One of my favorite places to fish is up Francis Branch, normally. This is anything but a normal year though isn’t it? There is so little water which makes fishing exceptionally tough. The approach is everything when it comes to these conditions. One must not just take your time, you must slow down in order to not disturb the inhabitants. This is almost impossible.

Its interesting that some mountainsides are stripped of their leaves already while an adjacent mountain seem to have all theirs intact.

I left the last fly I had tied on from the night before. Checked that the tippet wouldn’t snap and started casting away. I think it was the first cast I had a little three or four inch Brookie hooked. I was trying to get in to snap a picture when he slipped off. Second cast, second Brookie, same result – slipped off.

Third time’s a charm right?

I caught another bookie that I managed to bring to net that wasn’t as colorful. But like I say, they’re all gems.

Thought I saw a fly in the debris on the water’s surface.

Before I left I took this ‘upside-down’ picture (or two).

Dang I took two pictures upside-down! Wait a sec, the image on the right revels that I took the reflection images off the water. Was just a gorgeous day – warmer than seasonable. I wasn’t complaining as the cold will be upon us soon enough.

Had to stop by Cushman View since I was in the neighborhood.

Got my vegetable barley soup started and threw a few casts out on Pine. Had a taker but snapped off. That’ll teach me to forget the tippet.

Till we see each other again, reporting from Slate Run… UB