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"River of Dreams"
Essays and stories by Lani Waller
Foreword by John Randolph
Introduction by Dave Whitlock
Artwork by William Allan
Cover photographs by Ken Morrish
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"The great books of fly fishing are all personal testimonies… and this one is a must read for true fly fishers, for Lani Waller is the spiritual leader of this band of brothers. His writing is part of the footprint our generation will leave for the next." From the Foreword by John Randolph, Publisher & Editor, Fly Fisherman Magazine "Lani Waller has been one of those wonderful influences that has touched my life… I suggest that you turn off your cell phone, find some quiet place without distraction and savor each sentence as if it was a real bite of gourmet food… nourishment for the heart, soul and mind." From the Introduction by Dave Whitlock, Author/Artist/Teacher "These are pages from the book of a fly fisher’s life. Lani’s poetic and ‘real life’ moments are more than just a vicarious read; they are inspiration." Mel Krieger, Author/Instructor/Filmmaker "River of Dreams should not be labeled a fly fishing book. There is fly fishing in it, but each chapter is a journey that illustrates a universal truth of the human condition. Lani is amazingly honest about his past and just as sincere in expressing how these journeys affected his life. His recollections and musings touched my heart and stimulated my mind." Jeffrey Pill, Television Producer/Director/Writer |
Contents: "River of Dreams"
Trotter's Pool
Three Anglers and a pilot in a small plane crash into a famous British Columbia steelhead river; all are killed but the author. Trotter’s Pool reveals, for the first time, what actually happened that day and a near death experience, which changed the author’s life.
The Shadow Knows
The author believes the first part of an angler’s discovery of angling sometimes includes the appreciation of the endeavor as part of a magical process, which, if you are lucky, remains with you your entire life. Just ask The Shadow…
Steelhead Fever
Three men and a young boy venture north to California’s Klamath River. The boy discovers the allure and promise of steelhead fishing. The three men try to win the favor of a mysterious Indian maiden who appears in town each Saturday night; a woman who likes to drink water from the naked body of a man…
One Day on Fred Burr Creek
The author’s mother had no use for fly fishing because "you don’t catch enough that way." The chapter reveals how the author set aside his own prejudice about bait fishing, and took his mother fishing with but one condition: no hooks, no rods and no reels or lines...just a can of corn.
Seedling Creek: True Confessions of an Ex Hippy
Someone said if you can remember the sixties you really weren’t a part of them. This story reveals how the author, as a young man in that decade, once took his fly rod, a shovel and three thousand marijuana seeds into the woods so he could fish and plant the seeds which would make him rich for the rest of his life.
River of Giants
The author’s first trip to the Babine River in northern British Columbia, his twenty-five year involvement with the pioneers who first began fly fishing the river, and the way the things have changed are chronicled here. Guest appearances by Joe Brooks, Bob and Jerry Lou Wickwire, and Enar and Joy Madsen are part of the story.
Next Time
An angler’s father can have an immeasurable effect on his son, regardless of the age of either. In this story, the author goes fishing with his father for the last time, and the elder angler makes a promise to his son, about what he will do "the next time."
Playing The Numbers
Fishermen seem obsessed with statistics; how many we catch, how big they are, the numerical descriptions of our tackle, ad infinitum. This chapter takes a look at that obsession and ends with a trip to steelhead paradise, and the dream of landing the largest elephant ever taken on a flyrod.
"Ironwood Baby!"
Join the author during a hike on the world’s best trout stream, complete with the capture of a thirteen pound rainbow, and how the hunt for a trophy reveals both the strength and weaknesses of an angler still in love with the sport after forty-five years.
Day of The Manatee
The sun is setting as the author clutches an ice-cold beer and as the boat is pulled into darkness by a leviathan apparently impossible to subdue. The guide swears it is a new world-record tarpon. What if it’s a manatee? Does it matter? The author wonders.
Scruffy The Cat
Fishermen are supposed to have dogs. The author’s cat silenced that prejudice forever and the two of them still sit, from time to time, on the dock at Richardson Point, even though the salmon and steelhead are long gone. The line is in the water. Everything else is in their reflection.
Eye of The Marlin
All professional anglers have their code of ethics, and failing the code is a real possibility on any given day. This is the story of such a failure on a boat out of Zihuantenejo, Mexico, how the angler failed, and how eye of the marlin will always live in the author’s mind.
The Importance of Casting
The author has made only three truly great casts in his entire life; one for a black trout in the Apache badlands of western Nevada, one for a certain steelhead in British Columbia and one in front of a man who thought the longhaired author and caster was "walking on the wrong side of the road."
The Play’s The Thing
Perhaps, in the end, it doesn’t matter if it’s a carp, or a marlin, or a bluegill. Perhaps it’s the connection to the mystery that counts, the almost indefinable linkage to the reality of the hunt and the wild creature who takes you there. Maybe, the play’s the thing.
Sockeye Messengers
The river is around the author at dusk and a silver steelhead is leaping into the sky; the salmon pass silently, time bends and then jumps two years into the future, and in that moment the salmon return, as they have for a million years. This time they seem to bring a message to all of us.
To order your personalized, autographed copy, contact Lani Waller at 415-897-4997; or email Lani Waller. Regular editions are $24.95 plus shipping and handling. Limited editions are $100.00 plus shipping and handling.
Distributors, wholesale accounts, and fly shops should contact:
West River Publishing
895 Legion Dr.
Grand Island, NY 14072
716-773-2543