I bought my first fly rod in 1969; a Pflueger Medalist outfit complete with fiberglass rod, Medalist reel and double taper line, all conveniently blister packed, and sold by a local discount store.  That outfit saw a lot of use and I still have it today, although the quality of my other equipment has improved greatly over the years.

It was not long after that, that I thought tying my own flies would save me money.  With no one to teach me, I gave it my best shot at tying ants and beetles on worm hooks from the local sporting goods store.  And that was the extent of my fly tying for years.  Finally, I took lessons at a local fly shop and improved greatly.  Since then, fly tying has become a passion.

While I have no desire to tie commercially, I do part with a lot of my flies through friends and Internet Fly Swaps.  I prefer to stick with the somewhat traditional patterns and probably enjoying tying dry flies the most.

In May 2000, I retired after 30 1/2 years service with the State of Ohio and now have a little more time to pursue fish in local and far away streams.  Some of my favorite streams are in Yellowstone National Park and I try to visit them as often as possible.  I also fish the Lake Erie tributaries with their fantastic fall, winter and spring runs of large steelhead.

Our local Trout Unlimited Chapter has also consumed much of my spare time and over the years and I have held the positions of President, Vice-President, Executive Officer and Director.

Right is a cutthroat trout on the Yellowstone River and above is a brown trout from Clear Fork River in Ohio.

Ed's Note:  Although I haven't met Steve in person I have communicated frequently with him over the years.  He is a good friend of Bob Balogh, one of my fishing buddies, and I hope to fish with them together soon.   If laughing is good for a person's health, then fishing with those two will take 20 years off my life.