John Gierach, the author who celebrated fly-fishing in a series of 17 often humorous books on the subject, has died at 78.

His death, on Oct. 3 in Colorado, was announced by his longtime publisher, Simon & Schuster. “Gierach was renowned for his candor, wit, and insightful observations about life and the natural world,” the press said.

Gierach, an Illinois native, moved to Colorado in 1969, where he would fly-fish the St. Vrain Creek and the Big Thompson River, according to Fly Fisherman magazine, which published some of the writer’s earliest work.

He published a guidebook, Flyfishing the High Country, in 1984 and followed that up two years later with Trout Bum, a collection of essays. He would go on to write many more books on the subject, including Even Brook Trout Get the Blues, Another Lousy Day in Paradise, No Shortage of Good Days, and Dumb Luck and the Kindness of Strangers.

His most recent book, All the Time in the World, was published last year. A critic for Kirkus called it “just the thing for any fan of fly-tying and artful casting.”

Gierach’s admirers remembered him on social media. On the platform X, Fishing Through the Apocalypse author Matthew L. Miller wrote, “Rest in peace, John Gierach. I’ve been reading Gierach’s books for more than 30 years. He captured the experience of fly fishing with wit and wonderful turns of phrase. One of the best.”

And philosophy professor Mark van Roojen posted, “This is a real loss for many of us who care about the environment and fishing. I’d hoped he’d be around longer.”

Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.