You’re not the one taking your own boots off at the end of the day.

You need a fishing companion to remove the hook from your own landed trout because the fish is still too far away.

One of the things that has always been interesting to me, is what I call multi-tasking while trout fishing.  In this case, what I mean, is that you can include other activities with your trout fishing.  This could be as simple as floating down a river in a drift boat or canoe, hiking/backpacking along a remote stream while trout fishing, or simply taking a quick swim in the pools of the stream.  Here are some other interesting multi-tasking trout fishing excursions in my area of the country:

We started the year off right again this New Year's by going fishing on the Upper Linville River in North Carolina above the Linville Falls, up to the campground.  It was a beautiful day to be in the woods, with 6 inches of residual snow.  The fishing started out hot, with Dan catching three trout right away.  A little later in the morning, he landed a 24" long Rainbow Trout that probably pushed 3 lbs.  Later in the afternoon, the fishing slowed considerably.

Stream: Upper Linville River, above the Linville Falls, Hatchery supported

While many trout fishers talk in depth about matching the hatch, having drag free presentations, how to roll cast, etc., the trout don't really understand (or appreciate) such sophistication in many cases.  Below are three videos that show simple trout fishing methods that work.