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Fresh off the plane from Brazil. It was quite the shock to the system leaving the tropic jungle weather and coming back to a winter wonderland here in Virginia. Its been definitely winter here this year. January seemed to stay below freezing everyday and seeing pretty much all the local rivers freeze over. The good news is the snowstorms we have had and rains have really brought the water table back up after last year being so dry. Lets hope we continue to get some rain but not to much of course. As I'm typing this waters are starting to drop and become fishable again after the last 10 inches of snow fell then over a inch rain sent our rivers over the banks. I'm looking forward to getting back into the groove of guiding and being on the water. With the water conditions before the snow and rains mainly spent time on the local mountain streams catching native brookies and wild browntrout here around my home in Amherst, Virginia. I spent some quality time with my son, he has caught the bug this past year. He is turning into quite the angler and already has expressed interest in being a fishing guide. Which I'm all for it, will save me and my wife a pile of money on college. With March just around the corner that means its time for pre spawn smallmouth bass, better trout fishing, and hickory shad fishing in Roanoke Rapids, NC. Over the next month I will be all over the place guiding bass or trout in central Virginia and my annual week I spend on the Roanoke River guiding shad. April will be filled with bass and trout trips until later in the month when I head to Weldon, NC for the annual striped bass run. This has always been a big hit for my anglers and I book 3 weeks up very quickly and I'm currently full. If catching stripers on the fly interest you hit me up before the end of the year so I can get you a date for 2026. Looking forward to seeing what this Spring brings us as anglers.
As I mentioned earlier I just returned from Brazil. This was my 8th hosted trip there with Nomadic Waters. I can't get enough of the culture and the massive amount of water to fish and explore. The peacock bass is a incredible species. A small one can make a 9wt fly rod double over, their pull and aggressive attitude keeps me and many anglers returning. This trip was a little tougher than previous, higher water and cooler temps from rains made catching those double digit fish much harder. Thats ok as they say its fishing but we did catch great numbers and everyone on the trip seemed to be very happy with the trip. As a guide I have higher expectations than most clients. Having more experience and knowing what a fishery can produce can sometime put your mood lower when its not like the last trip. That being said I was still very pleased with my trip. I have dates set for January 31, 2026 for my 9th trip there and back on the mighty Rio Negro. I do have a couple spots available still, most of this trip is filled with return clients so plenty of experience to share with newcomers to the jungle. If the trip of a lifetime interest you please let me know happy to share my experiences there.
Hope you get on the water soon and enjoy the Spring weather that is in our future. If I can help get you on the water for a fun day of fishing please let me know! Thank you for the support!
