Living in the foothills I'm able to fish year round. The smallie fishing slows down but are can be caught through the winter. Trout fishing, either below a tailrace, DH water, or bluelines are available year round. So, I fish when I can which is not as often as I'd like. I try to tie as often as I can and I've got a couple of the slit foam flyboxes that will hold 392 flies that are empty at the moment. I go to an event in February called "Lyin' and Tyin': which coincides with a fly fishing show in our area. We get good rates at the Mariott, they give us a large room, we bring materials/vises/lamps and tie flies for hours on end. I usually learn a lot of new ideas/techniques at these gatherings. Last year I arrived at 1:00 (early check-in) and tied until 11:30 that night. I didn't even go to the flyshow choosing instead to stay and tie with some friends. I'm looking forward to this gathering next year.

By the way, if your friends with James Smith and you happen to be receiving some of his flies, you are lucky. That gentleman is genius at the vise.