One year later: a note from Alan Liere

A year ago this week, I went to Saskatchewan to fish for pike, and when I came home, I wrote my first Fishing and Hunting Report for The Spokesman-Review. It wasn’t long before I was having serious reservations. I was trying to fill the shoes of a man who had been an icon to outdoor sportsmen throughout Eastern Washington and North Idaho for 50 years, and there were times when I felt those shoes would never fit. There were e-mails — some seemed to blame me personally for Fenton Roskelley’s departure. “Jeez, I miss Fenton,” one reader told me. “Fenton knows more about fly-fishing than you ever will,” wrote another. “You misspelled ‘Swawilla,’ ” said a third.

Well, I miss Fenton too, and yes, he does know more about fly fishing than I. I learned from the negative comments, though, and promised myself I would never make the same mistake twice. Heck, I didn’t have too — there were lots of new ones to be made.

Surprisingly, positive feedback has overwhelmed the negative, and for that, I thank you. An old writer friend of mine, Charley Dickey, once told me, “I can go weeks and weeks on a single compliment.” So can I.

A special thanks to you who offered advice, pointed the way, or took me fishing. This week, I’m in Saskatchewan again, still trying to catch that elusive 20-pound pike. I look forward to coming home and writing this column. The shoes still don’t fit, but I think they’re getting smaller.

— Alan Liere