4/26/2018  Thurs
It's Finally warming up here, and Nearly all the snow is melted.
I drove over to Yellow River State Forest today, and fished Little Paint Creek in the campground. 
There were Lots of big fish, rising to caddis flies, as well as other bugs that I  didn't recognize.

I cast a Yellow&Partridge soft hackle (size 16), and very quickly hooked (and after a while landed) an 18" brown trout.  There were several other trouts that size, plus scores of smaller trouts (some of which appeared to be stocked rainbows).   There were only a few people in the campground, and I was the only one fishing when I got there (two people were fishing at the lower ford when I drove out).
I drove up the road that follows Big Paint creek up to Waterville (White Pine Rd), and saw that they done a whole lot of stream work to Big Paint. Right upstream from the State Forest, they put in about six wing dams; and there was new rip rap in many places before Waterville (and some after).

Fished Hickory (again).  talked to the farm owner; he's having problems getting the government (epa, army corps, etc) to approve his riprap request.   Hoping he gets it; the stream needs it after the huge flood of several years ago.

was 40 degrees out, which felt nice, but filled the creek with ice cold runoff.  Only caught one brown trout in an hour.  Had multiple strikes, but they were so slow and weak that I missed them all but that one.   Saw several trouts rising pretty regularly on what appeared to be mayflies (or caddis?) ...  big enough to see them anyway, so I doubt that they were midges.   Couldn't get trouts interested in  my dries though.  every strike I had was on a green retro.

Walked down to Glover's Creek yesterday.  They have a gate up right as you enter Echo Valley park, but the walk in wasn't bad at all.  Stream nearly completely open, with just a few places iced up.   Temps around 30 degrees.  Saw (scared) quite a few trouts.   Went up to the first ford, and then onto the rocks; staying on the left side of the creek (and keeping my sox dry). 

Hooked one rainbow (on a Green Retro), but lost him without getting him to me:  Skunked.

Kept fishing that same hole, 'cause I couldn't go up further without using the ford.  No Joy.
It started snowing, and after a while I gave it up, and walked out. 

The steep hill by the stream was a little hard to go up, since the patches of ice now had snow on them. Had to walk slow, as I had neither my cleats or my wading staff; but it wasn't too bad as long as you went slow.

fished Hickory Creek today (as usual).

Temps nearly 50; most snow melted so stream wasn't too cold. Saw a few trouts rising; and saw One mayfly.
Caught 5 browns on my Green Retro fly: which is all I used. One  about 14 inches, another about 12; the others were yearlings.  Fished from 10 to 1pm, waded from lower bridge to middle access.

now that I'm retired, i'll have time to write about trouts

2017 year end wrap up:
52 days fishing, including
10 days skunked
fished 33 places, in 5 states
Caught 11 breeds (not counting cuthroat strains)...
18 bluegills
3 brook trouts
187 brown trouts
1 crappie
1 cut bow
52 cutthroats (four different strains)
1 largemouth bass
1 PERCH!!!
136 rainbows
2 suckers
4 whitefishes
Thanx to everyone that guided me, thanx to all the land owners that let me fish on their land, thanx to the trouts (and other fish); and thanx to GOD for letting me fish