So Many Fish, So Little Time: 1001 of the World’s Greatest Backcountry Honeyholes, Trout Rivers, Blue Ribbon Waters, Bass Lakes, and Saltwater Hot Spots - Softcover

Williams, Mark D

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0060882395 ISBN 13: 9780060882396

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks, 2007

Synopsis

Ever dreamed of following in Hemingway's footsteps and fishing in the Basque country of Spain? Or casting your line in the urban jungle of New York City? How about reeling in a 150-lb. tarpon off the coast of Florida?

In So Many Fish, So Little Time, expert fisherman Mark D. Williams takes you to the 1,001 places all anglers should visit before they go to that great fishing paradise in the sky. From milkfish in the Seychelles to sailfish off Guatemala to Arctic char at the top of the world, he'll take you on a lively and informative trip to the most beautiful, bountiful, and fish-laden waters in the world. The only angler's guide to essential places to fish that covers the entire world, So Many Fish, So Little Time is truly a fish tale like no other.

About this title

About the Author

Avid angler Mark D. Williams is the author of five books, including the Trout Fishing Sourcebook, The Nuts 'N' Bolts Guide for the Backpacking Flyfisher, and The Nuts 'N' Bolts Guide to Knots for Fly-Fishers.

Review

5.0 out of 5 stars A Collection of Global Fly Fishing Dreams, July 30, 2010 By Beowulff - See all my reviews This review is from: So Many Fish, So Little Time: 1001 of the World's Greatest Backcountry Honeyholes, Trout Rivers, Blue Ribbon Waters, Bass Lakes, and Saltwater Hot Spots (Paperback) In the introduction to this massive and massively entertaining book, author Mark Williams says his goal was to write a book of fishing dreams, a "sit-on-the-pot kind of book, the type of book that sometimes inspires you to get off your duff and make plans." Williams succeeds and then some with this ambitious work that covers an astounding amount of rivers, lakes and salt water spots in just about every state, country and continent you care to name. As with all his other books, Williams offer reams of expert angling advice peppered with amusing anecdotes in an addictive writing style that sets his work far above most other angling books. Unlike most fishing writers, Williams is as adept with the pen as he is the rod, so even if you only ever get to fish a fraction of the waters presented in this volume, you'll still feel like you fished them all - at least in your dreams. --amazon

It s a big book. A great big book. That was my first hit when holding So Many Fish, So Little Time by Mark D. Williams. So Many Fish, So Little Time by Mark D. WilliamsFor the terminally numerically inclined, it s 1.75 inches deep, which translates to 860 pages of words and pictures. Subtitled 1001 of the World s Greatest Backcountry Honeyholes, Trout Rivers, Blue Ribbon Waters, Bass Lakes and Saltwater Hot Spots it s not a book you ll read from front to back, and therein lies the rub. What exactly are you supposed to do with it? Good Writer. Odd Concept. The author is an entertaining writer, though several of my sample readings suggest he s at his pithiest when he has the least to say. That s not unusual, and the author has something interesting to write about many of the fishing locations, most of which are well known. When in doubt, they say, go with what you know, so when I received my review copy of the book, I went right to the section on California. It lists 28 different bodies of water, including the SF Bay, the Delta, Yosemite National Park, the McCloud, the Sacramento River (upper and lower in one entry), and a horde of other places, most of which the natives have heard about. It s not a bad list, and I m thankful it doesn t include a lot of the smaller, out-of-the-way places better left fished by only a handful not a horde of readers. Williams descriptions often include a story and they re typically an absorbing read, but given the intricacies of fishing any body of water, they lack the depth you d get from a guidebook with a more limited focus. Indeed, the depth of So Many Fish it covers the entire USA and most of the world is both its strength and its downfall. So Many Entries, So Little Depth Paging through the entries for the places I ve been and the places I d like to visit was momentarily interesting. Sadly, there s simply no way a California fly fisher would find more of value here than the Fly Fisher s Guide to Northern California (or the equivalent in any other state). If I was truly planning a trip to my part of the country (or even another part of the world), I d want a lot more information than is found here. Perhaps So Many Fish will find a place on bookshelves as a large-scale reference work, which would truly be a shame; William s writing is entertaining and he s clearly fished far more waters than most of us would consider fair. In truth, if I were Absolute Ruler of the Universe, I d turn this book into something beyond the 1001 places to fish guidebook its marketing suggests it is. I m a lot more interested in Williams stories than I am in a too-short description of water in Andorra, and a Fly Fishing the World style of book where Williams experiences were the centerpiece instead of the waters would have proven far more interesting. In fact, it s tempting to read through the river/lake/stream/ocean listings one after another, soaking up Williams words, but it s frustrating. The bites are too small and the interruptions too great. An Example? You Got It. On page 451, Williams begins a story about fishing hitting the Salmon fly jackpot on the Yellowstone, three friends in tow. One of them struggles with the big fish every cast fishing, alienates the other anglers, and even ends up throwing rocks at the rising fish, an act which lands him in hot water with the other anglers. Sadly, we only get a few hundred words about the experience yet it s worth several thousand. And to get there, I had to power my way through several pages describing the Yellowstone River information available many other places, and in much greater depth. As they say, therein lies the hell of it; So Many Fish, So Little Time is an interesting work, but in my twisted way of viewing things, it s either --trout underground

Edition details

• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0060882395
• ISBN 13: 9780060882396
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 880