Considering Buying A Boat? Check Out These Guidelines (NC)—Boating tends to be a family activity, so members of the family should be involved in the process of choosing the boat. Will it be a fishing boat most of the time? A water-ski tow machine? The basic picnic cruise boat? Determine what it is the family wants the boat to do, then go find the model to fit those needs. Most boats are multifaceted – they can be fishing boats in the morning and ski boats in the afternoon. Make notes of the family's "must haves," and "can do withouts." Determine your monthly budget for boat ownership and try to stick to it. But, don't give up a necessity for a few dollars that will cost you convenience or usage later on. Remember that you will often be inviting guests aboard, so plan a little extra room for them and for you.

Confidence in Fly Fishing Three quick stories come to mind illustrate this. First off let me say there have been plenty of times when I have been on both sides of the confidence equation. A few years ago, I was steelheading with a couple of fly fishing buddies. Unlike me, though there guys weren't purists. And we were using terminal gear. Although were just dead-drifting jigs, very similar to fly fishing, I felt about as coordinated as a monkey performing brain surgery. As the day wore on more and more steelies were caught. Huge steelies, the biggest I had ever seen! None by me. I could feel my confidence shrinking. And I mean my confidence in all kinds of things, like being able to read the river, being able to detect a strike. Things that had no connection to me using unfamiliar gear. The pressure inside my head built, until I HAD to catch a fish. I didn't catch one fish that day, although I finally had a strike, and set the hook so hard I jerked it right out of the fish's mouth. And I fished longer and harder than anyone else on the trip.

Three Main Trout Senses Obviously, you can't get rid of all foreign smells you may introduce into a trout stream. However, there are a number of easy things a fisherman can do to reduce the likelihood of a trout getting wise due to smell. When using fly line cleaners and fly floatants, use the newer ones that are designed to “mask” the chemical smell. The cleaners and floatants are usually the same price as other “non-masking” chemicals, but can go a long way towards reducing the likelihood of a trout becoming alert to the fisherman due to smell. Also, before hitting a challenging trout stream, it never hurts to leave the cologne and other fancy deodorants back in the hotel room. On a challenging trout stream, an angler needs every edge they can get, and avoiding strange smells to finicky trout is a good way to do this.

M&S joins fight for Scottish fishing (The Herald)
Marks and Spencer has joined fishermen and environmental groups in backing an action plan, launched today, to secure the future of the Scottish sea-fishing industry..