Wild Browns & Brookies in Southwest Wisconsin's Driftless Area

I love fly fishing. And over the years I've had the opportunity to fish some amazingly scenic trout waters from coast to coast.  But I will always hold a special place in my soul for SW Wisconsin... aka the Driftless Area. With Milwaukee and Madison fading in my rear-view mirror as I travel west on Highway 14 approaching the rolling hills, plateaus & valleys of the region, that same feeling of serenity I experience when heading up Quaker Run Road to the Rapidan River or north on Route 16 to New Hampshire's White Mountains takes over -- I'm home.

I love fishing with friends, and I had planned on fishing with a buddy this trip too. But either I'm not as popular as I like to think I am or else everyone had better options on their plate, either way I arrived solo for what would prove two days of solid trout fishing. Now there are some 2,000 - 3,000 miles of trout water in a really small area so deciding where to fish is always a major decision. Fish reliable proven streams or venture into new waters? This trip I did a little of both and ended up catching trout in four streams (my favorite spot was ix-nayed by a local land owner who decided not to allow me to access a stream thru their field though they had allowed me in years past).

The weather is always a wildcard when planning a trip a month in advance. The forecast called for nice weather so I didn't pack rain gear - big mistake on Day 1 as I got poured on throughout the day during a blustery grey chilly day.  Day 2 was sunny in the 80s! Go figure.
I love brown trout. No two trout ever look the same as their spots are so beautiful and colorful. See what I'm talking about.

I experimented with trying to videotape "the action". I edited out most of the Blair Witch Project shaky, wildly pointing film, but it's rough at best. But the video reflects the different types of water -- pools, rifles, bends as well as the countryside from farm pastured to wooded areas.

               Brook trout from a headwaters pool caught with a Mickey Finn - my dad's favorite fly.

                                         Brown trout from a bend in the stream in the woods.

                                           Brown trout from a deep pool in a farm pasture.

                                          Brook trout from a fast rifle in a farmer's field.


The trip turned out pretty awesome. I didn't count the fish.... okay you know I did.  52 in two days of which maybe a half dozen were brookies and the rest were browns.

Best flies were from swinging streamers like the Golden Retriever, black and olive Woolly Buggers, and nymphing with Prince and Pheasant Tails.

I did lose my net somewhere in the public section of Plum Creek. It could have come in handy a time or two thereafter.

I'm going back to work full time next month.  After all, I can't fish every day in Wisconsin or Virginia or New Hampshire... or could I?