Vital Spring Trinkets

What are your vital spring trouting trinkets?

If you’re like us, we have a bunch, but always manage to forget one or two as we rush out the door toward Appalachian trout nirvana.  

Heres a checklist to help everyone prepare now for your next trip. You sure don’t want to be a mile back on River X at dusk and realize your flashlight is dead and the trail is steep.

Here are some of our vital spring  trinkets for  Dark30 trouting.  What did we miss on this list? Add your own essentials and help us save a fellow trouter’s epic trip this month.

1. A box of dries (helped by Wes’ Friday hot fly list).
2. A box of dropper nymphs and soft-hackle wets (Wes again). All boxes with your phone number sharpied onto the inside lid.
3. An extra leader and fresh, full spools of 5X and 6X tippet.
4. Tiny tin shot (size 6 or 8) to dunk the dropper fly a few feet under the dry while the sun’s still high.
5. Bottles of floatant and dessicant (or a small chamois cloth) to prep and then rehab those dries  after a salmonid-sliming episode.
6. Sunglasses for spotting pre-dusk risers.
7. An insect sampler to help your hatch-matching: try a $3 Home Depot paint strainer over your dip net.
8. Bug repellent for uninvited hitchhikers.
9. A headlamp with fresh batteries.
10. A small backup flashlight as a Plan B for #9.
11. A good smart phone or camera - with a flash for your late-night trophy fondles.
12. If prospecting alone, then a spouse or friend who knows your whereabouts and your ETA back home.

What did we miss?  Add your vitals to the UO list! 

1. ______
2. ______
3. ______

Hope this UO bulletin helps your preparation for another great evening astream. Holler at either UO store if we can help you stock up on these spring trouting essentials.