Last summer a Texan tried to tell me the North Fork wasn't fly-fishing only. This year I pull up to the corner and there's a guy running a corkie and eggs off of a spinning reel--claimed he thought the water was the South Fork. Is he really that stupid? Or just another local practicing "hook and hide"? I think we need a "Fishing in Washington for Dummies" version of the regs...

Released a 7lb native steelhead that had quite the net marks on it--sheesh it's so low they could just about cork it off with a teabag...

Talking about the stilly, how about those humpy's? I can't wait for the little fly bashers. Ever try the fly on them? J.C.B

I've only picked up a few in the North Fork, above Cicero. Doesn't seem like they're in there strong yet. How far upriver do the humpies run on the Stilly?

Interestingly, they seem to prefer green butt skunks and chartreuse-headed leech patterns over the pink hued flies I've shown them...though if the color thread is right, that should change...do you have a favorite humpy pattern?

They'd be fun on a four weight, but I always feel foolish shooting at monkeys while hunting for elephants...

Strangest thing - when I lived in Everett and used to fish the N. Fork a lot, I would use a purple leach pattern. While stipping in quickly, I would get monstrous hits, but only from bucks. Everyone in the mouth, and I'm certain that I wasn't lining them. I caught them all the way up to the bottom of Fortson.

I've hit good sized schools of humpies upstream of Fortson so I'm sure they go fairly high.

Fished the Stilly 8/11--found a pod of pinks splashing about at Deer Creek...had one on for a headshake but that's it. I'll have to tie up some purple leech patterns...had the spot to myself for an hour, then five guys showed up and the fish seemed a bit spooked (the thing's running at 280 CFS fer cryin' out loud). The kids and bathers arrived shortly and I left for quieter drifts. I was geared for steelies with my 8-wt., next time I take the 5-wt.

Fished a mile of river around Hazel and found nothing but suckers and big, dry rocks...