Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/116174
the heritage and tradition of fly fishing needs to visit Roscoe, New York, and spend a little time on the Beaverkill. The true legends of the sport – Theodore Gordon, Edward R. Hewitt, George LaBranche, Hiram Leonard, Art Flick, Ray Bergman, Sparse Gray Hackle, Lee Wulff – all haunted the Catskills. While the Beaverkill is no longer the epicenter of the fly fishing universe, just wetting a line at Cairns, or on the Junction Pool, means you're standing on the shoulders of giants. The Salt. While I've never fished saltwater (believe it or not, that's part of my ongoing attempt to stay married), I wouldn't mind hooking a bonefish, a tarpon or a permit on a fly, then walking down a sandy beach with the love of my life as the giant orange sun sinks below the western horizon and palm trees sway gently in the breeze. (Do palm trees even sway in the breeze? I don't have any idea, but it's sure a nice mental image.) R Bristol Bay. Next time I head to Alaska I'd like to fish mice for big, stretch anyways, at least for someone like yours truly who falls well short of the top income brackets, let's double down and say we're after a 30-pound Atlantic on a dry. Maybe it happens, maybe it doesn't, but the entire experience would be worth every penny. R Steelhead On The Dean. Okay, this is an obvious choice. One of the most beautiful fish on the planet, on one of the most beautiful rivers in existence – and the peak of the run is in July, when you can fish for steelhead without freezing your butt off. If I could, I'd visit the Dean every single year. New Zealand. They speak English, they boast incredible "Lord of the Rings" scenery, they have huge browns and rainbows that live in crystal clear rivers . . . and everyone I've ever talked to who's spent time in New Zealand just loves it. I'll admit that it's a long ways to travel just to wear waterproof pants and cast a fly rod, but there are two different islands and they both offer world-class, trip-of-a-lifetime angling. R The Beaverkill. Anyone who loves S P O R T I N G C 70 L A S S I hungry rainbows on some of those gorgeous Bristol Bay rivers. And wouldn't it be great if the trip was a celebration of the day we finally drove a stake through the toxic heart of the Pebble Mine? There's no reason that America's anglers should be asked to sacrifice one of the planet's most important, irreplaceable trout and salmon fisheries for a gold mine. None. Good Company. Okay, I know this is a bit of a long shot, but I'd love to show up at an obscure fishing camp on a remote river in British Columbia or Alaska and find out that my fellow guests were Craig Mathews, John Gierach, Tom Rosenbauer, Greg Thomas, Seth Norman, Phil Monahan, Kirk Deeter, Bill Klyn, Tim Linehan and Yvon Chouinard. While luminaries like Lee Wulff, Roderick Haig-Brown and Leon Chandler are no longer with us, there are still some pretty amazing anglers out there – folks who've given a tremendous amount to our sport, and who share their knowledge and talents freely. Can you imagine the late-night C S