I was holding onto my phone as Phil Croff was driving down some bumpy back road and he looked over and said "Oh yeah, if you need to make a call you better do it fast cause we're about to lose signal for the rest of the day." Not but a few seconds later "NO SERVICE" popped up in the top corner of the screen and I tucked my iPhone away in the gear bag for the rest of the day. It's not often that I get to do that and it felt good.
You may likely remember the custom wooden drift boat series of posts that went up on T.F.M. this past winter (Check out these past links if you didn't catch them.) but Phil Croff builds a hell of a drift boat and they are just perfect for the small twisted rivers of northern Michigan.
We spent the day casting dry flies with glass rods with clicker reels and had brook trout eating on top all afternoon and into the evening. Phil knows some truly special places to cast a line. We didn't pick up anything truly large but who cares. Brook trout don't have to be big to be beautiful.
Our day ended with driving to another nearby stream watching the night sky fill with brown drakes, and a mix of other mayflies, then wading quietly in at dark to prick a couple brown trout before we headed back to the house.
After a day like this, there's nothing like brats on the grill, homemade pasta salad, and a couple Oberon at midnight to make you feel like you had a complete day. Thanks to Phil and Trude for their hospitality and a place to lay my head for a couple nights.
Check out the Croff Craft Custom Drift Boat website for more information on the drift boats Phil builds and his guiding business as well. Phil has options for guided trips almost year around if you find yourself up north.
You may likely remember the custom wooden drift boat series of posts that went up on T.F.M. this past winter (Check out these past links if you didn't catch them.) but Phil Croff builds a hell of a drift boat and they are just perfect for the small twisted rivers of northern Michigan.
We spent the day casting dry flies with glass rods with clicker reels and had brook trout eating on top all afternoon and into the evening. Phil knows some truly special places to cast a line. We didn't pick up anything truly large but who cares. Brook trout don't have to be big to be beautiful.
Our day ended with driving to another nearby stream watching the night sky fill with brown drakes, and a mix of other mayflies, then wading quietly in at dark to prick a couple brown trout before we headed back to the house.
After a day like this, there's nothing like brats on the grill, homemade pasta salad, and a couple Oberon at midnight to make you feel like you had a complete day. Thanks to Phil and Trude for their hospitality and a place to lay my head for a couple nights.
Check out the Croff Craft Custom Drift Boat website for more information on the drift boats Phil builds and his guiding business as well. Phil has options for guided trips almost year around if you find yourself up north.
4 comments:
My wife and I had a "no service" week last year at Roaring River State Park in Missouri. We could text at the hotel, and had phone service at the lodge. It was a wonderful time.
You can have a "no service day" anytime you like, just turn off your phone! Don't allow your "smart" phone to out smart you.
Love that photo of the tiny brookie and the TFM rod close up.
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