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The Trout Underground Writer Quiz

By Tom Chandler 7/12/2006

The Trout Underground began life as a fishing report on Chris Raine's uppersac.com Web site, but Chris quickly figured out that a fishing report actually encourages people to fish "his" river, which was the last thing he wanted.

So he turned uppersac.com over to me, and I quickly built the Trout Underground. I wanted a more literate take on the traditional fishing report - a sort of sideways look at the fly fishing life instead of the endless "how-to" that seemingly obscures the fly fishing experience for so many.

Hopefully, if you read the Trout Underground, you're looking for more than hints about which fly to use next weekend. And while you'll get a bit of that here, you won't get it for free...

Time to write, my pretties.
I want to know who your favorite fly fishing writers are. And I want to know why. What I don't want are those stupid "message-board" lists where you throw out the first five names that leap to mind and leave it at that. That's cowardice.

Pick one (two tops). And tell us - in a short paragraph or two - why they're your favorite. They must have touched you. They must mean something. Fill us in. I'll even go first.

Thomas McGuane. Of all the fly fishing writers, no one heaps so much meaning on the backs of so few words as McGuane, and yet he does so without ever sacrificing a clear point of view. His prose is tightly written, brilliantly outlined and expansively detailed. He might as well be painting images across the page instead of sentences and paragraphs.

His remarks at the front of "The Longest Silence" crystallized my thinking about the state of contemporary fly fishing and moved me to found the Trout Underground.

John Gierach.
My bonus pick is John Gierach. Sure, I love his ability to pick two unconnected ideas out of the air and then render them inseparable, but he's truly a favorite because he demonstrated possibility to me at a time when I needed to know I had choices beyond my unhappy urban existence.

I didn't necessarily need to move to a remote town and become a trout bum, but he did it, and maybe I could move to a remote town and just fish a lot. He's a good read, and when somebody's writing affects your life choices, then he's gotta make the list. Gotta.

Your turn.
For tonight's Underground Entertainment, consider guide Ian Rutter's fishing report, where he's posted an extremely rare photo of himself actually working (rowing) instead of walking around the Smokies and pointing (which he'll try to convince you is work). Slacker.

Then there's the GetOutdoors blog, which reports the US Forest Service believes your average distance from a road in the lower 48 is on the order of 12.5 miles. No wonder all the good water's fished out...

Then more from Blogfish about small floating islands which filter pollution. I can think of a few waters which could use a few of these (and maybe houses too). And lord knows I'd love to get one capable of following Wally the Wonderdog around... See you on an island, Tom Chandler.
AuthorPicture

Tom Chandler

As the author of the decade leading fly fishing blog Trout Underground, Tom believes that fishing is not about measuring the experience but instead of about having fun. As a staunch environmentalist, he brings to the Yobi Community thought leadership on environmental and access issues facing us today.

15 comments
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Fight the power! I like Leeson and believe he's a brilliant writer, but my tastes run to a slightly spare style.
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Only one mention of Ted Leeson!? This agression will not stand, man. The man can flat out write. The Habit of Rivers and Inventing Montana (who knew bookshelves and railing planters could be mean so much or so little) are personal favorites. Whereas Gierach takes two disparate thoughts and weaves them together, Leeson meticulously traces a thread through a thicket of alders and arrives on point.
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Robert Traver is my favorite. His collection of short stories, Trout Madness, is absolutely the funniest and most poignent book I have read about trouting. The man actually had a car, a trout car, that had every piece of equipment needed for rafting, canoeing, camping, and fishing known to man. He could leave for the afternoon, or for a month, just by getting into the vehicle. Trapped on the front ... more porch on Saturday afternoon, with the two small strangers in the house listening to a ball game, staring out at the uncut lawn....fidgeting. The missuses coming out on the porch and granting him parole for the day, if he promisses to mow the lawn the following day....the reader soon realizes that most of life is subtle madness and that trouting is just a brief foray into sanity.
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In one of his books, Gierach references another writer who (from memory) described fly fishing as "a small pool of trout surrounded by a great wall of semantics." There isn't any shortage of fly fishing writers, but like any endeavor, there's no oversupply of real talent. Despite all the titles, fly fishing is a small market. There are some regional gems (like the above-mentioned Michael Checchio, ... more whose "A Clean Well Lighted Stream" is excellent), but fly fishing "essay" books rarely pay off for writers whose initials aren't J.G. Publishers tend to jump for joy when sales of "how-to" titles approach 4,000 books, and essay books typically sell far fewer copies. In short, you better want to write a fly fishing essay book because you're probably going to do it for almost nothing... And Larry -- the good news is your memory will worsen with the passage of time, so you can re-read your favorite authors every couple weeks. Who says aging comes without benefit?
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What a great topic! I couldn't wait to see the responses and I've just ordered McGuane's The Longest Silence based off of what I've read. I found out about John Gierach shortly after I started fly fishing three years ago and I've picked up a lot of practical tips in his stuff. I think the BIG reason I'm so fond of his writing is the company... I don't know too many fly fisherman and no really passionate ... more fly fishermen. So, it feels good to know I'm not the only one driving 500 miles or more, spending more money than I should on gear and reflecting on the fact that chasing trout has become a bigger and bigger part of my life. It does occur to me that the same names keep popping up. Is it possible the scope of Literature (notice the capital "L") on the subject really isn't that deep?
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TC, Nice choice for a topic. My favorite fly fishing writer has to be John Gierach. He's literate, informative and highly entertaining. His approach to fishing trips that don't live up to expectations and his philosophy that things are the way they're supposed to be has affected not only my approach to fishing, but to other areas of my life as well. I'm able to react to situations with bemused acceptance ... more instead of angry resignation. As you said, when somebody's writing affects your life choices, he's gotta make the list. Another topic that might be interesting to explore is the one person that has had the most personal influence on you as a flyfisher. I'll be in the Dunsmuir area over the weekend. If you see someone with a CalTrout patch on his vest say hello.
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1) John Geirach. Why ? Because he seems to write directly to me. I came out from the midwest at an early adult age too. We are the same age and have lived through a lot of the same crap. [I still drink beer though. :gt;) ] Like him, I've become somewhat of a grouchy old fart. He CAN write. I can't. I can reread one of his books after about a year. With hit output that means I can read a new Gierach ... more book about every month or so. :gt;) 2) Tom McGuane I really like "The Longest Silence" but I can only read it once a year or so due to the aforementioned memory shortcoming. By this time next week I should be just a little north of the Sacramento airport on the way to Dunsmuir. Larry S
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Your query has successfully engaged a long-time observer. 1) David James Duncan - Why? Because The River Why is a splendid search for meaning. 2) Harry Middleton – The Earth is Enough: Tragi-comedy at its finest. 3) Richard Brautigan – Trout Fishing in America. More inclined to poetry than prose, this guy is not afraid to stick a feather in his hat.
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Gierach is #1 on the list for me. He's probably the main reason why I got into bamboo rods. His blue collar attitude and such is very refreshing. Steve Raymond would be #2. Local PNW writer who has written some very good books about PNW rivers and lakes over the years. Steelhead Country is a classic and is required reading for anyone who enjoys fly fishing for steelhead. Number 3 is someone who is ... more not very well known outside of Northern CA. That would be Michael Checchio. Mist On The River is another classic. Brian
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Roderick Haig-Brown tops the list for me. (The "Langmere" factoid just might win a bar bet in West Yellowstone; Thanks rriver.) Haig-Brown's elegant ability to convey place, his profound knowledge and concern for the quarry and the way he enthusiastically, easily and without puffery conveys angling insights is without peer. You encouraged us stop at one, so just this once, I'll follow instructions.
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I'm veering slightly off topic, because I'm posting about one of my favorite fishing books, rather than a writer. And it has fly fishing in it, but it's not a book about fly fishing. I love the book "Founding Fish" by John McPhee, about the history and range of shad fishing in America. It's a mind-blowing combination of writing and research that takes a simple fish like the shad as its subject and ... more builds around it a social, geological, and political story. McPhee is one of my favorite writers and I'd tell anyone Founding Fish is a must read. And I don't even shad fish!
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new guy here, first, TC, absolutely great site and thanks for the time and effort you put into this. It is appreciated by us "lurkers." Here is my 2 cents- 1. You cant go wrong with McGuane, fishing or non-fishing 2. Jim Harrison-nonfiction work likely exceeds the quality of his novellas and related work 3. Chris Camuto, Hunting From Home-although not just about fishing a great book that touched me ... more in some weird way, so much so that I have re-read it 2-3 times. A Fly Fishermans Blue Ridge is also a very good read. 4. Ted Leeson-Habit of Rivers, cant beat it, along with Jerusalem Creek. Very underrated writer, as is Camuto. 5. Russell Chatham-Silent Seasons and Anglers Coast. Can't push Silent Seasons to enough people.
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McGuane is fine dining and Gierach is fast food. They're both good for different reasons and at different times. I'm gonna through Steve Raymond in mix. Local (PNW) newspaperman who has written some good books over the years, "Blue Upright" and "Kamloops" among them. FLytimes
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Roderick Langmere Haig-Brown to me is number one. Reading "A River Never Sleeps" one cold winter with the river blown out started me fly fishing. My first casting lesson was from Bamboo Addict. I have only fly fished since. Sylvester Nemes for his love of soft hackles, and my success with them. Oliver Edwards for teaching me many things. John Gierach for making me laugh. I had the most wonderfly night ... more fishing my Raine bamboo rod. Rather than being in the blackberry bushes, the rod would put the fly in the right spot all night long. - rriver
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TC, Thanks to you I have every thing in print of John Gierach. I love his blue coller additude and his banter with his fishing buddys. He write things I can relate to, and in ways I can understand and laugh with. His books have taken me to places I may never fish but I feel I have been there with him. Second, would have to be Rodrige Hauge Brown, His books about steelheading and trout started me pushing ... more north to fish these waters that have the "Big Fish" although I would be just as happy on a small stream. I could go on and on about other writers. but you asked for two. For a list of writers on how to books, I would like to just list my favorites without anything else. John Judy Ed Engles Mike Lawson Sye Nemes A.K. Best
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