Fly Fishing for Trout in South Carolina

…for my first big fish on the Davidson. This could easily become an obsession with me. To be able to stand anywhere in the river below the hatchery with trout of all sizes swimming around me and not get a strike? I may need professional help here, with the only question being what kind of professional help.
Asking fellow anglers (who are getting strikes and playing fish) what they are taking, and they are very helpful. But the same fly on the end of my line gets ignored. It’s like an out of body experience, almost. I don’t think my pants legs would get wet if it were an out of body experience. Would they?
I’m not giving up. I will be back.

On a fishing blog one should talk about fishing, or at least mention the few trips that one gets to enjoy. Rhee and I happened to have the same number of vacation days left – not surprising as we work for the same employer. We take so few days off that around this time of year we are looking to take a few off the books and carry 5 over to the next year. We’ve been doing this for at least 10 years, and so far have had more trouble taking the days than worrying about not having enough left over in case of an “emergency”.

This week we took off Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday (today). And went fishing. Monday was meant for the Cullasaja River between Highlands and Franklin, but instead ended up on the Davidson. Had Angus, our Scottie, with us which kind of limits things having to watch him. At any rate, I had no luck and we headed back. Tuesday was yard work, ’nuff said. Today: back to the Davidson. I like this river because it really presents a challenge for me. The fish are pretty technically demanding, i.e., they see a lot of people. So much so that you could swear they merely yawn regardless whether you attempt to approach unnoticed, or simply walk up in plain view. Most folks, me included, generally walk away without getting a rise.

Today was different. I lost 3 flies; 2 were snagged by “tree trout”, and the 3rd was simply ripped off my leader. Obviously it was wanted, and just as obviously it was the only one like it in my flybox. I switched constantly and only managed to get flipped off and ignored. End result: a mental note to dust off the fly vise and get busy! I have got to do better and get dedicated. Later… .

Scrimshawed for a fund raiser raffle held by the Mountain Bridge Chapter of Trout Unlimited.

Indeed. It’s not as though I haven’t been fishing at all this year, but the trips have been few and far between. Not a good situation for a web site that claims to be about fly fishing for trout in South Carolina.

As mentioned in the previous post, I’ve been devoting quite a bit of time to the art of Scrimshaw, with a lot of reading and studying. Included in all this is the time spent making various tools, and finishing pieces of ivory and horn for projects not yet begun other than an underlying idea in my head.

I like art. I like the outdoors obviously and therefore I like art based on nature: animals, fish, etc… . I have been doing this thing called scrimshaw since 1982, off and on. Some years I did more than others, but very spotty until nearly 2 years ago. I decided to improve my skills, and, with the help of two books by Jim Stevens, I have been making progress to the point that I am now going public with it. Hence, I have added scrimshaw.rodandquill.com. I hope it proves pleasing.