jb1976

Unfortunately for me, I'm not smart enough and don't get enough sleep at night to be able to figure that out. Fortunately for me, I don't really target trout, so that simplifies my fly selection quite a bit.

I was just thinking the same thing. Maybe the idea that if you don't take fishing too seriously, or that it just isn't THAT hard, is blasphemy.

meh...I sometimes think that more people have such low success because they overthink fishing, and try to make it a lot harder than it really is. At the end of the day, we're trying to fool a creature with a brain the size of a pea into biting a hook that looks like something they may want to eat. I don't fish for trout so I can't really speak to how super wary and nervous fish react to what may be the first human they've ever seen on the isolated, undisturbed mountain stream at the end of an overgrown forestry service road cutting through the mountains. I can say that if fish were so upset by human activity that they refused to eat, there would be no fish at any of the places like Kingston Access, Rockford Beach, Amidon CA yada yada yada. I can also say that I've seen plenty of decent sized fish milling about aimlessly in the middle of a stream channel among drunken beach goers who are not the least bit concerned with whether or not they are upsetting said fish. As far as debris, I'm sure that for every person who agrees with you, there will be another person who will give you a lengthy dissertation on the San Juan Shuffle. My general approach is not so much to worry about what direction I'm heading as it is scouting ahead and having a plan to work whatever section of stream looks promising. I generally try to read the water to determine current, flow structure and the like along a given stretch, figure out the best spot to stand and work that stretch and then try to get myself to that spot as discreetly as I can. Fish that are located behind structure in the middle of the stream bed may be likely to be facing upstream, but I've caught plenty working close to the banks, and I'm not so convinced those fish are facing a particular direction given how many of them I have watched dart straight out from the shadows. All of that being said, for full disclosure, I am by no means a professional or tournament fisherman, and I just don't take my fishing serious enough to worry too much about those things. I'm out there to relax, and simply exist in the moment. I'm a noisy wader no matter how much I try not to be, a marginal fly caster on my best day, and very rarely give too much thought to what color I'm going to throw in the water, and despite that, I feel that I still manage to do okay way more often than not.

waterdata.usgs.gov Some of the smaller rivers are tough, especially since there may not be any monitoring stations, or the stations may be far removed from whatever access point you've chosen. So, if my chosen destination doesn't have any stations in the immediate vicinity, then you may end up having to locate another monitoring station or two, or other alternate source, and piece the proverbial puzzle together. You can search those out by selecting "Location Map" from the dropdown menu next to the "Available Data for this Site" and zooming out on the map. For example, Tea Access on the Bourbeuse river doesn't have any inputs close, but there is a monitoring station upstream at High Gate, and a station at Union downstream. If both of those are showing consistent readings, then I have a fairly good idea of what is going on at the stretch that Tea access is on.

Thanks for the report, and I'm happy to hear you were able to get out and achieve some level of success! Be careful...it's habit forming!

Appropos though it may be, I've actually thought to try that one from time to time and not had luck with that one either.

In all the years I have struggled with this, I have honestly NEVER thought of that as an option! I've been a member for about 2 days, and I'm already learning things!!

I have never been the creative type, so my chosen screen names, user IDs and email addresses tend to be just simply efforts at deriving something from my given name. Unfortunately, my actual last name is "Bass". The chance that I can use that in any logical coherent easy to remember user name or ID has proven practically non-existent when creating personal email addresses, login IDs, usernames, or anything of the sort. I knew that there was no chance that I would ever be able to use any simple form of identity that would include my last name on a fishing specific forum. So...initials and year of birth it is!

My wife has...and don't you dare prove me wrong!

SWEET! Now you have to go fly fishing tomorrow. You have a new rig, so you have to use it within 72 hours...it's the law

Pretty sure I found it under "Fishing Events". Thanks again!!

I like it! Thanks for the welcome. Planned on a little time in the water tomorrow morning anyway, so any chance you can point me to the virtual tournament info? ...still trying to acclimate myself to the site.

thank you!!

Hope you find my ramblings helpful. Be sure to come back and report on how you do.

It can be, and the internet, with access to Google maps and satellite views, makes this easier than ever. But, even that will only get you so far, and I have empathy for people for whom time is a precious commodity and may not have enough of it to be willing to spend 3 to 4 hours on a pure gamble. So, I share my experiences with well known public access spots pretty readily. Guaranteed, if/when I ever discover that little hidden gem of uncharted water where the smallmouth bass hatch 15" long at spawning , and are so numerous that you can walk from bank to bank without ever getting your shoes wet simply by stepping on their backs, except that they are all too busy leaping out of the water to grab every bait thrown at them out of midair, my response will be deceptive silence. As of now, I'm fairly convinced that those places don't actually exist, and there really are no secrets.