Bear Necessities
One lesson learned by every student of bear necessities is that bears deserve respect.
Interpreting Dreams
I tend to go “whole hog” when interpreting my fishing dreams. But I’ve learned interpreting dreams really should be left to professionals. I had a dream. The dream had a foggy feel to it, as if I were standing in poor light. Water lapped against my...
Secrets to Fly Fishing for Suckers
For those willing to succumb to all that comes with fly fishing for suckers, here are a few secrets to getting those suckers on the fly. Apparently, I have a knack for catching suckers on flies. Having confessed this, it’s not something I recommend unless you are...
How to Make Your Fish Bigger
Lying about the size of your fish isn’t anything new, but new technology has made it trickier. Here are some tips to help make your fish bigger on camera. Fishermen have been trying to make their fish bigger ever since lying was invented. Somewhere in a cave...
Borrowing Gator Eggs
One day while in high school, my daughter suggested she was considering a major in wildlife biology in college. Since college majors are something one should try on for size before buying, I suggested we spend a day in the field with Walt. She agreed. Walt Rhodes and...
Things That Make You Say “Hmmm”
When I fish alone, I sometimes slip into a meditative state. It’s as if I concentrate so intently upon the water before me that the mechanics of casting, mending, and reacting use a portioned section of my brain. The rest drifts on its own with no sense of time, no...
Degrees of Skunked
The stream we call Humility Creek gives up trout grudgingly on good days. This was not a good day. The water trickled at half its spring flow while fish shivered with closed mouths. Icicles hung from banks where water seeped. I had tried teasing fish with streamers in...
Almost a Lion Story
I had just settled down to pen a story about a man-eating lion stalking a hunter through darkest Africa. The hunter was in turn tracking a wounded water buffalo and the dense vegetation was going to bring all three into close contact at the watering hole. Clearly,...
Catching Rattlers
I was visiting with Uncle Catfish this weekend, trading lies and truths and not caring much which was which. Somehow, we got on the topic of snakes. As tales with age often do, each one was elevated a little over the one before it until Uncle Catfish told one that...