Now Bigger, and Muddier

All the news focused on the massive slug of water stretching the banks of the Mississippi like a bird’s egg in a snake made me take another look at the clever “concept blog” done recently by Nate Matthews and Tim Romano of Field & Stream. Their “Big Muddy Road Trip,” while geared to hook-and-bullet sensibilities, is a clever and gritty bucket of journalism. And Tim Romano may be one of the most under-appreciated photo-journalists in the fishing business. Here’s a taste from their last on-the-river post: “A strong wind and an incoming tide were pushing directly against the Mississippi’s 2,320 mile-long current, and this created some massive waves. These were crashing against the jetty with great force, throwing gouts of spray into the air, where it was blown sideways by the wind. When I saw this I knew we wouldn’t be doing much fishing. But there are times when I’m possessed by a mulish sort of stubborn, and I was damned if we’d come this far to turn around without at least touching the waters of the Gulf.”