In Vermont, the Battenkill in the southwestern part of the State is a magnet for fly fishermen who tend toward the snobbish/elitist end of the spectrum, the Orvis crowd. OTOH, the White River is, IMO, a better trout stream and gets only a fraction of the action. If you can't find a mile or more of the White River for yourself, you aren't looking/trying, even on a weekend. During the middle of the week, you would be more likely to have between 5 and 10 miles of vacant water to yourself.
I avoid those named streams. Perhaps it's just the intimidation factor too. I'm just a kid from Indiana that has worked his way into being able to catch a few trout in a few places.
On Orvis, I generally really like their stuff. My Orvis vest is 30 years old this year and is stained and sewed up in a few places but their prices are insane these days. I did drop into the Manchester Outlet store three years ago though and scored some great deals. I've loved the Helos rods since I cast Rocky Raab's a few years ago in Montana but no way I was going to spend that amount. Found a 9' 4 weight in the outlet ship at 50% off and it's really my go to rod for 75% of my fishing.
Buying Orvis doesn't make me an Orvis guy though!
