By John Merwin

Nearly a couple of weeks ago, I described my yearning to find some trout rivers "off the grid" meaning the kinds of places where I wouldn’t find a BMW sedan in a roadside pull-out, its vanity license plates proclaiming “dry fly.” That would mean heading north, I noted, instead of south as I often have done for trout fishing in well-known waters. So I did just that last weekend. Here’s what happened.

My wife and I loaded camping and fishing gear in the truck and made a long trek up-country. Armed with detailed maps and the advice of a friend who had once been a local in those parts, we found a very nice river indeed. I am not naming places here on purpose. Some may well guess where we were, but--please--let’s leave specifics out of any discussion.

This is a steep, boulder-strewn river with occasional fishy-looking pools behind huge boulders or shaped by rocky ledges. My wife (pictured) almost immediately began taking trout from one such pool on a size 16 parachute Adams dry. I mostly sat on a nearby rock and watched, very happy that she who fly fishes only intermittently was able to find success and the longer-term encouragement that catching a few fish inevitably brings.

We spent most of the weekend on reconnaissance, covering about 30 miles of river by adjacent highways and back roads, coffee and maps in hand, finding and marking access points for future reference. That in itself was almost as much fun as fishing the river where, refreshingly, we saw not another fly angler all weekend. There were a few other fishermen who appeared to be locals, intently worm-fishing the river holes at bridge crossings.

Anyway, I’ve found another place to go and had so much fun with the exploration that we’re doing it again in a few days--a little farther north and west this time, to check out some more water I’ve heard a little about but never seen. As is so often true, the hunt is turning out to be at least as much fun as the catch....

Comments (11)

from KingFisher907 wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

awesome...
my wife has recently taken up the flyrod...she is making progress but becomes frustrated and discouraged with the complexity of the sport...I try to keep things simple for her, do you have any tips that I might use to keep her interest and enthusiasm up? shes my favorite fishing partner...

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from Big O wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

Looks familiar, but won't say where as asked.
Congrats on the new "honey hole". Good "hunting", good luck and good fishing.

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from jbird wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

Glad you got yourself a honeyhole. Here in Mo, there's no such thing as having trout-water to yourself. I'm envious.

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from johnmerwin wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

KingFisher907:
Yes, one tip that might help a lot: Don't over-instruct. My old pal Bruce Richards, who just retired as Scientific Anglers' fly-line guru and is one of the best fly-casting instructors I know, once told me that he tries to find one thing that might help a particular caster and then relays that one thing only. Later he might add more casting tips, but one at a time so as not to confuse things and make them worse instead of better. Presumably, your wife can by now at least cast a fly a short distance. Watch her casting and fishing and then make one suggestion that she can quickly adopt. Also, given your understanding of her skills, put her in a fishing spot that will allow success at her skill level. It is very difficult for husbands to instruct wives in anything, but the foregoing works for us. Good luck!

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from KingFisher907 wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

johnmerwin- thanks a bunch, those are good tips that I will put to use! thanks again

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from 2Poppa wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

Great story!
The most valuable tid-bit of info on here was when John was directing KingFisher ...

"It is very difficult for husbands to instruct wives in anything, but the foregoing works for us. Good luck!"

I say a little "Good luck" and if the Lord takes a liking to ya,I might be able to "suggest" but God forbid,never "instruct" my lovely wife.

John is a wise 'ol sage.

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from idahooutdoors wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

That's what I love about the state I dwell in, more pristine streams to explore and holes to hit than any one person could cover in a life time. I have pulled one 14+ inch cutthroat after another out of some hidden streams and lakes where no sign of human presence was to be found, the whole while laughing out loud like a crazed lunatic to my audience of forest creatures......

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from MLH wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

Your wife flyfishes ... and will explore with you. You are a lucky man.

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from shane wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

There you go. Not so hard to find, eh? Anything big in there?

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from buckhunter wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

I hate to take the romance out of the hunt but Google Earth is a heck of a way to explore remote areas for hidden ponds and streams. My son and I recently found a large swamp that is chalk full of bass. All we have to do is carry our kayaks about 1/4 mile through the woods. We've never seen another angler and the pond is located on public land.

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from FloridaHunter1226 wrote 2 years 47 weeks ago

Glad to hear you found success... that the journey paid off. It's funny, I love to see people getting involved in hunting or fishing, but I just hate it when they hunt/fish around me. lol

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from johnmerwin wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

KingFisher907:
Yes, one tip that might help a lot: Don't over-instruct. My old pal Bruce Richards, who just retired as Scientific Anglers' fly-line guru and is one of the best fly-casting instructors I know, once told me that he tries to find one thing that might help a particular caster and then relays that one thing only. Later he might add more casting tips, but one at a time so as not to confuse things and make them worse instead of better. Presumably, your wife can by now at least cast a fly a short distance. Watch her casting and fishing and then make one suggestion that she can quickly adopt. Also, given your understanding of her skills, put her in a fishing spot that will allow success at her skill level. It is very difficult for husbands to instruct wives in anything, but the foregoing works for us. Good luck!

+2 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from buckhunter wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

I hate to take the romance out of the hunt but Google Earth is a heck of a way to explore remote areas for hidden ponds and streams. My son and I recently found a large swamp that is chalk full of bass. All we have to do is carry our kayaks about 1/4 mile through the woods. We've never seen another angler and the pond is located on public land.

+2 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from KingFisher907 wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

awesome...
my wife has recently taken up the flyrod...she is making progress but becomes frustrated and discouraged with the complexity of the sport...I try to keep things simple for her, do you have any tips that I might use to keep her interest and enthusiasm up? shes my favorite fishing partner...

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from Big O wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

Looks familiar, but won't say where as asked.
Congrats on the new "honey hole". Good "hunting", good luck and good fishing.

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from jbird wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

Glad you got yourself a honeyhole. Here in Mo, there's no such thing as having trout-water to yourself. I'm envious.

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from KingFisher907 wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

johnmerwin- thanks a bunch, those are good tips that I will put to use! thanks again

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from 2Poppa wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

Great story!
The most valuable tid-bit of info on here was when John was directing KingFisher ...

"It is very difficult for husbands to instruct wives in anything, but the foregoing works for us. Good luck!"

I say a little "Good luck" and if the Lord takes a liking to ya,I might be able to "suggest" but God forbid,never "instruct" my lovely wife.

John is a wise 'ol sage.

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from idahooutdoors wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

That's what I love about the state I dwell in, more pristine streams to explore and holes to hit than any one person could cover in a life time. I have pulled one 14+ inch cutthroat after another out of some hidden streams and lakes where no sign of human presence was to be found, the whole while laughing out loud like a crazed lunatic to my audience of forest creatures......

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from MLH wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

Your wife flyfishes ... and will explore with you. You are a lucky man.

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from shane wrote 2 years 48 weeks ago

There you go. Not so hard to find, eh? Anything big in there?

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from FloridaHunter1226 wrote 2 years 47 weeks ago

Glad to hear you found success... that the journey paid off. It's funny, I love to see people getting involved in hunting or fishing, but I just hate it when they hunt/fish around me. lol

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

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All submitted comments are subject to the rules set forth in our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.