FishOn! the Fly

Bass on the Fly Fishing Tournament

2013-05-11T22:42:00.000-05:00

Cody and I headed to our annual trek to Lake Fork to participate in Ted Warren's Bass on the Fly Fishing Tournament. We have participated in the three previous years' tournaments, and the door prizes and raffle items and payouts have been really good; this year was no different, except the payout had to be larger, because there were 41 participants.

In previous years, for the boaters' division, the fish had to be brought in and weighed, which means slot fish, fish between 16 and 24 inches, could not be kept. So a boater may have caught any number of fish, but if the fish measured within the slot, they could not count, frustrating but important for the vitality of the fish.

This year, there was a change for the boaters. After catching, we photographed and measured our fish, and then released them, so whether a fish was in the slot or not, we could count it as one of our best five--WHOOP! The bad news, Cody and I have a difficult time fishing Lake Fork. Every year, one of us is the one who catches fish, while the other fishes their heart out but ends up with very little, if any fish. This year, Cody did the catching and I did the cheering, netting, and photographing. Only one of our fish counted, because the other two were White Bass--one was particularly nice.

I ended the day by hooking a Bowfin--a new-to-me species. At first, I thought it was a Flathead Catfish, but on its second surface, Cody saw it, and became really excited, hollering, "It's a Bowfin! It's a Bowfin!" It surfaced three times, and it was an approximate 12-15 pounder! It went under the boat, swam perpendicular to the boat, went to the front near the trolling motor, but the fight was on. Then, Cody asked, "What poundage is your leader?" and before I could answer, that Bowfin swam 180˚ from me towards the motor, and the 20 pound leader section snapped about 1mm below the knot. Bye, bye, Bowfin.

Cody participated in the Distance Casting Contest, but this year, Brian Nims casted 96 feet to take first place. Cody won years 1 and 2 and Brian Nims won years 3 and 4. The Accuracy Contest had a four-way tie, so they had a cast-off to determine the winner. Everyone won a great raffle prize, and the Dallas Fly Fishers brought home the club trophy for the third year (no team trophy was awarded the first year). All-in-all, Ted Warren and his wife hosted another fun tournament.

Red River Rendezvous, 2013

2013-01-21T20:08:00.000-06:00

Bonham State Park again played marvelous host to a fly tying bonanza, and Mother Nature graced us with splendid weather. The Red River Fly Fishers, looking smashing in their wonderful club shirts, created a great combination for a get-together with a bunch of fly fishing fanatics. We casted TFO rods, we watched one another's tying tricks and tips, we ate like royalty, and enjoyed the raffle. Cody and I want one of Mr. Pope's Spey rods, but the TFO-rod-of-your-choice-auction item slipped through our hands yet again. However, the urban fishing trip with Les Jackson did not. I am really excited about that trip, because as a child, I grew up in Arlington, ruining more clothes from the mud and brambles and water of Rush Creek. So, to see it as an adult and to fish it with more knowledge is going to be a pleasant treat. I can not tell who is more excited about this trip, Les, because he is a true, ultra-light fly fisherman and loves sharing this urban oasis, or me, because I am revisiting old haunts. Either way, it will be a fantastic day.

A poor Fjordland imitation

With Ovechkin watching, Cody cranked out some wonderful CodyBuggers and GirlieBuggers; afterall, we are getting ready for our annual winter and early spring treks to fish Fort Parker's Lake Springfield from our float tubes. In addition to those signature flies, Cody tyed some very flashy, minnow-esque flies that I can not wait to see in action. Even though I have never seen Cody tye these flies, I loved their profile. Cody said Rob Woodruff gave them to Cody for White Bass. Cody has caught large Rainbows with them as well.

Cody and I's meal contribution was a pot roast. Of course, potatoes have to be included, so as I was slicing those little reds, I sliced my thumb (no blood got onto the potatoes), and after 30 minutes of bleeding, I asked the park office for a band-aid. They graciously gave me three, and while I needed that band-aid, it did not help with my fly tying! I had decided beforehand that I was going to tye some more deer hair flies, big, chunky deer-hair flies. Lately, I have really been dreaming of Mongolia, the Ur River, and Taimen. So, with band-aid wrapped around my thumb, I tyed a big, fat mouse. (I wonder if the scent of blood on the deer hair makes the fly illegal? I wonder if the blood scent will still be there by the time I make it to Mongolia?) I probably can not keep it "new" and will fish it at Lake Springfield or Amistad, but maybe I can. (For me, they take a long time to tye, so it's not like I'll get into our tying room and crank one out in 30 minutes.)

The absolute best thing about this year's Red River Rendezvous? Our dear friend Jerry Hamon was there, looking handsome and healthy!

Fly Fishing in the New Year

2013-01-04T00:15:00.001-06:00

Cody and I decided for our New Year's fly fishing trip we would do a staycation. We have some potentially big trips in the works for later this year, so we wanted to stay closer to home. I also wanted to target a new-for-me species, so we chose to camp four days at Daingerfield State Park and chased Chain Pickerel!

COLD and OVERCAST and RAINY! Two of those make for excellent conditions to chase Chain Pickerel; unfortunately, the rain delayed our leaving for Daingerfield and kept us off the water our first day. No matter; we had fun ringing in the New Year in our little warm and toasty RV playing board games and listening to the fireworks (and gun play) of others.

In choosing Daingerfield SP, I searched for how to fish for Chain Pickerel in Texas and discovered only one article. However, it is by Rob Woodruff, so there aren't many others that can compare. We brought our paddle boat to scoot around the lake and headed to a spot near our campground. Cody had caught the toothy critters in this area years previously, so armed with 3 and 4 weight rods with floating lines and poppers, we set out to see what the waters held this New Year's day. It didn't take long for Cody Bell to have Chain Pickerel On! either. Cody used an orange, chartreuse, and yellow popper that just delighted the fish. I had a couple of hits but no catches. My popper was chartreuse and black, and I think that not having that flash of orange and/or yellow made most of the difference. Weed guards are a must, which is something I don't often say. We fished the lily pads and downed trees close to the shoreline. Sometimes those Pickerel were a hair too early or late in their hits, but watching them miss was a treat. While we were cold at 39°F, the Chain Pickerel were aggressive in their takes and misses (for a brief video).

Due to even colder temperatures on Wednesday, we drove around East Texas visiting Atlanta and Caddo Lake State Parks for future fishing ideas. We did fish the Lake O' The Pines tailrace for Yellow Bass, and while they were hitting topwater, neither Cody nor I could get a fish to take whatever fly we threw at them.

One of the niceties about camping at a Texas State Park, guests don't have to check out until 2:00 p.m. Therefore, Cody and I enjoyed another morning of fishing. Today, however, the sun shone gloriously without a cloud in the sky. Nice for humans; bad for Pickerels. Their aversion to warmth and light reminds me of the 1984 Gremlins--bright light, bright light. Following Rob's advice, we headed for the dam because it was deep and shaded. We chose sinking lines for our 4 and 5 weight rods, and Bam! Cody had FishOn! a really nice Chain Pickerel, too. Something was wrong with one of its gills, but that didn't seem to deter this fish. It even jumped once! I love their markings, especially that eye stripe.

Sadly, it was time to go, but knowing that the Pickerel's spawning season is around February, I think we might be back. I really want to catch this species. We detoured by Lake Bob Sandlin State Park and visited their recently stocked Trout Pond. I needed to catch a fish. It has been over 10 years since I had not caught a fish on New Year's day, and not only did I not catch one New Year's, I didn't catch a rather easy fish at Lake O' The Pines the second day of the year! So, on the third day of the year, I finally caught some Rainbow Trout. I had never been to the Trout Pond at Lake Bob Sandlin SP before now, and it is a really nice one, with plenty of area for fly fishers to cast. We are looking forward to the last event of our "staycation"--attending the 2013 Cotton Bowl! It has been a good break!

2012 Fly Fishing

2012-12-31T22:28:00.000-06:00

Well, as I look back on 2012, which I am not going to miss--a rough year for us personally, I did not meet many of the goals I set for myself. I also realized that I forgot to publish my July Louisiana Redfishing trip and my August Cimmarron River Trout trip, so I will have to add those to the blog.

I did not come close to catching a Sharelunker, not that I didn't try in the spring. Work got in the way of much of my fall fly fishing, so I can honestly say I put little effort into the fall bass fishing. I looked at some freshwater IGFA records, and I attempted a couple, but the 2011 drought really affected the fishing holes I had come to learn, so it was more difficult than I could imagine.

I began the year with 25 followers and added only eight more, but dropped one before the year ended, so I fell way short on that goal. I can't say as I blame folks, though, because I tailed off on my writing when the real-world stepped in the way.

Cody and I placed fourth in the Lake Fork Bass on the Fly Tournament, catching three 1-2 pound bass, so we tried but came up short. Personally, we find Lake Fork tough, but we still don't mind trying.

I attempted to build my 1# rod, but the reel seat hardware sent from Mud Hole was the wrong size. The reel seat insert was perfect; I was pleased with my color choices for the wrappings, decided upon a design for the butt section, but Mud Hole sent the wrong hardware, because even Cody's 14# reel would not fit securely in the uplocks. I am waiting on replacements. With that frustration, I never even bought nor decided upon my 3# rod.

I added two species to my list--a Warmouth from Springfield Lake at Fort Parker State Park and a Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout at Latir Lakes, New Mexico. We didn't leave early enough for Daingerfield, today, so the Chain Pickerel that was to be my last shot at the third species didn't happen. (I am hoping it is the first fish of the year for 2013, though!)

I did manage to learn to tye excellent deer hair flies. Diane Blair taught a six weeks Deer Hair spinning class, passing on fly tying in the Mike Verduin tradition. I tyed many more flies after the class and tested them regularly. I think my favorite pattern was the mouse pattern, and I have enjoyed tying them. I would love to tye some really big mouse patterns and take them to Mongolia to skate them across the Eg-Ur Watersheds for Taimen and Lenok.

I don't know what fly fishing goals I'll have for 2013, except to fish more places and to fish more often, which is not a bad place to start, I think.

Here's hoping each of you have a wonderful, happy, healthy, and richly filled 2013! Happy New Year!

Fall Fishing in the Hill Country

2012-10-26T23:10:00.000-05:00

The third week in October finds Cody and I and many DFFers in Junction, Texas. For nine years, the Fredericksburg Fly Fishers have hosted the event Oktoberfisch on the Llano and South Llano Rivers. I have attended seven of the nine and loved every one, including this year’s event.

The river was characteristically different this year. I think the 2011 drought affected the South Llano more this year than last. The river flowed well at both 377 crossings, but farther downstream at Boone’s Crossing, it was a little low, compared to years' past. The levels seemed a little higher than last year at the South Llano River State Park crossing, because it would have been difficult to float under the bridge on the upriver side. However, from the state park to Shady Morgan Campground (now owned by the Meachems), the river ran low and narrow.

I did not see the usual carp cruising the riverbed, nor did I spot any of the big bass I have seen and discussed in the Jul/Aug 2008 Southwest Fly Fishing. There were very few deep pools. Typically deep, swift chutes did not exist, including last year’s spot where I caught a ¾ pound Rio Grande Perch. The downed tree near where the pipes have been exposed by calving banks did not hold the fish it held in years’ past. One year, Cody cast four times and caught four species on an amber Bonefish Bitter. We saw many, very small Bluegill, but that was it. There were more and larger downed trees that must have succumbed to the drought and died resting in the river. I thought these would be a haven to fish, but I guess the acidic content of the decaying trees have affected the nearby waters. The fishing was good for the smaller species, and Cody did catch a nice Largemouth Bass on his newly finished 3# rod. Cody also hammered the Rio Grande Perch, even naming one area the RG Tree! We ate the sirloin supper cooked by the Limestone FFA men, enjoyed cake, won the two raffle items we wanted to win, and enjoyed the company of many friends.

Having taken a long weekend, Cody and I left the South Llano and headed south to Lost Maples SNA. Thankfully, we had booked our RV spot many months ago. While the maples aren’t their gorgeous reds, yet, they have begun changing colors and are beautiful. We hiked along the East Trail back to the ponds and fished there, catching Largemouth Bass, Channel Catfish, and Bluegills. The canyon was bathed in the dusk light and fall has definitely arrived in the Sabinal Canyon.

Cody had never been to Garner State Park, just 16 miles southwest as the crow flies, so we drove over to spend a nice day on the Rio Frio. I was amazed at how few people there were. I have seen this state park filled to capacity, and today, there were maybe 15 occupied spots! First, we set out on a hike, a 360 foot ascent in .4 miles, to White Rock Cave and the nearby park geocache. The cave was cool but humid. After finding the cache, we headed back to the bank of the Frio, picnicked under old, beautiful Cypress trees, and with gorgeous, green water clarity similar to saltwater colors, we spotted Largemouth Bass 130 feet away.

After lunch, we fished the river below the dam hiding behind the Cypress trees. The fishing was difficult, so we eventually packed up and moved to other areas of the park. Cody picked a great spot and we caught all kinds of Redbreast Sunfish and Largemouth Bass. Having fished that spot thoroughly, we moved to a new area suggested by park staff. We found a gorgeous, small waterfall, deep pools, and fish. We fished until dusk before leaving the park. We ate at Mama Chloe’s in Leakey and made it back to Lost Maples.

Having not given the Sabinal River in Lost Maples its proper respect, we chose to fish its pools near the campground and entrance finding Largemouth Bass, Catfish, and spawning Bluegills and Redbreast Sunfish. We fished topwater flies and Cody and GirlieBuggers all with fun and success. We checked out and headed for home, leaving the Hill Country behind until next fall.

Amistad's Pecos River 2012

2012-05-08T22:22:00.001-05:00

Rain! Glorious, sweet, life-giving rain fell. It fell all Wednesday morning; it fell early and mid-afternoon. Temperatures dropped to 64°F. As a result, we did not fish Box Canyon. We decided to seek a boat shop to repair the tiller that was damaged Sunday on the Devil's River arm. With little luck at the boat shops, we decided to go to Comstock and see the Pecos River arm and Seminole Canyon.

Looking north up the Pecos

Cody took us to the Pecos River High Water Bridge crossing and we picnicked, gawking at the horrendously low water levels. We met a couple from Washington state and talked with them about the Pecos River, the old road on the west, and where Mexico was located in relation to where we stood. We read the historical markers, snapped photos, and moved to a new destination.

I had never been to Langtry, so Cody decided it was a perfect time to visit Judge Roy Bean and the Law West of the Pecos. Interestingly enough, the museum is operated by the Texas Department of Transportation, and they have done a nice job preserving this interesting piece of history. We discussed the lake levels and learned that water is being actively released from Amistad! Gates were scheduled to be opened this afternoon. It turns out that Falcon Lake is requesting the water to raise their water levels and operate their power plant. Texas water management does not make sense. As a teen, I grew up on Lake Granbury, and the same plan occurred: Possum Kingdom's levels were dropped to increase Granbury's; Granbury's levels were dropped to increase Whitney's, etc. Without rain, what increased Possum Kingdom's levels?

Returning to Comstock and Seminole Canyon, we stopped by the NPS Pecos River boat ramp, which is still open, to see the confluence of the Pecos and Rio Grande. The confluence can not be seen from the High Water Bridge Scenic Overlook. I was disgusted by what I saw. I also understood the high numbers of Border Patrol in the area; we counted at least 30 cars along Hwy 90. We probably could have boated the Mitzi through the narrow channel, but I doubt we could have boated to Panther Cave, which is only accessible by boat.

Pathetic confluence of the Pecos River and Rio Grande

We left the boat ramp and visited Seminole Canyon. We hiked a part of the Rio Grande River Trail and then Rough Canyon Trail. We saw the old Southern Pacific rail bed. We enjoyed Rough Canyon, and while Cody was looking on Mexico, the dark skies released more glorious rain on Mexico and the sky lit up with bolts of lightening. About .2 mile before reaching the car, the skies opened up and the rain began to fall. I love rain, but rain in the desert is particularly special. Thank goodness El Nino is gone; hopefully, now, we can get back to more normal weather, receive rain, and see the lake levels renewed. Hopefully, Box Canyon will look better than the Pecos Arm!

Amistad's Diablo East 2012

2012-05-07T22:17:00.000-05:00

Trying to acclimate to Amistad's low water levels is an adjustment. We put in at Diablo East, today, and boating under the bridges and seeing the high water marks really puts the 2011 drought in to perspective.

We headed south towards the dam in choppy, occasionally white-capped waters, and then turned NW heading to the many coves opposite the dam. Winds were blowing 20 mph out of the SE, so setting the boat up to drift correctly and keep us out of the many exposed trees was not easy. We cast to the eastern shore, even though we saw no fish. The fish finder showed no fish, too. For whatever reason, Cody turned to see if I was casting and saw a "turtle" swimming just under the water line. Cody asked if it was a turtle, and we both said no, it's a fish. Cody, using his sinking line with one of my Bass Brunch, Gizzard Shad flies, immediately cast to it, she turned and inhaled the fly, and Cody brought her in. That Largemouth Bass fought and jumped like crazy. It was an enjoyable treat to watch. We weighed her, and she tilted the IGFA-certified Boga scales at 3 1/4 pounds. Cody enjoyed it immensely. While not that easy, we wished the remainder of the day had gone more smoothly.

While snapping the photo, I did see a beautiful Spotted Gar running along the shore. Those two fish were it for that cove. The fishing was incredibly difficult. Coves that had always been productive, holding many different species, had zero fish. We did find fish at the mouths of the coves about 12 feet deep in the water column, even though the depths were approximately 57 feet deep. Even though we fished heavy sinking lines with big rods, we had not hits, no catches. We cove-hopped two more with no success.

Upon entering our fourth cove, we found a unique feature--a rock wall, N 29°29.184 W 101°05.133. We're guessing it was built in the early/mid 1990s, when the lake was approximately 100 feet low, because the wall was built into the rocky bottom. We saw young sheep on either side of the wall and a nice pond formed on the shallow side. I got off the boat and stood on top of the wall to fish. Seeing that the water level had dropped, Cody and I decided if we even caught anything, we would release it on the lakeside of the wall. I cast a sinking line, Bass Brunch, Gizzard Shad fly, and on my third cast, caught a nice 1 3/4 pound Largemouth Bass. Cody walked the shore, casting his 2#. He saw large minnows and many young Bluegill. Cody then walked the lakeside all the way down to the point. This cove was deep, had few trees, and several fish. We each had timid hits, and we saw our first and only carp of the trip, so far, but caught nothing.

Dark clouds filled with rain, lightening, and thunder loomed on the Mexican side just behind the dam, so Cody checked the weather GPS. Deciding not to press our luck by waving a 9 foot lightening rod, instead of casting a fly rod, we headed back to the boat ramp. No sooner had we arrived than five other boats showed up, while one decided to launch. Cody talked with folks in the other boats, and only one guy had caught five fish. Everyone else caught one or none, so I guess we upheld the average for Diablo East. The barometric pressure was changing, and even though we had a mostly full moon, finding the fish, much less catching the fish, was extremely difficult. It was strange to be off the water before sunset, and with a 60% chance of rain during the night, we hope the fishing picks up at Box Canyon, Tuesday.

Amistad's Rough Canyon 2012

2012-05-06T23:52:00.000-05:00

Low! low! low! Different! different! different!

Our annual outing to Lake Amistad is shocking. I can not believe the lake, and I am having difficulties grasping what 21 feet low, 63% capacity means. We fished our local haunts, or at least where we could boat. We began the trip, as always, at Rough Canyon up the Devils River Arm. Even in our Mitzi Skiff, that can be push-poled in a foot of water, we could only navigate 150 yards upriver from the mouth of Satan Canyon. We could not reach the Bluegill and Carp area at Four Poles (we couldn't even see the Four Poles). Satan Canyon had little trees, and after navigating a low spot, we headed back to as far as we could go, which was .2 miles less than we were able to proceed last year. We discovered two springs, took pictures so we could see where fish bed and hide when the water levels are normal. Near the springs feeding the canyon waters, Largemouth Bass and Redear Sunfish thrived. Cody pulled a 2 lb and 1 3/4 lb LMB out of the canyon, and I had two Redears at 3/4 lbs each. We saw bedding 1 pound LMBs, but left them alone to spawn.

An upside to the drought, I finally saw Indian Springs. I guess everyone else was excited about seeing it too, because it was always occupied. People even hiked from the cliffs down and spent four hours at the springs.

Slaughter Bend Cove still exists and can be boated and fished, but only about half of the canyon has water. We caught some LMB and Sunfish, and we discovered a spring that is about 22 feet below the NPS No Camping and No Fire building signs, and we named the spring "No Camp Spring." The thing about the signs, in previous years, we have always been level with those signs as we boated by to fish farther into the cove. Astounding, just astounding.

We chose to fish an area we deemed Bonsai Island and its cove. We always catch LMBs there, always! This year, we learned that what we saw as an island is really a long undulating peninsula. The treetops inside the cove had always been slightly submerged and held fish, especially along the cliff wall. We fought getting hung up, and we had no hits, so we left.

We moved farther south to fish a Lowrey Springs Cove, which we discovered last year. Sunfish, especially Redbreasts, were abundant and big, averaging a pound, and Painted Buntings flew everywhere. We caught a total of three Sunfish, but we did get to see Lowrey Springs. Dusk was growing near, so we headed out to get to our Smallmouth Bass Shore.

We found our reliable Smallmouth spot, and seeing the terrain we once boated over, I thoroughly understand how it attracted and held fish. The depth finder lit up with an abundance of fish, and the twilight topwater tango was on. Cody and I both tied on deer hair flies. (Prior to that, all Cody fished was his CodyBugger on floating line, and I used a green Bonefish Bitter on floating line.) I had not used mine since tying it in Diane's spinning deer hair class. I nearly came out of my skin and swallowed my tongue when a nice LMB inhaled my fly. I fought the fish, but seeing as I chose a long leader, after a minute of wrangling with her, she popped my line. I diligently tried to catch any other of those showing up on the fish finder to no success. Cody switched back to a sinking line, but no fish bit. Having thrown our arms out, quickly losing daylight, and satisfied with 15 landed fish for the boat, we called it a night.

Diablo East and the canyons NW of the dam are on the map for tomorrow.

Spicewood Springs, Colorado Bend SP

2012-04-22T20:16:00.000-05:00

Many places in Texas hold our attention, and while Colorado Bend State Park's White Bass Run boasts many nice-sized fish, the river is often too crowded and packs fisherman along the Colorado like sardines in a can. However, a nice little 1/2 mile hike east of the boat ramp, yields the hidden crown jewel of CBSP, and that is Spicewood Springs. Many park-goers just stop at the pool, but Spicewood Creek extends for 1.2 miles upstream, and the overall trail is 5.2 miles. This year, we chased the creek to its origins for the first time, and we were not disappointed.

We caught sunfish of various species. We fished our 1 and 2 weight rods (Spicewood is the perfect excuse to buy Mr. Pope's 1/2# rod; I'd love to field test it here). We tested our casting skills. We found the GPSr I had dropped out of my front waders pocket (whew, I am too young to die just yet). We celebrated Spring in true, glorious fly fishing fashion!

Longear Sunfish

Green Sunfish

Casting around a log and into a cave

Green Sunfish underwater

Pumpkinseed Sunfish, possibly

Spring headwaters that forms Spicewwod Creek

Striper Time

2012-04-09T23:48:00.000-05:00

Bright Monday (the day after Easter in the Christian calendar) was a holiday for me. Cody had promised we would go fishing Monday after working hard Easter Sunday afternoon pulling weeds, vines, and cleaning out the flowerbed. (Seeing as to how sore we both were, maybe we should have fished first and done yard work second.)

Taking Steve Hollensed's advice, we took big rods, sinking lines, and white flies. Cody fished his 10# 475 grain line, and I fished my 8# 350 grain line. Having that heavier line really made the difference. Cody fished an all white, red-eyed, size 4 Clouser Minnow, and I fished my size 4 Bass Brunch--Gizzard Shad pattern.

Getting on the water around 4:15, we thought we would be pressed for time, so we put in at Eisenhower State Park to put us a little farther up the lake. We didn't have to travel far. We hit the first cove, fished it pretty intensely, and no fish, no bites, no takers. We worked the shore line heading east towards the next cove, when we talked about moving farther up river/lake to chase those spawning ladies. As Cody maneuvered the boat, the depth finder lit up like a Christmas tree. So, we stayed and fished and hooked in to one Striper after another. Cody out-caught me, with a total of 18 fish for the boat in a little under four hours; Cody boated 12 and me six, and I can't remember how many more hook-ups we had, but there were plenty, some just 1 - 2 feet from the surface--hard hit-and-runs. Also, this was the calmest day I have ever spent on Lake Texoma. The wind was anywhere from 0 to 3 miles per hour! I did not know this lake could even be calm, but calm the seas were--a first for me.

The best Striper of our day was a 3.2 lb fat girl ready to pop! I wish I had videoed the fight that fish put up. That Lady Hybrid bent Cody's 10# TFO TiCrX double several times, and did she ever put the zing in his reel when she dove and ran. I love fights like that, and these fish didn't just eat the flies; they were inhaling them. Many hook-ups occurred at the back of the tongue past their tooth patches. Even with barbless hooks, we had to be careful removing them. One even was hooked in the gill plate. Careful hook extraction saw that boy swim away. On a personal note, this was the first time I fished my Bass Brunch fly targeting the fish for which I designed the fly, and it worked well, so I was really pleased.

I also experienced another first. At dusk for the first time in my 29 years and 10 months of owning a fishing license, I was finally asked to show it. We were leaving the fishing for another day, when the third boat of the day bore down on us. Being in a flats boat and only having one engine, it does get a little intimidating, especially when the other boats change their coarse at the last minute. Unlike the other two, though, this one had blue lights, meaning it was a Texas Game Warden. I don't know about other states, but in Texas, the Game Warden is the most powerful law enforcement official. They need no warrant to search your boat, vehicle, person, or property. Boundary lines are non-existent for them. They can seize your property without a warrant. They are some great folks, but they mean business. Of course, we had our licenses, boat registration, life jackets, and fire extinguisher, and Dale Moses was a really nice fellow, but still, if you're smart, you give a Texas Game Warden all the respect; they can make your day or ruin your day. After saying good night, we boated back in, loaded up, and headed for home. Being with the Game Warden, kept us out on the water an extra 45 minutes, so we arrived home later, but the fishing was all worth it, regardless how tired I was today at work. Full and near-full moons make for excellent fishing, hands down!

Sea of Sunfish

2012-03-28T23:00:00.000-05:00

Lake Springfield has been a haven for Sunfish--Largemouth Bass, Bluegill, Redbreast Sunfish, Pumpkinseeds, and Warmouth--this spring. With the Warmouth, I added my first new species of the year and was really excited, as it was the last fish of the day.

I have been hoping to catch some Rainbow Trout, seeing as this is a TPWD stocking site late in February, and is also a natural, spring-fed water-body. However, I have struck out in the 'Bow department. (I guess I should have never cut my hair short!) (-; Where I have had the best luck is with Rainbows is their by-product. They get warm, too warm, die and sink to the bottom of the lake, which is very high due to the wonderfully, plethoric spring rains, and are eaten by the other fish, turtles, crawfish, and other creatures. With warmer spring temperatures, the Sunfish are spawning earlier, and boy are they fat, colorful, and fun on a 2# rod. Every third cast, I had FishOn, and from a float tube, there was no other way to have fun this fine afternoon. I'm glad the rain held off until I walked back to the car and loaded my stuff.

XS = XL Fun

2012-03-27T21:27:00.000-05:00

I attempted to catch supper but with no success. I am told there are still stocker Rainbows living, but even with a sinking line, I did not find them. I did catch a Bluegill and small Largemouth Bass, but the fish were particularly picky, so I left the Raptor Center.

A new book was supposed to be released today, so knowing that I'd be going to Barnes & Noble across from Northpark, I ventured a little farther west and hit Caruth Park. What a genuine treat. I fished my 2# Finesse, used a spider and then a Pheasant Tail Nymph, and caught tiny, tiny Sunfish. I love catching these small fish as much as I love catching behemoths. These fish were absolutely beautiful and emanated great coloring detail. I enjoyed catching them, and I also enjoyed the young children who came over to where I was fishing asking questions and curious about the fish. It's difficult to decide who was more entertaining. Not the day I expected, but what a great day it was!

Fat Girls Are Running

2012-03-26T00:07:00.000-05:00

The Girls are running up the Nolan River! Now getting to them is going to take some walking or boating. With the rains earlier in the week, the Nolan River is even higher than it was 10 days ago, and according to several fisherman lining the shore, today's water level was a foot lower than yesterday's level!

Leaving the Nolan River Park Boat Launch

This time, we took the Mitzi, but the difficult part was finding a place to launch her. We went to Nolan River Park, and besides a beautiful drive overlooking the plateaus to the west and the gorgeous Bluebonnets, it is a waste of time. Once at the so-called boat launch, there is not much room to maneuver, it is partially submerged under water, and the likelihood that the good 'ole boys block you in is great. ACOE, not that it is the institution it was during Robert E. Lee's day, poorly maintains the place, if maintains is even the right word. Just don't go there; it is a ratty, little place. The Kimball Bend Park boat launch road is under water, so it is closed. In between the road that leads to Nolan River Park and Kimball Bend Park is Chisholm Trail Park, really about 1/2 mile from the Nolan Bend Park Road. They have a decent boat launch, but the put-in is farther north than Kimball Bend by at least two miles, and it is on the Brazos River side. By the time we navigated through the abundance of driftwood and avoided the once-shoreline trees that are now submerged and part of the riverbed, we had boated 11 miles to reach just north of Rock Creek, which is the creek running through Adair Springs Park. It was worth it, though.

We found the Fat Girls, nice roe-filled she-White Bass, and they are some hungry mamas-to-be! We could have driven to Adair Springs, parked, and hiked the two to two-and-a-half mile trek north to where they are feeding and bedding, provided they aren't being caught and hauled out, but the boat ride was really pleasant. Plus, if we had arrived earlier, we could have fished for the abundance of B-I-G Gar, one was four feet long, hanging around near the extremely wide Nolan-Brazos River confluence, and the short, but fat Common Carp. It was a fun afternoon with warm, cloudless skies, no wind, fun fish on the fly (White Clouser), and an ever-changing riverbed.

Today
Submerged ledge, no island

3/15/12
I was standing on the island

@Mouth of Rock Creek looking south
Island is visible

Island submerged 2 1/2 feet

1 1/2 miles NE of the Confluence

Old Lake, Ennis

2012-03-24T17:45:00.000-05:00

I have wonderful parents! They taught my brother and I that we could do and be whatever and whoever we wanted with this caveat--enjoy "whatever" it is we are doing and do "whatever" to the best of our abilities and with pride. My brother and I took them at their word, literally.

"Some boys are really dumb!" The last time I said that, I had just heard the "let's be friends" talk from a boy I really, really liked when I was in high school. We both played sports, excelling well. Unfortunately, I could shoot free throws better than he could, and while we never competed against one another, his friends razzed him about it. Now, he could dunk a basketball, which at 4' 10" the only thing I was dunking was a donut, but it didn't matter; he dumped me.

Today, I went to Ennis to fish Old Lake to try to continue to add to my species list for the Bret's TX Fishes contest, and to celebrate Mom's 72nd birthday enjoying a really beautiful day. I brought my waders and float tube. A guy was out fishing in his paddle boat, and four others were fishing from two mini Bass Boats. One guy from one of the Bass Boats just chortled loudly at me. His buddy asked me if I thought I was going to catch fish. I shouldn't be surprised at their stupidity, because this happens a lot when I fish by myself.

There is a little island that typically is productive. Once I put in, I headed toward the island, but the paddle boat guy, and one of the Bass Boats decided I could only fish the west end. So I looked at my surroundings, applied what I knew about fish, and kicked far, far away from the very dumb boys. One of the Bass Boat group left, but he returned a couple of hours later with a different buddy. The guy kept saying, "Just give me my worm; that's all I need to catch bass is my worm." They did pay attention to where I had been, because as I was getting out, they headed to where I fished. I watched them for awhile, and they did catch one Largemouth Bass. As for me, I don't know silly boys, can this girl catch fish?

The day's totals--caught seven, netted five, all on a fly rod!

Pending No Longer

2012-03-24T00:29:00.000-05:00

It's official!!! I set an IGFA World Record for Bluefin Trevally in light class tippet, 2kg!

I had begun to lose hope that I would set the record. I kept thinking my tippet won't break at the correct strength. We didn't submit all the correct photos. Our photos didn't show enough detail, and many other myriad of negative thoughts. As I was getting ready to go take my bath, I decided I would make my weekly check to the IGFA website, because I have received no notifications--yes, you did it/no, you did not do it--in the mail. I actually checked it on Thursday, too, and I was still Pending. Poor Cody was already soundly asleep when I visited the website.

One of the IGFA's menu choices is Pending Records, which I always go to, because I was the only person pending for Bluefin Trevally. When I visited that page, tonight, no one was listed there, not even me. So, I visited the Saltwater Records page, slowly scrolling through the men's conventional tackle records, then the women's conventional tackle records, then the smallfry and junior records, then the men's fly fishing records, until I finally came to the women's fly fishing records. The 1 kg/2.2 lb women's record is vacant, so no one's name is there, and I stopped. I didn't scroll any further. I took a deep breath, scrolled to the next line, and awoke Cody with squealing, screaming, and hysterical dancing. It's not very nice to awaken someone that way, I know, but I just couldn't help it. I have wanted this for 2 1/2 years. Cody, ever the wonderfully great guy, got up and hugged me (a dangerous thing since the man has to take Ambien to sleep). Now, he's pretty excited, too and can't fall asleep. I should have known to just wait and check it on this date; after all, it is both my wonderful Mom's and Nephew's birthday today. Great things always happen to our family on this day!

TX Fishes Spring Contest

2012-03-22T23:00:00.000-05:00

Bret Bolton is hosting the 6th annual Texas Freshwater Multispecies Angling contest again--YEAH! I discovered it quite by accident, last year, but I have been on the lookout for it this year. The contest runs throughout the spring season, and while I didn't win, last year, I had a respectable showing. My goal for this year is to have an even more respectable showing, and since I started fishing for the record on the second day of the contest, I am hoping for 20 species, five more than last year. Anyone can participate and it is open to both conventional and fly fishing, and anglers can choose to mix it up, if they desire. I do not; I am a fly fishing purist, even though I have been told I will not come close to winning by fly fishing. I can not fish conventional tackle, but then, I haven't really tried to learn it after attempting it during my teens. Fly fishing just makes more sense to me, especially in controlling the retrieves.

Cody had some errands to run for the Dallas Fly Fishers auction, so I decided to hit Old Lake in Ennis, and landed a Largemouth Bass. I had a catfish on, but it won the tug-of-war and swam away--photo untaken. A Norther' blew in, temperatures dropped 10 degrees in seven minutes, and the fish stopped biting. My rod will be in my car for whatever hole I happen to pass by in my travels, so I can add to the species list. You know, I really would like to catch a Gambusia affinis--a Mosquitofish.

Urban Fly Fishing

2012-03-16T19:57:00.001-05:00

One of the purposes behind the Dallas Fly Fishers' creation of the Friday Fly Fishers was to assist anglers in discovering local, urban fishing spots that offered opportunities to catch fish on fly rods. Cody and I had never attended a Friday Fly Fishing event, until today. Are ShareLunkers on the menu? No, but using ultralight rods will mean a great deal of bend and fun.

Being Spring Break and desperately wanting redemption from the Nolan River's cruelty, we decided to give it a try. Country Brooke is located @ Frankford and Voss, just west of the Tollway. It is a pretty park with plenty of access and plenty of healthy, young Bluegills and Largemouth Bass that loved the Cody and GirlieBuggers on floating lines with long leaders stripping slow, long retrieves, and a sink tip line with moderate, medium retrieves.

We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and will revisit this park, especially since we had seen evidence of two spawning beds, and got a kick out of the female who began building her nest during the middle of the day. I pretty much stayed in one very productive spot. A female LMB came very close to shore, and my shadow, casting, and catching fish did not deter or run her off. I tried to do what Casey Ryan did with his Bedded Bass video, but the water was too murky. I did get some nice stills and enjoyed seeing the Bluegill in their myriad shades. It was a fun morning on the water.

Nolan River White Bass Run

2012-03-15T22:52:00.000-05:00

With Spring Break winding down, Cody and I decided to hit the White Bass run on the Nolan River at Adair Springs Park just south of Blum on FM 933. Fishing on the Ides of March probably wasn't a good idea; I kind of know how Caesar felt.

Problem #1: Every one else in Texas has the same Spring Break. There must have been 14 trucks parked along the roadside, and we arrived at 2:00 p.m.! We get to the water, and it is not congested with fisherman after fisherman, thank goodness, but we have no idea where they have gone, nor how they got to where they were going. Evidence that people had been before us lay everywhere. Humans are trashy, and why that good ole' country boy can't tote that beer bottle or can, those cigarette wrappers, and fishing paraphernalia out is beyond me.

Problem #2: Heavy rains occurred on Sunday 11 March 2012. The water looks like brackish hot tea, and the levels are up 2.9 feet above normal. Unlike last year, there was no way to wade across from east to west, and farther down, there was no way to wade across the little feeder creek at the end of the White Austin Rock Boulder shelf.

Problem #3: Floating lines are useless. Fish with either a full or intermediate sinking line or sink-tip line. Plenty of whites crashing the surface, but not one person caught a fish on topwater. I caught zero fish. Cody's first hook-up was on a Beck's Sililegs Bonefish fly. His second hook-up and caught fish was on that same fly; both were at the north side confluence of the Adair Spring Creek and the Nolan River.

Problem #4: When the after-work crowd appeared, they were loud, abundant, fished a spot someone else was fishing, and were keeping fish that did not meet the 10" minimum length requirement, but by-golly! they were going to get their 25 bag limit no matter what. The run right now is just the males, but I hate to think what it's going to look like when those fat girls filled with roe start running, probably around the middle-to-end of next week. In ALL the years I have had a fishing license, never once in my life have I encountered an official of any kind. The Game Wardens could make a killing on fines on the Nolan. Not many people had licenses, and they were bragging about it.

Two guys fishing the south side confluence of Adair Spring Creek and the Nolan had caught four fish. They kindly let me get a shot of their catches. Cody and I each saw two really large, just under 2 lbs., White Bass, but the rest were average size males--3/4 to 1 1/4 pounds. Now, the Alligator Gar were HUGE. One that swam by was at least 3 feet long, conservatively! (I had my fly rod laying on the ground while I tied on a new fly and measured the Gar against my rod.) The other two were around 2 feet. Cody caught another fish on a small lead-eye red and white Clouser Minnow. We are definitely going to hit the Nolan again when the females make their run, but in a boat! Here are some pictures from April 2011 and today.

At least 7' feet lower than today

Shallow crossing

No worries about hitting rocks

Crossing submerged 5' +

Fly Fish Texas 2012

2012-03-11T17:20:00.000-05:00

Ahh, the second Saturday in March is always great fun, because it is Fly Fish Texas at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens. THE definitive place where people can become good anglers. The Dallas Fly Fishers have several roles they play in Fly Fish Texas, and one of them is demonstrating catching fish in one of the aquariums. We used to demonstrate in the Catfish Aquarium, but now we demonstrate in the Stream Exhibit. In the February 2008 Texas Park and Wildlife Magazine, page 49, a Larry Hodge 2007 Fly Fish Texas photograph of Cody fishing the Stream Exhibit appeared. Demonstrating catching fish has always been one of our favorite things to do. This year we split the duties with Diane Blair. After having a delicious BBQ sandwich, we headed to the pavilion and tied flies. I worked on a Ball Joint Popper for Lake Fork for Ted Warren's Bass On The Fly Fishing Tournament 12 May 2012. Cody tied some very pretty Guadalupe Special flies that he donated to Fly-A-Thon 2012. They do catch some pretty trout, especially at Broken Bow, OK.

Unfortunately, many volunteers and public let the weatherman dictate their fun for Saturday. The temps were in the low to mid 50s, and the rain did not show up until 2 p.m., but there were lots of activities indoors, as well. We finished at 4:00 p.m., and the TFFC held a raffle for the volunteers. Orvis gave away a reel; Rick Pope gave away a rod of the winner's choice, and Ted Warren gave away a dozen of Brother's Flies. Unfortunately, neither Cody nor I won, but we still had a great time.

I was bummed by our photography equipment. I had not too long ago charged my camera. Yes, I used it to video some fishing shots, but I really didn't think it had a low battery. Before we left, I debated as to whether or not to take the charger. I decided not to, which was a mistake. (My car has an electrical outlet in it, so I could have charged the battery on the drive over--arrgh!) Cody has two GoPro cameras, and he used his Hero2. We got some video with the GoPro, but for the second time, there was a recording glitch and every photo and video shot afterward is not readable!!! Cody caught a new species--a koi; I caught the Black Crappie, which has grown from last year; Cody caught one of the three 18-20" Rainbows; I caught a tiny Bluegill, one of my favorite of all fishes to catch--all of which are on the GoPro that won't play the files! Larry Hodge did happen to get us catching a Rainbow, and I did get a little video of Cody before the battery was exhausted, but the really fun pictures and videos are trapped in SD Never, Never Land. Maybe Cody can rescue them. That just gives us a new reason to ensure we are at Fly Fish Texas 2013. For more of Larry Hodge's photography, visit the Freshwater Fisheries Center facebook page, and make plans for the second Saturday in March 2013, regardless the weather.

"Oh My Word!"

2012-02-23T00:33:00.000-06:00

The title describes the afternoon and evening perfectly!

What a day! Last night was our last Deer Hair fly tying class taught by Diane Blair. Diane taught the class to pass along Mike Verduin's tying recipes, tips, and just sound advice while working with deer hair. I know I spend an inordinate amount of time creating one Bass Bug, but I expect to fish with them, and I expect these flies to catch fish.

I rigged my wonderful Nikon camera to my float tube's cross bar and shot images and videos of all three flies. The Ball Joint Popper pushed a lot of water and fished the longest before becoming too water logged. I had a Largemouth Bass on (didn't get this on video because the battery was dead), until I hit a patch of grass and lost the fish. The Frog Slider gave me two what I call "Hit 'n Spit" grabs, and Mike's Mouse caught me another Largemouth Bass. Oh my word! my tyed flies really worked; they caught fish!

Really enjoying geocaching, I decided to seek out one of the more difficult caches in the park. Granted, it was 7:30 p.m., but I have a good flashlight, and night caching is oh so tres chic. I gathered all my cache accoutrements, went back and retrieved my hiking staff, and grabbed Ovechkin (a Flat Stanley-esque stuffed penguin--you have to be a hockey fan to get the irony of a Penguin named Ovechkin--that goes everywhere with me).

Now, I think it is important to convey, I handle things relatively calmly, but not nearly as calmly as Cody. I rarely scream or jump up and down when I catch a fish. I calmly enjoy a great sunset or a star-studded night sky. I do smile rather easily and laugh often, as evidenced by a plethora of lines etched all in my face, but for the most part, I am even keel and usually quite happy.

I set off down the well-laid out and marked Park trail. About 20 feet down the trail, I was checking out my Cache Sense App, reading the GPSr, when I heard a distinctively clear, low and long growl. Uh, I stopped dead in my tracks. I had an adrenaline rush only a junkie could understand. Instant panic and fear gripped me, then rapid brain overload, and painful heart beating in my chest. Oh my word, I was scared! I flashed the light in the direction I heard the growl; no eyes reflected back. I glanced behind me and began walking slowly backwards. I talked loudly to Ovechkin. I clacked my staff loudly and waved it in the air and hit it against the trees. One of our Read Right books is The Wild Side: Angry Animals. One of the stories in this Henry Billings anthology is about when bobcats attack humans. I replayed that story in my mind, preparing what to do when it pounced on me. Unfortunately, having 911 ready to push wasn't going to matter, because where I was, no cellular service existed, and while the Park Superintendent lives on the grounds, I was my only help. I sang We All Live in a Yellow Submarine (a song my nephew got stuck in my head this past weekend), and then when I couldn't remember any more, I sang O Happy Day (yes, I know, something was really wrong with me). To pre-program 911, I had to stop walking. Just as soon as I did, that bobcat growled again, not as low, not as long, and not as loud, but it let me know I was still trespassing. Again, I flashed my light all around and still saw no eye reflections. I heard no snapping twigs, no soft thudding on the ground, so I took these as all good signs. I was still feeling fear, though, when it growled the third time. I reached the pavement and walked very loudly, then sprinted the last 15 feet to my car, where the keys were locked in requiring me to rationally punch my code on the keypad. I quickly unlocked the car, shoved my stuff inside, and leapt in the driver's seat. I locked the doors, which sounds totally ludicrous now, especially since that bobcat wasn't opening the car door.

I know, I used bear encounter tactics to deal with this bobcat encounter, but it was what I thought at the time. Once safely nestled in my car and calming my fears, I drove around to the trailhead, flashed my high beams down the trail to see if I could see eye reflections, which I did not. I even thought about getting out and walking back down the trail to see if the bobcat would growl again so I could record it, but I then came to my senses and decided it was ludicrously stupid to tempt fate, so I didn't get out. I texted Cody, stopped by Mickey Ds, and drove home. What a day! Oh my word!

Fly Fish the Southwest

2012-02-11T23:00:00.000-06:00

Orvis held their annual Orvis Day--Dallas, today, and of course, Cody and I headed north to hear Rob Woodruff, Doc Thompson, and Steve Hollensed speak about their water bodies' fly fishing expertise, and, as always, Sean was on hand to answer my various and sundry questions about fly tying.

I like that the Orvis Day--Dallas is held so early in the calendar year. From last year's presentation, I learned various tips from each guide that I could and did apply directly to my fishing in 2011. I was able to land my pending IGFA Bluefin Trevally thanks in part to Rob Woodruff, who gave a tip about wrist action to make the fish fight the entire rod. I was able to create my fly Bass Brunch thanks in part to Steve Hollenshead, who gave advice on baitfish and fishing the water column. I was able to fish streams and riffles better, landing me a rather nice-sized Rio Grande Perch at Oktoberfisch, thanks in part to Doc Thompson's advice on fishing the Cimarron and Valle Vidal.

Today, each guide still presented on their home waters, so what could we "experienced" guests learn? Plenty! I do not believe if we sat to dinner with each guide for two hours, that we would come away knowing 1/16th of what they know and teach, but we would leave more knowledgeable and be a better angler if we applied what information they shared.

Rob Woodruff, left

Rob Woodruff shared his knowledge on fishing the Lower Mountain Fork, which I personally find a difficult place to catch trout. It kicks me in the tail every time I go, but I keep going and keep applying each new piece of information with a little more success each trip. Rob is excited about the Lower Mountain Fork and believes that it's best fishing is still yet to come, which is good enough for me. Afterall, Rob is a former Aggie, and Aggies do not lie, steal, or cheat, nor tolerate those who do. Rob said you have to have your game on when fishing Evening Hole, but that some really nice sized fish are pulled out of there. The Re-Reg Dam, Zone 3, has some major improvements coming, and while the main riffle leading to Rock Garden is a hot spot for the small stuff, Rob shared where some Big Browns hang out in that Zone. Hmmm, I am thinking.

Doc Thompson, middle

Doc Thompson gave his expertise on fishing the beautiful waters of Northeastern New Mexico. For the first time just last month, I traveled through Doc's "neighborhood," and those are some beautiful rivers he has. I finally made the connections that both Cody and Doc have shared regarding fishing the Cimarron--the private waters v. the public waters, trout behavior, fishing pools--both emerged and submerged. I even learned what a Trico is. The Cimarron is definitely on our Rocky Mountain Tour. Working and fishing a pool, a riffle, a bubble line were even more valuable this year to me. How I remember stuff, I do not know, but I do. When we were on the South Llano last October, the water levels were lower than in recent memory. Something Doc had said in Feb. 2011, I applied to fishing a riffled chute on the South Llano, and I was able to catch a really nice fish. So when Doc talked a little more in-depth about fishing pools, I listened and am waiting for my opportunity to apply what he taught.

Steve Hollensed

Steve Hollensed presented Lake Texoma and Lake Murray to us. I like maps. (I was the quirky kid who was given the map each month when the National Geographic magazine arrived, and off to my room I'd go for hours studying and reading that map.) Steve included a slide from the Oklahoma Dept. of Wildlife Conservation. From its department only, not including the Texas requests, Steve showed us a map of every zip code who had requested a Lake Texoma fishing license. Maine, Puerto Rico, Alaska, and Hawaii were the only places not represented with at least a request. All other states had a minimum of four license purchases! I am amazed by that statistic. I was also amazed that the Stripers travel 88 miles up the Red River and 67 miles up the Washita River to spawn! We learned rod size, line, location, and time of the year to fish for Stripers, but what I liked best was the information on how to fish for the Smallmouth Bass following those Stripers! Lake Murray's Smallmouth action was also presented, and I feel it is a must destination for Cody and me. Having worked as an '09 Park Ranger in Deer Lodge, MT, I was extremely excited about Steve's Skwala Hatch trip, since we fished those rivers on our own that summer. Cody said to put it on the calendar for Spring Break 2013. Yes!

Cody has always talked about Crystal Creek Lodge. I never quite grapsed what the big deal was with this Bristol Bay lodge, until today. Oh my word, they have some gorgeous, behemoth Rainbow Trout as seen in their presentation photo. Cody wants to catch a 30" Rainbow--a bucket list want. I want to catch a King Salmon on a fly, as well as chase more Dolly Vardens and Grayling. I really enjoyed Unalakleet and catching these species, but the Bristol Bay Watershed has more of the species, larger sizes of the species, and isolation. Flying out on a gorgeously maintained DeHaviland Beaver and fishing waters where we are the only people on the water is pristine fly fishing. I get it, now; I really get it.

Sean Polk, left

I'm seeking good wing material to tye damsel flies. Margaret Christian taught me a really good pattern that I love, except that the wing material, Swiss Straw, doesn't hold up well to water. So, I asked Sean his opinion. Instead of just trying to sell me a fly, Sean graciously shared why and how he tyes his damsels with a technique he learned from Kyle Hand, and Sean took the time to demonstrate a step that I just was not mentally picturing--all this undivided attention on a very busy day.

It was a great day for us, and I can not wait to see what adventures await where I have the opportunity to apply what I learned today! Thank you, Orvis one and all.

Deer Hair Flies

2012-02-08T19:36:00.001-06:00

So one of my goals this year was to learn to spin deer hair well and create flies that catch both the fisherman and fish. Not long after the year began, Diane Blair of the Blair Flare fame decided she would offer a Tuesday night class on tying Deer Hair flies to the first eight or nine folks that enrolled. Most of the recipes, tips, tricks, and methods Diane is sharing originated from Mike Verduin (who has to be rolling over in his grave laughing at some of the stuff I'm doing).

I think it is important to note, I can not use scissors well, articulately, with any kind of accuracy, or for their intended purpose. I can use them to stab someone's eye out or poke a hole in something, but I just struggle with the art of cutting, and to me, it really is an art. My Mom swears it is because I would not play with cut-out paper dolls when I was a child, but I think I wouldn't play with the paper dolls because I could not cut. Seeing my frustration with scissors, my Dad taught me how to tear paper using the straight edge of a counter top, ruler, or something, and so from 1st grade on, that is how I cut. For my circles, I would tear a square around the circle, get Dad's X-Acto knife and straight-edge templates, and cut my circle. For 45 years, I have made it through life quite well employing this cutting method--until now, that is.

Why this diatribe on scissors and cutting? To create a deer hair fly that works, it has to be cut and shaped into a respectable form! Uh oh, for me, because there is not one straight edge, not one X-Acto Knife, and not one cutting method I can successfully employ other than snip-snip. Five years ago, my parents gave me a really good pair of Anvil Ice curved scissors for left-handed folks, and they work very well (Mom and Dad still receive The Fly Shop's catalog from that order). A plethora of new, really sharp razor-blades abound in my travelling fly tying bag. Diane gives great instructions. I-just-can-not-cut! I mean I went Sweeny Todd on last week's fly, the Fruit Cocktail--see pictures below. I could not even stick in legs there was so little hair left. However, at least my hair was packed in pretty tightly, not Mike George tight where the fly is shaped with sandpaper instead of scissors, but it was really tight.

I am pretty proud of my Mike's Mouse from two weeks ago and my frog from last night's tying lesson--learning to tye a bottom color, a separate top color, stack, and tie in spots, but it takes me a very lllllllloooooooooooonnnnnnnnnnnggggggggggg time to trim and cut. Cody resolved the way to get my catches on video by buying a Joby Gorilla Pod (my camera shoots great video in an HD 1080i format with a simple, one-touch button). I'll just wrap the Gorilla Pod legs around the tube's crossbar, push the button, and video my fly being hammered by a bass--hopefully.

Last week, I fished my Mike's Mouse, and it did fish well and caught a fish; no pictures because I couldn't figure out how to hold the camera, rod, retrieve line, and shoot video, but Cody saw it. I was thrilled to no end and behaved as if I had never caught a fish before in my life. Usually, I am a pretty cool customer and act like I have successfully fly fished in my life, but I was very excited over this mouse. I haven't taken the frog out for a test, but I have the perfect spot to field test it. Of course, I will have to edit out the girlie screams and whoops, if my fly catches fish. Someone asked me why I was fishing my flies after taking such exact tongue-holding, excruciating efforts to create it. My feeling is that after spending all that time spinning, tying, shaping, slicing, and cutting, the bloody thing had better well work, and the only place to see that is on the water, 'cause it sure ain't ending up in one of TailWaters' fly bins!

1st & 2nd weeks flies

Joby Gorilla Pod

3rd Week's Badly Cut Fly

Rather lopsided

4th Week's Spotted Frog

Lake Springfield Fun

2012-02-01T23:47:00.002-06:00

What a beautiful day to go fishing, especially for bass. With Texas Parks Pass in hand, I met Cody after work at Fort Parker State Park to fish the ever-so-fun and beautiful Lake Springfield. Now, Trout Stocking occurred Sunday, so a plethora of bait chunkers lined the eastern shore. Cody and I were armed with our float tubes, so away from the crowd we kicked, including the bratty kid who kept slapping the minnow bucket against the water--encouraged by his dad, nonetheless!

Mike's Mouse caught a LMB

It was Largemouth Bass and Bluegill fun on small weight rods--too warm, 79 degrees, for trout, but that was okay with me. The CodyBugger and GirlieBugger were hot flies catching fish after fish, 19 total in about two hours. As dusk approached, I kicked towards the south to fish the stumps. I couldn't resist it; I tied on my line my Mike's Mouse pattern that I learned to tie in Diane Blair's Deer Hair Class. First plop on the water, hit. The fish tried it again, but this Mike's Mouse is tied on an 1/0 3388 Mustad, and that fish couldn't open wide enough. I had another hit-and-spit, and then, it was FishOn! my Mike's Mouse. I tried to act like I'd caught a fish before, but I was pretty excited. I tried to figure out how to capture this on video, with no success. I messed around with the camera enough so that after leadering the fish and hoisting it out of the water, it shook the fly before I could get a picture (next time, I won't forget my net). However, Cody saw all the commotion from afar, which was good enough for me. Daylight eclipsed, and it was time to hike back to our cars, giddy and gleeful.

Geocached the Park's official stash, which was a good one, and left my signature fly fishing cache! What a fun place!

Fort Parker Prep

2012-01-29T23:43:00.000-06:00

Busy, busy, and more busy describes this weekend most accurately. However, some of the business was in preparation for our upcoming trip to Lake Springfield at Fort Parker State Park. With Fort Parker's facebook post, "Trout Clinic went really well. Big thanks to the Mexia Bass Club and Sponsers [sic]...Lake Spring will be open to the public at 5pm Jan 29th 2012," I just had to get ready.

I checked the weather, and originally, Cody and I were heading out to the Lake on Monday, but with the winds forecasted between 15-20 mph, partly sunny with a high of 66 v. Wednesday's winds forecasted between 5-10 mph, mostly sunny with a high of 70, we decided to postpone our little excursion until Wednesday afternoon.

I am taking Diane Blair's Tuesday night 'Spinning Deer Hair' tying class at Bass Pro Shops in Garland. Last week, we learned to tye Mike Verduin's Mouse. I tied another one up in anticipation of teasing and catching some Bass. All-in-all we have accomplished a lot for our little after-work jaunt.

New camera from Cody, my surprise Valentine's gift, early, so I can take pictures and video--Check!

New mouse to add to bass collection--Check!

New waders so I won't freeze to death--Check!

New strap-mount, rod holder for my float tube--Check!

New replacement wading boots from Simms--on their way!

Wednesday afternoon can not get here too soon, because it will be FishOn! the fly for sure--a fantastic way to begin February. Whoop!

The First Red River Rendezvous

2012-01-22T23:59:00.000-06:00

After planning and excellent promotion, the Red River Fly Fishers decided to host a winter fly tying event for the North Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma fly tyers. Fellow tyers congregated at Bonham State Park's Group Barracks beginning Friday afternoon and staying until Sunday noon. Some chose to stay in one of the Group Barracks' cabins, while others camped in their RVs or tents at the Hackberry Hollow Camping Area. Cody towed the Zoom, and I towed the Mitzi, in the hopes we would get to fish Bonham SP Lake (which was lower than we'd like, even for a skiff).

Tyers brought their benches, materials, wares, clever ideas, and plenty of food to share with one another graciously. Guests could learn fly casting from one of many CCIs present and test out rods with Rick Pope of Temple Fork Outfitters. An informal, but detailed presentation with maps on striper fishing Lake Texoma captivated many attendees' attention. Mostly, approximately 80 tyers did what they do best, shared--their materials, ideas, patterns, and passion of tying with one another. Many chose an afternoon of fun and hilarity at Bonham's Homestead Winery's wine tasting.

Food. Oh my, the food was fabulous and flowed a-plenty. Everyone brought their best recipes and dishes to share with everyone--three and four helpings worth per person, including Fred and his Jambalaya. Honestly, we are glad that these rendezvous don't happen too often, because we would gain about 10 pounds--eating and sitting and tying and sitting and eating and tying, oh my.

Saturday evening the Red River crew hosted both an open-raffle and raffles for three rods--a TFO 5# Professional, a Switch Rod, an Inspire Fly Rod, and a wine basket from the Homestead Winery. Steve Kimple entertained the crowd in singing around a roaring bonfire, while some continued to tye flies late in to the evening.

Sunday morning, tyers were treated to a light breakfast and began packing up their benches until the next event. In a most generous act, the Red River Fly Fishers made the decision to forego the fly raffle (and any profits they would have made), and asked instead, that tyers donate their flies to the 2012 Fly-A-Thon collection tub I had placed in front of my tying bench. Tyers, as they most often do, did not hold back. The Fly-A-Thon tub runneth over.

As Cody and I made our way back home, we talked about how impressed we were with this Rendezvous and found it really difficult to believe that this was just their first event. On Jerry's way home, he stopped by the park office and booked Bonham SP for 18-20 January 2013 for the 1st Annual Red River Rendezvous, a must for all fly tyers of whatever experience!
(Click for more RRR pictures)