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
Read More »Sunday Classic / New Treatment for Casters Elbow
Ok, it tennis elbow but it might as easily be casters elbow. If you’ve spent much time on the cork end of a fly rod you’ve felt that burning in the elbow. Probably while you were fighting a big fish. That’s when it usually gets me. This came up while fishing with a friend who like me plays guitar pretty regularly. When combined with a couple of days a week fishing it’s a recipe for pain and suffering.
I did some research and came across a new gadget for the treatment of tennis elbow that’s pretty effective. It’s called Flex Bar. It would be tedious to explain how to use it but this video, although goofy as hell, gets it across. It’s pretty simple. You can buy one of these online for $15 or so but I made my own by cutting off a piece of a foam pool noodle from Wal-Mart. You have enough foam left over to tie some stupid big Chernobyls in crazy colors. If you do, please send photos.
Read More »Saturday Shoutout / Tobey Fishes With Thoreau
JON TOBEY OF “GO INTO THE LIGHT” HAS BEEN READING, AND FISHING.
It turns out the Jon shares his home water with Henry David Thoreau. And what he has learned from Thoreau about this place is quite enlightening. It’s also a riveting perspective on action and consequence. Would you be surprised to know that Thoreau was calling for the removal of dams in 1849 and warning of how they would irrevocably change the environment?
Like Thoreau, Jon is a concerned angler and a hell of a writer. Take a few minuets to wade with he and Thoreau in the waters of the Concord and Merrimack. You may learn a thing or two.
THOREAU’S A WEEK ON THE CONCORD AND MERRIMACK RIVERS
Read More »Innovative New Rods From Tenkara USA
IF YOU HAD TOLD ME A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO THAT TENKARA WOULD BE THE FASTEST GROWING SEGMENT OF FLY FISHING IN 2014 I’D HAVE SAID, “WHAT’S TENKARA?”
I’m not sure anyone other than Daniel Galhardo saw it coming but tenkara has spread like pink eye in kindergarten. And with good reason. Tenkara fishing is a blast. I’ve been doing it for a while now and it has legitimately changed the way I think about some of my fly fishing.
In addition to being fun, tenkara is also a great introduction to fly fishing. I shortens the learning curve and let’s the angler focus on the fundamentals of presentation. I firmly believe that anglers who start with tenkara will be better fish catchers than those who start with traditional gear.
This year Tenkara USA introduced a couple of new rods who’s lengths are adjustable to accommodate a variety of fishing conditions. I have fished both and I own the Rhodo. They are great rods and the length adjustment works flawlessly.
My prediction is that Tenkara USA rods will be the hot item for Christmas this year. I can’t think of a better gift.
In this video Daniel will show off the features of the new Rhodo and Sato rods.
Read More »Look More and Fish Less on Small Streams
When I’m not in my drift boat on the river I’m wading fishing on small streams. Most large rivers don’t provide much sight-fishing opportunities for the fly angler unless they have low enough flows, clear enough water or plenty of rising fish. On the contrary, almost all small streams offer great sight-fishing opportunities for fly fisherman. Fly fishing small streams over the years, I’ve learned that if I take the time to look over a spot thoroughly before I fish it, I usually have much more success. Spending just a couple minutes studying a section of water allows me to break it down into pieces, figure out where the most likely trout lies are and I often will even spot a fish or two in the process. Blind casting will catch fish, but
Read More »Surface Tension
IT’S ALL ABOUT BREAKING THE SURFACE.
I’m always reluctant to talk about my photography. Somewhere, deep inside, I suppose I think no one is interested but I keep getting requests asking me to talk about my photos so I guess I should. I thought today I would talk a little more in depth about an image I love and why I love it.
My fly fishing photo library contains almost 400,000 images. That’s a lot to get your head around. Think of it this way, in my office there is a safe containing over a dozen external hard drives. Each holding between two and six terabytes of data.
There are a great many different kinds of photos in there. Hero shots, scenics, moments of epic timing as well as failed experiments, half baked ideas and photos of my drunk friends. Some of them puzzle even me and I live with the uneasy idea that the best photo I ever took may be just lost in all of that data.
One thing seems to be true about this mountain of work. The cream does rise to the top. Over time certain images just continue to catch my eye. Some I love at first sight, but others I fall in love with over time. I find that those are the images that end up meaning the most to me. The ones that take time to love and understand.
Here’s the tricky thing. Time is not a luxury that photographers enjoy. Time is more of an adversary. Here’s what I mean.
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