Tag Archives: Pennsylvania

Lil’ Dorothy’s Riffle

Posted on July 17, 2019 by rivertoprambles

1. Late morning on a wild trout stream flowing through old farmland. The sky sun-bright and cloudless; the air getting warm. The water summer low and tight with vegetation, not exactly promising for the fisherman… And the brown trout? Spooky … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bee-Balm, fly tying, fly-fishing, friendship, Genesee River, Lil' Dorothy, Mark Libertone, Pennsylvania, poetry, soft hackles, Sulphurs, Walt Franklin, wild trout, writing | 24 Comments

Autumn Run: Four Strands

Posted on October 2, 2018 by rivertoprambles

1/ The first full day of autumn brought the usual blend of premonition and seasonal promise. I drove to Lyman Run, thankful for the sweatshirt on a morning as chilly as the John Cale tunes, like “Fear is a Man’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged autumn, fly-fishing, hiking, nature, Pennsylvania, photography, September, small streams, transitions, trout, wild, writing | 13 Comments

First Signs (At 37 Degrees)

Posted on March 27, 2018 by rivertoprambles

This one is as short and simple as the first tentative signs of spring. I keep under the radar of what’s happening in the news and just report on what is not so new. The weather is becoming fair, at … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged birds, brook trout, dry flies, environment, family, fly-fishing, hiking, natural history, Pennsylvania, protest, signs of spring, society, Spring | 23 Comments

Black Stones and Zonker Pie

Posted on February 21, 2018 by rivertoprambles

Adam Russo, from Lancaster PA, introduced himself by email, thanking Rivertop Rambles for being an interesting and informative blog. The young fly-fisherman offered to tie a few of his Zonker specimens that he’s found to be especially effective in north-central … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Allegheny River, environment, fly patterns, fly-fishing, friends, nature, Pennsylvania, Spring, stonefly, trout, winter fishing, Zonker | 18 Comments

I Love/Hate Investigations

Posted on January 31, 2018 by rivertoprambles

I love investigations, especially when they involve fish, birds, and wildflowers. Investigations involving politics, economics, or health– not so much. Returning to familiar Pennsylvania headwaters for a second consecutive weekend, I began to ponder the presence of brown trout in … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged activism, Allegheny, environment, First Mind, fishing, fracking, hatcheries, investigations, nature, Pennsylvania, Seneca Nation, waste treatment plant, wild, Wind in Willows, writing, Zen | 21 Comments

The High Bridge

Posted on October 30, 2017 by rivertoprambles

The high bridge that I have in mind is not some railroad or passageway on a trestle over an impressive gorge or canyon. It’s a simple concrete bridge that takes a forest road in northern Pennsylvania over a favorite trout … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged bridge, Butternut Hollow, ecology, fly-fishing, habitat, headwaters, native trout, Pennsylvania, photography, small streams, stream remediation, wild trout, writing | 16 Comments

Color It Wild

Posted on October 12, 2017 by rivertoprambles

Living in a drab political climate where the powers-that-be continue to hack away at our natural world for all the usual reasons such as money and self-interest, I’m feeling the need to add some color to this life while trying … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Beech Bottom, brook trout, Buffy Sainte-Marie, color, Columbus, environment, fishing, Hammersley, hiking, Mystic, natives, Pennsylvania, photography, poetry, politics, rainbow trout, trout streams, wild area, wilderness | 12 Comments

A Few Words From the Photos

Posted on May 24, 2017 by rivertoprambles

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged azalea, brook trout, eagles, environment, fly-fishing, headwaters, Kettle Creek, local life, moccasin flower, nature wildflowers, outdoors, Pennsylvania, photography, rainbow trout, upstate New York | 22 Comments

Staircase Run

Posted on May 16, 2017 by rivertoprambles

The day surely started out on a bright note– a little birding in the early morning sunshine of the yard, my small binoculars picking up a bit of the warblers waving through– Blackburnian, black-throated green, ovenbird, Louisiana water-thrush and, later, the black-throated blue warbler– … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged birding, Cedar Run, environment, fishing, fly-fishing, headwaters, hiking, nature, Pennsylvania, ravines, Slate Run, small streams, staircase, trout, wild, world view | 18 Comments

Roots ‘n’ Boots

Posted on March 10, 2017 by rivertoprambles

For most citizens living in a modern world, to talk about the “home place” is an unfamiliar exercise. Most of us today are socially mobile and often move from place to place for economic or recreational reasons. Today, we rarely live in one … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged activism, brook trout, Buckseller Run, cherry trees, civilization, environment, hiking, home, home place, nature, Pennsylvania, place, silence, Spring, state forest, Susquehannock, Time, wilderness, winter | 15 Comments