Tag Archives: blues

Rivertop Redux

Posted on October 27, 2023 by rivertoprambles

My first four images are selections from the trail cam on my “back forty”: And here two poetic excerpts, appropriate for this season of quick transitions, from my book Earthstars, Chanterelles, Destroying Angels: the golden season slips away oh, to … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged autumn, blues, earthstars, Halloween, nature, photos, poetry, Snowy White, Walt Franklin, writing | 18 Comments

A Purple Haze

Posted on July 12, 2019 by rivertoprambles

The evening’s Genesee was too warm (72 degrees F.) to fish at Shongo so I drove upstream and found safer water (68 degrees) for trout, in case the dry fly action turned out to be good. It turned out to … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Adams, berries, blues, dry flies, fly-fishing, Genesee River, Hendrix, nature, poetry, Purple Haze, trout, wildness, writing | 10 Comments

Monster Blues and Salmon, Too

Posted on November 21, 2016 by rivertoprambles

The blues I’m referring to are not a giant saltwater fish. They’re a form of musical expression that I find quite useful for moving beyond a disappointing and even frightful political season this November. In a moment or two I’ll … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Big Head Todd, blues, Clemens Center, Fall Creek, fly-fishing, landlocked salmon, marriage, moonrise, Mud Morganfield, music, nature, photography, politics, Ronnie Brooks, sunsets, Thanksgiving, Willie Dixon | 23 Comments

Good Morning, Steelhead (Wherever You Are)

Posted on March 22, 2015 by rivertoprambles

At last, on the first full day of spring, a day that followed an unusually difficult winter in upstate New York, I was out there fishing and moving once again…I felt like a steelhead, perhaps, off on a “swim” from … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged birding, blues, Cattaraugus Creek, Daevid Allen, fly-fishing, friendship, Gong, spring equinox, steelhead, steelhead fishing, steelhead weather, winter in the blood | 12 Comments

Like a Song by Taj

Posted on August 17, 2014 by rivertoprambles

To angle, as I see it, is to fish in an endless act of exploration and discovery. To angle, in a realm of small streams and rivertops, can mean an exploration of those blue lines on a topo map, those … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged angling, blues, discovery, exploration, fishing, mastodon, poetry, psychology, song, Taj Mahal, Thoreau, Time, wild trout | 16 Comments

“Never Felt No Fishing Blues”

Posted on July 20, 2014 by rivertoprambles

I almost called this post “The Soul-butter Fishing Blues.” Samuel Clemens used the term “soul butter” in Huckleberry Finn, but I think the term had a negative connotation, as when the king and duke defrauded villagers with their version of … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged BJ Sharp, blues, fishing blues, heartbreak, Karen Lovely, Love, Mark Twain, never felt blues, soul butter, Yellow Breeches | 19 Comments

In the Name of Trout

Posted on July 13, 2014 by rivertoprambles

I discovered modern music about the same time I discovered the joy of fishing. Since my age hit the double digits, I’ve had a lovely run with both. As a kid, I used to lie awake at night with a … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged blues, Bluesbreakers, exploration, fishing, music, trout streams, Walter Trout, what'sinaname, wildness | 12 Comments

Fishing With Thoreau

Posted on February 21, 2013 by rivertoprambles

A summer daydream, or maybe something more. 1 I went to the creek to examine my motives for trout fishing in a hot dry month. For fishing when most streams had minimal flows and marginal water temperatures, when most stream … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged artificials vs. bait, blues, fishing motives, God/Artist, H.D. Thoreau, personal freedom, summer streams, the Wild, trout dreams, Walden | 14 Comments