Charmed Circle watersheds:  Cecil E. Heacox dubbed a portion of the Catskills the “Charmed Circle” in the March and April 1969 issues of Outdoor Life.  Heacox’s two part classic article was titled “Charmed Circle of The Catskills”, a phrase that has stuck to this region like super glue.  In the March issue Heacox wrote, “I call this region charmed because its fine fishing in the wild, forested settings has survived even though it is with a day’s drive of one-sixth of the total population of the United States and Canada.  The Charmed Circle has not only survived in the face of outdoor-hungry hordes, … but it also offers a whole new generation of fishermen a taste of angling as it used to be.”

Heacox worked in fisheries for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC) and rose to the position of Deputy Commissioner before his career was finished.  His articles took readers on a journey along some legendary Catskill Rivers, perhaps just like the landscapes below might.

Roaring Kill spring, Schoharie Creek, 18x24:

This is a small tributary to Art Flick’s Schoharie Creek, lost in the Indian Head Wilderness area.  However, it’s not so lost that Peter Barrett couldn't include a chapter about it--- Old Friends and the Joys of the Worm--- in his book, In Search of Trout.  Conversely Cecil Heacox wrote the following about the Schoharie, "Oddly enough, I remember the Schoharie for what I didn't catch there."  And so it is for many anglers who visit this picturesque watershed.

Burroughs Rondout, above the Blue Hole, 18x24:

If Catskill naturalist John Burroughs ever favored a single stream, it would certainly be the Rondout Creek.  Read Burroughs 1910 essay, “A Bed of Boughs” and you might quickly reach this conclusion also.  And, Heacox wrote “I caught my first trout” where the Merriman Dam stands in his noted articles above.  Even renowned Catskill flyfisher Edward R. Hewitt wrote about frustrating fishing days at the Blue Hole, which is perhaps the most famous pool on the upper Rondout.  However, there are other crystalline pools above the Blue Hole.

Forest plunge pool, 16x20:

A wilderness section of the Esopus, not far from its source on the Winnisook Club.  The angling member/photographer of this Catskillwatersart consortium loses himself here every autumn, and this is where he wishes his ashes be spread after his last breath has been taken.

Maltby Hollow Brook, 16x20:

A tributary to a tributary; enough said.

Herdman Road, Esopus Creek 18x24:

Heacox wrote “The Esopus, because it was more accessible, became the first trout capital of the Charmed Circle” not far from here.

Budapest Lodge, Esopus Creek, 16x20 (Sold):

Esopus Creek waters upstream of the Portal.