Other Random Topics

Well, I think I’ve gone through a second pair of waders in as many years.  It’s my own fault as I did not follow the tip I am about to share.  But… I’ve learned my lesson and will heed this advice next spring. When I was fishing on Dog Creek, the guide (Steve Bertrand) and I

When I joined the Army, it only took an hour or so before I truly appreciated the value of a three day pass. When hunting season rolled around, I heard the First Sergeant comment that he could go if he could get a “kitchen pass”.  The need for and the value of this type of

With high anticipation, you make the final turn to bounce along the rough road leading to the parking area at the stream.  As you wheel around the last curve and enter the lot, you realize you have one of two problems: There are one or two cars already there The parking lot is jammed In

I’m not sure how I found this book.  I was browsing on some website and probably saw an obscure reference to it. Anyway, I popped over the Amazon and browsed the table of contents.  As soon as I realized that this was a treasure trove of locations on the level of  Harry Stone’s book ( Virginia

Even with all the public information on places to go, there is sometimes doubt and confusion about exactly where to go, how to get access and where to park.  The various State DNR sites are great sources of information – I know I rarely go back to the same place for trout twice in a

I hate bugs.  The worst thing about being on the stream is having to deal with them. I also hate insect repellant. Mostly because once I put on the sunscreen and the poison ivy block, I am reluctant to add another toxic chemical to the mix. Two years ago, I was browsing around and ran

Sorry for the inflammatory title, but I always worry about bears.  I’ve had a few encounters with them, so I am very “bear aware”.  As a result of that, I always carry a cannister of bear spray when I am in a bear prone location – like the SNP.  I was fishing on Seneca Creek in Gaithersburg

I hate ticks.  I really hate ’em Is there a more disgusting creature than this?  Please, no mother-in-law feedback. Hopefully, it will warm up here and I’ll be back on the water writing more interesting trip reports shortly.  In the meantime, I decided I needed to review the immediate action drill and other tick related

Now that I have been writing about the various places to fish in the area, I realize that I need some kind of a quick view that summarizes my assessment of the water. The table to the right has the rating categories I am going to start with.  I may add or delete from this

Every time I go through Burlington, West Virginia, I get a kick out of this sign.  While all will appreciate the humor associated with combining two operations that do not normally go together, it’s really a classic example of thinking out of the box.  The very nature of fire and rescue involves plenty of water

In an earlier post, I discussed the new technology out there that will help you defeat poison ivy and oak.  This last summer, I used the block and cleanse elements pretty well.  I guess it worked because the only time I did not use it, I got nailed. I was fishing on the Gunpowder and did not

This is the time of year when thousands of college kids start their job hunt.  Many of them will heed their mother’s advice – wear clean underwear and dress nice.  For guidance to define “nice”, they will turn to books like Dress for Success or Dress Smart.  Those who take the right advice may find their ability to

I’ve got to vent about trash.  I expect to see some on the major streams as they flow down from built-up areas.  This would typically consist of plastic bottles and some paper stuff.  But when you go to a nice place like Laurel Run on the North Branch and see the garbage shown in these

You have probably seen plenty of ads for stuff on the web that, when you click thru, you end up on a pretty cheesy site.  For some reason, I clicked on a link to a site that promised to tell me everything I needed to know about trout fishing.  Being bored, I started to read

One of the things I noticed when I fished the North Branch from Laurel Run up to Wallman was the camping available in the Potomac State Forest. The Park has many clean, well maintained sites. In Fact, there are 16 sites split between the Wallman and Laurel Run roads and 6 over by the Lostland Run.