One of the better spots to fish for trout in Virginia is along the Smith River. Fortunately for me, it flows right through the area in which we live.
The other day I was out and about with my camera and did some exploring along the river banks to scout for new areas in which to fish. While there, I noticed a man fishing along the bank (you may be able to see him in the far left upper portion of the photo) and he noticed me taking pictures.
As I walked along my side of the river, closer to where he was fishing, he yelled across the stream and asked if I had ever seen the Smith River from the side he was on. I replied I had never been able to figure how to get to that side of the river by vehicle. He said like me, he had spent most of his earlier times fishing along the river on the same side I was on, which is very close to the Army Corps of Engineers dam at Philpott Lake, which was built years ago along the Smith River basin. One day while fishing where I was standing just below the dam, he ran into a Corps employee who told him of an old dirt road that would provide access to the opposite side, plus provided many open stretches of riverbank access, far better than where he was.
The tip was passed on to me, and after about a thirty minute drive I found the old road, and made my way down to the river. The Corps employee and my new found fisherman friend were correct…that side of the river was much better than the side I'd been going to for years. I drove to where my friend was fishing, and walked down to the bank to tell him his directions worked, and thanked him profusely for his advice. He smiled and said, "My pleasure."
People are like that around here. They speak up when they see you, and say "hi". Not like other places I've been where people ignore you like the plague, and act like you've intruded into their private space if you get too close. I'll probably never again see the man fishing that day, who passed on advice given to him by an Army Corps of Engineers employee, but I'll always be grateful for him being so friendly…plus for the Corps for being so professional.
A closing note: This blog is dedicated to my good friend Jim Hey, who died suddenly and unexpectedly last summer. Jim loved to fish for trout and it was always our intention to do so together one day along the Smith River. Sadly, it never happened. In fact, Jim was a person exactly like the guy I'd met briefly the other day, who willingly shared his "secret" on how to get to the best locations to fish along the river. That's an interesting coincidence now that I think about it.
