Fly Fishing: The Importance of Having a Good Game Plan
It’s cool to shoot from the hip on the water. What I mean by that, is fly fishing a new stretch of water and catching fish right out the gates. Sometimes you get lucky and hit the bullseye right off the bat, catching fish immediately after wetting your fly line. Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen ever time you pull the trigger on the water, especially on water you’ve never laid your eyes on or haven’t fly fished in months. Veteran fly fisherman that have logged hundreds, if not thousands of hours on the water fly fishing, understand this fact, and that’s why most of them have develop a familiar fly fishing game plan that they use to help them locate and decipher the feeding pattern for the given day. They’ll run through a list of different fly patterns, rig or types of water, and eventually they’ll gain enough information through observation and feedback from their fishing, that they’ll be able to dial into the most effective way to stay into the fish. This strategy is very similar to how tournament bass fisherman pre-fish water to identify and develop a pattern on the lake before tournament time. When conditions change or specific tactics yield little success, having a “game plan” of what you’re going to do next is invaluable on the water when it comes to not only getting your skunk off, but also fully enjoying your time on the water. Below is an example of a “trout game plan” that I use when I’ve not been on the water for a while or when I’m visiting new water. It usually increases my success a great deal.
Read More »UMPQUA SWIFTWATER ZS TECH VEST GIVE-AWAY
Want the new Umpqua Zero Sweep Swiftwater Tech Vest? Well, here’s how you get one!
First you have to understand the whole idea behind Zero Sweep. Umpqua worked with Navy SEALS to design their awesome new tech pack and vest. If you’re a navy SEAL about to throw down on some bad guys, the last thing you want is for your gear to get tangled. That’s why all of their gear incorporates a design idea called Zero Sweep, which means there are no places where anything can hang up or snag.
Umpqua built this Zero Sweep design into a new line of technical packs and vests and it’s pretty sweet. No place for fly line or leaders to snag. Nothing to hang on branches as you crawl through that thicket to your favorite honey hole. All of your tools tuck into their own enclosures, where you can get to them but they can’t get away. And of course they are Umpqua built, which means bomb proof. Quality fabrics and workmanship and smart design, inside and out.
So here’s how you win a Swiftwater ZS Tech Vest ($169 value) of your own.
Go to Instagram…WHAT? You’re not on Instagram? It’s fun, free and easy, click HERE to start.
Next, follow Gink and Gasoline and Umpqua Feather Merchants, so you can tag us in your post.
Then upload a photo of you biggest,
Read More »Sage One Elite Review
Sage takes its award winning ONE, One better.
It’s an interesting task, to take a fly rod which has been called the best ever made and make it better. Apparently Sage rod designer Jerry Siem felt like a challenge because he’s done just that. Before I give you my thoughts on this rod, I’ll start with a little disclaimer.
This rod is not cheap. I’m sure we will hear about it from the peanut gallery. I’ve written plenty about cheap rods and I’ll write more in the future. If you’re not interested in an expensive rod, stop reading now. If, however, you are at the point in your fly fishing where you are interested in investing in something really nice for yourself, or a lucky loved one, read on.
The Sage ONE Elite is a 9′ 5 wt limited edition version of the lauded ONE series with a few very special tweaks. It features all of the same basic elements that make the ONE what it is. It is a very high modulus carbon fiber rod which is extremely light with a very fast recovery rate. Sage called this combination of material and process, Konnetic Technology. I have no idea what that means. I can tell you this. Jerry did an interesting demonstration for me in the lab at Sage. He dropped two sections of rod blank on the countertop. One Konnetic and one not. The Konnetic blank made a beautiful pinging sound and jumped twice as far back off the counter. It could be Flubber, who knows?
The result, as you know if you’ve cast a ONE, is an especially crisp and precise action that’s a pleasure to cast? Like fly rods from any maker, some weights and tapers are better than others. I’ve cast a few ONEs that I didn’t care for and some that are just phenomenal. As you might guess the 9′ 5 is one they really worked on. The standard rod is nice, the Elite is amazing.
WHAT’S DIFFERENT IN THE SAGE ONE ELITE?
There are just a couple of differences between the standard ONE and the Elite.
Read More »Sunday Classic / The Redfish Wiggler
My buddy Paul Puckett is best known for his beautiful paintings of fish and his funny renderings of celebrity’s holding fish. What you may not know about Paul is that he’s a redfish junky. So much so that he recently moved to Charleston SOuth Carolina to be closer to the fish he loves. I visited The Fish Hawk the other day and Paul took the time to share one of his favorite redfish flies. If you’re headed to redfish country tie a few of these babies up. You won’t be sorry. Check out Paul’s work at paulpuckettart.com And his clothing line at floodtideco.com Come fish with us in the Bahamas! Louis Cahill Gink & Gasoline www.ginkandgasoline.com hookups@ginkandgasoline.com Sign Up For Our Weekly Newsletter!
Read More »Saturday Shoutout / Vokey & McMillan on Steelhead
If you love steelhead, you don’t want to miss this.
Ever wandered what makes a common rainbow trout head for the ocean and become a steelhead? Or why it brother does not? Well, so has biologist John McMillan. Enough to dedicate his life to answering that question and many others about steelhead.
April Vokey sat down with McMillan recently for a podcast on the subject. It’s one of the most informative talks I’ve heard on the subject. If you’re interested in steelhead, it’s one you don’t want to miss.
CHECK OUT APRIL’S DISCUSSION WITH JOHN MCMILLAN
Read More »New Fishing Packs From Fishpond
Fishpond fishing packs just keep getting better!
The new line-up of packs from Fishpond is pretty impressive. They picked up a couple of awards at IFTD for designs that focus on comfort, function and water proofing. I’ve been using the new Thunderhead dry pack for a while now and absolutely love it. Look for a full review on that one soon.
Also worth special mention of the Drifty boat caddy. A great organizer pack that hangs on your boat or mounts on a cooler. Anyone who owns, or regularly fishes from, a boat is going to love this.
CHECK OUT THIS VIDEO TO SEE ALL THE NEW PACKS FROM FISHPOND.
Read More »Fly Fishing: Does Your Fly Patch Look Like This?
Do yourself a favor and clean out your foam drying patch on your pack, during the cold months, when you’re not going to be on the water for a while. You’ll be surprised how much your fly boxes will fill back up once you’ve done a thorough cleaning, and also just how much trash you’ve accumulated over the past season in the bottom of your packs. I’ve got a horrible habit of leaving my flies on my drying patch day in and day out. I use my drying patch as a fly box in itself and although it saves me some time on the water when I’m guiding, it ends up destroying dozens of flies during the season. That translates into quite a bit of money thrown down the drain, and significant time lost at the tying bench that could have otherwise been avoided. Don’t let your fly drying patches get out of control. They’re not meant to be used as permanent fly storage, rather, they’re a place to organize flies for your day out on the water or for drying fly patterns out until you can safely put them back in the appropriate fly boxes.
Read More »2 Great Hosted Trips For Steelhead and Bonefish
Gink and Gasoline hosted fishing trips are a great way to make new friends and up your game on the water. I put together several trips a year to fish with G&G readers and share some of the best water I know. They are more than great fishing trips, they are meetings of fun, like-minded anglers. A chance to share information, stories and our passion for fly fishing. I host these trips myself and am there to help you have the best trip possible. There’s no catch, no hidden fees. You pay the same amount you’d pay to fish these location any day of the year. Want to know more about how the hosted trip program works? You can find all the details HERE. The next two trips on the calendar are the famous South Andros Bonefish School and Deschutes Steelhead Camps. These are two of our most popular trips with anglers returning year after year. Don’t wait. Shoot me an email at hookups@ginkandgasoline.com for more info or to reserve your spot. I’m happy to help any way I can. It’s my job to put you on fish. Shoot me an email to hookups@ginkandgasoline.com for more info or to reserve your spot. Deschutes river Steelhead Camp: September 12th-18th, 2016 This is the real deal. Run class four rapids in a jet sled, sleep under the stars on the banks of Oregon’s beautiful Deschutes River and swing flies to aggressive steelhead. Fish hard from sun up to sun down with a relaxing mid-day siesta. Tell fishing stories and go home feeling really alive. It doesn’t get any better. The Deschutes is known for its eager summer run steelhead. It’s one of the best places anywhere for catching steelhead on floating lines and even dry flies. The canyon is beautiful and there’s lots … Continue reading
Read More »My #1 Fly Casting Tip
By Kyle Wilkinson
I give a lot of casting lessons through the shop and I’m still yet to meet an angler who doesn’t want to cast further and with higher line speed and power.
Most people I work with seem to think the key to a better forward cast is simply applying more power or casting “harder”. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Are there times when making a long cast (particularly into the wind) is going to need a little extra “umph” to get it out there? Sure. But this isn’t the only key to that success. In fact, it doesn’t matter how much extra power you give the forward cast, you’ll never get the results you want if you don’t do one key thing- make a perfect backcast.
I use the reference of golf a lot as well when teaching casting lessons. Not that I’m a great golfer by any means but I know enough to know that swinging the club twice as hard doesn’t make the ball go twice as far—trust me I’ve tried. The same is 100% true with a fly rod.
So before we jump into this handy little trick I’m about to share, if you only remember one thing from this message, let it be this. It is impossible to make a good forward cast if you make a bad backcast.
On almost every casting lesson I give, we easily spend at least 50% or more of the time just working on making a proper back cast. And while there are numerous nuances that I could dive into regarding this topic, this is how we always start things out. If you’ve found yourself frustrated by your casts, head to a local park and give this a try.
Strip out 40 or 50 feet of line and while standing with good posture and facing forward, make several false casts. Once you’ve made three or four and are carrying the line through the air it’s time to move on to step 2.
FREEZE
Read More »Sunday Classic / 6 Tips for Catching Suspended Trout
By Kent Klewein
One of the toughest situations I’ve encountered trout fishing over the years, is when trout are suspended in the water column and feeding in a stationary position.
These trout are usually too deep to persuade them to rise to your dry fly on the surface, yet are also holding too far up from the bottom for you to easily dredge your tandem nymph rig in front of them. Most of the time, this is a frustrating sight-fishing scenario for the fly angler, where all you see is the trout occasionally open and close its mouth. You can see the trout you’re trying to catch, but no matter how hard you try, you can’t seem to get your flies to drift in the correct feeding zone of the holding trout and get them to eat. I see this situation a lot on deep clear pools or on long and slow flowing runs, but you can also find this same situation in pocket water where eddies and irregular bottom structure provides slower water holding stations/sanctuaries for trout as well.
Make no excuse, these trout are catchable. It just requires a more technical approach and increased awareness of where your flies are drifting for you to find success. For fly anglers to catch trout in this situation they need to correctly match their fly fishing rig with the water they’re fishing, and slow down and concentrate on making quality presentations not quantity.
Tip 1: Get as close as you can to the sighted trout without spooking it.
I’ve found the trout that are suspended and feeding stationary, usually are also lazy. They don’t want to have to swim out of their position to feed, and that means fly anglers will need to make accurate and precise presentations, since the strike zone is so small. By getting close to your target you’ll find it much easier to keep your flies consistently drifting at the correct depth and in-line with the trout. Often if you’re positioned too far away, you’ll find one presentation will be good, and the next three will be off target. This might not seem like a big deal, but you’re not only trying to get good presentations, you’re also trying to read the fish to see if it likes your pattern or not as well. Getting into proper position and keeping your casting distance to a minimum will allow you to accomplish both much quicker.
Tip 2: Take the time to look for drifting food in the water before you choose your fly patterns
In the last tip, I said, “usually these suspended fish are lazy”. They are in the big spectrum, but it’s important to understand that when trout are suspended and feeding stationary, most of the time it’s because the trout are keyed in on a specific type of aquatic insect, that is drifting at the level the trout is holding. Spend a few minutes watching the feeding trout and look for any drifting bugs. If you see the trout continuing to feed regularly, but you can’t see any drifting food with your naked eye, a light bulb in your head should be going off and telling you to tie on fly patterns that are small. Try using a size 18-22 pheasant-tail nymph or a midge pattern. Don’t expect your size 10 woolly bugger to get the job done in this situation. Sometimes it will work, but most times, these fish are selectively feeding on small micro-invertabrates, and you need to downsize your flies to fool the trout into thinking it’s eating the same stuff it’s been feeding on the last couple hours.
Tip 3: Try a dry fly with two nymph droppers
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