Streamer Fishing For Trophy Browns: Is Your Streamer Big Enough?
The other day I was talking with a friend about streamer fishing for trophy class trout. Specifically we were debating what’s the best size streamer for catching trophy browns. My buddy confidently proclaimed the biggest of trout will eat a three inch streamer just as fast as they’ll eat a five or six inch fly. There’s no doubt that plenty of gargantuan trout have been caught on smaller streamers by fly anglers all over the world, so I didn’t argue with my buddy even though I didn’t agree 100% with him. That being said, I do think location and food source availability does have a lot to do with what size fly pattern you should be fishing if you’re after the biggest browns in your home waters when it comes to streamers.
Where I live and guide in North Georgia, big wild brown trout are few and far between. Of the thousands of miles of designated trout water in my area, only a handful of streams and rivers support the caliber of wild brown trout that truly turn heads. The large majority of big browns that are caught each year, usually don’t end up being wild brown trout, but instead hold overs that have been previously stocked by our DNR. Lucking up and landing a twenty plus inch wild brown trout here, is a rare feat that’s not easily accomplished, regardless of how high the skill level happens to be by the angler wetting a line. Our streams arent’ that fertile so biggest of trout are more times than not, forced to eat juvenile trout to maintain their size.
I’ve always told my clients that brown trout seem to carry an overwhelming wiseness to them, when you compare them to other species of trout. They seem to always hangout in places where it’s extremely difficult to present a fly, and they’re the first fish to go running for cover when they sense the slightest bit of danger around them. The other day guiding and enjoying my time on the water mentoring one of my favorite clients (Gary Rogers), we came as close as we could possibly get to landing a giant wild brown trout. We had chosen the right location, a small wild trout stream that’s known for holding good numbers of wild brown trout. A year prior, almost to the very day, Gary had landed a huge 26″ brown. We’ve never stopped talking about that rare catch, and both of us yearned to witness a catch like that again together. As we waded up to S-bend in the stream that held a perfect undercut bank, we focused as a team the best we could on the task at hand. Both of us knew without speaking out loud, that if there was going to be a big brown anywhere in this stream, it was going to be found right here in that bend. Gary waded into position and presented his nymph rig off the back of the shoal leading towards the S-bend, and a few seconds later, he set the hook on a trout. It was approximately a 12-inch wild rainbow, and as the rainbow tried vigorously to shake the hook loose at the end of Gary’s line, I saw a big brown jolt out from the undercut bank and take a swipe at his rainbow. It was easily 24 inches or better, and as quickly as that trophy brown showed itself, it disappeared out of sight.
Read More »Sunday Classic / The V Grip Haul
IN THE LAST VIDEO OF OUR ULTIMATE LINE SPEED SERIES BRUCE IS GOING TO TURBO CHARGE YOUR DOUBLE HAUL BY APPLYING THE “V GRIP” TO YOUR LINE HAND.
Again, this is seriously advanced technique and it’s going to take practice. However, if you can master and employ all the techniques from the last five videos together you will cast like a rock star and the wind will be your bitch. Now, doesn’t that sound nice? I hope this video series has been helpful. I look forward to seeing the hero shots of all those salt water fish you’re going to catch!
Read More »Saturday Shoutout / Bar Flies
WHAT DO GUYS IN MICHIGAN DO ALL WINTER?
Apparently they drink beer and tie flies. And with some of the talent they have on hand, who can blame them? The guys at Schultz Outfitters have started a fun tradition. They teach fly tying classes at a local bar. They bring in some awesome guest tyers from all over to share their kick ass patterns and luckily for us, they video the whole affair.
My good friend Bruce Chard even made an appearance to tie a crab pattern. It looks like a rockin good time. It almost makes me wish I was in Michigan all winter. Well, almost.
Check out the videos from Bar Flies
Read More »Umpqua UPG Fly Box Review
Umpqua really raised the bar when they introduced their UPG line of fly boxes. In fact, they won multiple awards at trade shows, which were voted on by professionals in the industry. Their goal in mind when designing the UPG fly boxes was to tailor them for the professional guides. Point being, Umpqua knew if they could design and build a series of fly boxes that would hold up to the daily use and be loved by professional guides, the end result would be a product line that would in turn be popular among the majority of recreational fly fisherman. There’s no doubt they met their goal, and it’s no surprise, that today the Umpqua UPG fly boxes are now currently found in many of our own packs and vests.
I think a lot of fly anglers undervalue the importance of a quality fly box. Think about it for a second. As fly fisherman, we fit into one of two categories. We either spend hours upon hours at the vise, tying up our fly imitations or we spend hundreds of dollars buying individual fly patterns to fill up our fly boxes. Whatever category you fall into, it’s pretty apparent that there’s a substantial investment involved when it comes to what we carry around in our fly boxes, and it makes sense for us to protect that investment with a quality fly box.
The first thing you notice when you pick up a UPG fly box is how solid it feels. It’s not one of those flimsy light weight jobs that you find in many of the knock off fly boxes on the market. With solidness, comes a little bit of extra weight, and although some fly anglers would look down on this, you have to understand that extra weight translates into quality and durability on the water. The next thing you’ll notice about the fly boxes are the extraordinary amount of fly capacity in all of the fly box models. Some of the models, designed for storing smaller nymphs and midges, even have off set foam slits, which is intended to allow the fly angler to store twice as many flies per row of foam. Furthermore, most models incorporate two magnet areas that can be used for you to place your stand by flies waiting to be tied on and fished, or for secure storage for the smaller flies that are cumbersome to put into the foam slits. The benefit of the well designed layout of all of the UPG fly boxes translates into significantly increased fly capacity that’s well organized, and that means you’ll find it much easier to carry less fly boxes with you on the water without you having to sacrifice leaving any flies at the truck.
Read More »Whisky, Tango, Foxtrot Caption Contest
IT’S TIME FOR ANOTHER ROUND OF FUN AT OUR FISHING BUDDIES EXPENSE.
Test your wit against he rest of the G&G community. It’s fun! It’s challenging! It’s ridiculous! Best of all, you might win something really, really cool!
The person who comes up with the best caption, left in the form of a comment, for this bit of saltwater shenanigans wins this Flood Tide ball cap with an original Paul Puckett hand drawn redfish tail under the brim. You will be the envy of all your friends in the wearable piece of art.
Check out Flood Tide and Paul Puckett Art!
Let the fun begin. Leave your caption in the comments field below. No emails please. The winner will be announced March 13th.
Good Luck!
Read More »Fly Fishing: Our Trout Rivers and Streams Need More Wood
Several years back, one of my favorite wild trout streams, only a few miles from my house, got slammed with tornados and high winds (from back to back hurricanes that had moved up from Florida). The aftermath from the strong storms, downed dozens, upon dozens of trees along the stream. I was heartbroken at first when I witnessed all the downed wood. The first thing I thought about, was how much critical shade the stream had lost from the destruction of the large stretches of tree canopy along its banks. And that made me nervous water temperatures would thereby increase significantly during the summer months, posing a real threat to year round survival of the wild trout that lived there. I wasn’t alone in my worries, as I quickly found out when I talked with my local fly fisherman in the area. The large majority were in total agreement. We thought the best thing we could do, was go in and strategically remove as much wood as we could to avoid massive silt build ups, which we thought at the time, was causing the stream flow to slow down, and not only contribute to warming the water, but also choking out the natural aquatic bug life. Looking back now, as a much more educated angler, I know see the massive influx of in-stream wood cover that was gifted to us by the hurricanes, was not an environmental catastrophe, but actually a blessing in disguise for our beloved trout stream.
Read More »Sunday’s Classic / Spring Fishing on Tributaries for Wild Trout
Several of our blog followers on numerous occasions have asked Louis and I if we ever catch small trout? Jokingly, they mention, “All we see are trophy size fish in most of the pictures on the blog”. I assure you all, we catch plenty of small fish, and Louis and I both appreciate and photograph them on the water with the same gratitude and respect. It’s just fair to say, that a large portion of anglers out there are constantly striving to catch a trophy class fish. We tend to use our big fish photos as motivation and assurance that persistence pays off. However, it’s important to note, in most cases, there’s no distinction in our fishing technique. We pretty much fish the same way for all sizes of trout. We approach the fishing spots the same, we make the same casts and presentations, and we fish the same fly patterns. It really just boils down to whether or not it’s a numbers day or a big fish day, and we’re generally happy with either. Location does play a factor though for size of trout, but remember, a trophy fish should be defined by the water it inhabits. A 14-inch trout on a small creek has just as much right to hold the trophy status as a 20-inch fish on a big river.
Read More »Saturday Shoutout / Kleis’s Mysis Shrimp
If you’ve ever fly fished in Colorado, or for that matter, on any trout stream or river that has large numbers of Mysis Shrimp, you probably know how important it can be to have some of these patterns stocked in your fly box. Years back, during my maiden fly fishing trip to the Frying Pan River, in Colorado, I had an unbelievable day catching one trophy trout after another, on Mysis Shrimp patterns. There’s no doubt, without the aid of my Mysis Shrimp patterns, I wouldn’t have landed nearly as many trout during my time in Colorado. While we’re on the subject of talking about fishing Mysis Shrimp patterns, it should be noted that not all Mysis Shrimp patterns are created equal. Jon Kleis, from the Coloradoflyfisher.blogspot.com, explains matching the correct profile and color of naturals can be critical for fooling the highly educated trout in Colorado trout rivers and streams. Furthermore, he recommends that fly tiers should choose specific tying materials, like UV flashabou and fluorescent eyes, when tying Mysis shrimp. Doing so, it will greatly increase the realistic look of the imitation and performance on the water.
Read More »Adipose Boatworks Sponsors Gink & Gasoline
For a few years now, Louis and I have had the dream of getting a Gink & Gasoline drift boat for all of our fly fishing adventures. After rowing many different drift boats and skiffs on the water, and talking with different boat manufacturers in the industry, we’re very happy to let everyone know that we’ve decided to build a long-term partnership with our good friends at Adipose Boatworks. As you’re reading today’s post, our long-time friend, fly fishing guide and photographer, Rob Parkins is in transit from Victor, ID trailering our new and fully pimped out Adipose Flow Skiff. Louis and I will be heading out of town this Saturday, to meet up with Rob for a few days of streamer fishing on the White River. There’s no doubt in my mind that it’s going to be a dream trip for all of us. There’s nothing like falling in love with a new boat and dropping it in the water for the first time. I’m already dreaming about what a pleasure the Adipose Flow Skiff is going to be to row and fly fish out of. Big thank you to the entire crew at Adipose Boatworks, who fully believes and supports what Louis and I are doing with Gink & Gasoline. We’re permanently indebted to your company, and jazzed that we’ll be sporting, in our opinion, the highest quality drift boat/skiff on the market.
Read More »Glass With Ass, The Orvis Superfine Glass Rod
WARNING: FIBERGLASS IS HIGHLY ADDICTIVE.
I love the feel of fiberglass rods for trout fishing. It’s as if all of my stress is just absorbed by the material. I can not be tense or angry or anxious with a glass rod in my hand. It’s just a joy. The pace and the feel of the rod just puts me in a good mood. Like the first day of summer.
The problem is, a lot of fiberglass rods don’t come out of the tube until summer arrives. Though they may be pure bliss with a dry fly, they can leave you a little under-gunned when old man winter demands a little weight. Lead and fiberglass generally don’t mix.
Well, this winter has been an exception. I’ve spent most of the colder months fishing my new Orvis 7’6″ 4 weight, Superfine Glass. This little gem has all the feel and delicacy of presentation that I expect in a great fiberglass rod, and something I didn’t. Enough ass to throw a tandem nymph rig with split shot and a Thingamabobber.
That means the Superfine Glass is a year-round rod. That’s a huge plus for me. I fish a lot of small streams in the colder months and a 7 1/2′ 4wt is perfect. Now I get the fun of fishing fiberglass on those days too.
When the bugs do come out the Superfine can not be matched for delicate dry fly presentation. It drops a fly as soft as a whisper and has surprising range. The slow pace of the cast makes reach casting a dream and the deep bend of the rod means great roll casting. It’s all around a veritable, precision fly fishing machine.
The Superfine glass is available in
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