There is the Woolly Worm and there is the Woolly Bugger, but there is also the Woolly Bear. Just as the Woolly Worm and Woolly Bugger are terrestrial so is the Woolly Bear and Family.

Woolly Bear is a Tiger Moth Caterpillar that is found in a wide band across the North American continent, along with its five cousins in the Tiger Moth family "Arctiidae".

Tiger Moth Caterpillars sometimes for whatever reason or circumstance; end up in our lakes, river and streams, the same as all other terrestrials.

In this chapter, I'd like to go on one more round for "spring creek vs. river". This time, it's about trout. Common rumors and talks go like: "Trout in spring creeks are selective, wary, and educated" which transforms to "Trout in spring creeks are way different from those in rivers!" Let me demystify again.

The cool Pennsylvania limestone water was refreshing as it swept over a table of rock upstream of my position, rolling over itself in the head of the pool and stubbornly giving way to my wader less legs. For as long as I could remember, where I stood had always been a gravel bar during the last week of June. This year however, I stood in 12 inches of grass matted down by knee-deep current as I dredged a tandem nymph setup to trout which I could see, but for whatever reason could not catch. The stream was clear but high, with more rain forecast later in the day.

It was a day off and a good time to head to the pond. The weather was still decent and no ice covering the water. I had a pattern that I tied up after seeing Dr. Korn's post on tying in caddis wings. I adapted it a little to try it on some flies as it looked to be a good way to add wings to a fly.

I had two rods with me, both 5 weights, a graphite and a bamboo. I walked into the pond, tied the new flies on both rods and started casting. As the water had cooled down it was taking some time to find where the fish were.

Very easy to sum up the first time I went out this spring. I enjoyed lots of casting practice and no fish. This was just after the ice melted off part of the pond. About 80% of the pond was still covered with ice, but I wanted to be out.

Second time I took a friend out who is in the early stages of Alzheimer's. If I take him out fishing it gives his wife a break. We went to a pond near town that is easy to walk into and not a long hike. We headed down to the dam end. I walked across the dam to hit the broad flat on the east side of the pond. Both of us made several casts in this area with nothing happening.

For over two hundreds of years, farmers have used the Banded Woolly Bear to prognosticate on how severe the upcoming winter months will be. I ask you, could it be that the "Banded Woolly Bear" could be a better prognosticator than Punxsutawney Phil?

The "Banded Woolly Bear Caterpillar can be found across most open grasslands of Mexico, Canada, and the United States, and most of the year the caterpillar is on the ground munching on grass for its need of nourishment and water, preferring open grassland. The Banded Woolly Bears starts seek cover in the autumn to hibernate under a rock or in hollow cavities of trees.

Almost from the very beginning fly anglers have spent much debating the importance of the color, size and shape of the artificial fly. Some believe shape and size are the most important and that color is the least of the important factors in the design of an effective imitation.

Every angler who ties artificial flies has their own beliefs on the subject and often has countless stories to support their stance on this subject. However I believe in approaching such a heavy subject based on research and countless hours of on stream observation and a heavy dose of common sense. Sometimes when we tackle a fly fishing or fly tying problem we tend to focus on one or two disciples such as research to include scientific data and the writing of others and therefore often tend to form opinions without completing the research and without apply good old fashion common sense.

I have always called August the bug month. August represents the final phase of a movement that started several months ago as winter gave way to spring and all of God's creation began to come alive. Under the warm sun of spring the eggs of insects from the previous season begin to hatch and a new generation is born. By the time we arrive at the late summer days of August those newborns are now full grown. Hoppers are hopping, beetles are crawling, ants are swarming; it's a jungle out there.