tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67969053513452653682024-03-13T19:18:57.150-07:00Fishing and LifeTrout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-59586109983848225632014-01-22T20:38:00.000-08:002014-01-22T20:38:12.886-08:00How a fly comes into existance part 4: Fremont ScudHere is the spawn of Herman Degala and Mike Tucker's respective brain children. There is no doubt that the Mike Tucker Scud is the best scud pattern ever developed. The problem is his pattern was only carried by the Hook Fly Shop that no longer exists. Well there are internet tutorials on how to tie the Mike Tucker scud, shouldn't that do the trick? NO NO NO NO. Issue number one: the ostrich Mike uses with very long and thick barbules does not exist, and the weave never looks as good as his. Mike has been lost to the great state of Washington, so now what shall I fill my box with...Herman's Scud is too damn expensive, so I had to do my best to create one. It has all the key features from each of their flies.<br />
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<b>ENTER FREMONT SCUD</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyar2S89dsUefbFLjd2Lt4MbhWYwf880hXafNPChfaQjU_hK__rRNBnuST8XijGq2AfdfVYSX82_wU57hiWc7tln8vD6RHf2T8GYMmM0JS09TUrhKfZ4yFCFuduR9sjBQbwbkO6leM7do/s1600/Fremont+scud.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyar2S89dsUefbFLjd2Lt4MbhWYwf880hXafNPChfaQjU_hK__rRNBnuST8XijGq2AfdfVYSX82_wU57hiWc7tln8vD6RHf2T8GYMmM0JS09TUrhKfZ4yFCFuduR9sjBQbwbkO6leM7do/s1600/Fremont+scud.jpg" height="246" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hook: TMC 2302<br />
Beard: lemon wood duck fibers<br />
Legs: 2 light olive ostrich herls, 1 dark grey ostrich herl, light olive ice dub picked out<br />
Shell Back: 1/8'' olive scudback, light purple xs lagartun wire, epoxy<br />
fire orange hot spot<br />
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This scud made its name on a spring day in Fremont Canyon. I hooked a very very large fish that tail walked and broke the hook right off off the fly. I was devastated and didn't talk on the entire drive back to Colorado. I had no other choice but to name it after the Canyon that kicked my butt. Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-90828080321953297812013-12-20T17:12:00.000-08:002013-12-20T17:12:38.849-08:00Congratulations to Shea Gunkel<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF1Uo2Pd4twXjssX4CmD5fDrNhtnReQPmLZHsmbCi8cpK_SXeUcE4ajzOzzgRuYnr9jNENOWhIHtn6K2nkiA5azWZI2vePHm_kK9KebjjCg2Yz_XgJtrVhnV-x4aTIflV4lf-C6AgaYck/s1600/P1020400.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF1Uo2Pd4twXjssX4CmD5fDrNhtnReQPmLZHsmbCi8cpK_SXeUcE4ajzOzzgRuYnr9jNENOWhIHtn6K2nkiA5azWZI2vePHm_kK9KebjjCg2Yz_XgJtrVhnV-x4aTIflV4lf-C6AgaYck/s400/P1020400.JPG" width="370" /></a></div>
My hero, Shea Gunkel is now the newest contract tier for Umpqua. I have no idea when the ink will be set, but expect his patterns in stores around 2015-2016. This guy has paid his dues, and deserves this as much as any other tier I have met. Lesson learned here, if you want something bad enough go get it, and if you fail do not quit trying.Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-42951813918566324972013-12-08T13:57:00.000-08:002013-12-08T13:57:38.294-08:00How a fly comes into existance part 3: Protein Shake Mysis<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hook: Gamakatsu C12U size 16, smaller sizes tied on TMC 2488H<br />
Eyes: small black rubber legs, or red micro tubing<br />
Beard/feelers: white Senyo's Laser dub<br />
Legs: white ostrich herl<br />
Body: glow in the dark mylar or flashabou covered on top with thin layer of epoxy<br />
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This is the original version of the fly I came up with in 2010. Since then the hook eye has the two end pieces of flashabou cut at angles to look like the terminal flipper or fin on a real shrimp. I also tie more with red/orange eyes then black eyes. I was inspired to come up with my own mysis after fishing the few major mysis tailwaters and finding the large fish turn off of the Sand's epoxy mysis, Craven's mysis, and Tim Heng's Mysis. I needed one or two more patterns to mix it up. The first pattern I came up with I called the Garcia Blanco, and will not show that today. That pattern is an ultimate attractor and doesn't look that realistic as a mysis. The second pattern was a Mike Tucker scud tied in white. I thought I was on to something until Brent Boyd gave me a Mike Tucker mysis. After collecting many samples of shrimp and taking a look at their size, color, and movement, Shea Gunkel and I decided to try to make some realistic mysis patterns. Obviously the Mayer's Mysis, Will Sand's epoxy Mysis, Tim Heng's Mysis, Craven's Mysis, the HMG Mysis, Stalcup's Mysis and Murphy's Mysis all influenced my design. Mayer's Mysis with his rubber feelers intrigued me but the flash back seemed too much; Craven's Mysis is still the most productive shrimp I have ever fished; and the HMG mysis is deadly realistic but lacks movement. So I decided to take certain attributes from each. Also when Mysis start to die they turn from clear to white, so a mixture of epoxy and white seemed to look like a mixture of the two. The Ostrich and the Laser dub create the movement, and the secret weapon of the fly (until Jon Kleis introduced it in his Kleis's mysis) is its "glow in the dark" nature. As we have seen trophy fish get more selective due to increased angling pressure on our Colorado tailwaters, fish feed heavier under the cover of night, and we now fish 24 hours a day. Shea Gunkel and Jon Kleis definitely helped me develop this pattern, as you can clearly see in its sister pattern the Kleis's mysis. I remember a day I took my girlfriend fishing at the Frying Pan flats. It was her second day fishing ever, and in three casts she had hooked three fish on the Protein Shake. Her rig had two other mysis on it. I have also seen pressured, lock-jawed fish cut over a foot and inhale it. Its just something a little different then you can pick up at Taylor Creek Fly Shop, Cutthroat Angler's, or Almont Anglers. Overall I would say its my most effective mysis behind Craven's mysis.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPuGEuaFHnlmiqjW1Xqa-wuO1B3fFoR_abPlah8c5P8J1gNnlwcO7ugcf6_cW7voF_94g05Eg4aUQnQ65dvXKLCsAF0SMVQX2xx-Ke2P71Ajx3t_HRBUqsJNhlYMhTTdKrvGxdXriIiqg/s1600/P1000497.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPuGEuaFHnlmiqjW1Xqa-wuO1B3fFoR_abPlah8c5P8J1gNnlwcO7ugcf6_cW7voF_94g05Eg4aUQnQ65dvXKLCsAF0SMVQX2xx-Ke2P71Ajx3t_HRBUqsJNhlYMhTTdKrvGxdXriIiqg/s400/P1000497.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
The first fish I caught on the protein shake mysis. Spring 2010<br />
<br />Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-45953504574517435222013-12-05T10:23:00.001-08:002013-12-05T10:23:33.477-08:00 How a fly comes into existance part 2: CGP midge<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIoX7rfg-IDwQhQg_Jbv-h25XYb_p5Qv8TmvbvNle0fTIelhpVjB3Zrd4thbZbnWN41bTYRne6JwZD7opptWG0A8a8TMug8PsZiBbxd4g855yBq9spDxi3aqfvGCQ9LMDck-dEVI6G5MM/s1600/P1010936.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="516" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIoX7rfg-IDwQhQg_Jbv-h25XYb_p5Qv8TmvbvNle0fTIelhpVjB3Zrd4thbZbnWN41bTYRne6JwZD7opptWG0A8a8TMug8PsZiBbxd4g855yBq9spDxi3aqfvGCQ9LMDck-dEVI6G5MM/s640/P1010936.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<u>Captain Glitter Pants</u><br />
Hook: red 18-22 of your choice<br />
body: holographic flashabou of your color choice<br />
rib: stripped peacock herl<br />
thread: black<br />
head: black thread head covered with purple glitter nail polish<br />
top coat: sally Hanson's, brushable Clear Cure, or whatever protects the rib and gives it a translucent finish<br />
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<u>Inspiration</u><br />
<b>Larry Kingrey</b> has the wonderful midge, Cap'N'hook. I was having a session tying them, when I started using different types and colors of flash for the body wrap. the holographic flash especially black and purple seemed to look really interesting. Well I fished those as well for a couple years until I was introduced to <b>Joe Nicklo's</b> Glitter midge. The Glitter midge has hooked many large fish for me on tailwaters, and I believe the key was in the glittery head. It's the same concept as a mercury bead, but a different look: the glitter mimics the air bubble and other pupae-adult body transformations. Of course I fished this version and it did well. But eventually I wanted to make a more realistic body. I have used stripped peacock herl on mercury black beauties and dry flies before, and when when it is wet, it really gives a realistic segmented body. It looks even better when coated with some sort of glossy finish. I must also thank <b>Shea</b>, for he and I were tying a ton of midges on red hooks, and his Mollie's Midge slays as much or more than the CGP. Putting ultra floss at the head like Garcia's rojo midge for an emerging insect works well too.<br />
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On Colorado tailwaters in the winter, a true 22 or 24 works the best, sometimes tied on a non-colored hook, but in spring, summer, and fall, nothing beats the red hook in an 18-22. I don't have one specific fish story about this fly, but everyone who has tied one up has done well with it.Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-49036035344977845102013-12-04T12:24:00.000-08:002013-12-04T12:24:09.127-08:00How a fly comes into existance part 1<br />
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I have talked to many up-and-coming tiers, experienced tiers, legendary tiers, and I like to ask them how did they come up with their patterns. Usually its a mixture of trying to match some bug or fish, taking an older pattern and tweaking it, or a collaborative effort between tiers.<br />
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While helping with Project Healing Waters on BVR, I asked John Barr if he had any new flies brewing? He said flies will just come to him, whether its driving or in the shower, or on the water. I was frustrated with his brief answer, hoping for some insight into the successful tying career of JB himself. If you are an up-and-coming tier read Barr flies!!! Specifically, look at the development of the Copper John. The CJ was crafted for a specific purpose, a first generation dropper off of a dry fly. The most modern CJ is more durable then the original, and a million of us tiers have made our own variations to fulfill our needs.<br />
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Every Pattern I have created has some Craven, Gunkel, Garcia, Tucker, Galloup, Ramirez, Kingrey, etc. in it. I have come up with maybe a half dozen productive patterns I consider my own. But every single one is only partly mine. I will showcase each of the patterns for a couple of purposes. <b>Number 1</b>, I want them documented so they can't be ripped off (which has happened before), and <b>Number 2</b>, I want them to be tested and fished. This series will include,<br />
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<b>Captain Glitter Pants</b> midge (CGP midge)<br />
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<b>Protein Shake Mysis</b> <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnIgnXTudyHbNmgOBmb12sxgjKZKIOrqEFtAm3yPbPm_vayu8fiqWqYMTyIF4BCaZQ-vKLJWKxalNeyg7zLifHCVNwvJ4XtZr0UAEYeMemKUo3scvqJptgk3daUWG7fJ_rc66BL8FsU24/s1600/photo+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnIgnXTudyHbNmgOBmb12sxgjKZKIOrqEFtAm3yPbPm_vayu8fiqWqYMTyIF4BCaZQ-vKLJWKxalNeyg7zLifHCVNwvJ4XtZr0UAEYeMemKUo3scvqJptgk3daUWG7fJ_rc66BL8FsU24/s200/photo+1.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
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<b>Freemont Scud</b> <br />
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<span style="color: red;">"Picture Coming Soon"</span> <br />
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<b>Sexzilla Streamer</b><br />
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<b>Santa's Skagit Sculpin</b> <br />
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<b>Change Up Baetis</b>,<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgyP11TxzwxaSqXVghscDrulQIHNoxEeUq0ROLyAete3-tBIAZBZXCfIrKzIVt9iY9XClx4PqPbCUiCb-FXes0f8CTmuhGjKbKKtgDQdrvmrDF5tKjShLwUcoUjtnQtsPBDcQQoz6kSXY/s1600/P1000883.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgyP11TxzwxaSqXVghscDrulQIHNoxEeUq0ROLyAete3-tBIAZBZXCfIrKzIVt9iY9XClx4PqPbCUiCb-FXes0f8CTmuhGjKbKKtgDQdrvmrDF5tKjShLwUcoUjtnQtsPBDcQQoz6kSXY/s200/P1000883.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
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<b>s'Gulp'n tube Sculpin </b><br />
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I am not a talented tier, I am not even a fast tier, I do not produce a lot of flies. I tie as many flies in a year as Shea Gunkel ties in two weeks. I cannot tie more than a couple of a certain pattern before I get bored and start making variations, and most of the flies I come up with end up in a bin to be stripped and salvaged for future flies. The reality is I only tie when I can't go fishing, but have some free time, or panicking at 1 am to replace half a dozen of the "hot fly" for a float trip the next day. <br />
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I would love to share the story of each of my flies: including their inspiration, their collaborators, their development, as well as an on water story. And some of these flies have changed since I first posted them on <a href="http://troutpursuit.blogspot.com/">Trout Pursuit</a>. I would appreciate any feedback on these flies, how they fish, their design, etc. <br />
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<br />Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-22118878757338921962013-11-06T10:48:00.000-08:002013-11-06T10:48:29.390-08:00Steelhead is...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead to me is Smithers. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead are lists: firewood, two gatorades, subway, and a chocolate bar; Kilometer 23, 25, 38, 41; Monday Cullen Creek to Upper Ford, tuesday 41 to Wookie, wednesday the farm to woods.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"> </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead is dreading cold lonely nights, and dark figures waist deep in cottonwoods, woods, ledges, By-Mac. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead are tailing someone else’s 38’’ doe the day the fortune cookie told you would have a lucky and memorable day, it was. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead is solitary</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead are rushed self photographs. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead is planning the destruction of a pack rat that stole your string leech in your sealed tent in the middle of the night. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead are Hey Bear walks and bear tracks on every inch of mud, even the mud that clings to the car. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead are logging trucks, steelhead are dead car batteries. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead is being on the verge of tears about leaving the northwest a week before the trip is over. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead is skipping the most important day of the year for your girlfriend in the sake of making a three week trip a month. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead a month is still not enough. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead is a wall tent, a raft, a 12 gauge and bear spray. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead is the canadian tire auto database having your colorado cell number registered under someone else. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead are cuts in your middle finger from holding running line, toes with permanent nerve damage. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead are book tapes. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead are crisp snap T’s, violent runs, lost sections of rods, </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead is an open denver at the BC eagle.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"> </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Steelhead is being told to fish black and blue slow and deep and the very next day catching one fast and shallow on red and orange</span></div>
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Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-88941501499380949942013-04-12T14:14:00.000-07:002013-04-12T14:14:19.495-07:00THE OP (DAYS 4-8) Getting situatedOn my way up from Portland I stopped at Walmart in Aberdeen and picked up some cool waterproof tube fly boxes and then entered the rain. At about 11 pm I arrived in Forks, WA home of <i>twilight. </i>I slept outside the grocery store in my car, and waited eagerly for sunrise. Nate McDonough from Nomadic Angler Blog and Brazda Fly Fishing Outfitters was kind enough to give me some advice on where to fish as I got my bearings. So after picking up my license, breakfast, lunch, and more Owner SSW hooks at the all inclusive Forks Outfitters, I proceeded to drive over to the Hoh River Rainforest. Forks Outfitters had steelhead murals and memorabilia everywhere, with an impressive 20lb mounted steelhead at the checkout counter.<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;"> I get tired of people claiming sizes of fish by seeing them or catching them and not weighing or measuring them correctly. I have seen 7 lb fish be claimed as 12, 24 inch trout called dirty thirties. Measure your fish for god sakes if your gonna talk about them. Taking random stabs at fish size just discredits all the true giants that are weighed and measured correctly</span>. I found the first run adjacent to one of the few "boat ramps"(glorified gravel bars) on the Upper Hoh.<br />
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I slowly worked my way down 200 yards of swing-able water. I hooked my first steelhead down the first gravel bar in the fishiest part of the run. Unfortunately, I didn't hook another fish in that run the rest of the trip. The fish played me exactly like the the one on the Sandy, 15 seconds and it was off. Little did I know I wouldn't touch a fish for 5 more days of fishing. <br />
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I really started to question why I was losing these fish, in the same fashion. After a few days of thinking I believe I wasn't really setting the hook after the fish took my loop from me. I just started playing them. In British Columbia all the Steelhead I landed took the fly mid swin, many times hooking themselves. All these coastal winter steelhead were taking at the very end of the swing or on the hang down. I told myself the next steelhead that took I was going to make sure to set the hook.<br />
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I fished one more run without a grab as I listened to my brother's hockey game on my headphones. If they happened to lose he would be flying up to join me for a week of steelheading. But they won, which was awesome too.<br />
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On day 2 the Hoh River went from 3600 cfs to 9000 cfs. I was told to wait till it got down around 5000 till I should try to float due to the large hydraulics that can appear. So I spent the next few days scouting the swing unfriendly Sol Duc River, and fishing the edges of a blown out Hoh River.<br />
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Gotta have some small flies too</div>
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On the shore of a secret Sol Duc Swing run, that I found by partly by accident and partly from a Doug Rose article giving too much information. In this day of satellite images on our cell phones, even little land marks can give away secret spots. Thanks Doug<br />
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Beautiful swing run dotted with submerged boulders, swung this run many times and never roused a fishTrout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-86137088804474856932013-04-09T09:07:00.000-07:002013-04-09T09:07:00.227-07:00Sandy River (trip days 2-3)I made it from CO to Portland in a day and a half, and my excitement grew as I crossed rivers like the Grand Ronde, the John Day, and the Deschutes. I finally made it to Troutdale, OR near the mouth of the Sandy at 5 pm. I only spent two days on the Sandy River, and most of the first day was spent scouting the put in and takeouts, and getting various other information. The Sandy is very close to Portland, but above Oxbow Park fishing is prohibited from a boat. Great News for a steelhead swinger. So the first day I swung the dog leg left at the top of oxbow park to try out the new rod and line set up. The rod (Sage 12'6'') 7 weight One is a rocket ship. It excelled with both 10 feet of T 11 and 10 feet of T-14 as long as the fly wasn't too heavy or bulky. I paired it with a 500 grain Rio Skagit Flight, and a Sage 4210 reel.<br />
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On this trip I took my second version of a small steelhead raft. The first was 12 feet long and made it through a trip to Smithers, BC. This raft had a very similar frame, slightly better rubber, and a far better shape. However, the float I wanted to do was from Dodge Park to Oxbow Park, which has two class III rapids, with the worst being the Pipeline rapid 1/4 mile into the float. I was told that the rapid could be mellow or really really dangerous, depending on a difference of only a few hundred CFS either up or down. This section consistently flips boats. So I scouted what I could see of the rapid, and it seemed doable in my little raft. I got to the put in the next day and several other full sized rafts and Cats showed up. All the fisherman were eying my raft and making comments to each other. I had a few approach me and ask me questions like, "Have you ever floated this section before?", "Is your raft self bailing?" One party was placing bets on whether my boat would survive the float. Well I told one group that I would go right in front of them in case anything happened.<br />
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At 7:45 am with my go pro recording and my heart racing I pushed off toward the Pipeline. Mentally, fully prepared to swim. The Pipeline threw some water at my face, but wasn't more than a large wave train. But it was cool that my boat could handle water like that.<br />
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The Sandy was beautiful and felt like wilderness eventhough it was within twenty minutes of downtown Portland. I swung a holding area with no success, and then headed down some more rapids and eventually found a beautiful long slick with a couple submerged boulders slowing down the flow. Every steelheader has their spots that seem to grab their eyes as they head down river. Boulder gardens are my weakness.<br />
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I eventually got down to swinging range of the giant boulder. The first swing was targeted just upstream of the boulder. Nothing. The second was intended to slide across the current just behind the boulder. As it did, the line stopped and my first thought was my head sank too quick and the tip and leader were wrapped up on the boulder. but then the stopped line started to pull, I had the loop ripped from my hand, and ten yards of line ripped downstream. Then the fish paused, made one more quick pull downstream and turned upstream and came toward me. and at that second the line went slack. My first winter steelhead came and went in 12 seconds. It was identical to how I lost a huge hen up in BC the fall before.<br />
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I finished the float swinging two more spots, packed up and headed to Forks, Washington for the intended destination for my trip. I definitely want to go back and explore the Sandy. Its pool-drop format has a ton of tailouts and good holding water.Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-62629975881211450862013-03-08T10:21:00.003-08:002013-03-08T10:21:55.661-08:00...andlife.blogspot.com (thoughts)<b><u>Swivel Point</u></b><br />
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Well I am approaching a swivel point in my life. I recently got accepted to medical school to start in August. That ain't happening. I am going to try to defer mostly for health related issues, and a few other things as well: I need another year. So the reality is my fishing life the way it has been the past few years will change. In a little more than a year I will once again become a weekend warrior, if that. The reality is as a fly fishing guide, unless you are single and work 12 months a year with a steady flow of return clients willing to tip big, you can barely support yourself. If you are married to a successful and wealthy spouse who actually brings in the cash, it also could work as long as you don't have a fleet of children. There are a few exceptions, but these people are the most talented, connected and resourceful in the industry. Even in those cases many have to sell their souls, and self-promote to no end. They get slandered by their peers for not "keeping it real," and ruining the sport in a selfish attempt to make a living. I see both sides of the coin: I hate what has happened to many of our fisheries; but a guy has to make a living. Obamabucks aren't free.<br />
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<b>Pros:</b><br />
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Job security<br />
A job actually doing some good and giving back (*guiding does as well)<br />
A chance at being able to afford all the fishing trips I have always wanted to do, eventually.<br />
Not letting my extensive education go to complete waste<br />
The few times I get to go fishing I will be more likely to cherish them<br />
<br />
<b>Cons:</b><br />
<br />
- My fishing peers will steadily become better than me in every aspect of the sport. (Brent will become so good that fish will call him the great slayer, and swim straight up water falls to avoid being fooled by his impeccable drifts and fly selection)<br />
- I will not be able to drop what I am doing the second the flows are ideal and head to my favorite river<br />
- I will no longer be a guide (the best job for a single person in the world).<br />
<br />
This possible career path is what gave me the incentive to buy a raft. The few days I do get to fish, I want them to be special.<br />
<br />
<b>Outlook</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
1. I am about to embark on an Olympic Peninsula Steelheading adventure.<br />
<br />
It's funny to me that I own more two handed rods than one handed rods since the majority of my fishing is done in Colorado. For the last month, except for one day with Fish Whisperer Brent Boyd, I have only swung flies. The latest trip I went to the Roaring Fork in Glenwood and swung soft hackle midges lol. It was relatively productive, only because there was a midge hatch going on.<br />
<br />
I am driving up alone with another make shift raft that I can carry by myself. A water master would be ideal but they are absurdly expensive. I am sleeping in my car and will be on the road for about 3 weeks. My brother and his friend might meet me up there for a week, if the timing works out.<br />
<br />
2. I am doing a week trip up to the REEF and the BIGHORN in the middle of April. Hopefully it will be the christening of the new Raft.<br />
<br />
3. I will guide this summer for Mountain Angler and Ken's Angler's in some capacity (could be full time, could be very part time.<br />
<br />
4. I will return to BC to steelhead in the fall. hopefully for a full month.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Spirituality</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
I have been reading more of Lani Waller's writings and have realized that fishing is really like church for me. Its the only time I ever get into a calm meditative state. Recently, my brother, when learning to spey cast, told me it was the first time he really felt his mind was at ease in the last 6 months. As well I have had less anxiety during fishing. I used to be so competitive with myself and was only happy when I caught a pig. But I feel this past year I have crossed some type of boundary. I still love big fish the most, but I have gotten the opportunity to land a few 30 inch+ rainbows, and guide someone into a 30.5'' Brown all on public water. Those barriers actually have let me relax. I was jacked to land a 14'' rainbow on the swing last week. I also want to treat my fishing buddies in a more relaxed manner. My buddy Wes remembers a couple years ago that when we would show up at the Taylor, I was already running up the bank looking for fish, when he was still putting on his waders.<br />
<br />
I want to thank all the great people I have met fly-fishing in the last few years, Lets go pursue some Trout (especially the big ones)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8dLlIY5GxgmNmMDxPSqHQI73RSLPvqRymEv3OULPVXtnP3X57AGbKgTxHv3OZnBUWDoee6-MLbCtf-hobSjNb_mJ_DUQiLjoguPK1Q0pap5vqfKi9rfVh-em3ncXgJudKNf2ZIhzCDyE/s1600/DSC00123.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8dLlIY5GxgmNmMDxPSqHQI73RSLPvqRymEv3OULPVXtnP3X57AGbKgTxHv3OZnBUWDoee6-MLbCtf-hobSjNb_mJ_DUQiLjoguPK1Q0pap5vqfKi9rfVh-em3ncXgJudKNf2ZIhzCDyE/s200/DSC00123.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5vvX5zHy78fD_q3XQWd0uArS9f5EHGnEkBRZ7BYLU5lo6uZjMsddB_T2xxLu8ZpBxGEFRCIcfsA0uCbNOdYuEVFGXIuRm7irdY-pmqYCPBqLrSkPHhomhe2sr1BrRRkuMrJ4LaT-B1sI/s1600/P1010486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5vvX5zHy78fD_q3XQWd0uArS9f5EHGnEkBRZ7BYLU5lo6uZjMsddB_T2xxLu8ZpBxGEFRCIcfsA0uCbNOdYuEVFGXIuRm7irdY-pmqYCPBqLrSkPHhomhe2sr1BrRRkuMrJ4LaT-B1sI/s320/P1010486.JPG" width="320" /></a> VS. </div>
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I love 'em both, don't you?<br />
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<br />
-Charlie L.<br />
<br />Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-38765256118778706972013-02-15T11:40:00.001-08:002013-02-15T11:40:43.546-08:00day dreaming spring<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlW1f_ug3NRh0hY-lLiQ46drouKFimIRKCfrm9-7qouYM449dk43toVvC2cvy_lzhfLKk4Szp-pnso9B0V_LnGX2ofSdbUPqA-o7fi1rDtKJFSbAsYV7M4r4YyFULB3z_wz0NWdKbOrng/s1600/P1010992.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="494" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlW1f_ug3NRh0hY-lLiQ46drouKFimIRKCfrm9-7qouYM449dk43toVvC2cvy_lzhfLKk4Szp-pnso9B0V_LnGX2ofSdbUPqA-o7fi1rDtKJFSbAsYV7M4r4YyFULB3z_wz0NWdKbOrng/s640/P1010992.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPWwvL6oWnvv-3qxQa3zWUsaSxRF77m6YNakYIII0T_FWGp0FxQaX4fTSwfTHrpOoxFylTKdLCXfetq0Z2nLJwc-osCyTuxqjdaiQI3a9CP1DWd-n1_4MoCsj_lj9LlhAWNPC4WiH0rkw/s1600/P1020026.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPWwvL6oWnvv-3qxQa3zWUsaSxRF77m6YNakYIII0T_FWGp0FxQaX4fTSwfTHrpOoxFylTKdLCXfetq0Z2nLJwc-osCyTuxqjdaiQI3a9CP1DWd-n1_4MoCsj_lj9LlhAWNPC4WiH0rkw/s640/P1020026.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-68715978605063130572013-01-30T10:11:00.003-08:002013-01-30T10:11:55.849-08:00Captain Glitter Pants<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4NyRaN-Z2iKa5B0ExJopK3bkEjKXrGTeUYiPmncEf4KM15qreIBEI99Fap665VuUb1PtyXDrSYPc5OMSXhGTW6MOEELet7IcQigCEePv5mgpzQLS-EfS00_1vvmm5AGyC2EYFmRRDe4A/s1600/P1010936.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="516" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4NyRaN-Z2iKa5B0ExJopK3bkEjKXrGTeUYiPmncEf4KM15qreIBEI99Fap665VuUb1PtyXDrSYPc5OMSXhGTW6MOEELet7IcQigCEePv5mgpzQLS-EfS00_1vvmm5AGyC2EYFmRRDe4A/s640/P1010936.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here is the newest version of the CGP midge</div>
Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-17878414324284645832013-01-29T11:18:00.001-08:002013-01-29T11:19:40.683-08:00I need a name for this fly<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1zc4rZ_wq-HdEOGmAJ97SK3-8aLMH90IGTTZNTbjEjj1Fx16BR_fFWC8R-Pemkqv51jKp8-vQat7J2H0qSMlN4KLcwAS42F-lHga50oAdMRntfGWqsmLkbamiRRyNqScByDeSrUYc8KQ/s1600/photo-8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1zc4rZ_wq-HdEOGmAJ97SK3-8aLMH90IGTTZNTbjEjj1Fx16BR_fFWC8R-Pemkqv51jKp8-vQat7J2H0qSMlN4KLcwAS42F-lHga50oAdMRntfGWqsmLkbamiRRyNqScByDeSrUYc8KQ/s640/photo-8.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<u>Hook</u> clear HMH tube, Olive connector tube, hook of choice (Owner SSW size 4)<br />
<u>Head</u> small sculpin helmet<br />
<u>Body</u> barred olive zonker strip<br />
<u>Front fins</u> barred olive soft hackle tips, or olive hen back feathers<br />
<u>Gill Coloration</u> red Ice Dub<br />
<u>Under body</u> light olive uv ice dub spun in dubbing loop and palmered<br />
<u>Collar</u> barred olive schlappen<br />
<u>Wing</u> black holographic flashabou, barred olive soft hackle<br />
<br />
I was tying some of the Headbanger Sculpin patterns with my buddy Jody when I began thinking about how to utilize these new sculpin helmets on a smaller fly. So I started googling sculpins to see what they anatomically looked like. The key features were the barred look, the flat wide heads with eyes looking upwards, flat bottom of body, distinctive front fins, and a body that tapered from front to back. I also wanted to make a tube fly. So I was inspired by the <b>Sculpzilla</b>, my <b>Sexzilla</b>, and the <b>headbanger sculpin</b>. The fly is only 2-2.25 inches long. I took the fly out to Deckers and caught two fish on the swing in January! So it fishes. The pattern could also be tied an a shank or a stinging trailer, I prefer keeping the hook pointed up so you can ride on the bottom. note: eyes fall out if not secured by epoxy or superglue.<br />
<br />
I need a good name for the fly. So far the two names that people have given me are <b>Big Gulp Sculpin</b> and <b>S'GULP'N</b>, both work But I'm all ears to new ideas. <span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">please don't steal this pattern and call it your own!!!!!!</span></span>Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-38641250713006404912013-01-24T14:30:00.000-08:002013-01-24T14:30:17.151-08:00Wednesday's flies<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAcghl7HVzZ9HIZk2lj_N8yqrUeQDAVfqYCcaIpj8_0E70OexpBA12o5rz1NTGmQPPZf8t9l8iB3swriNv-uQWBNMDrXbgk7UqJKdwYnllg2zJ6yUxCNvPMtJe6Ur-4yYx3KDCaQH10FA/s1600/photo-5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="534" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAcghl7HVzZ9HIZk2lj_N8yqrUeQDAVfqYCcaIpj8_0E70OexpBA12o5rz1NTGmQPPZf8t9l8iB3swriNv-uQWBNMDrXbgk7UqJKdwYnllg2zJ6yUxCNvPMtJe6Ur-4yYx3KDCaQH10FA/s640/photo-5.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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green and olive low water swinger</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdUQQyaTclNodsJBsJId08foQvjXEXPMBTvAqt7tn7awuANxDXLseDcH-Kz1im2mDh_wlrvye4Iz9xmfMXRzm3ZH3TcySAS6PAAhqebtabdiooWbWPmMhchzPH1Ajyb_KCXGoRHQtCf-E/s1600/photo-7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="354" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdUQQyaTclNodsJBsJId08foQvjXEXPMBTvAqt7tn7awuANxDXLseDcH-Kz1im2mDh_wlrvye4Iz9xmfMXRzm3ZH3TcySAS6PAAhqebtabdiooWbWPmMhchzPH1Ajyb_KCXGoRHQtCf-E/s640/photo-7.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Mini olive Sexzilla </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp6uyvm7P2_o6ItsjmqXfJiyHhPTV67BWSrzKfkdoPDC2ew-Ioa77EuuMLSpFN8rVuOQ-nY58mm_QGOlTpUm5AfevJviXL8TeZ5M3Jag1TlftGzj6_PxG1KRsoVwgHDZnUypz3Lpgzim8/s1600/photo-6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="390" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp6uyvm7P2_o6ItsjmqXfJiyHhPTV67BWSrzKfkdoPDC2ew-Ioa77EuuMLSpFN8rVuOQ-nY58mm_QGOlTpUm5AfevJviXL8TeZ5M3Jag1TlftGzj6_PxG1KRsoVwgHDZnUypz3Lpgzim8/s640/photo-6.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Winter Run black/blue/purple</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeUZNYElc9dl_FfPrYQ4lDb9_wvsEchNZluPQ3TavM8ZVeNQyijLol04bxrcDjfAwRDoSepRKJmT25khBWN4HywMVuaQFNOkOz3PXJWI9VngKWK6EWm4iAIArwztP63vun5CqQImpINM0/s1600/photo-8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeUZNYElc9dl_FfPrYQ4lDb9_wvsEchNZluPQ3TavM8ZVeNQyijLol04bxrcDjfAwRDoSepRKJmT25khBWN4HywMVuaQFNOkOz3PXJWI9VngKWK6EWm4iAIArwztP63vun5CqQImpINM0/s640/photo-8.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Winter Run white</div>
Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-42430265905276758842013-01-23T11:20:00.002-08:002013-01-23T15:32:33.094-08:00recent creations<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Captain Glitter Pants (a rip off of Cap'n hook) and BH change up baetis (a cheap rip off of JUJU baetis)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj05R51hzUg6mpx5xwbSDhatk0E5M5R0xZZADpR3Y9zNwrgxOjMFUeVFGpydaIGMXatW0TBBwsPxbxnD-d7AXhMBlUMZKjWK_C46vaNmPsAFghpS2liQTfWYst1b4R0pm6eoIlOvMT1NTg/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj05R51hzUg6mpx5xwbSDhatk0E5M5R0xZZADpR3Y9zNwrgxOjMFUeVFGpydaIGMXatW0TBBwsPxbxnD-d7AXhMBlUMZKjWK_C46vaNmPsAFghpS2liQTfWYst1b4R0pm6eoIlOvMT1NTg/s640/photo.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Inspired by Joe Nicklo's glitter midge, uv pearl jam, and Kingrey's Cap N Hook</div>
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(Joe I'm sure you are trying to figure out how this is similar to the glitter midge at all)</div>
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the newest version of this fly (not shown yet) has a more segmented look</div>
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<br />
<u>new version</u></div>
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purple holo flash</div>
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red hook</div>
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purple glitter nail polish</div>
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black thread</div>
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stripped peacock herl</div>
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sally hansons</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWP_DdCT49M_4eAylm2_pxLb2eLpwiV80T29fUjI-FEqDqe06G8eIt6u8WdeDYdorSJ0PvKykWHlW7u2vosI23f1Jja6siaOxGLJaMLHJb1mr1O56XyrEveeVDf3gjPLh2pUhMzXgAW3I/s1600/photo-1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="510" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWP_DdCT49M_4eAylm2_pxLb2eLpwiV80T29fUjI-FEqDqe06G8eIt6u8WdeDYdorSJ0PvKykWHlW7u2vosI23f1Jja6siaOxGLJaMLHJb1mr1O56XyrEveeVDf3gjPLh2pUhMzXgAW3I/s640/photo-1.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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A mix of the newest version of the change up baetis and Craven's BH JUJU Baetis. Also influenced by the legend Shane Stalcup</div>
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Copper tungsten bead</div>
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Curved shank hook</div>
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brown olive microtubing</div>
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hen back tail</div>
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olive or chartruese thread</div>
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black thread</div>
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brown flourofiber wings/legs</div>
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different colored holo. flashabou for wing case </div>
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5 minute epoxy (i am not a supporter of clear cure goo, since my uv light doesn't work always, and the clear cure clouds and falls off. and epoxy at Ace hardware is so cheap). </div>
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Its easy to follow in the footsteps of great tiers like Craven and Kingrey. I think of all the patterns I have ever created only my mysis has been original, and even that wasn't that original.</div>
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(<b>note</b>: <span style="font-size: xx-small;">I have no problem with people taking others' patterns, tweaking them and renaming them, but if you do, give credit to your inspirations, and the original tiers. I have recently had multiple events in my fly fishing life feel like my intellectual property was being abused, one regarded one of my fly patterns, <span style="font-size: xx-small;">an</span>other has to do with secret spots I showed friends how to fish very productively </span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">and even after the "code of secrecy" talk, </span>they have shared that information with no filter to everyone they know. The worst part is all of this happened by people I considered close friends. The saddest part is they probably don't know <span style="font-size: xx-small;">they did it. </span>To those who understand this ethic in fly-fishing I think the <b>most</b> of you guys...Brent Boyd, Jody Kramer, Court, Tim Hall, Austin, Danny, Matt Miller, Wes, Ben, Shea Gunkel. You guys get it, and I want to fish with you all. If you are not listed and consider yourself a close fishing friend of mine, prove me that I'm wrong and full of shit. I understand its exciting when you hook and land big fish, and you wanna share that experience, but if someone helped you think about them; if you found it on your own, think about what it would be like if everyone was fishing in the exact same spot as you with the same techniques and didn't have to pay their dues to figure it out...I would really like to share more of my tying and fishing pics, but I don't want to feel like I'm being walked on. That's enough of the rant. And for those of you who are productive be very careful how you share your lifetime of learned skills). </span></div>
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Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-11918642290211292242013-01-12T14:04:00.002-08:002013-01-12T14:04:35.946-08:00Lani WallerTo those in the Steelhead world Lani Waller is a legend. I honestly had never heard of him before a couple days ago. In a gradschool-application distraction I went to <a href="http://www.askaboutflyfishing.com/">ASK ABOUT FLY FISHING</a> Internet radio to see if there were any interesting showing I missed. Lani Waller's on Steelhead caught my interest, and by the end of the show I bought his book on kindle "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Steelheaders-Way-Lani-Waller/dp/0979346061">A Steelheader's Way</a>."<br />
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He captures my feeling and thoughts on steelheading better than I have been able to communicate to myself or even my friends. He also has some great tips for spey fisherman that don't have 40+ years of experience. It worth the read. I can barely put it down.Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-1874727340794045342013-01-01T12:41:00.000-08:002013-01-01T12:41:54.733-08:00YELLOW RAINBOW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Palamino</div>
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Good chance you wouldn't see this fish in the water if you didn't know what it was. It looks like a fluorescent banana, or trash. This fish wouldn't blend in on any river in the world...thats why it was a genetic experiment.Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-4196428987011444732012-12-29T15:01:00.003-08:002012-12-29T15:01:45.660-08:00Now this is a Sculpin PatternI ran across this sculpin pattern tied by Rich Strolis, and it is awesome. He has a full instructional video, and you can tell what an efficient tyer he is.<br />
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<a href="http://vimeo.com/51165230#">Headbanger Sculpin</a>Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-79313511380200698052012-12-28T10:34:00.000-08:002012-12-28T10:34:51.532-08:00BC rivers part 2As winter rolled in we heard lots of concerned locals say that catching steelhead on the swing would be tough. Many people with gear rods were catching them on pink worms and big bead eggs, and a few on spoons. We even set up one of our backup spey rods with a quasi center-pin rig (we never really fished it).<br />
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River two was beautiful but we wanted to experience a few different rivers, so we headed to river three<br />
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We found a couple guys in a wall tent to give us a shuttle for a couple Tim Horton's Bagel BELT's but they were very confused why we were getting on the water at dawn with such low temps. we were rookies...<br />
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Ice flow was still present four hours later at 11 am. There is not a chance a single species of fish in the world would be very aggressive with ice flowing over their heads. This day we saw a ton of steelhead while floating. We saw them in seams, tail-outs, around structure...everywhere. and we caught 1, the smallest steelhead I saw on the entire trip<br />
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Baby little BC Hen, barely cracked 26.5 inches</div>
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The next day it was even colder. One of the local guides asked us how we were doing. We said not a touch. He responded, "its the cold, eh"</div>
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On the end of our third day on river 3, I finally hooked into something serious. It was definitely the best 6-7 seconds of the entire trip. We waited until mid afternoon to get on the river to let the water warm up and avoid the ice flow. It was worth it. I also was trying a variation of the North Umpqua winter steelhead technique: I would cast down at an angle do a huge reach mend give out 6-8 feet of slack and let it sink straight before my fly started to swing. Right in the middle of the swing I got a double tug and 30 feet of line ripped out. The fish porpoised looking like a true 15-20 pounder, then ran right upstream and spit the hook. Ben and I celebrated the take like a landed fish. It was a true aggressive giant in cold ass water. This moment gave us hope.</div>
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So we took the next two days off. Its a new rule in BC that only Canadians can fish on weekends on the good rivers!!! </div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Any guesses on why??</span></b> </div>
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After finding out how that new law got passed I agreed and disagreed, basically it came down to Americans being rude and homesteading on holes for weeks at a time. No joke, weeks! Well we spent two days recovering from the cold and tying patterns for the last two days of steelheading.</div>
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Another issue we were having was having to float to far per day, meaning less time to fish and less runs we could fish. So we cut our usual float in half, but had to find an access point. We picked a feeder creek that seemed about half way and it couldn't be that far from the river.<br />
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Well it was pretty far and we had to portage all types of structure</div>
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How'd this truck get here?</div>
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The coolest part of the creek was there were spawning late run COHO everywhere. we watched them chase each other around in the tiny water. We finally made it to the river and actually got to swing 4 or 5 good spots. The first spot I thought I had a snag, and then the snag started swimming. So since we just saw COHO, I thought it must be a spawned out COHO, but as I yanked it to try to get it off it was a large buck, and it came off. Never do that. But we knew that the steelhead were biting. In the next run we fished I hooked a similarly sluggish fish, but I played it out and it was a fresh-ish hen.</div>
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So we fished another couple runs till dark and I hooked and landed one more fish. My Big Red Dog of the trip. No monster, but a real nice fish.</div>
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My buddy Ben was fishing well, and hard but he was getting unlucky, he deserved one more steelhead, so that night we planned to fish new water, and I made sure he got first swing on each run. It was a tough day. The water had dropped a ton, and fish were not eager. Finally on the last run of the day, on our last day, right before dark Ben hooked into a real hot fish. It took out 50 yards of line, tail-walking the whole way. I was pumped for him, but knew it marked the end of our trip and I was truly sad.</div>
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So we left Skeena country and headed south through some absolutely wild weather. rain in 15F weather! It would take a lifetime to truly learn one of these tributaries. We learned how to cast a little better and occasionally hook a steelhead. The trip was very unsatisfying, which is good. If it had gone perfectly and we both had caught twenty steelhead and a couple over twenty pounds, their would be no longing to go back, it would have just been a novelty, like fishing a trophy pond with pellet flies. Since I returned at the beginning of November, I web search BC steelhead, buy new spey gear, tie tube flies, and dream of steelhead. I've even had post steelheading depression. Every time I have gone trout fishing since, I have brought my switch rod, and swung to fish on tailwaters. Ben and I have tried to explain our trip and our struggles to friends and family, but no one gets it. I have shown my girlfriend so man steelheading videos, ensuring she'll never want to do it.</div>
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We called our boat the Super 8 (reference to the crappy canadian tire bike) after it got a hole in it on river 3. After we patched it, it held up beautifully, when we laid it to rest, it earned the title Super Duper 8 (not quite a super duper puma)<br />
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5 am in Jasper, AB</div>
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Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-64914054069499771872012-12-27T13:05:00.001-08:002012-12-27T13:05:26.849-08:00British Columbia: 4 rivers part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Upon leaving AK we heard a story from my friend's Ben's boss about breaking down on the Cassiar in Deese Lake, and going to a sketchy repair shop where the owner closed the garage behind them... Well sure enough we got a flat tire in Deese Lake. We visited a mechanic named Charlie, and we were not locked in his garage.<br />
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Lower stretches of the Cassiar near Bell 2. Approaching the Nass and Stikine river systems. The beginning of steelhead country, and wet weather.<br />
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Cranberry River Blown Out</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">I had anticipated my first trip steelheading for a year after the first switch rod I bought. The first time I cast a spey rod was without a fly on the Pueblo tailwater. The next fall I caught my first fish on the swing in Pueblo.</span></div>
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I remember a few years ago picking up Fly Fisherman Magazine and skipping any sections regarding spey fishing, Salmon, or Steelhead. I only cared about trout, big trout. Well those sea run fish are big trout, and after I learned to cast (still learning) and realized it was pretty cool, I started to get addicted. It was just like streamer fishing, but less tiring. And the takes are so cool. So when I had the chance to finally go steelheading, I made it happen, and just happened to fish the most famous wild steelhead river system in the world, "The Skeena." Now I search for articles on Spey Fishing.</div>
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Base Camp in Smithers, Finally. 1557 miles from Sunrise, AK to Smithers, BC</div>
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<u>Task 1:</u> We showed up in Smithers, with no idea where to fish. The Skeena Watershed has many tributaries, and our first two days were used buying gear, licenses, maps, and trying to dig up real information on where we could find steelhead.</div>
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<u>Task 2:</u> was trying to find a shuttle. We scouted a couple of the floats and decided a cheap mountain bike would be adequate for running shuttles. So we opted for a Canadian Tire Super 8 for 100 looneys, Boy, was that a mistake! The first float required a 10 mile shuttle. Ben dropped me off at 8 am and came riding back at 9:45. An hour and forty-five minutes to ride 10 miles?? Well 5 minutes into the ride, the right pedal fell off, so Ben rode 1 legged until he found a construction crew that let him use vise grips to put in back on. Two miles later the seat sank, and he did not have a set of allen keys to fix it. Needless to say he was a very unhappy fisherman when he showed up at the boat launch and I had just finished swinging the first run.</div>
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First morning on the river. No steelhead this day</div>
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<b>Day 1 </b>Our boat with a homemade skid frame was more than adequate. However it was the equivalent of a Volkswagen Beetle (the raft) with a V12 Engine (the oars). Our first day we didn't touch a steelhead, didn't see a steelhead, and only saw one guy hooked up, all day.</div>
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Ben hooked into our first ever Steelhead</div>
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<b>Day 2 </b>we switched to a smaller river, which felt more familiar, we actually felt like we might be able to find some steelhead. However on this day it was my turn to run the shuttle. Again it was around 10 miles, but this time it was on a muddy logging road. I hopped on the bike, and the pedal fell off. The threads on the pedal had been completely polished off. So I walked with the bike for half an hour trying to hitch a ride. No one would pull over. So i wedged the pedal back in, used the inside off my foot to hold the pedal in, and biked the next ten miles. During that time my handlebars loosened and slid over, and rotated upside down. That was the last shuttle run on the Super 8. After fishing two runs in the am, we were floating through a big tail-out, and I was standing up looking down into the water and spotted our first pod of steelhead, SO COOL! We got out and fished the tail-out, but to no avail. Ben finally found a piece of water he thought looked excellent, and sure enough he hooked our first steelhead.</div>
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On a fly Ben tied the night before! His first BC Steelhead</div>
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My first steelhead</div>
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Ben than let me swing through the same pool and I hooked my first steelhead. After getting a tug two casts before.</div>
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We hooked one more steelhead that day in the inside seam of a Dog leg right on the hang down, but the fish charged upstream and spit the hook. We spent one more day on river number 2 and made some friends, who helped with the shuttle. No more bike.</div>
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Day 3, the temperature started to drop and only yielded 1 Steelhead.</div>
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Literally the temperatures went from a high of 38F and low of 32F for our first 5 days in Smithers to a high of 31 and a low of 17. Day three on river 2 was the end of fall steelheading and the beginning of winter steelheading. The winter weather in AK and the Yukon caught up to us.</div>
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Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-72359727845199982822012-12-25T22:40:00.000-08:002012-12-25T22:40:49.320-08:00My Brother's Christmas Present<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A balmy 15 degrees on public water</div>
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On the swing! </div>
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Christmas has involved fishing in one way or the other for my brother and I for the last three years. This year it involved the whole family. My brother and I bought my mom a new fly box and filled it with all of the patterns we fish, along with a couple of store bought flies. My present to my brother was a new fishing jacket and new versions of two flies I have been working on, and we got my dad a pair of waders. The guy who got us into fly-fishing as youngsters, twenty-two years later has decided that he wants to fish as well. But the most amazing part is watching my brother fall in love with the sport as I have. He is very fishy, and has caught some serious fish, but just recently has the bug set in. That was my best present... seeing my brother pick fishing on Christmas over skiing over skiing 9 inches of new snow.</div>
Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-90078655320098050702012-12-24T23:56:00.002-08:002012-12-24T23:56:35.463-08:00AK part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Our Home for 3.5 weeks</div>
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@ Alaska Raft and Kayak designing a make shift river vessel for B.C.</div>
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...and here came winter</div>
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<br />Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-75683893229080215092012-12-24T22:57:00.000-08:002012-12-24T23:29:53.703-08:00Alaska Part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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On the way to Camp</div>
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tying flies for BC</div>
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<b>DAY1</b></div>
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Skilak Lake</div>
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Kenai River 'Bows</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>DAY 2</b></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
DAY 3</div>
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The Kenai river was not what I expected. I guess in my head I had the Naknek or the Klickitat: something out of a Simms advertisement. But the Kenai with the guidance of two guide friends Ben and Brian was unbelievable. I learned so many ideas and tricks to rigging bead set ups, fish behavior, guiding on a drift boat... Of course western Alaska is the mecca, but the Kenai is where you can arguably find the biggest King Salmon and Wild rainbow trout in the world. And the coolest part, the Kenai is swing-able in many spots. I'll also tell you, if you want to be hardened as a guide work in Alaska. The fish are plentiful, but the work is hard, the expectations are high, the gear is complicated and the hours are long. I have so much respect for those guys. </div>
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Trout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6796905351345265368.post-74771076170419798362012-12-24T21:34:00.001-08:002012-12-24T23:31:34.183-08:00New Blog<br />
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My only way to continue blogging without paying google for more space was switching blogs. My old blog troutpursuit.blogspot.com will be continued here. I hope to give a more mature blog here, but we will see. Sorry for the inconvenienceTrout Pursuithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15155947336529428993noreply@blogger.com0