I first visited Yellowstone National Park (YNP) in early October 1975, when I was training at the Naval Nuclear Prototype facility that was  50 miles west of Idaho Falls. I qualified there to operate nuclear power plants on submarines. That first visit was memorable. Almost nothing was open and traffic…

As much as anyone else, I am enthusiastic about the vision of our car-driving country moving to fleets of electric vehicles. It’s part of a future based on renewables and non-polluting energy; a future where use of fuels like oil, natural gas, and coal will vanish. And the move to…

This Memorial Day I’ve decided to post a photograph I have of the young men from The Hill, the Italian area of south St. Louis where I grew up, who were killed in World War II. Their last names are all familiar as I went to elementary school with kids…

Most people, if they have any self-awareness, take time at life’s transitions to reflect on their experiences and those with whom they shared those experiences. As they get to the point in life where the days ahead are much, much fewer than the days left behind, there is a poignancy…

The Seattle Times has a recent article on the resurgence of fauna in Puget Sound.  The focus is on Possession Sound – between Everett and Whidbey Island, but the same would be true for all the waters that make up the Salish Sea (the Strait of Georgia in British Columbia;…

The Thwaites Glacier is an Antarctic Glacier that flows from the western side of Antartica into the Pine Island Bay that is part of the Amundsen Sea. It’s called the Doomsday Glacier because, along with the Pine Island Glacier, it is thought to have significant potential to raise global sea…

Yesterday, Orvis posted the above letter on its Fly Fishing Page on Facebook. There were over  1,500 posts in response. From a very rough count, I estimate that anti-Orvis posts were running about three to one over those thanking Orvis for their letter. I assume that’s to be expected: there’s…

Dave McCoy is the owner of Emerald Water Anglers, and is an ambassador for both Patagonia and Thomas & Thomas. In a long conversation with filmmaker Mark Titus, he reflects on the business and sport of fly fishing in a time of climate change and the risks of species extinction….

And, of course, the other pandemic is that of mass shootings in the United States. After the last year of shutdowns, social isolation, and fear of the COVID-19 virus, there were no mass shootings in public places in 2020; mass shootings are defined by the FBI as four or more…

It has been on Earth for at least 50 million years; its fossil ancestors go back more than 100 million years. Its females can live 50 years, with males living approximately 30 years. It is a slow-growing fish, but can reach up to eight feet long, and the largest can…