The SA Skagit Extreme Intermediate, Better Casts, Better Swings, More Fish
In the end it all comes down to this. A better head means more fish.
I had the opportunity to try out the Scientific Anglers Skagit Extreme Intermediate head while fishing the Deschutes river this September. It didn’t take long for me to fall in love. The head was not only a pleasure to cast and to fish but immediately put me on fish where my floating head had failed.
Here’s the scenario. I was fishing a tough run at the head of a big rapid where I knew there were fish who didn’t get a lot of attention. The bite had been a little slow and I was really looking for one more fish on my last day. I knew they were there but I wasn’t getting them.
This run was tough for a couple of reasons. It was deep and fast. This made it tough to get the fly down and even tougher to get a good slow swing, but it also made casting tricky as I was in chest deep water with poor footing. On top of that, the water was boiling over big boulders, making it hard to get a good consistent swing. A good run with a lot of challenges.
I fished through it with my floating head with no success. My buddy Jeff Hickman was with me and generously offered me his rod with the SA Skagit Extreme Intermediate. From the first cast it was clear that this was the tool for the job.
First, it solved the casting struggle.
Read More »Sunday Classic / The Masters of Hyperbole
“ARE THERE JUST A BUNCH OF LIARS AMONG US?”
Hyperbole (hahy-pur-buh-lee) noun – An obvious or intentional exaggeration. An extravagant statement or figure of speech not meant to be taken literally, as in “to wait an eternity.”
Christmas or Thanksgiving, when I was a child, were about the only times I saw my Grandfathers together in the same room. Both events involving some turkey, green bean casserole and several desserts, after which there would be some considerable recuperation. The latter part of this recuperation period was something I always eagerly awaited. After a half hour or so of digestion the conversation would inevitably turn to hunting dogs. Why, you might ask, would a young boy be so excited about listening to two old men talk about hunting dogs? You see, this was no normal dog talk, and the dogs these two had in mind, no normal hounds. These dogs were worthy of Homer. These, my friends, were the dogs of legend.
This is how it would start.
“You know Abe, I had this dog once,” Pete, my paternal Grandfather, would lob a volley across the living room at my Mother’s Father.
“He was such a good dog that one time he was jumping a barbed wire fence and just as he crossed the top of that fence he smelled some birds.” To add an air of authenticity his voice would become excited as he continued, “damned if he didn’t stop, right there, perched on that strand of barbed wire in a perfect point!”
Abe, short for Adolphus who preferred to be called Bill, would field this with the nonchalant air of a major league ball player playing catch with a school boy.
“Yeah, that’s a pretty good dog, but I had a dog once, Mike was his name,” and the game was on.
“Mike found a covey of birds roosting in a pile of rocks. Well, he was so smart,
Read More »Saturday. Shoutout / The Road To Tenkara
“How does a perfectly good modern trout guide become devoted to an ancient style of fly-fishing?”
This week Tom Sadler tries to answer this question for Middle River Dispatches. Tom document how he discovered tenkara fly fishing, why he started teaching it to his clients and how he came to see it as a purer form of fly fishing.
Tom is now a full time tenkara guide and preaches the word to anyone who is interested. Check out his story. He makes some great points of interest to any fly angler.
Check out “The Road To Tenkara”
Read More »Mystic Fly Rods, This One’s For The Ladies
Screen-Shot-2014-12-17-at-4.31.51-PMGreat new two handers and a speciality rod for women that isn’t pink.
I’ve been really impressed with the rods I’ve fished from this little Michigan company. Especially the two hand rods. The action is sweet and the quality of the components and finish are remarkable. Great quality rods at a middle of the road price. You get an awful lot for your money with a Mystic.
This year at IFTD, Mystic unveiled a couple of new Spey offerings in 7 & 8 weights. I’ve not had the chance to fish them but they feel awesome. Much like other Mystic two handers I’ve used. Also new in the mystic line is the Sapphyre, a fly rod designed specifically for women. And it’s not pink! It’s lovely in fact, with a scaled down grip which is very comfortable.
IN THIS VIDEO DENNIS KLEIN SHOWS OFF THE NEW GOODS AND TELLS US A LITTLE MORE ABOUT EACH ROD.
Read More »Louis’s Christmas List
Merry Christmas From Gink and Gasoline!
It’s hard to believe that 2014 is is almost in the net. It’s been a remarkable year for us. Full of challenges and successes. Who knew how many good people would rally around a fly fishing site started by two boys from Georgia? No one is more shocked, more thankful and more humbled by the support we have received than I am. I’d like to personally thanks each and every one of you. You are amazing.
Now that I’ve come clean on how much I have to be thankful for this Christmas, I’m going ask for more! I have three things on my Christmas list and I’m counting on each of you to deliver.
Louis’s Christmas list for 2014
Call up a friend who help you learn to fly fish and say thanks. It’s a word that no one hears too often. Even better, say thanks and make a date to go fishing. Especially if you haven’t in a while.
2) Find someone who wants to learn and take them fishing. It’s a gift that they will never forget and it will do you a whole lot of good too.
3) Challenge yourself, not others. See if you can make it through the next year without calling someone else’s idea of fly fishing, “bullshit.” Open your mind and realize that you can learn something from anyone, even a beginner. Let’s make fly fishing inclusive, not exclusive.
There it is. My Christmas list. You’ve given me so much and I’m asking for more. Give it a try and see if every day you go fishing doesn’t feel a little more like Christmas. God bless us, every one.
Merry Christmas!
Read More »Thank You Dad
Here’s a nice memory, just in time for Christmas.
Rummaging through my computer files looking for a photograph for an upcoming post today, I ran across this photo of my Dad and I. It’s at least five years old and taken about this time of year come to think of it. That day we had a great time fly fishing together, but it started off rough, since Dad kept setting the hook like Bill Dance. I think we broke off five trout before we brought the first fish to net. It’s the only time in my life I can recall hearing tippet making a bull whip snapping sound as it broke. Granted it was the first time my Dad had fly fished for trout that I know of, so I really can’t blame him for what happened. Apparently, I didn’t spend enough pre-fishing instruction on proper hook setting technique before we hit the water. Then again, I don’t know if it would have mattered, since Dad is much more accustom to fishing 14 pound test and dragging a 1/2 ounce weight in front of a plastic worm.
If my memory stands correct, I finally had to grab the fly rod from his hand and have him watch me set the hook on a trout before he finally got in a groove. If you asked him though, he’d chuckle, and tell you I’m blowing things way out of proportion. What Dad doesn’t know is I’m grateful for his cold start that day. By him breaking off all those fish in a row, it has left me with a permanent memory I’ll never forget. One that
Read More »Sunday Classic / 10 Tips For Targeting Rising Trout With Terrestrials
One of my favorite times of the year to fly fish for trout is when I’m able to target rising fish with terrestrials. It’s always a breath of fresh air when I’m able to leave the nymph box at the truck in exchange for my terrestrial box, that’s overflowing with stacked foam and rubber legged imitations. I love nothing more than seeing trout come up and devour these patterns on the surface. Terrestrial fishing can be some of the easiest trout fishing of the year, but occasionally it can get technical, especially late season, when the fish have grown accustom to spotting out our terrestrial imitations.
Below are ten tips that should help you bring more fish to the net when targeting rising trout with terrestrials.
Tip 1: Get on the water early. Beetle Patterns work really well at first light, when hoppers can still be inactive, and the low light will help you stay concealed.
Tip 2: Don’t immediately cast to a trout you just saw rise. Waiting 10-15 seconds before presenting your fly will allow the feeding fish to get back into its feeding station, and begin looking for its next meal.
Tip 3: Make sure you present your fly far enough upstream of a rising fish. Trout often drift back with the current to take food on the surface.
Tip 4: Take your time, waiting 45 seconds or longer in-between presentations to a rising fish. Don’t continuously cast over and over to a rising fish. This will often spook or put the fish down.
Tip 5: Don’t stick with the same pattern if you’re getting refusals or the fish are ignoring your fly. Change out the size or type of your terrestrial pattern.
Read More »Saturday Shoutout / Capt Jack’s Guide Cribs Mongolia
“IN ORDER TO BE A LEADER, YOU GOT TO TIE A LEADER.”
Step into the guide palace with Captain Jack. This video is funny as hell and it does make me want to fish in Mongolia. And drink a little Gingiss Khan.
ENJOY!
Read More »See More With Smith Optics
THERE IS NO GREATER ADVANTAGE IN FLY FISHING THAN SEEING THE FISH.
I don’t care what your fishing for, your odds go way up when you see the fish. To make that happen you need good polarized glasses. I’m a big fan of Smith Optics. Smiths are all I have worn for many years. They are high quality glasses that don’t break the bank and they are always on the leading edge of technology. They have hands down the best prescription program and they are tough as nails. Just a few weeks ago I dropped a pair of Smith Chemists with glass lenses on a gravel road and stood on them with my dirty wading boot while I shucked off my waders. I bent them right back into shape and kept going.
Choosing the right glasses can be a tough choice. There are a lot of options and application. In this video Peter Crow from Smith Optics talks with me about some of their new products and how to choose the right glasses for you.
Read More »Flood Tide Reds Part 2, Flies and Leaders
By Owen Plair
“What kind of flies and leaders do you use for these flood tide redfish?”
“Doesn’t the grass foul your fly constantly?” “Don’t the oyster shells cut your leader?” “How do you even fish a fly in that thick grass?” I get questions like these all the time. Let me put your minds at ease. None of these things are a problem as long as you’re using the right stuff.
Fly selection on the flood tide is surprisingly unimportant. When these fish are tailing on the short spartina grass flats, they constantly have their heads down in the mud looking for fiddler crabs. When redfish get into this feeding zone it seems that almost any pattern you slide in front of their nose will do the trick, as long at it’s moving in the right way.
Of course crab patterns are key during the flood tides but other baitfish patterns, gurglers, or even shrimp patterns will work just fine. Some popular commercial patterns that work really well on the flood tides are the Kung Fu Crab, Fools Gold, Scotty D’s Drum Beater, Craft Shrimp, Redfish Toad, Dupre Spoons, EP Crab, Merkin, Electric Chicken, and pretty much any other baitfish/crab pattern with a GOOD weed guard!
Its all about the presentation and finding a fish that is in feeding mode, sucking crabs off the bottom like a vacuum cleaner. During these flood tides you are presenting the fly in 5-8 inches of water and short spartina grass. You’re bumping the fly slowly along the bottom to make it look like a fiddler crab, using short strips on the retrieve. Usually leading the fish by 2-3ft depending on how the fish is acting at the moment.
For example if he’s tailing really hard and focused on feeding, constantly changing directions, then you want to put it right on his nose. But if the fish is
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