Veteran author Charlie Meck and newcomer Paul Weamer have released their “Pocket Guide to Pennsylvania Hatches” as a handy reference for our most prolific fly hatches. This pocket sized hardcover published by Headwater Books is a 154 page compendium of angling knowledge.

Introductory chapters cover the effective use of the guide, the different types of trout waters you’ll find in the Commonwealth and keys to timing the hatches. This later section uncovers the clues from blooming streamside vegetation that can key anglers into the aquatic insect hatches that produce the best fishing.

The bulk of the “Pocket Guide” covers the important mayfly hatches with color photos, descriptions of insect habitat and behavior, and recommendations for fly patterns and fishing tactics. The data is well presented and to the point, exactly the way it should be presented in a carry along reference work.

Additional chapters follow the same format, covering caddisflies, stoneflies, craneflies and midges and terrestrials. The authors list a few of the state’s premier streams for encountering each hatch, enough choices to get any angler started on an exploration of our great waters.

Charlie Meck has authored many books exploring insect hatches and the wonderful dry fly fishing they offer. This work concentrates a lot of information into a handy companion volume devoted to his native Pennsylvania rivers and streams.

Paul Weamer took a hiatus from fishing his native Pennsylvania streams to spend several years enjoying the beauty and the challenge of the Upper Delaware river system, culminating with his 2007 book “Fly Fishing Guide to the Upper Delaware River”.

Together these two friends have produced a volume worthy of any fly fisher who prowls Pennsylvania waters. I’ll be carrying mine along to refresh my memory on the habits of those bugs I haven’t encountered for a few seasons. When it’s not in my truck, it will reside on my fly tying desk as a reminder for the patterns I should carry for each trip astream.