If you live long enough, you’ll see some strange things. One of the strangest things I’ve seen in the outdoors happened about 20 years ago on the Jackson River in the upper Hidden Valley area. I had been invited on a shocking expedition with the Game Department. For several years, I had urged the state to make that area catch-and-release, but they wanted to know if trout would hold over before … [Read more...]
South River Update
From Tommy Lawhorne Fishing has been steady on the South River with caddis and midges hatching most days. Lots of nice trout are being caught on the Catch and Release Area near Downtown Waynesboro. The Missing Link caddis dry and the amber Arlies' Gnarly Larva have been go to patterns. Above is a picture of Ian Hall with nice Rainbow from Downtown this week. Water levels continue … [Read more...]
A Hatch To Remember
(A Jim Brewer article from Virginia Outdoor Weekly, May13, 1994) If you hit it just right, there is a hatch of Green Drakes on the Shavers Fork in West Virginia so prolific that nothing else compares. I hit it once while fishing with my good buddy Dave Gladwell. Every trout in the river was feeding in the surface. Squadron after squadron of big, fat mayflies attacked the water. … [Read more...]
Our Beautiful Barriers
Ed. Note: I began writing professionally in 1975, so I have a lot of articles on file. Since news about the outdoors will be a little skimpy for the next two months – while Mother Nature takes her sweet time warming things up – I thought I’d pull a few pieces from the archives – or “the morgue” as they say in the newspaper business. This first piece was penned on July 1, 1994 for publication in … [Read more...]