TL;DR: Landed about 10, all rainbows. Highlight was a 17″ one (two photos up top).

Though the forecast high was 36 °F with gusts of wind, I decided to fish. With many Swift regulars exhorting me to fish before “catch and keep” returns south of Rt. 9 on January 1, I decided to layer up and head out

I arrived at the river before dawn and fished until 12 noon. In spite of my natural winter blubber and ample layers, I just had to call it a day by then to warm up.

Had tied up a bunch of flies, most of which didn’t work. Dug through the fly boxes to find others. Fortunately, some of those did work. I located some of the first flies I’ve ever tied. Boy, are they ugly, but the fish didn’t care and liked a few of them.  Maybe I should chug a few beers before my next fly tying session?

A wondrous sight appeared when a huge bald eagle, with a big fish in its talons, swooped down and landed on a tree branch. Stunning. So regal.

Grateful that Wooly Bugger George stopped by to say hello. Had some laughs and that took my mind off the cold weather

If you’re traveling for the holidays, best wishes for a safe journey. Looking forward to what I hope will be a low-stress Patriots game on Sunday vs. the Titans.