Highlights:

Flyfishing for landlocked salmon on the dam hole on Grand Lake Stream in Maine with my brother. I met him in Beaufort, N.C., and we drove up pulling his boat to a really nice lodge in West Grand Lake, near the stream. We were expecting only small mouth bass on the many lakes around West Grand Lake. We stopped at L.L. Bean's on the way up and everybody said the landlocked fishing was over. We got to the lodge and the landlocks were still stacked below the dam. For five days it was up before breakfast to fish the landlocks, back to the lodge for breakfast, out to the lakes for small mouth (great fun on a bug rod with deerhair poppers), back for supper, then to the dam for landlocks until dark. We were the only ones at the lodge, they rearranged their meal schedule to accommodate the fishing schedule. Then there was the Scotch and cigars in front of a fire back in our cabin before bedtime. Heaven on earth.

Bummer. Having to leave.

Highlight no. 2. We stayed the next week for our family vacations on the water near Boothbay Harbor in Maine. Caught Striped Bass using small live tinker mackerel right off the dock in back of our rental.

Bummer. Having to leave.

Highlight no. 3. A week flyfishing on the Ruby River near Sheridan Montana in August. The Ruby was in great shape despite the lack of rainfall and the fires burning. We never saw a fire, but you almost always could smell some smoke. Very little pressure on the river due to bad overall publicity due to fires, lack of rain, etc. Lots of big browns on hoppers. Thank God for hoppers so fly fishers like me don't have to be very skilled.

Bummer. The Big Hole was closed due to low water. I hope this didn't depress the fish to the extent that they won't recover by next year.

Highlight no. 4. A great morning on the salt off Cabo San Lucas. Nothing big, but lots of 10 to 15 pound yellow fin tuna. They make a great first run and we took some fresh fish to a local restaurant. Had a big plate of raw tuna and all had dinner on tuna cooked three different ways, along with a big bucket of ice cold Pacifico, all outside overlooking the harbor.

Bummer. For some reason, my credit card would not work down in Cabo. Barely had enough money to get back home. Highly embarrassed to have to leach off my hosts to conserve scant cash.

Highlight no. 5. Two great days on the salt off Mazatlan with two good buddies and a great host. Looking for billfish but found none. Again, lots of yellow fin and, this time, a good number of dorado jacks. Good fighters on light gear. Again, had this cooked fresh at a local, seaside restaurant. No credit card problems this time.

Bummer. A Costco-sized case of Montezuma's revenge. Now I know exactly what that is.

Highlight no. 6. A three-day camping trip to the Tucanon river with a fishing buddy and his dad and sister. Tons of rainbows on any fly you cast. We even got in on a deer hunt after my friend's sister spotted a wounded deer by the side of the river. She went out to the road, flagged down two hunters and they finished off the wounded animal. There is nothing like sitting around a campfire with friends, telling stories and drinking beer after a great day's fishing. No bummers to report here.

Highlight no. 7. Concentrating on the Kalama this entire year and learning a little something about a few holes. Caught a little something of everything the river had to offer in each season. I fought a huge fish for about fifteen minutes and that was an intense thrill. I originally thought it was a spring salmon, but the more I think, it may have been a huge steelhead. That's what the friend I was with thinks. I'll never really know.

Bummer. I nearly drowned myself one day on the Kalama, stupidly trying to wade across the river. Was swept down a thigh-deep unfeatured riffle into a long, deep, slow-moving pool. Waders filled half-way up. I'll always remember how the sky looked from underneath the water as I got sucked into that pool. I'll never forget the relief I felt once I was able to bob back to the bank and crawl out of the river onto the bank.

It's been a great year!