Written by: David Garritt
A beautiful winter brown trout is worth heading out in the cold.
All photos by David Garritt
[Editor’s Note: Here’s a great letter and set of photos Tom Rosenbauer received from podcast listener and blog reader David Garritt]
Hi Tom,
This past weekend, I decided to try some winter fishing on the Farmington River in Connecticut. Not having done much winter fishing and faced with an hour ride to the river, I decided to download one of your old podcasts for the ride. In this case, I chose “Tom’s Ten Tips for Winter Fly Fishing, January 28, 2011.” In listening to the podcasts, I picked up several useful tips specifically related to nymphing and getting the bottom. Once I arrived, I employed another useful tip from a previous podcast, which was to do a little hiking to avoid the crowds. Whereas one of the more popular pools had no fewer than 10 fishermen, I threw on a pair of snowshoes and hiked in about a 1/4 mile. My reward was spending the next three hours alone in 36-degree water.
Well, not completely alone. I landed three beautiful 16-inch browns on Tungsten Beadhead Prince Nymphs.
It was so enjoyable, that I returned the next day and repeated the performance, landing three more browns in the 15- to 17-inch range.
Thanks again for the podcasts. They’re a tremendous source of knowledge and allowed me to be successful for a weekend during this dreary winter.
David Garritt
One of the keys to solitude is hiking away from the road.
A heavy Beadhead Prince Nymph was the hot ticket.
A little hike meant David had a whole stretch to himself.
This is why David headed back the next day.
I listen to Tom on my way to and from the river as well. Keep those podcasts coming.
Podcasts are great on long drives to the river. I save several every week for my trips.
Unfortunately, Tom doesn’t want to make more than one a month or so. And I’m all caught up on old ones. Pheh!
🙂
As a soon-to be senior, I am often wide awake in the middle of the night. The best thing is that Tom’s podcasts give me the best reason to wake up. I’ve learned so much while the rest of the world is asleep. Thanx Tom, and Orvis
Winter nymphing is fun, but nothing beats the spring Hendrickson hatch. Dry flies rule!!