Caddis Chronicles

Tying a Single Wing Flatwing Fly

2012-02-07T08:43:00.001-05:00

Today we have a saltwater pattern tied by our friend Joe Cordiero, the flatwing king, showing all the details to get the perfect silhouette. As usual, Tim Flagler of Tightline Productions, knocks this one out of the park.

Mr. Zug Made a Bug.......a Zug Bug it Was

2012-02-01T20:15:00.012-05:00

Here's another fly tying video we made with Tightline Productions, of a very popular nymph that you all should be familiar with. I tie it a little differently than you may have seen in the past, but I do so because it makes for a very durable fly.

With this being Little-black Stonefly season, now is a great time to fish this ubiquitous imitation. As for the deep, dark secrets Tim refers to in order to consistently obtain a thick peacock herl body, like most fly tying methods, they're really quite simple in practice. The issue really, is that it is very hard to translate the techniques clearly through video due to the subtleties that make that difference. Keeping in mind that this is just fly tying, our perspective may be just a tad overstated, and our tongue in cheek is not to be ignored. We'll figure it out, make a kick-ass video, and we'll send it along when we do.

Materials:

Thread: 6/0 Danville Black

Tail: Peacock sword

Body: Peacock herl

Rib: Medium silver flat or round tinsel

Hackle: Dark mottled hen

Wingpad: Mallard or Woodduck flank

The original Bug tied by Mr. Zug, was tied with brown hackle fibers for the throat/hackle, and mallard flank for the wing.

Tie some up and fish them with confidence.

Sharpen those hooks!

Tying the Chimarra Caddis Larva

2012-01-29T18:59:00.001-05:00

Here you go folks, the Chimarra caddis larva pattern. I tied a heck of a lot of these the last three days at the show, as part of my presentation included this February/March "must have" subsurface pattern. Unfortunately, none of the fly shops that were at the show brought the essential ingredient - yellow flexx floss.

Materials:

Hook: #18 Scud

Underbody: 6/0 Danville orange thread

Overbody: Yellow flexx floss

Head: 6/0 Danville tobacco brown thread

Tie some up and fish them behind a heavier nymph.

The Big Show and other good news!

2012-01-26T16:55:00.000-05:00

We'll be at the Fly Fishing Show all weekend doing tying demos, presentations and book signings. So please stop by my tying table and check the program for my presentation times. I'll be doing a power point presentation on common hatches, their imitations and techniques on fishing them. I've changed it up quite a bit from last year, and will be spending more time talking about techniques and making the most of your time on the water. As usual, it will cover the full spectrum from January to December. Hope to see you there. For all the details, times and programs ckick on the link to the right under "Whereabouts".

The good news? I'm in the process of finishing up my second book, and sure enough my editor called and said they are going to do a second printing of my first book - Fly Fishing New Jersey Trout Streams. That's exciting for a lot of reasons; it means it sold very well in the first 3 years it has been out, and I get to edit/fix the miscues in the first edition. The cover will be the same, but the photo in the trout silhouette is going to be changed to a photo by the photographer that is doing the pics for the book I'm working on now - JB McCollum.

Se you at the show! And if you go, buy a bloody hook sharpener and use it. I'll be happy to show you how.

Doubling Up

2012-01-22T16:49:00.003-05:00

Generally, I prefer to fish only one fly at a time, as I enjoy getting lost in concentrating on that one fly and how and where it is drifting. There is something about trying to remain in "touch" with that one fly as it drifts through an underwater lie, or maybe along the surface over a feeding fish. That's not to say that I don't fish a two-fly rig when I think it is the best option, and that typically for me is most often in the wintertime.

With nymphs, the usual way to do this is to tie the larger, heavier fly to the end of your leader (this is the point fly). To this fly, a length of tippet, 15-20" or so long, is tied either to the bend or to the hook eye, and a smaller fly is tied to the end of this (this is the dropper fly). Depending on the weight of the point fly and the depth and speed of the water you are fishing, you can place one or more split shot either above the point fly, or below it. When fishing fairly thin, clear water, I will often go with two small flies, my point fly being what I think is the heavier of the two. For instance, I'll use a pumpkin head midge or weighted scud for my point fly, and the dropper fly will be a smaller zebra midge or caddis larva.

The key to fishing this or any other nymph set up, is getting the the proper amount of weight (flies and/or split shot together) to maintain a drag-free, down near the bottom, drift. My goal when fishing nymphs is to keep as close contact as possible with the flies without imparting any unnatural movement. I don't use a strike indicator to do this, but if that's how you normally fish nymphs, by all means fish the rig that way. Do what works for you.

Here's a couple of larger point flies - a weighted Vinnie's Isonychia nymph, and a Bead head Bird's Nest.

Here's a few smaller nymphs I like to use in the winter months, along with a favorite midge dry - the three nymphs clockwise from top: #18 Bead head Bird's Nest; #18 Chimarra caddis larva; and a Pumpkin Head Midge. The two dries are #18 Mathew's Zelon Midge.

The Zelon midge is a great winter midge pattern that also works at other times of the year when small flies are the ticket to catching trout. Sometimes a double rig using a Griffith's Gnat and a Zelon midge covers a midge hatch with great results.

And sharpen those hooks, you never know when the big one is going to take your fly.

And Now for Something Completely Different

2012-01-21T13:28:00.003-05:00

This one's for you Mr. Q. Turn it up!

Let's Go Winter Midge Fishing - Bring a Chair!

2012-01-18T13:38:00.000-05:00

Corey Rossi, State Wildlife Official, Charged in Bear Killing Conspiracy

2012-01-17T08:07:00.000-05:00

It's been a little hectic since the holidays, which has kept me away from updating here. Despite being in Boston regularly and getting ready for the fly fishing shows, I have managed to get out on the water a number times. Those times have been short, but mostly productive. The rivers and streams in the area have been in very good shape with plenty of water and relatively good temperatures up until this week. The long-term forecast looks good, so we should get out on the water this weekend and I'll do my best to bring you the results.

I'll be back to making regular posts now...I think, but for now here's an intersting article that illustrates how screwed up our political system is. No wonder Queen Palin dropped out of sight with all the skeletons in her attic.

Corey Rossi, State Wildlife Official, Charged in Bear Killing Conspiracy Alaska Dispatch

Get out and fish!

Tying the Leadwing Coachman Wet Fly

2012-01-02T21:05:00.022-05:00

We're bringing in the New Year with an old time favorite wet fly, the Leadwing Coachman. I fish this fly regularly, especially in the winter months, when it consistently takes fish. Although it's tied here on a standard dry fly hook, you can tie it on a standard wet fly hook or even a nymph hook. I typically fish it in tandem with another fly, tying it to the tag end of my tippet knot, which I leave about 5-6 inches long for this purpose.

I don't worry too much about getting the wing perfect as it gets messy shortly after running it through the H2O a few times. And, once a trout has had it in its jaws, it becomes a tight bunch of gray fibers that seems to attract the fish even more.

Although they look better with the head varnished, if you whip finish the head well, it's not necessary. They work just fine with out it, and you won't be adding any fish detracting odor to your imitation. Tie some up in sizes 12 and 14, and fish them with confidence. You will be glad you did.

Happy New Year

2012-01-01T20:28:00.000-05:00

It was a warm, bright start to the year and the water was high, clear and cold but it didn't stop Mr. Q from getting his first trout of the year! A nice rainbow that took a copper bead head Bird's Nest.

Thanks for stopping by - hope you all have a happy and healthy 2012.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to Everyone!

2011-12-25T17:56:00.000-05:00

Hope you all are enjoying this holiday season with your family and friends. Here's a photo of my three children when they still believed in Santa Claus.

I'm looking forward to having this week off and the plan is to get some fishing in at least a few days. Reports to follow.

Cheers!

Pat Cohen aka Super Fly

2011-12-22T07:45:00.001-05:00

One of the great things about the fly tying and fly fishing shows is that we get to see and meet some incredible fly tyers and people that we might not otherwise have. Pat Cohen is one of them. He is an incredible deer hair fly tyer/artist, who not only can tie the standard bass bugs very well, he also creates birds, fish and other wildlife out of dyed deer body hair and feathers using only thread and a steel hook.

Here is a Ruby-throated Hummingbird he recently tied for me to give to my bride. Ain't that the tits! Seriously, it's feathers and various colored deer body hair tied on a hook and clipped to shape.

To view more of Pat's creations and for information on purchasing them, go to his blog: Super Fly

The Fly Fishing Shows are coming up soon, and Pat will be a several of them demonstrating his talents to anyone that wishes to watch and ask questions. Stop by his tying table - just look for the guy with the colorful flies and a crowd.

Tying the RS2

2011-12-15T09:11:00.003-05:00

We sat down this week with Tightline Productions and made this video on how to tie one of the most effective small flies we have ever fished - Rim Chung's RS2. For many tyers, this is a difficult fly to tie, but with a little practice and attention to the details, it is worth the effort.

Vinnie's Isonychia Nymph Video

2011-12-11T18:02:00.015-05:00

This week we bring you a great nymph pattern that my good friend and regular fishing partner, Vincent Caffarra, developed. The Isonychia, or Slate Drake as it is commonly known, is very abundant in our Eastern freestone rivers and streams and this pattern mimics the natural well. In the video, the fly looks somewhat light in color, but once it gets wet it looks like the real thing. Again, thanks go to Tightline Productions - Tim and Joan Flagler - for another well-produced video.

Fish them all year 'round in sizes #10 down to #16, and sharpen the hook every so often.

The Struggles of Mankind

2011-12-06T07:42:00.005-05:00

Mr. Q, the master chef and my agent at arms, went fishing yesterday as he usually does on Mondays. He reports the fishing was tough. It seems his "trout" would only take very small flies and ignore all else. Even then, the catching was most difficult despite it being a warm December day.

Was it a success? Yes, and here's the proof. It took a size #22 midge tied by the Q hisself.

So you may be wondering what its like to be a chef and a trout fisherman. While I am speculating, I do watch the man while he fishes, and I see the frustration on his face. He hooks and lands a nice trout, and while it hangs in his landing net the internal struggle begins......."Do I keep it? Douse it in egg and then cover it in flour. Lay it in a simmering bath of melted butter, diced onions and some minced garlic? How good would that be with some rosemary roasted red potatoes and a tall glass of Guinness?"

He looks around to see if anyone is watching. He looks at the hapless trout curled in his net, one eye seeing through his soul, and then thinks, "No, he must go back to fight another day."

"Maybe not, I haven't had fresh trout in ages."

Then he comes to his senses and realizes he is in the Gorge and must release his catch, or suffer the consequences of knowing he kept a fish where that is not permitted.....or maybe he just realized the trout is a pellet fed, hatchery version of the real thing that no matter how magical his cooking is, would still taste like wet cardboard.

He releases the fish to fight another day.

Nice job Mr. Q.

Short Report

2011-12-04T23:02:00.000-05:00

Who said it was going to be warm today? It wasn't warm, but it wasn't real cold either, but the water sure was! I spent the day fishing the South Branch of the Raritan with Lou DiGena, and we did pretty well considering the conditions and the fact that I froze my ass off.

The day was fairly bright, with the sun mostly tempered by high thin clouds. It did break free of them every so often to warm the hands and face. The air was in the upper 40's, and the river was somewhat high, clear as gin, and 42 degrees. Yep, it was a day we needed thermal pants and dry feet, and Lou had them, and I did not. I forgot my thermoply pants, and my right foot was mostly wet thanks to leaking waders. Still, we fished a good 5 hours or so and had a good time bringing some nice fish to net. We fished a very rocky section of the river, and the high water made it tough to wade, especially with my cold, stiff legs. Almost took a swim more than once!

We caught all rainbows, some decent sized ones, and all of them fought hard. I got mine on bead head Bird's Nest, LaFontaine Sparkle Emerger, and one on Walt's Worm. Hooked a couple on the Pumpkin Head, but none came to net. Lou was using a Czech nymph set-up with three flies, and the only one I can remember he got fish on was the Bomb. It's big, gnarly gold bead caddis larva tied on a #8 scud hook - I guess Lou's trout wanted big and ugly today! He got some photos and perhaps he'll post some on his blog - Fly and Fin - link on the right----->

Nothing like fly fishing for trout in December.....and catching fish!

Does the Pumpkin Head Midge Work?

2011-11-29T20:43:00.003-05:00

It was so nice yesterday, I took the afternoon off and headed to the South Branch of the Raritan to enjoy what may have been the last warm day of the year. The air was calm and warm, nearly 70 degrees at 1:00pm, with high scattered clouds breaking up the bright blue sky.

I started out fishing a scud with no takers, so I switched flies to a Pumpkin Head. I fished it on a short line, no weight, letting it drift freely in the water column at whatever level it wanted. In short order I was rewarded with a nice rainbow. Take a look at that Pumpkin Head in the top jaw of the fish.......

After releasing the fish, I continued to work the run and soon was again rewarded with another rainbow. You can see how clear the water was. Steath was the order of the day - short, slow, careful steps to minimize wake and foot noise on the bottom. Here again, check out the Pumpkin Head in this one's jaw.

It went on this way for a while as I worked my way down through the run taking a step downstream every few casts. I hooked and landed quite a few fish on the same fly, before surrendering it to a tree branch that hung over the bottom of the run.

I then moved up river to a slower, deeper pool, where a new Pumpkin Head nymph drew the trout to it like a child to candy. After a while I switched to a beadhead Bird's Nest just to see if it was the fly or the presentation.I used the same size Bird's Nest, on the same leader and tippet, and did not even get a hit on it. So I switched back to the Pumpkin Head, and caught a few more fish.......some days it goes that way.

Darkenss came early and with that, the fishing had to come to a close. The air had cooled and my head was clear, and the catching had been as good as one could expect. It was a wonderful late November afternoon on the river that will feed the mind when tying on those cold winter days to come when the sun is low and wind is high.

If you missed it, the video on how to tie the Pumpkin Head can be found on the right under Fly Tying Videos.

Turkey Troll 2011

2011-11-28T07:41:00.002-05:00

2011 One-Fly Competition and NJ Fly Fisherman of the Year Award held at the Raritan Inn in Hunterdon County, NJ

2011-11-26T22:44:00.000-05:00

The New Jersey Chaper of Trout Unlimited held their one-fly competition and annual banquett recently at the Raritan Inn in Califon, NJ, and Tightline Productions filmed the festivities. It was a very cool but sunny day, well attended, and the competition went down to the wire. We were there for the fishing, and had a great time catching up with friends and watching the guys fish for the big prize. Congratulations to Angelo Conti, who won the event.

This is likely to become an annual event. We'll post info when next year's is planned, so you can join the fun.

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T08:57:00.000-05:00

“Far Side of the World” Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam

2011-11-22T20:59:00.000-05:00

Our friend and photographer, JB McCollum, recently returned from a trip to Southeast Asia where he captured images of the people, the land, and the history that defines this region of the world. And to celebrate, he invites the public to join him on December 9, 2011, at the Fordyce Studio in Long Valley, New Jersey, on opening night of his Photo Gallery Show.

Please join JB, his family and friends, including Mr. Caddis Chronicles, on Opening Night from 6:00pm to 10:00pm at:

Fordyce Studio

16 Schooley's Mountain Road

Long Valley, NJ

Hors d'oeuvres and beverages will be served.

The show runs from December 9, 2011 to January 13, 2012.

GALLERY HOURS

MWF 5-7 Sat/Sun 11-2
APPT. ONLY - Dec 23-Jan 2 call (908) 268-5773

For further information and directions
please feel free to contact JB at
(908) 268-5773 or
jb@jbmccollum.com
http://www.jbmccollum.com/

Hope to see you there.

Pumpkin Head Fly Beads

2011-11-21T13:49:00.002-05:00

Since many of you asked, here is the info on where I get the Fl. Orange beads (Pumpkin Heads):

LINK: Wingaersheek Flies

They have all kinds of tungsten and other beads, as well as a selection of other fly tying materials. Also, they will be at the Marlboro, MA and Somerset, NJ Fly Fishing Shows in January 2012.

Tie some up and don't forget to sharpen those hooks...and they will get dull as the tungsten beads gets the fly DOWN on the bottom.

The Pumpkin Head Midge Video

2011-11-17T17:23:00.002-05:00

Here it is, the Pumpkin Head Midge. At least that is what I call it, for obvious reasons. It's just a version of the hot spot nymph, which for the record, we did not invent.

The Pumpkin head midge is a very effective fly that works quite well now, and in the winter months. It will also take fish the rest of the year as well, so don't leave home without it. I use pheasant tail for the tail and abdomen, and a bump of white/clear zelon or antron for a wing bud, or whatever - I just like the contrast it gives the fly. And the peacock herl thorax speaks for itself, or I should say the trout have spoken in favor of it since it was first used to decorate womens hats back in the day.

Again, kudos to Tim and Joan Flagler of Tightline Productions for their extra effort in producing another great quality video in record time. We hope you enjoy it.

Stop by our tying table at the International Fly Tying Symposium this weekend if want a tutorial on this or any other fly for that matter.

International Fly Tying Symposium

2011-11-17T08:46:00.000-05:00

The big fly tying event is finally upon us this coming weekend. As usual it takes place at the Doubletree Hotel in Somerset, NJ. We'll be there tying flies along with many other outstanding fly tyers from throughout the world. So come on down if you can and stop by my table and say hi. We'll have the tying videos we've made with Tightline Productions playing on a monitor, and we'll be happy to show you any techniques or patterns you may have questions about.

LINK: International Fly Tying Symposium

The show hours are:

Saturday 9:00AM - 5:00PM
Sunday 9:00AM - 4:30PM

Hope to see you there.

Do You Smell Something?

2011-11-14T19:16:00.003-05:00

I do, and it's my fishing! I did get out yesterday for a couple of hours, and managed the skunk. I did hook one of the bastards, but this time the trout won the battle- popped the fly off like my 5X tippet was really 8X. Yep, the knot broke. It happens.

When I left the house I was full of positive anticipation. The weather seemed to be good and the river called, so we suited up, rigged up, and set foot in the cold, clear water. And it was cold, very cold in fact, and before long I was wishing I had worn my thermal pants and more than a sweater. But I fished hard until the cold made my fingers hard as stone, and worthless for the most part.

We all need days like these. They teach us that the seasons have really changed despite bright sun and calm skies, and wishes for days past. And so we need to change our clothing choice and fishing tactics. I guess its all part of the experience, and in the end, its all good.

On another note, the homestead is back together as of today with the exception of the metal chimney cover/cap, and the gutter. This is a good thing, because I was getting tired of hearing the deer laughing in the morning at the state of the house as they drank from the pond.

AND if you are in the area this weekend, be sure to come to the International Fly Tying Symposium at the Double Tree Hotel in Somerset, New Jersey. Stop by and say hi, I'll be mixed in there with the gang of fellow Jersey boys.

LINK: International Fly Tying Symposium Homepage

Check your knots and sharpen your hooks.

Post "Shit Happens" Post

2011-11-13T10:56:00.000-05:00

What happens to a tree before it becomes firewood?

It falls on your house......

That was some snowstorm - way too early and way too much. Our power was out for 9 days, we were out of the house for 9 days, and we now have enough firewood for the next 20 years. Our contractor did a great job putting the house back together this week, and the only thing left to repair is the fireplace.

No one got hurt, and we still love living in the woods, surrounded by hardwoods, birds, deer, fox and the quiet that let's you think and dream free of the static of suburban living.

Today we're going to make another fly tying video with Tightline Productions, and then we'll fish until dark. River conditions are great - the water levels are good, clarity almost too good, and most of the leaves are out of the water column. And we have the perfect fall weather - cool with high thin clouds and a slight breeze.

Sharpen your hooks........and your chainsaw.

Time Out for Technical Difficulties

2011-11-01T10:13:00.000-04:00

We got clobbered by the No'easter this past weekend, so we won't be posting for a few days...or fishing, or tying, for that matter.

We have no power here at the homestead, and no fireplace to keep warm, thanks to an oak tree that came down on the house Saturday night that took out a corner of the house and the chimney. We were out at the time, so we didn't experience the noise mayhem it must have made when it fell. Our street was blocked by a number of trees so we have been walking in and out from 1/2 mile away. The town is clearing the trees now, and I'm waiting for the insurance adjuster and writing this using my wireless card. Things will be back to normal before you know it.

Anyway, hope you all are well, and we'll be back after a short break.

The Sparkle Emerger Under Water

2011-10-27T11:41:00.022-04:00

Here is a follow up video to our last post that Tim Flagler from Tightline Productions made, that shows how the sparkle emerger captures air bubbles around the abdomen.

Tim prefaces the video with the following:

This fly cannot be judged by how it looks in the vise or in the fly case at your local shop. It has to be seen underwater, imao that's where fish spent most of their time.

The following video illustrates some of the fly's many attributes like trapping air bubbles and translucency, but it falls short by not showing its most important feature– the wonderful shimmery look the antron sheath has underwater, in a real stream with natural sunlight. Gary believed (I know this from reading his book) and so do I, that the shimmer is what makes trout really take notice.

LaFontaine Sparkle Emerger Underwater from Tightline Productions on Vimeo.

Tying the LaFontaine Sparkle Emerger

2011-10-26T07:51:00.005-04:00

The Orvis news posted our latest tying video, which is one of our go-to flies all year. We tie them in the 4 primary colors that Gary details in his ground breaking book, Caddisflies. These colors will cover 80% or more of the available caddis in North American trout streams.

1. Brown & Bright green
2. Brown & Yellow
3. Gray & Black
4. Ginger

LaFontaine Sparkle Emerger from Tightline Productions on Vimeo.

Enjoy and feel free to ask questions.

And sharpen those hooks!

Name Calling

2011-10-23T22:08:00.008-04:00

By now you have likely seen the video we made with Tim Flagler on how to tie a bead head Bird's Nest. It was picked up this week by one of the fly tying magazines and posted on their website. The video prompted petulant comments from a tyer who made it clear that my version is NOT a Bird's Nest, as he had seen the original tied by the originator, Cal Bird.

The reason? My version has the hackle tied "beard" style, while Cal tied it with the hackle enveloping the fly 360 degrees.   He went on to say that Cal disdained our way of tying the fly, and concluded via underwater observation, that Cal's way of tying the fly killed compared to "these quarter round patterns."

Interesting.......my results show that the fly works equally as well tied either way and that the fish don't give a shit.  The fly works, period.

And that leads us to an important question, which is: If a fly is NOT tied exactly as the originator tied it, can it still be called the same fly?  I sort of feel I'm wasting my time here, as I think most of us feel that it doesn't matter as long as the change is minor and/or does not change the overall appearance of the fly.

Here are a few examples of other flies that are tied differently than the originals, which coincidentally, I found on the web site of our detractor:

* The original Pheasant Tail nymph as designed by Frank Sawyer, was tied with only pheasant tail and copper wire and had no legs.  Some versions are tied with a peacock herl thorax. And still others are tied with legs. All of them are called Pheasant Tail nymphs.
* The original Adams was tied with ~~mixed brown and~~ ~~grizzly hackle~~ golden pheasant tippet for the tail.  Some tie the tail with moose body hair, or dun hackle fibers. Again, all of these versions are still called an Adams.

..........

Anyway, we got out on one of the local trout streams today and managed to bring a few rainbows to net. A hot spot caddis larva and LaFontaine sparkle emerger did the trick. The water was clear and cool, and still a little high. The air was calm, and cool enough that by dusk you could see your breath. Little Blue-winged Olives came off sporadically, as did size 16 light caddis, but the trout weren't interested in taking them off the surface. It was good to be on the water with only the sounds of squirrels foraging in the trees above, and the geese above them, flying over in formation.

Now I wonder if I am sharpening my hooks right. I guess we'll have to make a video and wait for the comments.

Fishing and a Video

2011-10-14T07:35:00.002-04:00

I like to fish in the fall (or Autlumn) as much as any time of the year. There are fewer anglers on the water, the trees are showing their true colors, and the birds and other animals are on the move again after settling down for the summer. And it just seems to be a quieter time to be on the water.

Last week Tim Flagler asked me to help out on a video he was asked to make for the NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife, to promote their fall trout stocking. We met up with the good folks from the hatchery one early morning and did some fishing in the South Branch of the Raritan River for the cameras, and this is what Tim put together using some of that footage along with a bunch of other shots from the hatchery and elsewhere. If you're interested, I'm the guy in the red cap that doesn't know what the hell he is doing with the fly rod.

I also managed to get out a few times recently, all before this week's stocking took place, and the fishing has been good. In addition to catching plenty of wild fish, we also caught holdover trout from the spring stockings and before. Oddly enough, I did go to the pool where some of the footage above was shot for an hour or so, and only took two fish that I think were put in the day of the filming.

The rivers are in great shape for this time of the year - a little high, clear and cool. During the day there are some Slate Drakes hatching and Tiny Blue-winged Olives. Just before dark there have been small size 16 tan/gray caddis that come of in waves. It's pretty cool the way these caddis will hatch in a wave that lasts maybe 5 minutes, the trout come up for them, and then they disappear along with the rising trout like someone flipped a switch. Then 15 minutes later, they show again for a brief time. Mr. Q managed to catch a wild rainbow, brookie and then a brown the other evening during one of the caddis hatches, all of the fish around 6-inches long and pretty as a picture. These caddis are fast fliers, keeping low to the water, and I have yet to capture one to I.D. them because of this. I think I know what they are, but I'd rather know for sure.

Wednesday late afternoon, was also productive, with scuds and beadhead Bird's Nests being the ticket. Caught a bunch of wild and stocked fish in the quiet that only fall can bring. While fishing through one long riffle, I had the pleasure of watching a mink as it moved about the rocks and limbs on the opposite bank, occasionally taking a brief bath in the cool river.

Tying the Copper Beadhead Bird's Nest

2011-10-10T20:59:00.003-04:00

Here's another tying video produced by our friend Tim Flagler at Tightline Productions. I just tie the fly; Tim does the real work, and it always shows in the finished video. Watch in full screen mode, the clarity Tim gets is incredible.

I had fished the Bird's Nest nymph on and off over the years with some success, and then one day back in the 90's, I was introduced to a bead head version. I was fishing the Beaverhead River in Montana with friend and guide, Cory Tumolo, and he was having success with a size 18, gold bead head Bird's Nest and offered me one. Shortly after tying it on, I was into one of those hard fighting browns the river is known for. In fact, for the next two days, it was my fly of choice when the trout decided not to rise. Since then, this fly in various sizes has occupied my nymph box - most of them being a copper bead head style, as that version has been the most consistent producer for me throughout the U.S.

On Northern California waters, it's the only bead head fly I fish. And on my home waters of New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, it's one of my go-to patterns when I have to fish subsurface. It can fished alone, or in tandem with a smaller nymph trailing a size 12 or 14; I also will fish small Bird's Nests trailing a larger nymph. It goes with out saying that this fly can also be trailed beneath a high floating dry fly to cover both surface and subsurface feeding trout.

If you don't already fish this very effective nymph, I recommend you add some to your fly box, and use them with confidence. The medium brown version shown here is the original color and most popular among fish and fishermen, but they also can be tied in olive, cream and dark brown.

And don't forget to check your hooks when you fish, and sharpen them when needed - you'll catch more fish.

Go get 'em!

Another Tying Video - Soft Hackle Mayfly Emerger

2011-09-28T18:04:00.012-04:00

This one has been picked up by Midcurrent, so we just have the link.

http://midcurrent.com/videos/tying-a-soft-hackle-mayfly-emerger/

This is a most versatile pattern as you can just change the throax color and hook size to imitate all of the different mayflies in their emergent state.

It's one of my go-to patterns all year 'round. Tie some up for the fall on a size #12 hook, with a reddish brown dubbed thorax - this imiates the Slate Drake (Isonychia) quite well.

And sharpen your hooks! You'll catch more fish.

The Great Autlumn Sedge Soft Hackle

2011-09-24T16:59:00.006-04:00

Here is my soft hackle version of the Autumn Sedge we highlighted in our last post. This fly imitates the emerging pupa quite well. Fish it dead-drift then lift it when it gets to likely holding water, or fish it on the swing and let the current lift it at the end of the swing as the line tightens. These are tied on size #10 hooks - the first is tied on a Czech Dohiku hook, and the second is a Dai-Riki dry fly hook.

We tied these using orange 6/0 Danville thread, the body is a mix of equal parts yellow and orange dubbing with a smidgen of brown to mute the bright colors, the rib is doubled and twisted 3/0 brown monocord, and the collar is a brown speckled hen body feather.

(Click on images to enlarge)

This is an easy tie that works well this time of the year, fished any time of the day. We've been known to fish them with a split shot on the tippet to get them down into the deep holes and runs. Fish them through the run and don't lift the fly to cast again until the current has brought the fly to the surface. We get some hard takes on the end of the drift just as the fly ascends to the surface.

Have fun and sharpen your hooks!

The Real Orange of Autumn

2011-09-21T22:04:00.001-04:00

The Great Autumn Sedges have been hatching quite well this year on our streams, despite the recent floods and prior summer heat. If only we could get our asses away from work long enough to fish, we might enjoy the colors of Autumn both in the trees and on the water.

This is a big mother of a bug, size #8-10, and quite the looker. Wings bathed in a soft orange, clearly veined, and with large rust colored eyes and long antennae, this caddisfly is loved by both trout and fly fishers alike. Although it hatches primarily very late in the day and after dark, it hangs around flowing trout waters in the early morning hours and at dusk enough that the fish are familiar with and will feed on them. In fact, we will blind fish our low-floating dry version over likely holding water and take plenty of eager risers.

For you eggheads, these are the eastern October caddis - Pycnopsyche (sp.). They hatch from August through October, with the apex of the hatch occurring in late September into early October most years.

A large orange and partridge soft hackle is a good wet for the emerger - add a fur dubbed thorax to add a little bulk and lend a better silhouette to the mix.

Here's the adult:

Here is my low riding adult imitation: Ruddy orange body; amber zelon underwing; orange dyed elk body wing; touch dubbed hare's ear for the thorax. Size #10 dry fly hook. This pattern has worked well for me as a general searching pattern early and late in the day this time of the year.

Here's is an elk hair caddis version I tied for those of you that prefer this style. The body is ruddy orange, the hackle is bleached grizzly, and the wing it natural elk hair (the color is washed out by the flash).

Tie some up and give them a shot. And be sure to fish them in the skinny water and right up against the bank. Trout will lay in water only a few inches deep this time of the year if left undisturbed.

Good luck, and sharpen those hooks.

Tying the Iris Caddis

2011-09-13T21:32:00.005-04:00

You've seen the step by step photo tying instructions we have posted in the past, and they have been good (sort of), but this is the tits!

Seriously, Tim Flagler aka Tightline Productions, has produced the first Caddis Chronicles full length tying video. We chose Craig Mathew's of Blue Ribbon Flies, Iris Caddis pattern, as it is a killer fly when the Hydropsychidae are hatching on just about any North American river or stream. And they do hatch, from May through September. It also imitates other caddis species that hatch in a similar fashion - drifting in the surface film for a short period before launching straight into the air.

Iris Caddis from Tightline Productions on Vimeo.

Tie some up and fish them, you won't be disappointed.

All comments and feedback are welcome!

9/11/01

2011-09-11T09:15:00.000-04:00

After the Flood Video

2011-09-08T22:43:00.002-04:00

Tim Flagler works fast! It was just a couple days ago he filmed us fishing after the flood and he already has a video of us on the web! (See my post of 9/5)

Nice job, Tim! And yes, we do need to spread out......you would still have to film all of us though, so put on your running shoes. : )

Visual Flight Rules? Not a Chance.........

2011-09-07T22:17:00.000-04:00

We are experiencing a very low, thick cloud bank that's full of wet. Seriously full of wet! The vast grayness hanging just above the treetops dropped it's load earlier today and the rivers again exceeded flood stage. And in so doing, they also have zero visibility! Even if the trouts had GPS on their dash, it would be worthless - like a drunk in the dark.

If you are in the area Sunday morning and happen to have your tying tools with you, stop by Shannon's Fly Shop in Califon, and join me for a couple of hours of fly tying - we're going to do Flies for Fall Trout. How to tie them and how to fish them. The fish may not be able to see your flies, but that doesn't mean they won't look good to us.

It's a great way to watch me make a fool of myself in front of a tying vise and a gang of strangers, and maybe I'll learn something at the same time. It's always fun. We'll do a couple of dries, and a couple of wets/nymphs, and maybe take a request or two.

And why should you want to do that? So you can go out to your favorite stream on a cool October morning when the trees are in all their golden glory, and do everything right so one of these beauties comes to your fly and takes it like candy.....

Now that's living!

The Fishing Was Fine

2011-09-05T21:33:00.001-04:00

After a somewhat long, forced withdrawal from fly fishing for trout thanks to hot, dry weather, we fished last evening. The river is still somewhat high and still turbid, but not so much so that we couldn't fish our flies and have the trout pick them out of the suspended particles flowing by them. It was a warm, humid evening with calm skies tinged by the soft golden glow of the late summer sun.

We were actually fishing for a purpose. Tim Flagler of Tightline Productions wanted to put together a video of post hurricane trout fishing to show that the fish are still right where they were before the storm. He was also hoping to get some footage of the proper way to release a trout after landing it. Me, John C., Len R., Jim of Shannon's Fly Shop and his mate Donna, all met at the river and did our best to give Tim what he needed.

As you might expect, not much was happening on the surface so the order of the day was nymphs and streamers. We all hooked fish and managed to land a few nice ones, mostly on nymphs in the course of a few hours. The trout are right where they should have been despite the way the river had flooded the week before. They were all healthy and fought hard - several managed to break me off before I could get them to hand.................see what happens when you don't fish for a couple of weeks? The mind and the muscles get rusty!!!!

It was great to be on the water with friends. There is nothing like spending an evening standing in cool flowing water, warm summer sun on your face, fishing, and sharing some laughs with your friends. Sure, we fished much too close to each other under normal circumstances, but sometimes the catching takes a back seat to bullshitting.

AND.........

Mr. Q. caught a beautiful brown a few miles down river from us.........I got this photo from him when I got back to the fishing shack. Way to go buddy!

Does Size Matter?

2011-09-01T21:02:00.000-04:00

I know we're digressing again, but the rivers are just too full of water and debris to fish right now.

The old wives tale says that the bigger the acorns, the worse the winter to come. If you believe in that stuff, we're in for a doozey this coming winter season. This is a typical acorn from one of the oaks on my property this year. The things are huge! This photo is not doctored or p-shopped, just a little ole acorn next to George for perspective. When one of these fatties falls from its mother and lands on the roof, it sounds like someone is tossing rocks at the house.

The squirrels may be happy now, but that may change when they are freezing their asses off this winter trying to figure out where they stashed them. And the deer, they think they're in candyland right now.

"No Shortage of Good Days" John Gierach

2011-08-30T07:17:00.008-04:00

Our rivers are flooded and off limits at the moment, so we're left to tie flies and comtemplate the conditions we'll arrive at when we do get on the water in the hopefully near future.

We're also spending too much time checking out the web for snippets of trout, flies, clear water and other related stuff to live vicariously through until we can do it ourselves.

I found this ditty posted by our friends at Moldy Chum

If ever there was someone that has life pretty much figured out, it's this guy. He'd likely beg to differ, but if it came down to it, I seriously doubt he'd want to wear our shoes, if even for day.

TURN IT UP!

What's in your portfolio? Does it really matter?

Screw it. I'm going fishing........

Confirmed

2011-08-23T21:08:00.001-04:00

Yep, we had an earthquake. Actually, Virginia did yet it was felt here in Jersey as well as in many other east coast states and even Canada.

We also confirmed that we have have a Black-chinned Hummingbird visiting our feeders. They are a very rare visitor to our neck of the woods. I showed a photo of one of the hummingbirds to a bona fide bird man, and he instantly identified it as a Black-chinned. I knew it was different from the others, as it has a very deep purple throat and the black area above is nothing like the Ruby-throated species. It also has a beak that is noticeably longer than the ruby. Pretty cool stuff.

On another note, more fly fishing related, the rivers are rebounding nicely after a long, hot summer with little precipitation. The recent rains and cool nights are just what the trout ordered. We hit the mid fifties here in the woods last night. Unfortunately, I'm off to Boston in the AM, but I hope to hit the rivers this weekend with rod in hand and flies on the line.

Until then, tie some up and get out on the river and fish!

Earthquake??

2011-08-23T13:57:00.002-04:00

I think we just had an earthquake............even the trees were shaking.

You Can Observe a Lot by Just Watching

2011-08-15T21:26:00.015-04:00

Saturday the heat, humidity, low water and generally poor stream conditions continued in my general location, so trout fishing was out. I spent much of the day doing yard work, and after lunch I sat out on the deck and watched our feathered friends for a bit. Like Yogi said, you can observe a lot, especially if you remain still.

Here's a couple of piliated woodpeckers searching for food on the silver maple off the back corner of our house. They worked their way up the tree from here, circling the trunk as they ascended the hulking old hardwood, all the while communicating in soft squeaks and chirps, sounding much like guinea pigs as they went. If you closed your eyes, you would have thought there were furry pets nearby.

Here's a close up of one as it listens for crawling bugs under the surface of the bark. They better take advantage of it now, because come the fall, the tree is coming down before it comes down on its own.

And here is the very best of why I love living where I do. I have identified about 6 hummingbirds that frequent our feeder by there coloring. One, a mature male dominates the others. He sits on the wire and puffs his ruby red chest out when the others fly close. And if they have the nerve to try to feed while he is present, he chirps loudly and attacks them with abandon. Still, they all manage to find the feeder free of antagonists often enough that they can feed without stress. Karen and I often sit out on the deck after dinner watching them as they feed. They are beautiful birds, and for some reason, watching them can be the most relaxing things I can do.

Here is the alpha male taking a sip of my home made nectar. I make my own - the pre-made stuff you buy has dyes and other preservatives in it that I don't want these beautiful wild animals to ingest.

The tiny birds are fascinating. They hoover one moment, and then the next they are streaming away like a winged bullet into the canopy. When they hoover, the sound of their wings is pitched differently depending on whether they are moving forward or backward. Sometimes they just hang in the air without any lateral or horizontal movement whatsoever. They must be the most agile animals in the world.

The moral of the story...........just because you can't fish, doesn't mean you can't enjoy what nature has to offer.

A View From the Riffles and Runs

2011-08-12T22:06:00.002-04:00

I held the tiny nymph on my fingertip, a mere speck I duplicated with a clumsy fake. As I cast it into the fast moving current, I too became a speck, held by the expanse of beauty that surrounded me, engulfed by a sense of peace as enormous as the nymph had been small. Amonst the mighty scheme of things, I felt I had a place. - Chiya Sagara

I love this quote. It captures the sense that while we fish, thigh deep in the flow of a cool trout stream, we become entangled in the natural world that is truly much larger than we alone can ever be. There is no truer peace than when one surrenders their being to that which they cannot control.

We do this every time we step into the fishes world..............

Build it, and They Will Come......

2011-08-09T07:47:00.007-04:00

We are not always sure where they come from, but they find the forums. On one of our regional NY,NJ and PA fly fishing forums, we found this post (exactly as we found it) under the topic "Jurisdiction Question".

Anywho there is a (what jerseians would call a WTS) trout crick that rolls off the top of the appalachians for maybe 1/2 a mile in NJ, then into NY for almost equal distance (ny water is bigger and further downhill thus had the greater # and bigger trout (as usual)). A precarious spot indeed, in years of late ive noticed more DEC (more toward hunting season). if i wanted to stalk this creek for the wild trout it has and i stepped into UNPOSTED nj land and cast a fly would i SERIOUSLY get in trouble if a CO was there (excluding the instance he was looking for such an act and if so hes an A-hole who has it out for either; me, loves the crick, hates new yorkers, or hates fly fishermen). i mean really? the creating of borders cut a small trout crick in half and i cant fish the pool ahead of me because i dont have a 80$ trout stamp non resident SHOT AS HELL nj license? that creek is MY TOWNS CREEK.

you know what? its not posted nj so F it, im a born native of this town and i intend to fish its sparkling waters until i cant lift my arm or my leg

So the question becomes......

If you run into this guy on the water do you:

a) Talk about the fishing and what flies are working
b) Call the authorities and tell them you found Sasquach
c) Ask him why he pees like a dog
d) Ask him if he has any Grey Poupon
e) Run like hell to the nearest post office to see if his picture is on the wall

It May Be Legal, But it Sure Isn't Ethical

2011-08-06T18:52:00.001-04:00

I'm out running errands today and while in the Califon area, I decided to drive along the South Branch of the Raritan, where the road parallels the river for a mile or so. The river is very low, and the water temperatures lately have been in the low to mid 70"s most days. Poor conditions for trout, particularly if they are stressed from fishing. If left to themselves in the deeper holes and cooler stretches, they will survive quite well.

The river level is low, so low in fact that the tops of many rocks are high and dry, when typically they will be under water. The water is very clear and trout are easily spotted as they hang just above the bottom barely moving.

In one stretch I observed two guys in the water standing next to a large, half exposed boulder about 25-30 feet off the mouth of a major trout spawning tributary. On the top of the boulder they had a pale blue, plastic bait container, and they were casting their wormed hook right up into the mouth of the creek. I've been fishing near this creek for 25 years, and in the conditions we have now I have seen dozens of wild and stocked trout stacked in the deep mouth where it meets the larger South Branch. Today was no different, you could see them from the road. The creek is cool, and the trout are there because it is a thermal refuge; a respite from the harsh conditions of the main river. They are there as a matter of survival.

So why do these idiots think it is okay to fish for them?

Are they starving and in need of food? From the size of their waists and jowls, that was clearly not the case. Is this the only thing they could do on a hot August day? I doubt it, and in fact, they could have fished for warm water species if they were so driven to cast a line.

Some states have fishing regulations that prohibit anyone from fishing within so many feet/yards of where a tributary enters a trout stream in the months of July and August. Why? So dumb asses like these two guys cannot fish legally for trout that clearly do not want to be disturbed.

CDC and Elk - Tightlines Productions

2011-07-31T13:15:00.000-04:00

I had lunch yesterday with Tim Flagler, the mastermind behind Tightline Productions, to talk about making some tying videos. Looks like he will be doing some video of yours truly tying flies and sharing my far-fetched theories on why and how I tie them, along with the best times to fish them. At least that's the plan. The end result might be somewhat different, but we'll give it a shot. Whatever the end product is, we'll stand by it. In the very least, we'll dispense another viewpoint to add to the already vast amount of information floating around the web and confusing the masses.

Tim has been doing some tying videos of various flies he fishes, and we'll share one of his favorites here. He is an accomplished tyer, and like a lot of us, he has some unique methods of his own to share. The CDC and Elk is a caddis dry that is attributed to our friend on the other side of the pond, Hans Weilenmann of the Netherlands, one of the finest tyers in Europe.

CDC & Elk from Tightline Productions on Vimeo.

Enjoy, and check out some of the other videos on his site. Stay tuned for the animated versions of some of the flies I have featured here in past posts........post pasts?

Art Meets Fly Tying

2011-07-24T12:47:00.001-04:00

Our friends at Moldy Chum seem to have a sixth sense for finding fish, fishing news, and fly fishing related stuff, and this one's a fine catch indeed.

Shawn Davis is a chemistry teacher. But his spare hours are spent amidst lean feathers, fine wire and tiny hooks, practicing the age-old craft of fly tying. Turning such a practical thing as a fishing fly into an artwork—and innovating while doing so, as Davis does—serves as a stirring reminder to search for art in the everyday.

Check it out: Link to full article: the Anthropologist

My wife thinks I spend a lot of time tying flies!!

Tying the LaFontaine Sparkle Emerger

2011-07-16T17:40:00.001-04:00

This is one of our most effective subsurface and film flies. No matter the month or river, this fly produces fish thanks to the abundance of caddis in all our trout streams. It also produces gray hairs and the grinding of teeth for many tyers..........as Mr. Q recently said in one of his more serious comments........ "I can't make that stinkin' bubble right." And while we agree it is one of those "I don't really like tying them" flies, we think they are worth the trouble.

Here is how we tie a brown and yellow LaFontaine Sparkle Emerger. It's a little different from the way Gary LaFontaine originally tied it, but we think it's an easier way to tie it and in our experience it is just as effective. Also, I tie all mine with wings, and if I decide to fish them deep as a pupa, I just clip the wing off.

Using black thread, tie in a tuft of golden yellow antron fibers as shown on the back side of the hook shank. It looks like a lot here, but that's the photo; it's really pretty sparse.

Next tie in another bunch of fibers on the side closest to you as shown. It should be a little fuller than the first bunch, as you will be pulling out some to form the trailing shuck.

Next dub the abdomen with a brown and yellow mix of antron or rabbit and antron mix.

Now, using your dubbing needle, separate a dozen or so fibers from the nearest bunch of antron and then pull both bunches of the remaining fibers toward the front allowing them to form a sheath around the abdomen. Tie them in as shown with two or three at most, wraps of thread.

Now simply use your dubbing needle to pull the fibers out away from the abdomen to form the "bubble" of antron fibers. Once you have them pulled away all around the body, hold them tight in place, and make a few tight wraps to lock them in place. Clip off the excess in front, and twist and clip the shuck as shown.

Tie in a clump of brown mottled deer body hair as shown.

Clip off the butts of the deer hair, dub a thorax with brown rabbit, and tie it off. Finished!

That wasn't so hard, or was it? It really isn't hard to do, but for some reason it is a pain in the neck to do.

Tie some up, and remember, effort = reward.

You will catch fish on these flies!

Conservation Gets the Rusty Machete Treatment

2011-07-12T23:45:00.001-04:00

An Appropriations Subcommittee in the U.S. House left conservation funding and policy a mutilated corpse on the floor of their hearing room yesterday.

The funding cuts don’t put conservation programs on life support, instead they just left the corpse on the floor to bleed out. And to make sure they sent a strongly worded message to those of use who are about conservation, they added provisions to the legislation that undermine critical conservation and environmental policies.

Read the full story here from Dispatches from the Middle River:

Conservation Gets the Rusty Machete Treatment

See what happens when we elect people with their head up their asses? They keep them there..........

Via: Moldy Chum

To Fish or Not to Fish

2011-07-11T18:45:00.001-04:00

We've hit that time of the year when you head out to fish not knowing if you will actually fish or give the fish a break. Last night I fished the South Branch with the not so anonymous Mr. Q, and before fishing I checked the water temperature as it had been fairly warm during the day. The temperature was about 67 degrees according to my stream thermometer, which is right on the cusp of too warm to fish for trout. Above 68 we stay off the water as it can be lethel to trout if they are stressed at that temperature, and catching them does just that.

There was little bug activity except for an occassional light cahill, yellow sally or caddis, but fish did rise when one would float over their lie, which was rare. I saw three rises, and managed to catch two browns, both of them on an Iris Caddis. Not bad and as it was a beautiful evening, cool air and calm, we'll take it for this time of the year.

As for today and likely tomorrow, most New Jersey trout streams are going to be too warm to fish. There may be some smaller wild trout streams that will be cool enough, but that's about it.

Give the trout a break, and carry a stream thermometer if you are fishing during the summer months. When you get to your destination, check the water temperature before you fish, and if it's over 68 degrees don't fish. If you have a ways to drive to get to the river of your choice, call the nearest fly shop for stream info and temps so you don't make the long drive only to find out the water is too warm for trout.

Fishing with Mr. Q and Mike

2011-07-05T21:16:00.002-04:00

Yep, that fog shrouded figure standing just upstream of the Hoffman's Crossing bridge is the infamous Mr. Q. Somewhere below him, hidden by the fog, is his friend Mike.

It was Sunday evening after a day of warm rain followed by high humidity. The river remained cool - 62 degrees - and so we had fog, lots of fog that formed a blanket over the cool water. We also had a rising river the whole time we were fishing, that slowly brought with it cloudy, turbid water. Needless to say, there were no bugs hatching, and very little fish activity as a result.

And the best part; Mr. Q outfished me! He managed a wild brown on the swing with ~~his sulphur~~ a LaFontaine sparkle emerger. I managed to get skunked, as did Mike.

Just another evening on the water with friends........dirty, rotten friends that caught more fish than I did. ; )

Always a pleasure, Mr. Q.

Three Flies Well-chewed Flies From the Weekend

2011-06-30T23:09:00.004-04:00

I tend to be fairly straightforward when it comes to the flies I use and carry for fishing at any given time, and this past weekend was no exception. My vest always has more empty pockets than those that are occupied by fly boxes and other tackle, as opposed to the guys I fish with, who when they put on their vest add tonnage to their total weight.

I fished a total of 5 fly patterns the entire weekend, and probably no more than 10 flies total. Of those 5 patterns I did fish, only three patterns were the fish takers. Below are the three patterns that worked, and the other two patterns that didn't work but were fished, were a blue-winged olive thorax, and the other a light cahill.

First up is the Iris Caddis, which is one of the best caddis emerger imitations we have ever fished. We've been tying them on size #16 Dohiku dry fly hooks, and the combination of materials and Czech steel make for a very effective imitation.

Next up, the Isonychia, or Slate Drake, emerger. These big, juicy flies draw trout from the depths when the naturals are present, and this weekend we got to enjoy the rewards.

Finally, we have the Sulphur Usual. This pattern in size #18 and 20, was our most successful with the finicky trout of the Delaware. Despite other flies hatching in much greater numbers - Blue-winged olives and large Sulphurs - this fly brought the most trout to hand. Talk about a simple but effective pattern!

The other necessary ingredient was a fairly long leader, 12-13 feet in total length, of which 30" was 5X tippet.

Like I said in the prior post, the fish were not easy by any stretch of the imagination, but a good cast, a drag-free drift that was well-timed, and your reward would be the quick, soft sip of a trout taking your offering.

How sweet it is!

A Few Days On the Delaware

2011-06-29T07:28:00.001-04:00

As promised, here's the report on one of the best three day weekends we've had this year. We arrived on the West Branch of the Delaware early after on Friday, unpacked, had a beer, kissed the wife and went fishing. The weather was cloudy, humid and windless, perfect conditions for hatches and rising trout. We were not disappointed, as when we got to the river there were loads of bugs on the water and rising trout.

Before you think it was easy pickings, let me tell you a little about the upper Delaware river system. There are loads of bugs and trout that feed on them, but the fishing is fairly technical and demanding most days, requiring anglers to use all of their skills if they want to be successful. Just because the fish are rising and taking naturals off the surface, it doesn't mean they'll take your offering just because you present it over their feeding lie. If you don't believe this, just ask the many anglers that fished this weekend that didn't catch anything. We saw one drift boat, complete with guide and two anglers, fishing to a number of steadily rising fish without so much as a refusal.......in the course of an hour or so, every fly they cast went unnoticed by the feeding trout, all the while the trout continued to take natural after natural off the surface.

And their were bugs, lots of them - small sulphurs, large sulphurs, slate drakes, blue-winged olives, paraleps, light cahills, cinnamon caddis, dark gray sedges, duns, spinners and even some stonefly adults. Here's a large sulphur - Ephemerella invaria - that landed on my tying vise as I tied Friday evening....that's our bonfire in the background.

The blue-winged olives were everywhere Saturday afternoon, yet we didn't take a single fish on a BWO imitation. Instead, we did well with slate drakes and small sulphurs, which were present in fewer numbers, but clearly the day's special on the menu. Here's a clump of blue-winged olives I lifted off the water with my finger tip - they were that numerous!

I took this 18" or so brown on Friday on a #18 snowshoe rabbit foot sulphur pattern. Take a look at the broad tail on this fish..........powerful fighters and all wild fish.

And here's a typical wild Delaware River rainbow. These boys fight like no other trout I've ever caught. This one was maybe 12-13", but still managed to make my reel sing as he went on a couple of long runs that ripped line line from my reel. Did I say they also jump clear out of the water when hooked?

It was a great weekend fishing with friends. I'll post some pics of the flies I used when I get a chance. In the meantime, get out and fish!

Heading North in the Nick of Time

2011-06-24T09:20:00.001-04:00

Looks like our timing is just right for a trip north to the West Branch of the Delaware as the NJ rivers are bank full and chocolate milk in consistency. Kevin and I planned this trip a while back and we've been looking forward to it ever since with all the traveling for work all spring. The rivers up there - the east and west branches of the D - are in fine shape as they are tail waters. The Beaverkill and Willowemoc are not, and they resemble the NJ rivers.

We'll be camping right on the WB, so the fish will be at our doorstep the whole time, although we're just as likely to hit other stretches of the WB and the EB over the next few days. The overcast skies should be ideal for hatches during the day, as opposed to when there is bright sun and the fish don't start looking up until just before dark............trout tend to mess with us more when they can commiserate in good light conditions (see previous post).

Post time is in 15, so adios amigos. We'll be back in a few days will a full report complete with photos and other embarassing details.

I have my hook sharpener, do you?

The Trout Are On To Us

2011-06-21T23:15:00.002-04:00

Vinnie and I hit a stretch of the South Branch we haven't fished this year and did well, but split the species. He caught all browns, and I caught only rainbows, despite fishing within a hundred yards of each other the whole evening and both of us using sulphur imitations. Probably coincidence, but unusual all the same as wild browns dominate this section of the river.

And yes, the trout are on to us........why else would they rise sporadically through dusk, and then once the sun exits the landscape and our eyesight with it, do they begin rising all over the place?!

They're setting us up, that's why.

Seriously, they have clandestine meetings behind a big, midstream boulder and every so often they send out a scout to rise in a random foam line once or twice, just to keep us hanging around. If we are lucky, we manage to make a good cast, get a good drift, and hook the bastard when it takes our offering. That trout damn well knows we are going to release him after we bring him to hand, so it's no big deal; he's taking one for the team, and they all have a big laugh behind the boulder right under our waders.

Then when it gets dark, they spread out and feed on the multitude of hatching and egg-laying insects drifting on the surface film, all the while knowing we can't see a thing!

I can hear their laughter now..................

Boxed In and Bugless

2011-06-17T07:42:00.003-04:00

Yep, it's true, the minute you write about how good the hatches and the fishing are you get smacked right in the face with a humble pie!

I hit the river last evening, and when I got to the water, I was the only one in sight. It was about 7:30 by the time I stepped into the drink, and the air was calm, warm and humid. The water was cool, clear and somewhat on the low side, but definitely very fishable. As I tied on one of my soft hackled sulphur emergers, I thought to myself how lucky I was to be alone given all the fisherman I saw upriver on my way to this spot.

No sooner did I think the thought than I hear someone in waders stomping through the field behind me to the water. I turned, he stopped at the water's edge and said hi. I said hi out loud, and muttered something else under my breath, sort of like, "Crap, not only is someone else here, but he had to do a bee-line straight to where I was." As far as I could see up and down river, I did not see another soul, yet there he stood on the bank behind me. What are you going to do? We exchanged pleasantries; he asked if I was going to wade up or down stream, and although I had intended to work my way upstream I told he was welcome to slide in above me. As surprised as I was when the angler showed up, he was gracious enough to stop and ask me what my intentions were before he stepped in the river.

He walked up a ways and soon we were both casting to trout rising sporadically near each of us. I had plenty of water below me to fish, so I was fine........or was I? No sooner had I thought this, than another angler came in below me to fish. He gave me plenty of room, so no problem there, but I was boxed in.

If I had more time, I would have left the river and gone somewhere else if only to have the opportunity to cover water as I fished. Since there was only maybe 45 minutes of daylight left, I stayed and fished the water around me, frustrated that I was limited to where I could move. There were fish rising around me, and I caught some, but I continually had to rest them as they would go down after missed strikes or when I managed to catch a fish because of the commotion. I made the most of it, but generally I like to cover water and move. Welcome to New Jersey fly fishing.......

Then there were the bugs, or more accurately, the lack of bug activity. Unlike most other recent evenings, there were only a smattering of sulphurs coming off the water, a few midges and a random caddis for laughs. At least that was the case while there was light. Shortly after dark I could see in the headlights of cars going by, that the air was filled with sulphur and cahill spinners as well as various caddis and other flying insects.

So there you have it. We caught some fish, and who the heck knows what will happen next time we get in the water.......maybe Anonymous knows, but I sure don't.

The Bugs and the Trout are Cooperating, So Get Out and Fish!

2011-06-15T08:10:00.035-04:00

We've managed to bookend our weekly trips to Boston with some outstanding evening fishing the last two weeks. Our fishing has been late afternoon into dusk and with anywhere from 5-10 bugs on the water; 90% of the fishing has been with dries!

We have seen large sulphurs, small sulphurs, light cahills, gray foxes, blue-winged olives (several species), isonychias (slate drakes), yellow drakes, paraleps, dark blue sedges, cinnamon caddis, and black midges. The mayflies have been both duns and spinners depending on the evening.

The trick has been to figure what the trout are feeding on at any given moment, and being observant enough to notice when they switch from one bug to another. Some nights they have stayed on one insect, and others they have stitched from one to another to another. Of course, if that isn't enough, one fish may be feeding on the emerging cinnamon caddis, while another is feeding on sulphurs! Most evenings we have had to use 6X tippet to get the drift we need and catch fish.

It's been loads of fun and challenging.

Sharpen those hooks as you fish, and you'll definitely hook and land more trouts!

Photos and Thoughts of the Last Few Trips

2011-05-31T22:15:00.003-04:00

The tools......................

The river, high and off-color, which has been the norm this spring.........

A wild fish............

A stocked fish.......

A fly that continues to puzzle me: why does it work?...............

The hatches - sulphurs - have been epic some evenings, and the trout, more often than not, have been only marginally interested in them. One evening a couple of days ago, there were two different species of sulphurs hatching, and they were on the water and in the air in tremendous numbers. We're guessing the high water levels and limited visibility have hampered the trout's ability to see the flies on the water above them.......why else would they be passing up the thousands of flies moving along on the current half-submerged and crippled. Easy targets to say the least............

So, when a fish did rise, we tossed a simple snowshoe rabbit foot sulphur dry on the end of 6X tippet, and in most cases we hooked the fish and landed it. Otherwise, we fished a soft-hackled sulphur emerger and did well....we also continued to experiment with Walt's Worm, which seems to be some kind of trout candy .........and we are still scratching our heads. In fact, we are quickly going bald!

The soft-hackle sulphur we are fishing is the same pattern we wrote about for the hendrickson, but this one is a size #16 and 18, with primrose colored dubbing for the thorax. Tie some up and give them a go!

And don't forget to sharpen those hooks!

Have You Been a Good Father This Year? Then You Deserve a Fishing Trip!

2011-05-27T18:39:00.000-04:00

SPRUCE CREEK FLY COMPANY

FATHER’S DAY SPECIAL

Friday June 17th through Sunday June 19th

2 Angler Package includes:

Two nights accommodations (double occupancy; incl. breakfast)

Saturday and Sunday guided fly fishing for 2 anglers

Friday and Saturday night dinner packages (excludes alcohol)

All flies, tippet, leaders and streamside lunch for the weekend.

Signed copy of ‘Common Sense Fly Fishing-7 Simple Lessons to Catch More Trout’ ~Author Eric Stroup

Fly Tying Demo by Eric Stroup & Charlie Meck Friday evening

Saturday evening presentation; Celebrity Speaker TBA

Package Price: $1150

Contact Tracey Stroup to reserve your spot or to purchase a gift certificate for this great event!

eric@ericstroupflyfishing.com

814-632-6129

Call another great father and make the trip.....and bring a hook hone!

Sulphurs Everywhere!!

2011-05-27T00:03:00.002-04:00

Hit the river tonight after dinner. Water was high and a little off-color still. Around 8:00PM, the sulphurs started to hatch and within about 15 minutes, there were flies everywhere...on the water, in the air and most importantly, being taken by the trout. Not as many as there might be if the water were lower and clearer, but enough to provide plenty of targets. We caught a bunch of nice browns before it got too dark to see. Once the water comes down a little more, we should see many more fish coming up for the bugs.

That's it. Got to crash. I'll be on the water this weekend and will fill in the gaps I left tonight.

Sharpen those hooks!!

Does Walt's Worm Look Like a Cranfly Larva to the Trout??

2011-05-25T07:15:00.000-04:00

You be the judge. Me? I would think that this is one of the aquatic food items the fish take it for..........and now another fine video from Tightline Productions. Thank you, Tim.

Cranefly Larva from Tightline Productions on Vimeo.

Did you sharpen your hooks the last time you fished?

The More I Fish, the More Questions I Have About It

2011-05-20T20:04:00.008-04:00

Seriously, sometimes when we have a successful time on the water we come away with more questions than answers.   Last Thursday evening was one of those times.........

Stepped into the river around 7PM, and the water level was slightly higher than normal and clear. The air was cool and calm and the sun was fading in the western sky. I chose a nice long, curving run with a rocky outside bank that took the main flow of the current.  Above and along the entire bank, there is a heavy canopy of newly sprung hardwood leaves. The perfect place for bugs and trout.....and a solitary fly fisherman.

I started at the top of the run with an Iris caddis dry/emerger, as there were speckled caddis flying clumsily in the air above the water. A fish rose, I threw my first cast above the ring on the water, and after a short drift the fly was grabbed in an aggressive take. Shortly thereafter, I  brought to hand a 7 inch wild brown trout. Good start.

After that, I made a couple of dozen more casts with the Iris caddis to likely holding spots, but nothing was happening on top. In fact, I didn't see another rise the rest of the night.  After giving it a decent shot with the top water imitation, I decided it was time to put on a subsurface emerger, as trout were flashing in the water column as they fed on what were likely to be ascending caddis pupa.

I tied on a brown and yellow, #14, LaFontaine sparkle emerger to my 5X tippet and added a small shot about 6 inches ahead of the fly.   Now the trick was to sight a fish working in the run, get a bead on roughly where it was taking naturals, and then cast the fly a few feet above that and sort of guide the fly through the zone without pulling it unnaturally.  This takes some concentration and focus, but once you get the hang of it, it works very well in these conditions. Although you can't see your fly, you can gauge where it is by watching your line and the speed of the current. .

When in your mind's eye, you see the fly in the trout's feeding zone and the trout flashes or moves up, down or sideways, lift your rod tip as that's a sign it's taken something.....your fly! I love fishing this way. Once you take one fish, you stop and watch until you see another feeding trout.  Then you position yourself accordingly so as to maximize your drift, and go to it again.The fish were working all through the run this night, and by slowly moving down stream over the next hour or so, a couple of dozen trout came to hand.

And then it got interesting.

Having caught a bunch of fish, it was time to experiment. The fish were still actively feeding, so there were still plenty of targets. This past winter, my good friend Eric Stroup of Spruce Creek Fly Co., convinced me to tie some Walt's Worms at one of the fly fishing shows. He swears by them and uses them while guiding clients when nothing else seems to work.    The fly is about as simple to tie as any fly ever created. A little lead wire on the hook shank, followed by wrapping a nice tapered body of dubbed natural hare's ear mixed with a little antron, and tie off to finish.

I tied this minimal fur ball to my leader where the sparkle emerger had been, and left the shot on right where it was, intending to fish the fly in the same manner I had been fishing the emerger. I sighted a working trout, moved into position, and then started fishing the fly, albeit with little confidence. And then it happened... a couple of casts later I was into a nice rainbow. Huh?  Had to be a dumb fish, after all, the fly looks nothing like a caddis emerger or any other aquatic insect emerger for that matter.

After landing the fish, I went back to it, and sure enough I hooked and landed another trout in short order. This "strange" thing happened again and again over the next hour or so before it got too dark to spot fish. Strange because I couldn't, and still can't figure out why, the fly worked so well. It worked as good as, or better, than the sparkle emerger! The messier it got from fish teeth, the quicker they seemed to take it. The only thing I can think is that it looks to the pea-brained trout like a scud (fresh water shrimp). Scuds are a favorite food of trout in these parts, and they are very abundant. But why did it work so well before it got torn up and scraggly? This puzzles me to this day....only a week I know, but when you're rabid about this stuff, it can wear you out...............

Here's the torn up, post-fishing, Walt's Worm that worked so well.

Here is what it looked like before I started to fish it. Note the fished fly above has a shorter hook point - yes, we sharpen our hooks as we fish!

So that's the story and we're sticking to it. The damn fly works, it really works! The only thing left to do is to keep fishing it to see if it continues to produce, and keep wondering what the hell goes through the tiny neural center of a trout's world.........who was it that said trout are selective??? Maybe he should have his head examined, too!

What's your take on this? Inquiring minds want to know.........we look forward to reading your well-thought out comments.

And sharpen those hooks, it definitely makes a difference.

A Brief Report

2011-05-14T09:50:00.001-04:00

Got out on the water the last two nights and had a great evening Thursday, and a so-so evening last night. The water in these parts is still relatively cool for this time of the year, and the fish and bugs are acting accordingly. The bugs are not hatching well, and so the trout are not doing much surface feeding.

I'm off to to PA to play some golf for a change, so here's a few pictures I took last evening. I'll post a more thorough report later this weekend.

A large crayfish was keeping an eye on me while I fished.

The South Branch of the Raritan River in all its spring glory.

A pupal shuck from a freshly hatched Hydropsyche - Speckled Caddis

It's supposed to rain all this coming week, so get out and fish this weekend, and shapren those hooks.

Fishing and Another Video From Tightline Productions

2011-05-12T08:49:00.000-04:00

I finally got out and fished for an hour or so the other night after being out of town for the last two weeks. The air was cool and breezy, the river was clear and slightly high. We are in that lull between major mayfly hatches, with caddis being the predominant insect on the water. Tons of cinnamon/speckled caddis were in the air and some grannoms were back to lay their eggs. Once it warms up for a few days, the real mass of egg layers will return and the fun begins. I also saw a few sulphurs in the air, so get ready for the serious hatch to start in a week or so. We just need some consistent warm weather!

It was 7:30pm when I got to the water, and I was surprised that very few fish were rising. Usually, this time of the year, the evenings are the best for rising fish. It has to be the cool, unsettled weather we have been having for weeks. The water was only 61 degrees, and the air was in the 50's. I did manage two browns before dark, both on a #16 soft hackle emerger tied with a sulphur colored thorax.

Here's another video from our friend Tim Flagler. This one gives you a fish eye view of some stocked trout...the title says it all. Enjoy, and thanks Tim.

The Good, the Big & the Ugly from Tightline Productions on Vimeo.

Get out and fish!

Nothing is Free in This World - Pay U.S. Now or Pay U.S. Later

2011-05-10T12:31:00.003-04:00

New Jersey saltwater anglers to be fined $300 if they fail to sign up for FREE registry...........

Recreational fishing advocates who won a fight to keep saltwater fishing free in New Jersey got a surprise this week, with new state rules that decree a $300 fine for those who don’t sign up for the new registry of ocean anglers.

“It’s outrageous to put in a fine system. It’s totally vindictive. They’re going to be chasing people down and writing tickets,” complained Jim Donofrio of the Recreational Fishing Alliance, an activist group that fought off moves to impose a paid saltwater fishing license.

Read all about it here: Asbury Park Press

This Week's Video From Tightline Productions

2011-04-25T20:54:00.000-04:00

This week we have an underwater view of a full range of South Branch denizens. More hendrickson nymphs and adults - check out the male at 0:36. There are other mayfly nymphs, various cased caddis larva, and some stonefly nymphs - notice how they do "push-ups" to move water across their gills. Also crawfish, dace and a mess of trout at the end. Enjoy.

South Branch Sampler 4-22-11 from Tightline Productions on Vimeo.

Great stuff, Tim. Thanks for sharing.

Happy Easter - Here's One for our Friends at Double Haul Fly Fishing

2011-04-24T14:08:00.004-04:00

Yesterday the monsoons came again in the early morning hours, washing out any hope we had of fishing. Even the wild trout stream down the street was in fine chocolate milk shape as it struggled to stay within its banks. So we went to Shannon's Fly Shop to pick up some hooks and say hi to Jim and George, before coming back home to tie up some phunky bugs for the upcoming hatches. I ran into Uncle Hooli of DHFFwhile there and he was asking me about my egg-laying caddis and how we tie it.

So here goes, but first a glimpse of a nearby trout sancturary doing its best imittion of Yohoo.

The egg-laying caddis shown here is a dead-ringer for the grannoms that are hatching now in great numbers - thus their latin name - Brachycentrus numerosus. Although they hatch now, they will live for several weeks among the budding trees and shrubs before mating and dying. When the weather and water warms sufficiently, they will mate and come back to the streams to crawl down partially submerged logs, rocks and even anglers legs, to lay their eggs on the down stream side 6 inches or so below the surface.

This pattern works like a charm on those warm May evenings when the mature grannoms retunr to do their thing. Looks for the clumsy flyers, with their bright green, egg sacs hanging from the end of their abdomens, swarming just above the water around partially submerged rocks and logs. You may also see them around your legs, as they like to crawl down anything that's in the midst of flowing water, to lay their eggs. (Click on any of the photos to enlarge them.)

1. Debarb a size #16 dry fly hook. Tie in a piece of caddis green antron or zelon as shown.

2. Clip the tag end so its about 1/2 a hook gap in length, and clip off the front excess. Dub a tapered body using gray Australian Opossum fur.

3. Tie in an underwing of clear or white antron or zelon.

4. Tie in a bunch of snowshoe rabbit foot hair - the crinkly, gnarly hair from the toe is what we like best for caddis wings as it looks right and stays in a fairly tight bunch.

5. Chop up some rough, natural hare's ear dubbing. Wax your thread with tacky wax - not the dry, wimpy stuff that comes in a big lipstick tube - that stuff is only good for........nothing if you're a fly tyer. Then touch dub maybe 1 1/2 inches of the thread with the chopped hare's ear, and wrap the throax. Stroke the fibers back as you wrap the mess so it stays spikey. Here's the finished fly. That thorax will pop out as you fish it and give it the perfect silhouette.

This is another of my dual-purpose flies. We fish it dry to rising fish, and we'll also add a small shot 6 inches above it and fish it behind rocks and logs where we see trout flashing in the water column below as they pick off the egg-layers that have lost their grip in the current.

Tie some up, go fish, and sharpen those hooks as you fish!

Tying the Soft Hackle Hendrickson Emerger

2011-04-20T07:46:00.008-04:00

I got a bunch of emails asking about how I tie my SH Hendrickson emerger, so here goes.......

Sizes #12 and 14 - Dry fly hook.

1. Tie in a bunch of pheasant tail fibers for the tail and abdomen, as shown. Tie in copper wire rib.

2. Wrap pheasant tail fibers back to tail and then tie them down with copper wire. After securing pheasant tail, continue wrappping wire to front forming rib, and then tie off as shown.

3. Clip excess pheasant tail and wire. Coat about 1-2 inches of thread with sticky wax. Touch-dub medium Austrailian Oppossum to waxed thread as shown.

4. Wrap dubbed thread forward forming a thorax.

5. Tie in a speckled hen feather by the tip, fold the fibers as shown.

6. Wrap the hen hackle as a collar, as shown, and tie off head. Go fish!

Tie some up and fish them with confidence. Dead-drift them deep, swing them in traditional wet fly fashion, and when the trout start taking the adults off the top, dry it out and get out the Frog's Fanny - fish it dry. It works great for me, hope it does for you.

Meet the Hendricksons/Ephemerellas

2011-04-17T21:37:00.009-04:00

Tim Flagler of Tightline Productions sent us this very cool under water video of mostly hendrickson nymphs, and a few other Genus Ephemerella nymphs. The hendrickson nymphs, Ephemerella subvaria, are easily identified by the three light, mid-abdominal segments, and two dark bands on the tibia of each leg. The end of the film give us a water's edge view of an adult male hendrickson - a red quill to us fly fishermen.

Meet the Hendricksons from Tightline Productions on Vimeo.

Neat stuff, and Tim tells us that he intends to take aquatic insect samples from the South Branch of the Raritan River on a weekly basis and photograph them. Something to look forward to, look for updates here in the coming weeks.

Thanks Tim, we look forward to more great shots.

A Brief Hendrickson Hatch

2011-04-16T18:10:00.005-04:00

JB and I managed to get out yesterday and fish for a few hours before the cold, raw winds moved in and shut things down. I got to the river about 3:30PM, and JB was still on his way. A few hendricksons hatched here and there, but they were being ignored as they drifted and took flight from the water surface. Knowing the nymphs would be active, I tied on a soft hackle hendrickson emerger, and before long I was into fish. I could see the trout taking the nymphs in the water column throughout the run. The golden-silvery flash of their flanks gave them away as they rushed to take the ascending nymphs before they reached the surface.

In the first half-hour or so, I caught many fish by dead-drifting my fly through the lanes I saw trout feeding in, a foot or two under the surface. I had a small split-shot 6 inches or so above the fly.  Most of the fish took the fly as it drifted toward them, and the others took it as it rose at the end of its drift as the current tightened my leader and line, bringing the fly upwards as though it was about to hatch.

JB arrived and along with his fly rod, he had his camera, hoping he might get some underwater shots for my book. He got there just as the trout started taking the emerging mayflies off the water surface. So I took the split shot off my leader, then I dried the fly by squeezing it in a felt patch followed by a generous application of Frog's Fanny dessicant. My soft hackle was now a soft hackle hendrickson dry fly. I then would pick out a rising fish, cast the fly above it and let it drift down into the fishes feeding lane. A good cast and nice, drag-free drift, many times would draw the trout up out of the depths to take the offering. As more hendricksons hatched, more fish rose to them, giving me multiple targets up and down the long run. I caught a boat load of trout during this period, and JB took a boat load of photos of many of the fish just before I landed them. I don't know how he managed to keep taking photos, because if that were me and all those trout were rising around me, I would put the camera down and start fishing!

Of course, JB could only hold out so long.  And how many pictures can you take before you've had enough. He grabbed his rod, I gave him a couple of my flies, and he headed upstream of me to fish the top of the run. In short order he was into a nice rainbow that put a deep bend in his new 9ft 5wt, before tossing the fly.

And then, a half-hour later, it was over as quickly as it started. A moist cold wind kicked up, clouds blocked the sun, and the bugs stopped hatching as though someone had flipped a switch to off. The trout quit rising just as quickly.  We continued fishing though, as the trout continued to take nymphs below the surface. I added a split shot to my leader, and using the same fly, took a bunch more fish before the raw weather got the best of us and we packed it in.

Here's a soft hackle hendrickson before being fished.

Click to enlarge

A nice trout that took the fly..........

And the fly at the end of the day.......

Click to enlarge

As I write this, it is windy and raining out....and cold. I doubt the hendricksons hatched today around here, so yesterday is even sweeter knowing I hit it right.

Sharpen your hooks and go fish!

A View From Below the Surface

2011-04-13T20:39:00.001-04:00

Click on the pic...'nuff said.......

Here Come the Bugs!

2011-04-10T10:53:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I briefly fished the South Branch of the Raritan River for no other reason than to keep my tradition of fishing on NJ opening day.  I fished with Dan Ansbach, who in addition to being a dad of three and working full-time, is a fishing guide out of Shannon's Fly Shop in Califon. It was a warm day with thin, milky clouds taking the edge off the bright day by muffling shadows. The river was in great shape, although a little lower than we'd like for this early in the season.   It was clear and about 52 degrees at 2PM.

And best of all, like daffodils signal that spring is near, we saw the first serious hatch of aquatic insects! Waves of dark grannoms came up the river on the light breeze, along with lots of little black and brown stoneflies. I saw my first red quills of the year, a sure sign that in 3-5 days the hendrickson hatch should really get going, bringing the trout to the surface. And we saw a couple quill gordons - large, steel-gray mayflies riding the current briefly before taking flight.

Despite all the bugs, we didn't see fish rising to them, not that we were surprised. Early in the season, the trout tend to be less inclined to rise and feed on the surface, particularly the freshly stocked fish.  As more bugs hatch, and the water temperatures become more consistent, that will change.

The hendrickson is one of the best hatches in NJ, and just perfect for the fly fisherman to get the winter cobwebs out of their heads.   You fish the nymph early in the day up until you see fish flashing in the water column as they take the pre-emergent nymphs dancing in the water column,, usually in the early afternoon. Then you switch to a subsurface emerger or soft-hackle fly - dead-drift it, lifting it half way through the draft, and also let it swing below you and rise on the current to the surface. When the trout begin to take hatching flies on or near the surface, switch to a floating emerger. And finally, when the flies are plentiful on the surface and the trout are focused on them, put on a dry fly and have a ball. Late in the afternoon, when fish continue to rise, but ignore your dun, switch to a dark spinner pattern.

It's almost post time, so plan accordingly.

And sharpen your hooks!

It Nevers Grows Old

2011-04-07T17:51:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I was at a job in Massachusetts, near Marlboro, inspecting the roofs in a community that rests on a hill top. The sun shone bright through a clear, blue sky warming the day to the mid-fifty degree mark. Throughout the afternoon I kept seeing little-black stoneflies on the building trim and siding, lots of them. Almost everywhere I looked I saw the thin, dark shapes moving along the warm, white trim, or in the air, their two sets of smoky wings fluttering like a confused helicopter.

By the time I got done with the inspections, I had one thing on my mind. I had to find out where the stoneflies were hatching from and if the stream was fishable. I left the community and I headed down the hill to where the land flattened out and began looking for what in my mind was a clear, clean, freestone stream contained by rocky banks and shadowed by bare hardwoods and low, leafless brush.

After following my nose for a bit I found the stream as it passed under an empty, one-lane road. The stream was just as I had imagined - small, swift and clear, with clay-lined rocky banks and a graveled bottom. It paralleled the road through fallow farmland, filled with overgrown brush and pale, tall dead grasses and weeds. There were also quite a few trees of mid-life size, scattered along the banks and the surrounding land.

I pulled off the road about 50 yards from the stream and walked through the field to the stream. As I approached the narrow flow – a 20 foot cast would span the banks – I saw more stoneflies in the air. Upon reaching streamside, I also saw some stones on the water trying to take flight, and others skittering along dropping their egg laden abdomens to release their progeny.

And then I heard that familiar sound every angler associates with feeding trout, and looked to where the noise came from. Downstream along a low, curving, cut bank, a trout rose in a splash to take one of the hapless stoneflies. And then another did the same, or maybe it was the same fish, and I walked quickly down to get a closer look.

The stream curved gently and widened into a smooth flow along the outside, creating the perfect conveyor of food to trout hanging under the bank in the shadows. I watched as several brook trout took turns ascending from the secure darkness of the depths to chase the stoneflies on the surface for an early spring meal. The fish were small, maybe 7-8 inches, and deep olive in color. I imagined that up close, their flanks had the typical brook trout red spots surrounded by pale, blue halos, and their dorsal sides showing the vermiculated light and dark patterns so well known to anglers in the Northeast.

I imagined, and watched, and walked and watched some more and found in every likely holding spot, a trout or two rising to take the plentiful stoneflies. Some rises were subtle sips, and others were splashy aggressive affairs, with the trout sometimes torpedoing completely out of the water. I couldn’t help but think the trout were happy in some way, with the warming water and first hatch of the year going full-tilt. I know I was happy, and fascinated, as the site of feeding trout never seems to grow old, especially after a long, cold winter.

Note to self - carry your equipment everywhere you go!

And sharpen your hooks.

Back to Ed Engle and His Blue-winged Olive Emerger

2011-04-05T22:32:00.000-04:00

The other day I posted an article by Ed Engle in which he wrote about the first mayfly hatch of the season, the Blue-winged Olives, and how best to imitate them. He wrote:

Remember that the fishing action really begins when the blue-winged olive nymphs, which are good swimmers, make their way from the stream bottom to the surface where they will emerge from the nymphal shuck as winged, air-breathing adults. Look for blue-winged olive emerger patterns in sizes 18-22 that utilize flashy synthetics .............. silver-lined glass beads. Besides giving the impression of movement and action, the flashy stuff also imitates the bright air bubble associated with a nymph as it heads toward the water's surface or as it begins to extricate itself from the shuck.

Here are two versions of a blue-winged olive emerger I tied using Ed's sliver lined bead method. This first one is my sparse version. It's tied with a few woodduck flank fibers for a tail, a thread abdomen, dubbed thorax and a small, glass silver-lined bead.

Here is a more robust pattern I tied using pheasant tail for the tail and abdomen (which is how Ed demonstrated the pattern), a dubbed marbou thorax (my addition), and the silver-lined bead. This one is tied on the Czech Dohiku hook. I've been using the dubbed marabou thorax on some of my emergers in recent years with good success. It makes a real messy, buggy thorax that "breathes" in the water. Give it shot and see of you like it.

The beads in the photoslook like they are just clear glass, but they are silver-lined on the inside hole, and have a great flash to them. I use a piece of 6X tippet through the hole to bind them to the hook shank before I wrap the thorax material around the base of the bead and the hook.

I'll report down the road on their effectiveness, or lack thereof, after I have given them a good soaking in front of some trout noses.

Go get 'em! And sharpen those hooks.

Bird Watching and Trout Behavior

2011-03-31T21:46:00.010-04:00

I spend a fair amount of time watching the birds as they feed at the birdfeeder out behind our home in the morning, and it occurred to me several months ago that I could learn a lot from them as their behavior relates to fly fishing for trout. After all, they both live in a wild environment. They both have the same basic survival instincts as trout do, all predicated on self-preservation. And from all appearances, they have behavioral cycles that effect when and how they feed that may or may not be effected by the weather, sun light, or lack thereof, or the presence of predators. And of course, birds have the same obvious physical limitations that trout have; they do not have hands, and so must test food items with only their mouth (beaks), along with sight and smell. None of this should come as a surprise to us, as birds likely evolved from fish.

One of the things I notice is that when I go out to refill the feeder, the birds naturally move away from the deck and feeder area to what for them I assume is a safe distance from me. They view me as a threat. Trout feeding on the surface often do the same thing when we step into a pool to fish to them; they stop feeding and stay near the stream bed or move to deeper water. After I go back inside the house, sometimes the birds return quickly to the feeder, and other times, it takes an hour or more before one or two return to feed. Again, trout tend to be just as unpredictable; step into a pool one day and they keep rising, and on another day you step into a pool and they stop feeding as though someone flipped a switch.

When the fish will start to feed again can vary from a few minutes, to sometimes longer than you can wait them out. We would like to think that there is something we can do to get them to start feeding again when this happens, but it sure escapes me. This is the moment when many anglers begin changing flies at a very rapid pace, or worse, they tie on a big, ugly streamer and start ripping it through the pool thinking that the faster it moves the more it might piss them off enough that they will chase it and grab it in a fit of anger. Perhaps this is a form of transference – we’re pissed off, so maybe we can piss off our quarry, too. This is also known as stupidity, and there isn’t an angler that hasn’t been there done that.

For both the birds and fish, it seems their behavior can be as capricious as ours, but for different reasons. Although I can’t help but think that like humans, there are external factors that affect the birds and fish much the same way. I wonder…….when the sun comes up, are there some nights the fish didn’t sleep well? Do they mope around the stream the next day barely eating and just being grumpy? Or maybe they eat something that doesn’t “agree” with them. Maybe they had bad fish dreams about herons trying to stab them with their long, sharp beaks, and then the next day feel like crap, so they don’t feed. Or their lack of shut-eye maybe makes them tense and nervous, so they freak out when anything enters their realm, bird or man. One never knows, does one?

Well, we do know. Trout do not have cognitive brain function; they behave in order to survive. More likely, when the birds are skittish to the point my presence is clearly sends them packing, something probably occurred before I went out to refill the feeder. Maybe a cat was nearby, or a bird of prey, and my coming outside was the last straw and they bolt for a long while. And so with the fish, it’s just as likely a predator puts them on edge sometimes before we get to the water. The gliding shadow of a large bird overhead, a furry paw entering the water nearby, or maybe a large, dominant alpha trout has been asserting itself. So when we enter the stream, the sound of our boots on streambed rocks or surface ripples, become the last straw for the fish. They shut down. Enough is enough.

In fly fishing, like much of life, timing is everything. And something we often don’t have any control over. So, if you can get out and fish, relax and enjoy it…..and move your ass to another stretch of water if the trout don’t cooperate in the one you’re in at the moment.

More On Spring Blue-winged Olives By Our Friend, Ed Engle

2011-03-30T13:41:00.006-04:00

Although the article linked below is written for Ed's backyard - Colorado - his comments and information are apropos for matching and fishing the early spring blue-winged olive hatches anywhere in the continental U.S.

Remember that the fishing action really begins when the blue-winged olive nymphs, which are good swimmers, make their way from the stream bottom to the surface where they will emerge from the nymphal shuck as winged, air-breathing adults. Look for blue-winged olive emerger patterns in sizes 18-22 that utilize flashy synthetics such as Mylar, Krystal Flash, Antron or silver-lined glass beads. Besides giving the impression of movement and action, the flashy stuff also imitates the bright air bubble associated with a nymph as it heads toward the water's surface or as it begins to extricate itself from the shuck.

Link: Ed Engle: Spring winds delay the fly-fishing season - Boulder Daily Camera

I have recently tied up some emergers with the silver-lined glass beads after he showed his technique for them at one of the winter fly fishing shows. I'll post a photo when I get chance.

Some great information from one of the guys in our sport that speaks softly and should always be listened to. I learn something from Ed everytime I talk to him, and he usually good for a laugh or two as well.

Get out and fish!

A Couple of Olives for Early Spring

2011-03-26T16:29:00.005-04:00

It's the time of year anglers will likely encounter hatching Blue-winged Olives just about any day on the water. Baetis tricaudatus, has been showing on our local waters most days now, although the trout are not so eager to come up to the surface to feed on them as the water remains fairly cold. On the limestone streams of Eastern Pennsylvania, reports are that the trout are looking up and taking the little olive-brown bodied, slate-winged mayflies. It's only a matter of a few warms days before we'll see some action closer to home.  We are limited here in NJ to only the special regulation waters, as the season is closed on open regulation waters until April 9th.

Here are a couple of surface patterns I prefer for this hatch, as one sits right in the film, and the other sits on the film.   I like these patterns because the naturals they imitate tend to be slow to leave the surface as they fill their soon to be wide, blue-gray wings with life giving fluid in the cool, spring air.

This first one is a simple soft-hackle, size 20. Tail is a few fibers from a dark, mottled Hungarian partridge neck feather; the body is dark olive with a touch of brown; and the hackle is also a Hun neck feather. I fish this fly just as I would a dry.

This one is a no-hackle, also tied on a size 20 hook. The tail is a few Hun neck feather fibers; the body and thorax again is dark olive; and the wings are primary feather sections from a mallard wing. Those wings stay together as they are here for about all of two or three casts, then they generally splay in place and the works great.

The one pattern not shown here is a cdc wing thorax olive. I like it for the same reasons I like to fish the above patterns - it sits right on the water surface.

Tie some up and fish them!!!

And don't forget to sharpen your hooks.

A Taste of Spring

2011-03-18T08:26:00.002-04:00

Looks like the warm weather the last couple of days has awakened the streamlife around here. The rivers and streams are receding from the recent heavy rains and snow run-off. They are clear now, and at normal spring levels - on the high side, so wade carefully and make sure you cinch up the top of your waders to keep the water out if you go for an accidental swim.

The Little-black Stoneflies and Little-brown Stoneflies have been hatching quite well. Look for the aggressive rises of trout along the margins of the stream as they chase the egg-laying females skittering on the surface to drop those eggs. So far, from all the reports I have heard, the fish aren't looking up and taking them, but you never know.

The early seaon Blue-winged Olives, Baetis tricaudatus, have also been hatching fairly well on some streams, and that can only get better as spring approaches.

Here's a Little-brown Stonefly catching some rays on a streamside stone.

Photo by John Collins

Get out and fish! And sharpen those hooks.

March Madness - Bahamas Style

2011-03-12T16:53:00.001-05:00

From the lens and fly rod of J B McCollum, comes some true March Madness.

Click image for full size

Link: JB McCollum Photography

Ramsey Outdoors Fly Fishing Day

2011-03-10T22:39:00.003-05:00

With the local rivers blown out and in many cases flooding, if you're in New Jersey this Saturday, you may want to head to Ramsey Outdoors Store in Succasunna. In addition to a number presentations, they have a strong line-up of fly tyers who will be showing and teaching their skills to anyone that wants to sit across the table from them.

Join them for a day dedicated to Fly Fishing!

LECTURES
10:00 AM - Brian Cowden, River Restoration in New Jersey
11:00 AM - Darren Rist, Fly Fishing the Upper Delaware River
12:00 PM - Lance Wilts, Central Pennsylvania Fly Fishing
1:00 PM - Mike McAuliffe- 12 Months of Fly Fishing in New Jersey

FEATURED FLY TYERS
Andy Brasco
John Collins
John Kavanaugh
Anthony Giaquinto
Lance Wilt
George Douglas from Kype Magazine
Joe Cebellos
Steve Fogel
Tim Mahony
Mike Nutto
and Leslie Wrixton!

And many more!

Saturday, March 12th, 2011
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Ramsey Outdoor, Succasunna
Call (973) 584-7798 for more information

I wonder if any of the tyers will mention the imporance of sharpening your hook while astream.

And if you are wondering what my local river looks like......can you say chocolate milk?

We're Back From the Dead...

2011-03-09T09:23:00.002-05:00

We're up and running again after a stretch of down time thanks to finally switching my URL from Blogspot. All kinds of bugs got created with the switch, none of which I understand, but after some help from a techie friend, looks like Caddis Chronicles is back to normal.....or as normal as it can be.

I'll have something for you later, got to tend ot my real job first.

Sharpen your hooks!

Some Days It All Comes Together

2011-02-27T21:21:00.003-05:00

First things first, though. I tied flies this morning and afternoon at the first annual Sparse Gray Matter fly tying event alongside of a bunch of talented fly tyers. The event was sponsored by Shannon's Fly Shop and Dette's Fly Shop, and held in Califon, NJ. It was a terrific event, well attended, and from what I could see everyone had a good time. Special thanks to Dan Ansbach who put it together for Shannon's, and to Joe Fox, of Dette's Fly Shop in Roscoe, NY. Joe tied some beautiful classic Catskill style dry flies, carrying on the traditions of his heritage I know would make his grandfather,Walt Dette, proud.

After the shindig, I headed out to fish the South Branch of the Raritan for a few hours by myself, after a long week in Boston, and had one of those rare days it all comes together. When I got to the stream ,the air was crisp and cool, but not cold, with a slight breeze to chill the cheeks. The sun was bright, and higher than it has been in recent weeks, with the slightest hint of spring. The river was cold, as expected, but clear and a little high - just right for late winter fishing.

And the fishing was incredible, especially for this time of the year. I saw a few bugs in the air, midges and a couple of Little-black Stoneflies, but the fish were not on them. So I tied on a LaFontaine brown and yellow sparkle pupa, and before very long I was into fish. In two hours or so, I brought to hand/net a number of wild brown trout, averaging 7-8 inches, and a few rainbows as you can see below. BIG rainbows, holdovers that must have fed quite well over our harsh winter as evidenced by their hard fighting attitude, and bulky bodies. Every fish took the one and only sparkle pupa I tied on first. I did have to change my tippet a couple of times after landing a few fish, as it had frayed a little, but I used only the one fly. Of course, I sharpened the fly every so often, which helped I'm sure, as some of the takes were very soft.

It was a day to remember, with good friends and meeting some new ones at the tying event, and then a quiet late day on the water with the sounds of a woodpecker in the woods and fish on the end of my line.

Life is good.

Sparse Gray Matter Fly Fishing Event Tomorrow

2011-02-26T14:39:00.000-05:00

Dette's Fly Shop and Shannon's Fly Shop, two of NY & NJ's oldest fly shops are sponsoring the first annual Sparse Grey Matter fly tying Event on Sunday February 27, 2011 at the Califon, NJ Fire House on Main St in Califon, One block from Shannons Fly & Tackle...10AM-3PM

All are welcome to come tie, so bring your vise and materials, or just come to observe. A number local bamboo rod builders are also expected to attend.

There is no charge (although small donations are happily accepted). So come shake off the winter blues and join us.
If you have any questions, call Shannon's 908-832-7392.

Thanks to Dan Ansbach for arranging the event.

Knee Deep Fly Fishing.....Another One Goes in Head First

2011-02-18T13:35:00.020-05:00

Knee Deep Fly Fishing is a Washington, DC based fly fishing guide service serving the Capitol Region.

A good friend and passionate fly fisherman and fly tyer, Micah Dammeyer, has finally got swept away by the swift waters he fishes. Micah is now a professional Fly Fishing Guide and Instructor. Now I know what some of you may be thinking, "Yep, another guy that loves to fish that thinks he can make a living at it." While that may be true for some, as we know many who have gone in over their waders, this guy's for real. One of the most important keys to success is enthusiasm for what you are doing, and Micah has enough for all of us.

Located within a short drive to a number of streams - including the Big Gunpowder Falls, Patuxent and Patapsco Rivers and, last but not least, the Potomac River and it’s largemouth and smallmouth bass fishery- the options for an exciting day on the water are many. Whether you’re just starting out or are looking for a new river to fish, Knee Deep Fly Fishing can help get you out and learning some new water.

Knee Deep Fly Fishing offers fishing instruction as well as fly tying instruction to help keep you busy this winter.

Link: Knee Deep Fly Fishing

And he knits, too! Something to keep your head warm while you ponder the trout refusing your fly yet again.............

Midge Fishing on the Madison River.....Or, Why Do I Live in New Jersey?

2011-02-17T19:40:00.010-05:00

Craig Mathews fishes the Madison River in February. Check out all the rising trout!!!

Looks like I have to move the office in Boston to Bozeman......very soon. I'll tell the boss my life depends on it. It does, doesn't it?!

Via: Blue Ribbon Flies

Sunrise to Sunset on a Sunday

2011-02-13T20:06:00.004-05:00

As the sun came up this morning, it threw a vast narrow ribbon of vibrant pink and violet across the eastern horizon. The 15 or so deer that lay beneath the oaks and cedars outside my window had no idea what they were missing, nor do I think they cared. A while later, when the day had brightened and melted away the colors of dawn, it was off to teach back to back fly tying seminars at Shannon's Fly Shop in Califon.

Finally, I managed to get to the river at around 4:40. The water was cold, but not too bad, and as clear as the air. When I hooked and landed my first fish on a LaFontaine brown and yellow sparkle pupa, it was 5:20, but still light. How far away can spring be with the daylight hours closing in and taking over the hours of darkness? From then until dark, the three of us caught fish, and called it a day only because we couldn't see anymore.

It was good day all around. The tying seminars went well, with every spot taken for both sessions, and the fishing was good. Sleep will come very easily tonight...........

Ain't That the Truth

2011-02-10T20:55:00.001-05:00

"They say you forget your troubles on a trout stream, but that's not quite it. What happens is that you begin to see where your troubles fit into the grand scheme of things, and suddenly they're just not such a big deal anymore." - John Gierach

Get out and fish....and don't forget to sharpen those hooks!

Wild vs. Stocked Fish Swimming Performance

2011-02-05T11:39:00.002-05:00

Here's an interesting article that was posted on Moldy Chum today about the differences in the swimming abilities of wild fish and hatchery fish. Nothing surprising, but interesting all the same......

Fish and laser beams sound like things out of a sci-fi movie, but a combination of the two is being used for important research into the future of rainbow trout.....

The full article can be found here: Columbia Basin Bulletin

Sharpen those hooks!

Dohiku Hooks

2011-01-30T21:56:00.003-05:00

I've been tying on a new fly tying hook madei n Czechoslovakia that Eric Stroup introduced me to at the Marlborough, MA., fly fishing show a couple of weeks ago. I've been tying nymphs, soft-hackles and assorted dry flies on them and can't wait to use them on the stream.

Today I tried tying a classic Catskill Style dry fly on a size 14, dry fly hook. I have tied this style fly on the nymph Dohiku hooks, and they look great, as you can see in my post of a few days ago - the Royal Wulff. Here's the Red Quill I tied today on the dry fly hook:

You can see the hook shank to hook gap ratio is on the short side for this style, and the shank begins to curve well before the bend, unlike the traditional dry fly hook. But not so much that the fly shouldn't perform well, it just looks different on this hook. Other style dries I tied on the hook look better to me than they do on the traditional dry hook - snowshoe rabbit duns and emergers and thorax style. I'll post some pics of those after I recharge the battery in the camera...most likely after I return from Beantown later this week.

And here's a pheasant tail soft-hackle I tied on a small dry fly hook - #16. Looks great, and I'm guessing it will fish great. The hooks are very well made, strong and sharp.....you know how I like sharp hooks!

I'm going to keep tying on these hooks, and I can't wait to fish them. I'm thinking they may become my go-to hook for a lot of my patterns.

You can get the hooks from Kevin Compton at Performance Flies. Look him up and give him a ring, he's got the goods. Just leave some for me.

Here's the link: Performance Flies

Go get 'em, and sharpen those hooks!

Hugh's Fish Fight

2011-01-29T17:33:00.001-05:00

Half of all fish caught in the north sea are thrown back overboard dead.

Click here to join the cause: Hugh's Fish Fight
Enough said, join the cause.

Again!

2011-01-27T06:36:00.004-05:00

Blue Ribbon Flies Ties the Muskrat Midge

2011-01-26T19:16:00.004-05:00

We all know the Zebra Midge is a winter-time staple for trout. You may want to add this midge pattern to your arsenal as well. Not that midges are only important during the winter.....they are important all year, every month, and if the fish aren't rising, keep them in mind when fishing subsurface.

Fish them deep and keep 'em sharp!

Somerset Fly Fishing Show

2011-01-25T21:27:00.003-05:00

The big show this past weekend was one of the best I've attended as I tied all weekend long alongside a couple of good friends, and lots of other friends, old and new, stopped by to watch us tie flies. I got to catch up with some old friends, and all of us managed to create some general mayhem and laughter. My presentations were very well attended, I signed a boatload of books (I thought that would start to wane but I signed as many as I ever have), and got started on the making of a fly tying video to be out later this year along with my next book. Life is good.

I must have tied a hundred flies and gave most of them away......it's kind of show and tell and then give the guy that asked the most quesions the fly you just tied as a sample. Or if there's a little kid watching, it goes to him or her.

Here's a couple of Red Quills I tied, one with light hackle, and the other with dark hackle. Both will work like a charm.

And here's a Royal Wulff I tied on a Czech made hook. The fly is going to be mounted in a shadow box and auctioned off to raise funds for the Federation of Fly Fishers. I'll be writing more soon on these hooks and showing other patterns tied on them, and where you can buy them. They are well made, sharp and they even look pretty wicked with that circle point. Can't wait to fish them and report back, I hear they are as good when fishing them as they are in the tying vise.

And here's a soft-hackle Hendrickson emerger, also tied on a Czech made hook.

That's all for now, got to listen to President Obama-lama-ding-dong give his annual speach. Maybe he'll bring Speaker Boehner to tears, not that that's hard to do...........I just noticed, Speaker Boehner doesn't blink........and Obama is the only one in the room without a ribbon on his lapel for Rep. Giffords.

I'll be back.

In the meantime, sharpen your hooks and laugh with your friends every chance you get.

More on the Urine-Stained Fox Belly Fur

2011-01-19T07:45:00.009-05:00

You don't have to be a chemist to know that fox pee stains fox belly fur the perfect shade of another one of nature's creatures, Ephemerella subvaria - The Hendrickson mayfly. It's a rare find, this fur, that many traditional Catskill Fly Tyers covet. It's been said that some tyers have had wet dreams about it, and why shouldn't they? After all, perhaps they might be trying to create their own magic fur.

Pick up any book on the history of the Catskill Fly Tying Tradition, and you'll see this material was the
reason for bar fights, marriage proposals and dissolutions, hunting "accidents", and in a number of cases, wader slashing.

One old-timer recently recalled how he overheard two local Roscoe, NY fellows named Walt and Harry, discussing over a couple of beers how they would carry out a trip to their safe deposit box at the Salmonid National Bank, to cut a smidgen of fur from their treasured fur so they could tie some fresh Hendricksons for the upcoming hatch in the spring of 1957..........

And now, after 40 years of tying flies, I have my own piece of pee-stained fox belly fur to tie my Hendricksons with thanks to one of the finest Catskill Fly Tyers known, Dave Brant. And now I can see for myself why this fur "gold" has reached mythical status - the creamy gray with a pink cast fur color is found no where else in nature...........or labratories. All those years I had mixed a blend of pink, gray and cream dyed rabbit fur to get the desired shade, and now I have the real deal.

So now I just have to pull out all the guard hairs, then cut off and blend the remaining underfur into a natural creamy, pink gray dubbing in a coffee grinder. The result will be the ultimate Hendrickson dubbing. I'll tie a few up and share them with you all (photos that is) sometime in the very near future.

Another reason to look forward to spring!

Sharpen those hooks!!

Show's Over.....On to the Next One

2011-01-16T22:08:00.002-05:00

Just got back from the Marlborough, MA show, and it was a good one. Karen and I had a sort of vacation for three days, me tying and demonstrating, and both of us catching up with friends and having a great time in the evenings. The crowds were good, but not crazy like Somerset, and even today was pretty busy for a Sunday.

Yep, I know I didn't post anything like I had hoped, but we were busy having fun and tiring ourselves out.......and focusing. ; ) I did take a bunch of photos, which I'll post tomorrow along with the details. Tied a load of flies, gave most away, and also scored a beautiful piece of pink urine-stained fox fur for the Hendrickson, courtesy of Dave Brant. Thank you, Dave!

Off to bed.

Sharpen those hooks and hold on for more..........

It's Show Time!!

2011-01-14T08:25:00.001-05:00

The first show of the year for me starts today, in Marlborough, MA. After taking care of a couple of things for work, I'll head over to the show this afternoon and get started.

I'm bringing my camera and hope to post a story each day and some photos for you here. I say hope to, because as most of my friends know, I'm easily sidetracked.............it's rumored that I'm A.D.D., but you know how rumors get started these days with the internet and all. I think Mr. Q started the rumor........or maybe it was my wife.............or my kids...........my mother?

Later..

Day 1, 2011 - We Fished, We Caught, and Mr. Q Provided Some Wisdom on Weird

2011-01-02T17:24:00.005-05:00

The year started out well as not only did we get our feet "wet", we even caught fish! When I met Mr. Q by the river about noon, the air was a cool 45 degrees, but the sun brightened the sky through high, thin clouds. By the time we left the water, those clouds thickened and the sunglasses had came off.

The river was clear as air, low, and a cold 40 degrees. Every rock, stone and stick on the bottom could be seen. When you looked carefully in the deeper, protected flows, quite a few trout could be seen.

Here's the bearded lad nymphing a fast run below a long, smooth pool.

And here's one of the wild browns I caught. This one took a scud, as did all the others with the exception of one that took a black zebra midge.

And here's the scud that worked so well. It's a simple tie; olive/gray fur with some clear antron mixed in, and a gold wire rib. Easy and very effective.

At one point, while Mr. Q fished, I stood above him on the top of the bank overlooking the pool listening to him tell me about a mutual acquaintance of ours. After he finished his story, I commented that the guy seemed pretty weird.

Mr. Q turned and shouted back at me, "We're all weird!"

"What the hell is it when we spend an evening sitting at a vise under a light tying flies with feathers and fur to catch fish on?" .........."THAT'S f&%#ing weird!"

Then he hooked a fish on a fly he had tied.............

To each his own. I'll take our weird over other weirds anyday.

Here's to a prosperous 2011 to all!

And sharpen those hooks.