The end of March is upon us and for most of the Northeast that means the 2017 trout opener is fast approaching. In the sporting goods shops the walls are lined with fresh jars of salmon eggs, CP Swing and Colorado spinners, full rod racks and hip boots. The weekend crowd is comprised of fishing buddies making the annual preparatory shopping trip together, folks buying licenses and parents with kids buying their first fishing rigs. Its exciting time for all involved and I watch the faces of everyone as they scour the walls and racks of fresh new gear.

During the past several years as a fishing guide in the heart of fly-fishing destination there have been so many things I have learned and observed; fisheries, trout behavior, hatches, and most importantly the fine art of guiding. There are times that I learn from my clients – by observing and listening. Their responses and reactions are important to guides – certainly fishing results and how the day goes are the main factors, but also when they see or learn new things. One such example is when I rig up two flies for them. "Oh do we use two flies?" is the typical first response.

It would start subtly, normally in early October after I had stowed away my fly fishing gear after my last trip. For the next few weeks I would find myself occupied with chasing ducks, pheasants, grouse, woodcock and deer but in the quiet moments my mind would wander back to the next trout season.

I had the opportunity to fish a pond that I had not been to for a long time. The only problem was that the land the road to the pond is closed off. That means about a half a mile hike to the pond the way that is open to me. I could not drive across the field because of the ditches that are in it, all deep enough to eat a tire. So I take two rods, the fish basket and four fly boxes with me. I found some fly boxes with a lanyard and have four of those that are great for days like this. The flies are easy to see and easily available.

If Robert Fulghum was a fly fisher he might have said, "The lack of etiquette can greatly reduce the joys of fishing." Or as Grandmother used to say, "There is just no excuse for bad breeding." Unless you really were born in a barn, there is no excuse for bad manners. That applies in spades when fishing - and not just fly fishing either. If you want to have a terrific time fishing, you can insure the quality of your experience by learning a few things you should practice.

Reprint from September 1, 1997

It has been nearly 20 years since the first issue of Fly Anglers Online made its appearance on the Internet. It was a new and revolutionary concept in 1997 to offer a fly fishing publication on the Internet and to offer it for free to anyone that wanted to read it. The original idea originated with The Ladyfisher; Deanna Birkholm. With her husband James, some computer nerds and a few paying sponsors they ventured into the unknown world of Internet publication.

Much has changed over those 20 years. FAOL is no longer the only fly fishing website on the Internet. Today there are many fly fishing websites, fly fishing blogs and bulletin boards. FAOL is proud to have been a trend setter and we have featured many writers and we have hundreds of pages of archived articles, still free for anyone to access and read. We continue to offer new content each month and we have readers around the world. We are still here because of our loyal contributors and loyal readers.

In this issue we are offering one of the first articles written by The Ladyfisher in 1997, which is still as timely as it was when it was first written. Given the increased interest in fly fishing today and the number of anglers that one encounters on the more popular waters it may be even more relevant today.

FAOL continues on in the tradition that The Ladyfisher established 20 years ago, offer quality content for fly fishers without cost. Thank you to everyone that has and continues to make this happen each month.