fly fisherman, September is the month of the dry—when a fly skated across the surface is most likely to draw strikes. Later in the fall, when water temperatures dip into the 40s, the odds of getting a fish to look up begin to diminish. The key to success, besides checking your thermometer, is simple to say, harder to. You can’t catch a steelhead on a dry fly if you give up on it after a few dozen casts. I find that the easiest way to resist the temptation of fishing wet flies in September is to leave your fly boxes in the car, taking to the river only a small selection of dries, along with one small wet fly (more on that bit of sacrilege later).