The Battenkill : An Intimate Portrait of a Great Trout River- Its History, People, and Fishing Possibilities - Hardcover

Merwin, John

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1558212086 ISBN 13: 9781558212084

Publisher: Lyons Pr, 1993

Synopsis

Full of lore, fascinating history, and shrewd fishing advice on this great Vermont river.

About this title

From the Back Cover

From its quiet beginnings in the southern Vermont hills to its junction with the Hudson River near Schuylerville, New York, the world-famous Battenkill River is as rich with history as with trout (which are still both plentiful here and notoriously difficult). Veteran author John Merwin explores both the river's traditions and its fishing opportunities in a remarkably charming blend of natural and popular history. This pastoral valley has been home to a wonderful variety of characters. Ethan Allen was Vermont's greatest eighteenth-century hero but also a drunken fool who, from his home along the river, conspired to give the newly independent republic of Vermont back to the British. Asa Fitch, America's first professional entomologist, wandered the lower river valley in the 1800s with dozens of fluttering specimens prominently pinned to his formal top hat. Norman Rockwell, one of America's most beloved artists, lived and painted along the river for thirteen years; Rockwell happened to be out listening to a lecture by his famous fisherman-neighbor Lee Wulff on the night his painting studio was tragically destroyed by fire. Then there are the fish. The Battenkill is counted as the most difficult of rivers by serious trout fishermen, and its clear, cool waters still offer substantial numbers of wild brook and brown trout. Merwin explores tackle, tactics, special fly patterns and the river's fly hatches in depth. (6 1/4 X 9 1/4, 212 pages, b&w photos, map)

Reviews

The Battenkill has long been known as one of this country's great trout streams. Merwin, formerly the editor of Fly Fisherman and a contributor to many angling books, has fished it often for 20 years in both Vermont and New York. In sketching the river valley's history and its influence on artists, writers, and residents from Ethan Allen to Norman Rockwell and Lee Wulff, Merwin seeks to explain its mystique while also advocating changes in management to restore its fishing glory. Less thorough than Ben Bachman's Upstream ( LJ 2/1/85) and James Dina's Voyage of the Ant ( LJ 9/15/89), which both describe the Connecticut River, Merwin's book is nevertheless a loving description, perhaps limited in appeal to those, especially trout enthusiasts, who know or would like to know the Battenkill.
- Roland Person, Southern Illinois Univ. Lib., Carbondale
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Lyons Pr
• Publication date: 1993
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1558212086
• ISBN 13: 9781558212084
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 190