According to California environmental law if you create a habitat for any specie you must not alter or harm said habitat once any creature inhabits the area.
We have a dire situation here in northern Cali. A unique and fragile creature, and the habitat it frequents, is become endangered. The creature (usually male) eats, sleeps, and breeds in single family units. He gathers with other likeminded characters to discuss the art of fishing, politics, family matters, and anything of interest. He is attracted to shiny new gadgets, items marked with discount tags, and anything associated with the word “free”. Generally each gathering place will have a unique social structure of which he may be well established or be pacing on the fringe of acceptance. He lives in constant flux risking his fate by balancing the frequency of his social gathering within the unstable boundaries of the Domestic Tranquility Index (DTI). He is constantly weighing the balance of the DTI with the benefit of the gathering. He is common in appearance and generally blends into other social settings. However, at times he is easily identified by a number of characteristics; a slowing vehicle within view of water; hands cupping the outer edges of the eyes looking into water; a seemingly useless knowledge of insect life cycles; and at least one visible logo of Patagonia, Simms, Sage, Gloomis, Orvis, Smith, Winston, or some other manufactured good. The creature I speak of is, of course, the local Fly Shop regular.
My local fly shop "Off the Hook" recently closed its steel and glass doors in hopes of staying afloat via internet sales. The cast of characters who frequented Off the Hook have now lost their habitat. Now I suppose some of them may actually get out and fish a bit more now that the allure of the daily gathering is gone. However, there are those that for reasons of age and ability or simple laziness will be relocating to new habitat, seeking new gathering locales. I for one will miss all the bullshit that filled the walls of that little local shop. I hope as this sport continues to grow we can support local shops. The loss of the shops and the habitat they provide will be a terrible detriment to the future generations of fly fishers.
Sorry to see you go Off the Hook.
I have been trying to crack the code on our little backyard stream for a year. It finally happened last weekend. Further, the gold and rainbow I am speaking of is that which colors the scales of the Salmo Trutta and Gairdneri. That is not to say that true gold does not still haunt the waters of Camp Creek as the neighbor boy has been panning all summer and is making a good damn living doing it.
It was hotter than blue blazes last weekend, first serious heat this year in the Sierra foothills. Sunday I decided to quit ranch work early to hit the stream in hopes that the cold mountain pocket water and silvery fishes would help cool me to the core. The sun was already high as I climbed down into the canyon seeking the cool green canopy of the river. Salmon berries, wild flowers, and lush green broad leaf flora abound in that river bed. It is truly a mystic and magical place. 
I started fishing upstream from the bridge which is also our southern most property line. It's an old wooden/steel truss style bridge and still has the original beams and metal spikes the gold miners drove into it many years ago. I took my 2 weight, built by the old man, and started right off fishing hoppers, bouncing them off the banks into undercuts and deep plunge pools. I hit my first rainbow in the first hole. 
This little beauty is as wild a trout as they come. I fished the day away and ended with this awesome wild rainbow. I am in heaven.
who shared the day with me. I hit it at the crack leaving the ranch around 6:00 heading northeast up the hill. The morning started out great as I had the place to myself and had a great time fishing the surface for a few hours. The hatch was consistent and consited of midges: chronomus, baetis, caetis, and then a few damsels started to show. Brown trout were the quarry of the day and many came to hand. I 
ended the day fishing deep with type 3 sinking lines and long flourocarbon leaders dragging nymphs and buggers. Ended the day with 20 plus browns, though that was only icing on the cake. It was great to be out again as it has been a while. More soon...
