The Live Well

End of 2025 Report

End of 2025 Report I realized that as 2025 drew to a close that I have not written an end-of-year report for the last two years! A few notable items from Unwrapped Outdoors to close out the year in review is overdue.    This year was superb for our anglers.

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Searching and Reflection

This has been an interesting time of year to write in this column. The challenge comes from the idea that the reader will be reading it after Thanksgiving but weeks before Christmas. I want to make it relevant and timely. I get confused though. Don’t believe me? Last year I

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Birds of a Feather

This is, and will always be a fishing column. Bear with me. November means “hunting season” for many Michiganders, especially in rural hunting communities like ours. I used to do a fair amount of hunting in November, including firearm deer hunting. Through the years I have evolved in my outdoor

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Unlocking a New Level

In angling pursuits, as in other areas of life, finding some new strategy or method is akin to unlocking a door you have never been through.It is challenging to remember where you learned something. It just becomes knowledge. There is a moment of pride when you accomplish something you have

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Road Trip and Home

As a family we had been planning to take a trip to New England for a couple of years. In July that time arrived. While it was far from a fishing trip, as family vacations usually are, I found it helpful that I carry a 5wt fly rod and reel

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Majestic, Venerable, Heat

I always label my articles with the month and year. It was a little shocking to title this one “August 2025”. It is, after all, several weeks away. I then reflected that August doesn’t feel so far away. It has felt like August since our long cool Spring started giving

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The Underdog

Who doesn’t love a good underdog story? As long as “my team” isn’t the one playing the underdog, I almost always cheer for the underdog. It lets us mere mortals feel like we have a chance no matter what comes our way. Fishing on any weekend during nice weather leaves

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Softball, Orioles, and a Kayak Race

It is no secret that I love the month of May. June is a close second. You can fish almost anywhere for almost anything and have a banner day. Sure, it is still fishing, but this time of year there’s ample promise for an angler. During a mid-May weekend at

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Lions and More Lions

March has been said to come “in like a lion and out like a lamb”. Those who pioneered the term may not have been anticipating what global climate change would do to the month of April. I am not one to catalog historical weather patterns, but I do keep track

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Searching for Inspiration

During winter inspiration for me as an angler comes in two forms. I am inspired to tie new, more challenging fly patterns. I am also inspired to look at new places and attempt new adventures. New possibilities are exciting.    Waiting to fish new flies is an act of faith

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that's all folks