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"Every single one of them. I have a rule where I wont write about any body of water that I havent fished. To me, I feel that its necessary to fish and research each water in the books. I wouldnt want to read about a place written by someone who had never been there and I dont think others should have to do that at my expense, either. I grew up reading books on fishing written by people that I could tell had never been to those spots, so I wanted to try and be different."
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"Unfortunately, I didnt make it to every single water in California, but most are in the series. If I didnt fish the water I chose not to write about it. It all comes down to credibility and I didnt want to risk my credibility by writing about a spot I hadnt been to. Thats impersonal."
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"Thats a tough question because every spot in California is different. It all depends on what you want to catch. My top three favorites are Lake Tahoe, Lake Havasu and Trinity Lake. Lake Tahoe is one of the most exciting waters to fish because it has huge wild rainbows, browns and lake trout. Havasu produces one of the best nighttime panfish and catfish bites Iove seen and Trinity Lake is an awesome bass fishery loaded with bald eagles."
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"Most of the fisheries are obvious, but what I did was contact the California Department
of Fish and Game and obtained a list of every water in the state that has been stocked since
they began keeping records. Then I scanned maps for waters that werent on the list and
researched the fisheries before I got there and after I fished it. Its a pretty thorough
process."
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"The waters are rated on a 1 to 10 basis, with 10 being the best. The ratings are based on every freshwater fishery in California. A 10 means its one of the best fisheries in the state and a one is an indication that the water is barren of fish."
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"I started the project in 1996 when I first entered college and finished the three book series in 2005, so it took nearly 10 years of being on the road hitting every spot in California."
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"To be honest, the memories Ive gained from writing these books are more about establishing relationships with great people, rather than fishing. Over the last decade I was able to meet, learn from and listen to stories from thousands of people and thats what stays with me more than anything. Fishing was an added bonus to the life experiences I lived."
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"Obviously fishing was involved in every location, but I also contacted Fish and Game wardens, biologists and hatcheries as well as tackle shop owners, tackle manufacturers, writers, locals, guides, Forest Service employees, horse packers and professional anglers to make sure I knew everything I could about each water. Sometimes I and a friend mask and snorkeled the entire lake to see what fish were in the system or wed hop aboard an electrofishing boat with Fish and Game at night to see what we couldnt catch during the day."
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