Overstuffed chairs and a fireplace.

[Kerry Stratton]

Sometime about 12 or 14 years ago I found FAOL. To me it was like sitting down in the great room of a lodge with a large fireplace on one end and overstuffed couches and chairs to relax in. A friendly place where one could ask questions and get answers. A person could meet people from all over the world and learn from them. Now the room feels harshly lit with tile floors covered with cold glass and metal display cases to allow some to show off their knowledge and expertise.

Hundreds of people would post to the BB but now it seems to be dominated by a few dozen, if that. I stopped visiting here regularly about a year ago because of the perceived changes I felt at FAOL. Again I have those same feelings. This is strictly my personal view, likely not held by many but because of these changes I feel no need to contirbute any more. I will still lurk to pick up the few crumbs of worthwhile information that are available from time to time.

There will be some that will criticize me for this decision of no longer wishing to participate because my views are different from theirs or others. This is not the case. I have come to realize I no longer have anything of value to contribute and I have merely become an annoyance to those that do.

[rayhill190]

Kerry,Perhaps it's that time of year,a lot of cabin fever.I to enjoy the lodge.

[TyroneFly]

Excerpt from Kerry's December 2013 post.

We are in the process of finishing up refinancing our house and tiding up some other financial things to allow me to "retire". After retirement I will continue to work on projects regarding the Skagit River and its steelhead. I will be broadening that work to include Searun Cutthroat. I will also be spending more time on my photography with a focus on the Skagit River and northwest Washington.

Seems to me there's some contributions to be shared from your upcoming work. Just sayin

[WarrenP]

As long as human brings are involved, there will be changes in the road. Some will be gradual and some will be bumps in the road. Over time some of the bumps will smooth out and some will go away. Eventually, the road will return to what it once was. One can enjoy the road as best they can, work on improving the road or get off the road. If everyone stops using the road, it will no longer exist and everyone will lose access to the wonderful places it took them to and there will no longer be visitors traveling along the road to see where it led to and once the road is allowed to go away, everyone will miss the rewards awaiting them at the end of the road. What once was will return if allowed the time because no matter how much humans try to change it to what they feel would be better, it will weather the storm and come back to being what it once was.

[DaleW]

I think rayhill was on to something .... It has been a long, hard, winter - in these parts. Getting the fly rod and the canoe out will help my attitude immensely!

[krauseb]

I watch but don't post much. I wonder about some post's when people ask a question and think ( why would someone ask that question) it's as though they just want to get their name on the board.
Tell me what water conditions are like in your area, or what fly is hot in case I decide to visit your area. Important information that people can use.
I saw one question asking what should I put in my vest. Every trip I take I change what I might need, In Alaska I didn't need my 6&7x tippet or extra reel with the 4 wt. line.
It's called planing ahead.

[desertman]

I don't post because I don't feel that I have anything of importance to add, and my questions might upset someone like Krauseb. I fish for fun and relaxation so I'm not as hard core as some are. I just spent 4 days fishing and caught 1 fish. I had a great time and enjoyed myself, but the hard core with me thought I had wasted my time or felt sorry for me. Like Kerry said, sometimes things just get too technical.

[DaleW]

I had a great time and enjoyed myself, but the hard core with me thought I had wasted my time or felt sorry for me.

Reminds me of my brother. Now he's O.K. (for awhile at least) if the fish are biting one after the other, and then think he will get bored after a time. On the other hand, I love the experience of it all. One time talked him into camping with me next to this great mountain stream and I went on down and did my fly fishing thing, while he took a hike around the area and probably returned to camp maybe in an hour. Meantime, I was so enthralled with the place, fished here and there, sat on a big boulder in the river, just taken by the beauty of it all, and the fishing was so-so. Finally I got back to camp around noon and his first words to me were "what the hell did you down there all morning"?

I love my brother, however, he is not one of my fishing companions. (come to think of it, goes for camping, too!)

[Luke McLeod]

Since I started lurking here again a month or two ago, I had noticed that the number of posts had declined since last summer. I wondered if it was seasonal. I dropped into the chat room several times and found noone. It made me a little sad to think that the place and friends that really taught me to flyfish and tie might be drifting away. I now realize that I was the one who had drifted. I had various reasons. I was spending more time on the internet than on my marriage, that had to change. I had finally gotten back to the 40 hr weeks (hoorah ) at work after part timing for 10 years leaving less free time. Currently I am sorting out the things that I will be making time for in my life. This is one of 2 sites that made the list. That being said I want to exercise my communication skills and post more often. I am not a great conversationalist, and I have little to offer in the way of knowledge, so I'll be concentrating on sharing expiriences and asking questions. I hope the new season will bring a revival of the comeradery that drew me to this site years ago. I will apologise in advance for my spelling, as it has been a while since I took a spelling test. Luke