Fun in the Salt

Kamchatka

Words can't even describe how badly I wish to go here...
Eastern Rises | teaser from felt soul media on Vimeo.

Sunburns and Dry Flies

Tiredly I ran up the stairs hurrying to answer the phone call that was causing my obnoxious ringtone to sing as loud as it could.  I answered with a sloppy "hello" as I sat staring out the window using all the internal strength I had to peel my delicate eyelids apart from each other after a long nights sleep.  It was my great friend and mentor Steve Thrapp, asking if I could meet him at the river in twenty minutes.  Despite still wearing my shorts and crinkled T-shirt, and my hair being strewn in every which direction, I agreed, and the usual routine began.  I managed to piece together a decent array of clothing from what I had laying around my room, and before I knew it, I was headed out the door.  Thankfully, I keep all of my rods rigged and ready in the back of my car, so I could be on my way quickly.  Before I could take off, my dad reminded me to grab food and a drink.. something I often forget.

Upon arrival at the water,  I slid on my waders and boots, and as Steve pulled up, we shook hands and exchanged our latest fishing tales.  Chatting as we approached the water, one look down river revealed hundreds of rising fish throughout the many riffles and pools.  We split up, and began targeting fish as best we could.  After roughly an hour, I had only tempted a single fish, and Steve had raised a few others with none landed.  Frustrated, we headed upriver in search of other (hopefully) willing fish.

As Steve roped in one fish after another, I sat and watched a single rainbow as she fed rigorously in the heart of a shallow riffle.  I couldn't believe how intently she was feeding, as her mouth opened roughly every three seconds.  Rigged with a dry - dropper, I made a cast to the fish, and to my surprise, she took the midge dropper on the first drift.  The fight lasted roughly 30 seconds, and the fish soon laid at the bottom of my net.  After pictures, I carefully released the beautiful fish to fight another day.

For how rigorously this fish was feeding, she was awful thin!

Trekking further and further down-river, we finally found more fish, and Steve really began to teach them a lesson.  Steve has been and still is one of my greatest mentors, and he has taught me much about what I know today.  Every time I am able to fish with Steve I learn a ton, and it is always amazing to watch him as he dissects the water, and brings several fish to hand.  Steve is also the creator of the PIOPod, sold by Fishpond, and his care for the environment shows with every outing.  With seemingly every cast, Steve hooked up, and over the course of roughly 30 minutes, Steve landed a myriad of different fish.

As the sun began to set, we tried one last stretch, only hoping for a good fish.  Cast after cast produced nothing, until I managed to hook up with a decent rainbow as I swung the flies through the current.  After an intense battle,  I hoisted the fish for pictures, and released it swiftly to its watery home.

Colors!

Sunburnt and tired,  I had to call it a day, and as we removed our waders, Steve and I shook hands before leaving.  With plans to do it again soon, we went our separate ways, and headed towards home.  It had been a tough day on the water (for me at least), but hey, I was glad to have gotten out. 

Colorado Gems

The ferocious wind howled as it dove between tree branches and hovered across the water's surface.  High hopes were gradually reduced to actualization as tippet fluttered every which way in the myriad of wind currents, making it nearly impossible to attach flies to my line.  But we couldn't give up, we had to at least give it a shot!  

Upstream, Sanders stood knee-deep in a run dropping his rig in front of countless risers.  Before we could even say "hey" and shake hands, Sean angled his rod backwards, and was set into a quality brown.  I assumed the position of net-man, and after a hard fought battle, we had a beauty of a brown in the net.  Pictures and fist bumps followed, and the beautiful creature was then released back to its chilled home.

Sanders' Brown... Like 5 minutes into the day

"Damn Sanders... not even a minute into the day you have a fish in the net?  I gotta quit fishing with you!" I said jokingly as my dad hopped into the river in hopes of bringing the next riser to hand.  As sanders and I sat clumsily re-rigging, my dad started working a single rising fish.  Cast after cast was rudely ignored by the picky fish, until finally the dry was attacked from below.  "Got him!" he yelled as he raised the rod slightly, sending the frightened fish into an astonishing fit of headshakes. Minutes later the tired little fish was slid into my dad's hands as he hoisted it proudly for the camera.  After a swift release, we proceeded up-river in search of a few more willing eaters.

As my fingers slowly lost feeling, I barely managed to finish assembling my rig, cinching down the last knot as quickly as possible.  The wind battled my balance as if I was being pushed over by a ghost of some sort.  Leaning into the powerful storm, I speedily laid down a cast on the water's surface.  Watching intently as the flies drifted downstream, I reacted immediately to the feel of a fish on the line.  A smooth lift of the rod produced a nice cutbow, and as I released the fish to call it a day, sanders yelled out requesting help on the net.

Sanders' Last Fish of the day... 

Shivering violently, I netted Sean's fish, and after quick pictures, I hurried back to the car in search of heat.  the radio came to life as the engine hummed, and warm air gradually brought the feeling back to my frigid fingers.  It was awesome to fish with Sanders (as usual) but I was really happy to have gotten my dad out on the water again, and watch the smile run across his face with each hook-up.  As we sped towards home, I couldn't help but think of how lucky us Coloradoans are to live in such a beautiful place.  As my mind expanded on this thought, I watched as the fiery orange sun nestled itself to bed for the night behind the purple mountains that Colorado is so well known for. "This has gotta be the good life" I muttered under my breath as a smile came across my face.

Old Favorites

I know, I know, most of you have seen the zebra midge more times than you can remember.  It is a super simple little pattern, and for how common it is, it catches fish.  Anyways, give this one a shot!

The Ice Pick

This is a really cool streamer pattern that is especially effective during runoff.  Its bright coloring makes it highly visible in the water, and the rabbit strips add some bulk for a larger profile.  A super simple fly to tie, I encourage you to give it a shot!

Frozen Fun!

Smiles leaped forward from the crowd, and laughs hovered about the room as Casey Dunnigan diligently placed the whip finish over the head on his signature "PMD Panty Dropper".  The crowd, including Rick Takahashi, stared in awe at the beautiful creation, while Casey sat confidently offering tips on being successful with this pattern.  Enthralled with the never ending line of beautiful patterns, the crowd didn't want to leave despite the demo being over the official "time-limit".  Casey's demos are always beneficial, and if you haven't yet, track him down at his next venue and get there early because it will get crowded!  So, when the streak of excellence in demonstration came to an end, I greeted Casey with a handshake, and an invitation to fish the Poudre with me that afternoon.  "Sure," responded Casey, "but not without lunch first!" 

To the local Asian grill it was, and the four of us we enjoyed an excellent lunch that would fulfill us for the day, as well as a load of stories from Rick Takahashi himself.   Stuffed, the two of us headed north in search of the Poudre, and a few willing targets.  After speedily assembling our gear and dressing out in our waders, we began the trek through knee deep snow.  Two miniature meals were dropped below a single, elegantly tied dry fly.  As if rocks were being tossed into the water, fish were slashing at the surface continually.  Miniscule midges skated across the glassy surface, teasing trout before flight.  A single rise appeared, and the rig was presented delicately upstream of the trout.  Slowly drifting along, the small dry fly was suddenly pulled under, and a smooth raising of the rod on Casey's part produced highly energetic runs across the current.  Minutes later, the willing silvery cutbow came to hand - Casey's first fish on the Poudre - on his first cast.

Casey Dunnigan

Repeating the same motions as before, Mr. Dunnigan continued to work his magic, eventually bringing a beautifully spotted brown to hand.  Anxious to get a tug, the obnoxious streamer secured to my line was unbuttoned from the hook keeper, and a single downstream cast was sloppily made.  As the large fly swung through the current, the line began to swim away, and the strip set was applied.  Diving every which way, the gorgeous brown trout eventually surrendered for pictures, and was swiftly released back to the icy waters that it called home.

Not huge, but super pretty!

As the glowing winter sun tucked itself away behind the majestic purple mountains of Colorado, our chilled breath lingered as we reeled in the weapons and called it a day.  Frozen waders and boots came slowly but surely off of our frigid bodies, and the engine hummed as we drove off into the Colorado sunset.

Ice Off is Coming...

I like to spend time that I am not fishing or doing homework tying flies to prepare for major events on many of Colorado's rivers and lakes.  Before we know it, ice off will be here, and the big fish will be out cruising the lake shores on the hunt for food.  This scud is a great fly to carry around, and has proven effective for ice off trout.  Enjoy!

Big Nasties

School got canceled for whatever reason today, so I decided to mess around a bit, and tie up a few big streamers for the weekend's festivities to come.....

...Work in progress...

Workday Entertainment...

'Chief' of Fishing

Have you ever hit that perfect tee shot on your favorite par five, or thrown a perfect bullseye in a round of darts?  The feeling of sheer perfection and happiness sets in almost immediately, and there is no denying the smile on your face.  Every once in awhile, each of us finds or does something that seems to engrave a smile on our face, and recently, Smith Optics' "Chief" Sunglasses have been that something for me.

Over the past year or so, I was fortunate enough to meet some truly incredible people, most of them being met either on the water, or through facebook.  One thing that seemed to be recurring amongst these guys was a trusty pair of high end sun glasses either wrapped over their eyes, or dangling from their necks.  I never really thought much of it, and continued using the $5 pair of glasses that i bought off of a guy at the CTU Camp earlier this year.  Well, after enough 'bragging' from my fishing friends, I finally decided to save up some money from the summer's lawn mowing, and get myself a pair of Smith Optics. 

So, when the time came, I placed an order for a pair of chief's with a Polarchromic Copper Mirror Tint and Techlite Glass Lenses.  I waited for a couple of days, and before I knew it the UPS man was at my door handing me a package with the Smith logo stamped to the front.  Delicately slicing the tape on the package, I drooled in awe as I removed the enhanced optics from their protective case.  Skeptical as to how they would perform, I couldn't wait to try them out on a particular section of river that I am so fond of.

Upon arriving at the water's edge, the water was clear; too clear.  There was a hint of superstition in the frosty morning air as we began to search for fish, but we trudged forward with high hopes.  As I approached my favorite run, I stood patiently, scanning the bottom for feeding resides.  The run usually yields fish, but almost always I am dredging the deepest part with an indicator and a few nymphs.  Suddenly, the flicker of a tail appeared, and a good brown was spotted gorging himself at the bottom of the run.  After a few casts, the fish was landed and released happily.  Put simply, these glasses rock.

Frame
The chief frame won the award for best new eyewear at the Fly Tackle Dealer Show a few months ago, and after using the frame, I can see why.  With a medium fit and large coverage, the frames prevent side glare, glare from above, and beneath your eyes. It fits perfectly, and provides the upmost comfort.

Lenses

The lenses on these glasses are what truly set it apart from the rest.  The techlite glass lenses provide the clearest view in the game, and make seeing fish so much easier.  I couldn't believe the difference between glass and polycarbonate lenses - the view is so much clearer with glass!  So, if you plan on getting a pair of these glasses, go with the glass lenses; it's worth it.

Tint
Seeing as Landon Mayer is basically my idol, I gave him a call to see what he thought I should get as far as tints are concerned.  He said that copper is the best all around tint, and that the polarchromic feature is an excellent bonus.  Well, after using the polarchromic copper mirror lenses, I can honestly say that they are superior to anything that I have ever used.  The mirrored tint is able to handle extremely bright days, as well as overcast days.

Things I would change
The one thing I don't like about the glasses is that they fit so well that they tend to fog up, but Smith makes an anti-fog spray, so the problem is solved.  Other than that, I have no complaints!

Conclusion
If you are serious about sight fishing (or fly fishing in general for that matter), investing in a pair of quality sunglasses will change the way you see things forever.  They are definitely worth the investment, and they will make every outing that much easier.  Smith Optics' Chief sunglasses are perfect for any angler, and perform flawlessly.

Tuesday Tie ~ Rio Grande King Special

I figured I would mix it up a bit today, and go back in time a few years.  Nowadays our boxes are filled with stimulators, copper johns, and many more synthetic creations.  Back in the day, the Rio Grande King Special was a staple amongst fly fishermen, and has recently been "updated" by local experts like Charlie Craven.  The pattern pictured here is the original version, tied in black.  Enjoy!

Side View

Quartering View

Recipe

-Hook: Sz 14 Dai-Riki #075

-Thread: Black 70 Denier Thread

-Tail: Golden Pheasant Tippets

-Tag: Gold Tinsel

-Body: Medium Black Chenille

-Wing: Duck Quill, White

-Throat: Brown Hackle Fibers

2b + 3a * F (a) = Fishing Time?

Not so much.  Over the past month or so, I have been literally up to my eyeballs in homework, and have had minuscule amounts of free time to go fishing.  I apologize for not posting in such a long time, but now that school is finally starting to somewhat settle, I should be able to post more frequently.  I have been busy solving for the value of 'X', and exploring the literary elements of culture, while trying to maintain my sanity with each passing day.

Notes, notes, and more notes...

I did manage to get out a few times back in september with excellent luck throughout wyoming, and have been out a few times since, with rather disappointing results.  I was quite satisfied though, because the hopper pattern that I recently came up with managed to out-fish some of the more popular patterns such as Charlie Boy Hoppers.  As for the conditions...The Poudre is running low and clear in town; almost so low that it looks more like a drainage ditch than a river.  I was watching the flows like a hawk, and despite the recent bump to around 200 CFS, the lower stretches of the river are still being deprived of precious water.  As much as it bothers me, it does get me excited for the 20 degree days on the water with 7X tippet and size 26 midges....

Beautiful Cutbow caught on one of my new hopper designs!

One of the highlights of the past month was getting to meet April Vokey, and learning how to tie some steelhead stuff!  I, and several of my other friends have major crushes on her, so it was quite the treat!  Not only is she super nice, but she loves fly fishing!  I can't help but to wonder if there is a better combo out there... 

Me and April...Ahhhhh

My Steelhead Fly...

Like I said, I have been extremely busy, but am planning on getting out this weekend.  The canyon is lit up yellow with the gorgeous fall colors of Aspen trees, so if you get the chance, get up there a ways and do some fishing! 

Sunflowers at sunset
Scott Ruthven Photo

Barn in the Country
Scott Ruthven Photo

 If you do manage to get out on the water, let me know how fishing was!