How Close to Home is "Good" Fishing?

[stenacron]

Having grown up in Easton, PA I didn't realize how spoiled I was (until I moved to Utah) with respect to how close "good fishing" was to home. I had four (4) Class A trout streams with 15-20 minutes of home - including Bushkill Creek which was less than a 5 minute drive. Not to mention the Lehigh and Delaware Rivers with all of the warmwater glory that they brought to the party.

So now I have about a 30 minute drive to places that aren't exactly my 1st (or 2nd) choices... and my preferred spot (so far) is almost exactly one (1) hour from door to parking lot, with everything else out past that. Not a killer drive by any stretch, but I no longer hit the Sulphur hatch on a whim... I actually have to plan things now.

How about everyone else?

[Davo]

Got the Snake River running right through town. Plus Flat Creek, the Hoback and the Gros Ventre with in minutes of town. With in an hour or two the list just gets better, Henrys Fork, South Fork, Green, New Fork, Salt and Greys Rivers and an unlimited number of small creeks. Jackson is an awesome fishing spot!!

[fire instructor]

I have any number of "warm water" spots and one decent trout stream close by. Within an hour and a half, I can be in "trophy" water for any number of species. I just need to figure out how to get more time to GET to those waters!!!

[ak allen]

I have the local slough about 5 minutes away, but it is kinda like a city pond. It's to crowded and overfished like crazy. But within a 1/2 hour or so there are several good rivers, the Lower Chena, Upper Chena, Chatanika, & Tanana. And within about six hours I have everything you could want, the Copper river, bristol bay, Russian river, Tolovana river, the Yukon, Minto flats.

[Flyfisher for men]

Warmwater is very close. Backyard or 20-30 minutes.

Trout are another matter altogether. 3.5 hours to get to any of it, 5 for trophy waters (Taneycomo in Missouri).

[kayo]

define "good fishing"?

[mcnerney]

I have the New Fork running through town, but the issue is it is all private so you have to float it, the Green is about 15 minutes from town, then there are a number of lakes just north of town, then the Hoback is about an hour west, then the Snake and South Fork are about an hour and a half.

[pa dave]

Five minutes to my home river, which is passable smallmouth fishing. Twenty minutes to the Susquehanna River which was a fantastic smallmouth river up until a few years ago when the population crashed.

For trout I have to drive a minimum of 30 minutes to get to anything remotely like good fishing.

[FISHN50]

I'm in the middle of it I guess. Basically if I turn right at the end of the street I can got to the Muskenectcong river for trout, passing 2 other rivers & a few good lakes. If I turn left I'm heading to the Shore. Sandy Hook or Gateway national park for striped bass ( not strippers) or blues if their in. Both are within 45 min to a little over an hour to get to.

[siskiyoublues]

Purtiest tailwater fishery on the West coast 15 minutes from the front door.
Upper Sac 15 minutes in the other direction. Klamath an hour north.
So about as good is it gets basically.