Winter doldrums...

...may not be such a burden this year.  Well, other than that climate change thing...but, my kids can  worry about that.  The weather this mid december is spring like...fifty degrees and slight overcast can only make me think of trout fishing.  And, this year our season starts in January.  Now, I've always loved the former early season with its cold days and snow banked creeks.  Drifting a large scud under ice and log jams could haul out some pretty colored trouts...both brown and brooks.  There is nothing prettier than a brook trout in full spawning color.  And, before anyone thinks we are just molesting the trout our numbers of fish only went up during that previous early season.  Wading is prohibitive in cold with boots turning into clumps of snow and ice.  Driftless streams are better for walking than wading in winter...

Our deer hunting season has been a good one with several  bucks taken...I think it was five total deer bucks and does between my son and several nephews.  I missed a 9 pointer at close range...it was standing under my treestand for a while.  I looked left then right...and then down.  It was almost touching the tree I was in.  I looked down, he looked up and move off 10 yards where I pulled and shot never seeing the clump of vines hanging off a small tree.  Just days earlier I had looked at that clump and thought I should clean it up.  So it goes...I was really after this older 10 point that escaped me to the left in another stand from 20 yards.  When I saw it my bow was haning and the buck was walking...before I could get it off the hook the bruiser was out of range.  I'll get out a few more times and have taken late season bucks so hope still springs...

As for flyrods...my 7'3" for a 4/5 wt Don Schroeder has finally been repaired.  Don made two new tips and fixed the dings and dents so the rod looks new.  That rod of 10,000 trout is good for another ten thousand but it may take my sons and their lifetimes, too.  Also, the Heddon #17 three piece 8' with a 1 1/2 ferrule has had the female ferrule fixed by Michael Sinclair and is on its way home.  The rod is just beautiful with its black with gold tipped wraps and Michael says I will be pleased with it.  I already knew that...the rod says HEH or F and seems a true three weight.  Bring on the season...

My SD cards are in trail cams so my camera was robbed but I promise to post more of the upcoming season.  Here are some old ones you may have already seen but hope are still enjoyable.

Heddon FeatherweightThorobred...

...and, its driftless christening.  At 7 1/2 ft and a 0 3/4 ferrule...this rod is perfect with a 4 wt.  I had a Sylk wf 4 on a Heddon Daisy 310 and decided it was time for a proper outing by myself.  So much has come up and needed tp be done that I have only had a few fishing trips.  And, those involved some type of teaching or guiding of old friends.  Great as that was...they took me away from my life...I really needed this trip.  All I needed was a few hours with the vintage Heddon Featherweight...

Just so nobody...

...thinks I've really been sleeping and doing little all winter, I thought I'd show the results of a what a long winter of goofing off online can achieve if we 'REALLY' put our minds to it.  New/Old acquisitions...I really can't say much more.  I feel fortunate to finally locate two rods I've been searching for for a long time.  One dry fly 0 ferrule and the other a 1 3/4 ferrule...one dry fly rod and one for tandem wets I love to fish.  The dry fly 8 footer is from about 1940 and the beautiful 3 piece 8 1/2 foot...both light trout designations...is from the hand made division of Heddon in 1955.  One of the last before the tonkin cane stocks ran out.  Matched with a Heddon Daisy 'featherweight' reel for the 'featherweight' Heddon rod, and a same period vintage Bakelite Henshall for the 'Bill Stanleys Favorite' and its Bakelite reel seat.  Bring on the season...