and the Maritime Provinces. 337 



CHAPTER XXII. 



T^oUt Staling. 



By J. PARKER WHITNEY. 



This sport, when the conditions are favorable, may be accounted the 

 most fascinating, exciting and artistic method of taking the speckled 

 beauties. 



The season in the northern waters of Maine is the last of August and 

 September, when the summer heat is over, and when the cool days and 

 nights have lowered the temperature of the surface water down to or be- 

 low sixty-three degrees Fahrenheit. The field, that of a placid lake or 

 pond where trout abound when the surface is entirely smooth, or agitated 

 only by faint ripples. The afternoon is more favorable than the morning, 

 although some days are favorable throughout. 



With the above conditions, and a light boat and companion guide at 

 the stern who can skilfully propel the boat over the water with scarcely a 

 ripple from the paddle, and with a light casting-rod of good length, a light 

 leader and a number eight or ten fly, and a landing net, one is equipped 

 for the sport. 



It may be sunny or not, overcast or clear; it matters not if the wind is 

 absent or light, but on a bright or sunny day the necessity of skilful work 

 is more apparent than when the sky is overcast or dull. When the sun is 

 shining or partially obscured, the boat should be worked between the sun 

 and breaks, to the advantage of the fisherman and the disadvantage of the 

 trout. The effect of shadow is light compared with the advantages so 

 gained. 



Many of the lakes and ponds in Maine, where trout abound, are fav- 

 orable localities for this sport, although some are not, and there are usually 

 quite a number of days in September when the temperature of the surface 

 water and other conditions are entirely favorable. 



I will confess to having allowed some decades of fishing experiences 

 to pass before I became familiar with this sport, which of late years I have 

 looked forward to with much interest and expectation. 



The trout, which were plentiful near the surface from the going out of 

 the ice until the middle of June when the surface water warmed up to a 



