Unicoi Outfitters is north Georgia's premier guide service and fly fishing outfitter, located on the Chattahoochee River near alpine Helen. Look for fishing reports, gear and book reviews, and general musings here from our staff and guides.

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

John Gierach is a Master at Spinning Tales, Reels


We think this is a very good article on one of flyfishing's most noted icons.  Written for the mainstream readers of the Denver Post, Scott Willoughby gives a different perspective of Gierach than we normally get from flyfishing periodicals.

LYONS — Ask John Gierach a question, and he's likely to tell you a story. Odds are it will be about fly-fishing.

After all, that's what Gierach does. Over the course of some 35 years now, the 64-year-old Lyons local has spun enough yarn to fill 16 books on the topic, ranging from guides to fishing small streams and high-country lakes to the iconic fish stories of "Trout Bum," "Sex, Death and Fly-Fishing" and his most recent title, "No Shortage of Good Days."

"I love them all and I'm proud of them all," Gierach said. "But I tend to think my last book is my best book, if for no other reason than you're supposed to get better with age."

It has been 25 years since "Trout Bum," and the white-bearded poet-turned-outdoors writer from middle America is still pursuing his literary artistry with the same dedication required of his favorite pastime.

"The two are inseparable at this point," he said.

On a recent day when high water made for tricky fishing on his local St. Vrain Creek stomping grounds, Gierach took time between casts to tell a few more tales.

Q: Is it really possible to be as one-dimensional as you portray yourself in print?

A: Nobody really thinks of themselves as one-dimensional, right? So probably not. I mean, I have an actual life. I do think about things besides fly-fishing. But, you know, I've been doing this writing about fly-fishing professionally for like 35 years, so it definitely colors who you are after a while, really sets the tone and direction of your life. But, I do have other interests and on book tours, people — well, women — ask, "Do you do anything else?"


Read more:John Gierach is a master at spinning tales, reels - The Denver Post

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