Catskill Rivers: Birthplace of American Fly Fishing

Francis, Austin McK

ISBN 10: 0832902829 / ISBN 13: 9780832902826

Published by The Beaverkill Press, New York, 1983

About this Item

xiii, 258 pp. Limited edition of 300 copies.In full brown morocco, with gilt titles and five raised headbands on spine, a ribbon marker, AEG, in a matching colored cloth slipcase. The Beaverkill, the Willowemoc, the Neversink, the Delaware, the Esopus, the Schoharie--these hallowed trout streams have been hailed for generations as "the birthplace of American fly fishing." Here is their story. Painstakingly researched and beautifully told, Catskill Rivers will likely remain the definitive study of these fabled waters and the remarkable people who created the American fly-fishing tradition. There is an unforgettable look at the early river industries--rafting, sawmills,tanneries, wood-acid factories--and at the early days on these classic trout waters, where George LaBranche, in Sparse Grey Hackle s words, "adapted the dry fly to fast water and started an angling revolution." Here are the great anglers, fly tyers, rod makers, entomologists, and publicists--"Uncle Thad" Norris, Seth Green, Theodore Gordon, Herman Christian, Roy Steenrod, Rube Cross, Hiram Leonard, Ed Payne, Louis Rhead, Edward R. Hewitt, Sparse Grey Hackle, Preston Jennings, Art Flick, Harry Darbee, Walt Dette, and a host of others. There are revealing discussions of the sociological forces that led Americans into fly fishing; the origins and customs of private stream clubs; the rivalries between owners and poachers; the controversies over imported "German" brown trout; the cult of dry-fly purists; the evolution of hatchery practices, stream improvements, and fisheries regulation; as well as the future prospects for these lovely waters. There are also penetrating historical and physical profiles of the six principal Catskill rivers, their insect life, trout distributions, stocking practices, access, angling pressures, fishing conditions, and successful angling techniques. Catskill Rivers is a poignant journey through the annals of American angling, from its origins to the present, laced with anecdotes and stories, graced with over one hundred ten photographs and nine beautifully illustrated river maps by John Manikowski. It is a book all fishermen will treasure. Size: 4to - over 9¾" - 12" tall.

Seller Inventory # 440038

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Catskill Rivers: Birthplace of American Fly Fishing
• Publisher: The Beaverkill Press, New York
• Publication Date: 1983
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0832902829
• ISBN 13: 9780832902826
• Binding: Full-Leather
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: As New
• Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket: As Issued
• Book Type: Limited Edition
• Seller catalogs:
  • Sporting History

About this title

Synopsis

The Beaverkill, the Willowemoc, the Neversink, the Delaware, the Esopus, the Schoharie--these hallowed trout streams have been hailed for generations as “the birthplace of American fly fishing.” Here is their story. Painstakingly researched and beautifully told, Catskill Rivers will likely remain the definitive study of these fabled waters and the remarkable people who created the American fly-fishing tradition.

There is an unforgettable look at the early river industries--rafting, sawmills,tanneries, wood-acid factories--and at the early days on these classic trout waters, where George LaBranche, in Sparse Grey Hackle’s words, “adapted the dry fly to fast water and started an angling revolution.” Here are the great anglers, fly tyers, rod makers, entomologists, and publicists--“Uncle Thad” Norris, Seth Green, Theodore Gordon, Herman Christian, Roy Steenrod, Rube Cross, Hiram Leonard, Ed Payne, Louis Rhead, Edward R. Hewitt, Sparse Grey Hackle,
Preston Jennings, Art Flick, Harry Darbee, Walt Dette, and a host of others. There are revealing discussions of the sociological forces that led Americans into fly fishing; the origins and customs of private stream clubs; the rivalries between owners and poachers; the controversies over imported “German” brown trout; the cult of dry-fly purists; the evolution of hatchery practices, stream improvements, and fisheries regulation; as well as the future prospects for these lovely waters. There are also penetrating historical and physical profiles of the six principal Catskill rivers, their insect life, trout distributions, stocking practices, access, angling pressures, fishing conditions, and successful angling techniques.

Catskill Rivers is a poignant journey through the annals of American angling, from its origins to the present, laced with anecdotes and stories, graced with over one hundred ten photographs and nine beautifully illustrated river maps by John Manikowski. It is a book all fishermen will treasure.

Review

"More than a scholarly history, Catskill Rivers left me wading in nostalgia. I could smell the rhododendron blossoming on Dry Brook and even caught a whiff of the hairy armpits at Keener's Pool. Austin Francis has spawned a classic."--A. J. McClane