Normally, I try to come up with a catchy title for a post hoping to draw your attention. This time, simply, “Rachel Finn”.
Rachel guided me on the West Branch of the Ausable River in Wilmington, NY. She’s well known in the fly fishing community, as we have come to understand, and I had the great fortune to spend the day with her fishing, learning and having an incredibly fun time. No need for a catchy title at all, simply “Rachel Finn”.
When Barb and I were just starting our journey, we wanted to make sure we found the “characters” who work and play in the trout streams we’d visit. In fact, our very first blog post titled “Welcome” was tagged with one word, “Characters”. As we fished our way through Georgia, North Carolina, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Connecticut we’d ask “Is there a guide on one of our upcoming rivers you’d recommend?” The response we got over and over when we say we’re fishing the Ausable was “You’ve got to fish with Rachel Finn!” When we asked, how do we find her, we were told to call Hungry Trout Fly Shop in Wilmington, NY. When we asked why Rachel, we heard things like “She’s a character”, “She’s a hoot” and most importantly we heard, “There is no one who knows more about the Ausable and you will have a blast”.
After fishing with Rachel, all of these are true. I’m officially adding my name to the list of anglers who would say, “You’ve got to fish with Rachel Finn!”
I hope you enjoy this interview with Rachel we did in the guide shack beside the Hungry Trout Fly Shop. Its chock full of great background about Rachel, stories, tips/techniques, places to fish in the area, what kinds of fish to expect to find, what flies to bring and more. Thanks Rachel!