Written by: Joe Maxim, Fishing manager of Orvis Pittsburgh
The author with a fine rainbow that fell for a nymph.
Photos courtesy Joe Maxim
I have heard that the people that you are out on the water with can play a big part in making the day successful. I recently found two great buddies, whom I look forward to spending more time out on the water with: Adam Cook, my area manager and the store manager for Orvis Buffalo, and Mike Steiner, head guide and leader of the Fly Fishing Adventures at Nemacolin Field Club in Farmington, Pennsylvania.
Adam Cook (standing) and guide Mike Steiner celebrate another rainbow.
I have known these guys for a little while now, but mostly from conversations over phone and email. Fortunately, I got to spend a day on the water with them a couple weeks ago and had a very successful day! We floated an 11-mile section of the Youghiogheny River and put a tremendous number of fish in the net. Mike is a top-notch guide, putting us right on fish with the flies to catch them. The bugs were a little slow on the surface, so we resorted to nymphs, which seemed to do the trick. Mike not only positioned the boat for success but positioned our minds, too.
The ability to laugh and have fun makes a great fishing buddy.
Cracking jokes and exchanging stories while focusing in on the fishing is my ideal day of fishing, and both Mike and Adam helped make that happen. They both have a passion for the sport and are more than willing to help you throughout your life on the fly, whether that be helping you learn to cast, tips for making a perfect dead-drift, or great places to get a line wet. They want to be there to share the moment with you. Mentors, buddies, friends, whatever you want to call them, I would definitely add these two to your contacts list.
Joe Maxim, Fishing manager of Orvis Pittsburgh. Click here to listen to his podcast with Tom Rosenbauer.
Oftentimes, it’s not the fish that make a day on the water successful.
Nicely put… The fishing often plays second fiddle to a “GOOD” day on the river!