Profile of Paul Smith

Biography

Paul Smith, a native of Spaniard’s Bay, fishes and wanders the outdoors at every opportunity. He can be contacted at flyfishtherock@hotmail.com.

All articles of Paul Smith

• Snow’s a blessing
  There’s no snow just yet, at least not here on the Avalon, although I did see a few fluffy white flakes blowing in the wind early one recent ...
• Life with Barney
  I had a dog once named Barney. He was one of those beagles who loved nothing more in life than chasing rabbits. Although he slept in the house ...
• Muzzleloader moose
  Two weeks ago I wrote about black powder and some associated history. In recent years, muzzleloading and black powder have made a bit of a ...
• Salmon may swim again in Rennie’s River
  Last week I wrote about black powder and muzzleloading rifles. I planned to continue with Part II this week, and tell you all about my very first ...
• Black powder — now and then
  A few weeks back, I talked about muzzleloading, black powder, and the famous Kentucky long rifle. I mentioned at the time that I was dabbling in ...
• Arctic melting: definitely not a good thing
  The data is pretty much in and we are certain that salmon returns for 2012 were way down from the previous two years, 2011 and 2010. That’s no ...
• The British Enfield — tried and true
  It’s moose hunting time again. The 2012 hunt began a week ago. As Buddy Wasisname sings, “Got to get me moose, b’y.” I have a licence, and I’m ...
• Set the spanker
  Who knows what a spanker is? I was afloat on the fishing grounds off Mad Rock last week, fishing for cod with my daughter Allison, and her ...
• Eat your blueberries
  You get what you pay for. I believe this to be certainly true 90 per cent of the time, but on occasion one encounters amazing deals.I just bought ...
• Opening day dawns
  It’s duck season again. The time to shoot waterfowl opened all over the island of Newfoundland Sept. 15 at daybreak. Labradorians have been ...
• Northern Gateway Pipeline not worth the risk
  It is entirely understandable that with seven billion individual humans living on planet Earth, there will be a negative impact on the ...
• Labour Day fun and relaxation outdoors
  I’m writing this piece on Labour Day, a time to relax and enjoy a break from the daily grind of earning your keep in the modern world. For most ...
• Kentucky long rifle pioneered accuracy
  Have you ever thrown a football? Maybe you indulge in the odd game of rugby. If you’ve attempted either, you no doubt discovered post haste that ...
• Trying to avoid the bully
  I guess it’s bully beef for supper tonight. That’s my cry of total desperation when I’ve thrown everything I have in my fly box at sulking salmon ...
• Florida knows hot to cater to anglers
  I completely missed the food fishery. In early May, I bought a new outboard engine for my boat and didn’t get to catch one single cod during the ...
• A little history on Exploits salmon
  Salmon season is winding down now. Just a few weeks left before most of our scheduled rivers close for another season. A few will stay open ...
• In tune for hunting season
  It's August, a time of year when any hunter with a big game licence should be thinking of rifles and accurate shooting. Hitting your intended ...
• Fire up the grill
  It looks like this summer is light-years better than last for most outdoor activities, except for salmon fishing. The high temperatures and lack ...
• Low water blues
  This season I have seen the absolute extremes of salmon fishing. I spent the first week of June on the Gaula in Norway and literally got flooded ...
• Low water blues
  This season I have seen the absolute extremes of salmon fishing. I spent the first week of June on the Gaula in Norway and literally got flooded ...
• Don’t buy an elephant gun for moose hunting
  The moose licences are digitally allocated and out for another year. I say digitally because I haven’t actually received anything in the snail ...
• Studded boots and tumbly rocks
  Newfoundland’s salmon rivers flow through some of the most rugged terrain on the planet. There are places you need the dexterity of a mountain ...
• Binoculars, Part 2: seeing is believing
  A couple of weeks ago, I talked about a decent pair of binoculars being one of man’s and woman’s essential outdoor gear items. I gave a bit of ...
• Salmon news — good and bad
  This week I bring good and bad news for chasers of silver. I’m going to buck the convention of bad news first and boost your spirits from the ...
• Casting for big silver
  Sometimes you’ve just got to go for the big one. Salmon season is open and all we chasers of silver are planning our adventures to the Humber, ...
• Binoculars are essential to any outdoor adventure
  What’s the most critical piece of equipment that every outdoor person must own?This is a very tough question. A room full of anglers and hunters ...
• On wolves and coyotes
  We discovered just recently that the large predator shot by avid hunter Joe Fleming on the Bonavista Peninsula was a full-breed Labrador wolf.The ...
• It’s moose application time
  This time of year most outdoorsy people are focused on fishing, camping, outdoor boil-ups and the like, but the deadline is fast approaching to ...
• Victoria Day in the outdoors: an enduring tradition
  “The 24th of May is the queen’s birthday — If we don’t get a holiday we’ll all run away.” I learned this succinct and memorable rhyme from my ...
• Plenty goes into choosing correct rod
  Last week I chatted about the evolution of fly rods from fibreglass to graphite. Today’s general consensus in the angling world is that graphite ...