First of February.

I caught myself looking at pictures of redbuds and Johnny jump up this week, ready for spring.

I swear a saw a couple bugs on the creek- tiny little tawny colored midges, only two or three. Another month and caddis may start popping. There were water striders about, haven’t seen them about, perhaps flushed from ponds and pools from the inch and a half of rain earlier in the week. I had checked stream gages in the area the night before and they were dropping- but the creek shoots up fast, and is slow to fall back.

Still, the fish were there- if you could get down to them. Marginal spots now prime lies, fish tucked under banks and rootwads, exploring side channels and tributary streams.

We made it work.