Opening Day this year was certainly a historic one for a number of reasons.

First, social distancing because of the COVID-19 pandemic has altered many people’s Opening Day traditions. Our club usually has a breakfast gathering and raffle that was cancelled. Gathering with friends to fish has been minimized as well.

Second, Opening Day this year was on my best friend and fishing buddy’s birthday. Unfortunately, he passed away this past January after a tough battle with multiple medical conditions. This will be the first season without him as a fishing buddy on the stream, particularly the club, since he was my sponsor for membership.

However, there was a silver lining to this year’s Opening Day. My friend’s son, whom I consider as a token kid of mine, proposed to his girlfriend turning this day into a bright and historic one !

Third, although Jeff is no longer with us, his spirit lives on and ” the gang ” still was able to get together and fish a little….of course practicing some social distancing to be politically and socially correct these days….LOL…whatever !

Of course, Adam out-fished Jacob and I as usual ! Plus, he was the only one who caught a tagged fish ( 1 of 4 ) to receive a gift certificate. He has always been one lucky S.O.B with a rod in his hand ! I have always chuckled at that fact but Jeff, his father who was always competitive, used to get so infuriated. Despite his competitiveness, he was always a very proud dad of that fact!

Jacob and I still had caught our fair share of fish, too ! We each caught and released a few trout and kept two for our traditional trout dinner- although this year we did not have the ” feast ” that we usually have since even grocery shopping has become tedious.

You might have noticed Jacob and I rockin’ ” Live the Stream ” attire. Joe Humphreys is a living legend and an ion within the fly fishing community- he literally is one of the best to ever have lived ! He has been a friend and mentor for many many years and at 91 still is as active and vibrant as ever- he hasn’t missed an Opening Day in Pennsylvania since he was six years old ! Jacob and I are doing our best to follow suit and create our own Opening Day traditions.

This movie is a fantastic and uplifting story about his life that everyone should see, especially now during this pandemic, even if you are not an avid fly fisherman. It won many awards during the film festivals and even won the Drake Award which is very prestigious ! I would highly recommend spending some time during this social distancing period to watch this film. It will boost your spirits no matter who you are ! Please consider purchasing this spectacular film and story. I inserted a link below.

http://www.livethestreamfilm.com/

Finally, although our Opening Day was altered this year, it certainly did not negate the fun of getting out there and enjoying a great past time ! I hope you have had some similar enjoyment. The 2020 Fishing Season has had a very unique and chaotic start but, better days are to come ! This pandemic will end eventually and we all will be able to gather again to enjoy a great fishing experience together.