Anglers, myself included, spend large amounts of time trying to predict when the next great day of fishing could be. Whether that great day is defined by catching your largest fish or hitting a heavy hatch, anglers analyze future conditions with perpetual hope.

A few days this week brought to mind the reality that sometimes you just need to show up to the river.

Last Saturday the Little J looked a little questionable in the morning. There were a handful of anglers that decided to test the river that evening anyway, myself included. We ended up having a great evening of dry fly fishing in less than ideal conditions.

Sunday might have been the weirdest weather that I have guided in during May. Throughout the day we had periods of sunshine, cloud cover, wind, rain and freezing rain. It was cold in the morning and warm in the afternoon. The fishing was pretty slow in the morning, but all of sudden throughout the afternoon, we experienced the best sulphur hatch I have seen on Spruce Creek in a couple years.

This week served as a reminder that sometimes the most important thing an angler can do to have a successful day is show up at the river.

After all, you can’t catch fish behind closed doors.