I went out Tuesday afternoon for the first time this year. My casting was, well, I'm glad that I was alone. I saw rise rings and tried a few casts with a dry, but I was there to try out some leech patterns. I had a good time even though the fish ignored me. There was a smallmouth that leapt part way out of the water and sounded like a brick falling back in. He was at least two pounds.

I did learn a few things. My all-olive, arctic fox hair leeches look exactly like a string of algae. More work is required. This was my first attempt with this material.
Even AFTER I had dropped a couple of backcasts into the gravel, my Mustad 3261D cricket hook was SHARP. Didn't quite go in past the barb, but I'm glad that I mashed it (the barb) down, anyway. I don't know what they are doing to that bronze over in Norway, but NASA needs to chat with them. I really did sink the hook point into a couple of rocks and the things stayed sharp. Kudos there. I like their cricket hooks for long streamers.

Lastly, the winter floods have played havoc with the stream over the last two months. Large trees not only fell in, but are GONE. A snag of brush that has been in place for over a year has vanished. The stream bed has been scoured to bedrock where I was watching a mayfly hatch at the end of September. This is the way of this stream. I shall poke around and see what changes have occurred and enjoy this, and other streams in the here and now. I hope to enjoy them again in the future, long after they have changed again. I have fished this stream for nearly 40 years and I have watched many changes. Overall, it seems to be in the process of making some bigger pools.
The catching wasn't hot, but the fishing was good and it left me content. What more can I ask?
Ed