By Justin Pickett
It’s giveaway time here at Gink and Gasoline!!!
Are you enjoying reading our site? A lot of thought and effort goes into bringing you fresh content daily, and we want to see how and where our readers enjoy reading Gink and Gasoline. Post a photo on Instagram of yourself reading G&G in your favorite spot. We want to see what’s in your sightline while you read up on our latest content. It might be the subway, your home office, or the middle of nowhere. Make it fun, unique, or crazy! The most creative reader to submit a photo will receive a one of a kind Artist Series Trout 2.0 leather bracelet from Sightline Provisions. Even better… We’ve chosen a Gink and Gasoline inspired color scheme just for this giveaway!
Sightlines Provisions is a Texas-based outfit that’s delivering handmade leather goods with a flair for the outdoor activities that we love to enjoy. The owner, Edgar Diaz, takes a lot of pride in his handcrafted leather goods. Each piece is of the highest quality leather and utilizes only the finest quality components. I own a few pieces of Edgar’s work, specifically bracelets, and I always get compliments on them. They are unique and have held up against the elements, only getting better with age. Whether it’s hunting, fishing, or hiking, Sightline Provisions is a great way to show off your love for the outdoors.
Now get out there! Show us What’s In YOUR Sightline?
Post photos on Instagram with the hashtag #ginksight and tag @ginkandgasoline. We’ll announce the winner in about 2 weeks. Good luck and have fun!
Justin Pickett Gink & Gasoline www.ginkandgasoline.com hookups@ginkandgasoline.com Sign Up For Our Weekly Newsletter!
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Justin,
I just stumbled across your site and love the content. I too am a GA resident and just recently revived my passion for fishing…especially trout, after a 27 year hiatus. I grew up in Connecticut fishing the most remote streams I could find looking for those elusive brook trout. I would use whatever gear suited the water, but truly liked floating wet flies downstream into holes, under banks, or through some fast water to the beginning of a pool. Great memories came rushing back when I recently discovered Tenkara style fishing. So, I bought an 8 ft rod, put my favorite wet fly–The Professor–on the line and headed out to several spots in Cherokee and Pickens county this past February. First time out, landed a nice 10″ stocked RB–likely a hold over since the stream is apparently stocked several times a year. I would consider myself a non-conventional Fly Fisherman simply because I never had the luxury of fishing wide-open-spaces as a kid and had to learn to fish in the most challenging waters. I never learned to properly cast, mend, or strip a traditional fly line, but that never hindered my success. Like Tenkara, I had to travel light and rely on one or two lures, whether that lure was a live worm, live grasshopper, spinner, or fly didn’t matter–casting in many cases was non-existent, so fishing upstream was not an option. Back then, the term “presentation” was not in my vocabulary simply because I had no teacher other than myself. I know now, that is exactly what I used as my primary tactic for reaching trout–both seen and unseen. I find the same tactic is as useful here in GA as it was in CT. The traditional high rod cast with Tenkara is rarely available, at least in the waters I’ve visited so far, casting low or parallel to the water is more likely. Again, you still need to keep as much line off the water as possible, not because of drag, but for the purpose of both seeing and feeling the strike. I mention this because some would argue you might spook the trout with low or downstream casts…especially natives; but my experience has taught me that trout, even when spooked, won’t move far from their established territory…at least not for long and definitely not if they have a chance to feed. I mention all of this to offer some current and future fly fisherman some perspective on using a fly to catch trout. I appreciate the art of fly tying, fishing, and understanding the hatch if that adds to the experience of fishing–I’ve yet to venture into fly tying or worrying about the hatch; but after reading a great deal of content online, the focus always seems to be geared towards catching instead of fishing, the latest must have equipment instead of the essentials, dry fly as supreme, and release instead of eat. We all have our passions but seem to forget we all have one thing in common–we love to fish. I understand there are those folks that poach, litter–like I have seen at a few locations here in GA, and flat out lack some common courtesy when sharing an outdoor space with others. And sure I get a little frustrated when I don’t even get so much as a bite, but as I recently just told my youngest of four–who has shown a great deal of interest in fishing at the age of 9–enjoy everything about the day from packing up your gear, traveling to your fishing destination, hiking to the water, the sights and smells of the outdoors, and the pursuit of fish…but Son, please remember, catching fish is just one of the many rewards fishing will offer!
Sorry for the rant, but I needed a place to say what I needed to say, and you seem to be a Man who would understand. There is so much more I could say, but I have to get back to earning a living. Just so you know I have nothing against fly fishing more open water since I don’t ever pass by any body of water that may hold fish and my Dad mostly fished large rivers in Scotland–so, that being said, it’s more about appreciating the fact that there a multitude of ways to catch fish and no discipline deserves more credit than the other. For me personally, and for now, I love everything about Tenkara.