If It Were Easy, They’d Call It Catchin’: How Journaling Can Improve Your Fishing and Yourself

As a wildlife professional, it’s always rewarding to see people that are truly passionate about their sport. The author clearly shows us that he lives for fishing, especially flyfishing. His detailed memory of past fishing trips, aided by decades of journaling, makes me regret that I haven’t journaled my own outdoor adventures. Through many great stories, the author clearly shows his love for fishing as well as his love for family and friends.
Rod Smith
Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation
Having known Tom for more than 20 years, many of these trips are part of my memories as well. Tom started with keeping data and using that information in hopes of catching more fish. After reading these pages, I think he found that, more than the data, he has appreciated the pursuit of the fish, but most of all, those whom he had the opportunity to share those times with. No matter how you tell the stories, you find those adventures are getting better as the years go by. Great read. It has me thinking about all the time I have spent on the water, and the rich friendships I have found there.
Tom Adams
Guide, Trip Host & Fly-fishing Instructor
Not your usual How to-Where to, fishing book. A tale gleaned from a lifetime of angling and journaling and the stuff in between. Tom shares his journey from a young lad on farm ponds in Oklahoma to the gloried trout streams of the Rockies. Another reminder that it’s the JOURNEY that is the prize – Kudos.
Ed Adams
Fly-fishing Guide and Journaler
Tom Friedemann is the most interesting fisherman I have met in 20 years covering the outdoors. We all have fish stories, but Tom has the data to back up his tales. He has kept the ultimate fisherman’s diary.
Ed Godfrey
Outdoor Editor, The Oklahoman newspaper

Tom Friedemann grew up on a farm near Stillwater, Oklahoma, where he developed his love for fishing. Following a forty-nine-year career in public education, he retired and moved to Jones, Oklahoma, just a stone’s throw away from Lake Arcadia. He spends a great deal of time fishing locally and in the streams and rivers near his cabin in Red River, New Mexico.