The Hardy Smuggler #7

 The Hardy Smuggler #7.

Perhaps one of the most fished rods I had,one of the finest and, for sure, less appreciated by the public.

Long, at 10'6", heavy because of the six (or was it 7?) sections but also a powerhouse that could punch a fly straight into a gale, roll cast a weighted stonfly nimph or a "train" of three wets and ever so smooth that, despise the #7 denomination, it would never brake the finest of the leaders on a strike.

With her British saddle leather rod tube it was a joy to hold and look at and the small, elegant handle spoke volumes of its vocation as a fine trout fishing tool.

I picked it up as a trade many years ago, in Italy still, and fished almost anywhere with it. When I move down to Baja, with the idea to stay only six to twelve months, I sold it thinking that I could have purchased back (or another one just like it) once I made it back home to Victoria, BC.

We all know how that plan worked out.