Eggs with Extra

I've seen this fly with the extra material which simulates the stuff usually surrounding the eggs and hear it is quite effective. Might have to give it a try.

Random Dry Fly

Silver & Yellow Crossaboom

S.O.T.F. BB&G Nymph

Summer on the Flies continue with the BB&G Nymph. What does BB&G stand for? Bigerrfish, Biots, & Glass. This little trout killer is a bigerrfish creation made from goose biots, copper wire, flex floss legs, and a gold glass bead for the head. Check out his site to see the real thing.
This is 9x6in watercolor done on 140lb coldpress paper.


This shot was taken on a little family outing to the blueridge some time ago. What a beautiful country!

Red Needle Nose Tarpon Flats Killer

Here is a red and white needle nose flats tarpon killer fly. The painting is a 10"x8" done on 140lb watercolor paper.

Night Hawk Salmon Fly

If you don't like the fly you have got to like the name. Night Hawk - a killer black a salmon fly.

Ginger Quill

10"x8" Ginger Quill painting on high quality 140lb watercolor paper. A standard wet fly used for those elusive trout.

Bivisible Stimulator

Here is a Black and White Bivisible Stimulator sure to excite those hungry, excitable trout.
Also I was at Lake Erie a few days back and did a little walking along the shore. It was a bit windy but overall a beautiful day. I didn't see anybody fishing but what I did see quite a bit of was these dead guys as well as dead catfish. I'm not sure if this is a normal site on the shores of lake Erie but it seemed like alot of dead fish for the area. Overall I counted about 50 dead fish in less than half a mile of shore line. Is this normal?

Brown Fox & Therm-a-Rest Gear Review

I had put off purchasing a sleeping mat for quite a while, justifying my reluctance with the stubborn pride I had for 'roughing' it on my overnight sojourns into the back country. Boone and Crockett never had a pad so why should I, right? Well after a previous trip into the wilderness I was left with a sore back, little sleep, and a realisation that if Boone or Crockett had access to a high quality sleeping pad for their hunting trips, they darn would have it in their pack.
So just before I set out on my last overnight trip to my Chattooga stream side back country site I broke down and purchased a Therm-a-Rest sleeping pad.
It packed nicely down and had very little carry weight (just over 2.5lbs). What a great purchase and worth EVERY penny! No sore back, No aches, and a full nights sleep to recharge before hitting the stream again. If you haven't tried these pads and have been searching something to add a bit of comfort your next backpacking trip then try this product.

The one I used was the BaseCamp model which I got for about $60 but if you are looking for something bigger or smaller they come in a variety of sizes and comfort levels. Check out their selection and let me know if you agree that they are the best mat out there.

Kayak Fishing

Here is a little doodle from the other day. Kayak fly fishing is really beginning to be a big time niche in the fly fishing community and it inspired me to come up with this simple line drawing. I have also been following Leigh over at finfollower.com and am enjoying his posts. All you kayak fishers out there - and those of you that don't - should check out his site.

Caddis

Eggs & Wine

Two things that really do not go together but for today... they do. I've never used these flies but for the south they are not really on the radar as a fly one will 'go-to' if the fishing is not going well but I know that in other parts these eggs will hook fish. If you swear by them or loath them one thing is positive, fish find it hard to turn them down.

This is a shot of some of my apple wine on the deck rail overlooking the big Mississippi. A few days ago I opened a few of my 11 month old home made wine. It wont win any awards but it was not as bad as I had feared. I believe that in a few more months and years, these bottles will age nicely. I have also taken quite a few notes on the process and hope in the future to improve this hobby.

Summer On The Flies Snake Bite

The Summer On The Flies joint posts continue with the Woolly Bugger variant Snake Bite. Josh sent this fly over too me after my post a few days back after my overnight trip to the SC, GA upstate. Head over to see the actual fly at Bigerrfish.blogspot YOu also might want to check out his past postings for some great stories of flicking out a fly on those big western waters.
The Woolly has been a go to for years and on that trip it was about the only thing those deep hiding trout would bite. On the other hand, I'm am just glad I left without getting bit myself. Enjoy this fly, Its a KILLER.

As for yesterdays post, if you haven't found the blogger who first posted the Caddis Larva then you dont read as much of the blogs as the rest of us. check out Fly&Fin Also head over to TROUTRAGEOUS. He is the first to name the blogger - and if you haven't checked out his site then you are missing ALOT.

Can You Find This Fly

Here is a little hide and webseek. Can you find the blogger that recently posted this little guy. Here is the only hint: They added a real bug pic to their post as well as a step by step tying guide. Just post a comment I you can find the blogger.

Life On The Mississippi & A Random Fly

Did some more fishing on the good old Mississippi and landed a few more of these sheep head or drum as they are commonly called. Now I grew up fishing these waters;Ive spent most of my 7th-9th grade years exploring the banks and backwaters and have seldom remember catching these fish from the backs in such numbers without landing a bass or a catfish. I know they are out there now in big numbers and I guess the ecosystem has changed since I was a kid. I also hear now that those funny (and incisively annoying) flying carp have also made their way to the 'Old Man'. Scary stuff.

Now you might also be wondering whats with the windmill. Well the town I grew up in is about 70% Dutch and German. Our town holiday is Dutch Days for crying out loud. So it is appropriate that they have a windmill. Authentically Dutch, this massive wood structure was made in Holland and shipped over piece by piece. It grinds local grains and corn and sells its flour. It is on the the banks of the river and is truly the pride of Fulton Illinois. What does this have to do with fly fishing? Nothing...

Long Legs Johnny

Why not add the long elastic strands?  Fish love the movement right? 

Jungle Color From Small Stream

Got this from http://smallstreamreflections.blogspot.com/ quite a while ago. He realy puts together a nice blog with great color in his artful flies.

Golden Stone Fly & Mississippi Drum

Here Is another Summer On The Flies installment via Bigerrfish and AYEARONTHEFLY. A Golden Stone is a vital component to the western stream environment and a stable food source for those big western trout. Check out Josh's site for the nicely tied version of this fly.

Adding to this post is another ecosystem all together. While doing a bit of fishing in northern Illinois I hooked up with a bunch of these Mississippi river drum. I tried for a long time to hook these guys with my fly rod but only got a big goose egg and a bunch of back cast snags. I eventually went back to my roots with the old fashion Tom Sawyer rig. Instant success.
In case you are wondering what the Tom Sawyer rig is, here it the recipe : hook, worm, weight. sit back and watch the rod dance. It worked when I was ten and still works today


And if this post isn't long enough already I feel I need to add this. Josh saw my posted fly painting from Monday and tied this beauty up about ten minutes after I posted the fly. I love his take on it!!

Segmented Bass Fly

Monday Midge

Green & Purple

Rainbow & Olive Bugger

In honor of the fly that has hooked into a ton of fish in my life, here is a pen and watercolor sketch of a Rainbow Trout & the Olive Woolly Bugger that took him.
My last fish I hooked into had a bit of blood in his mouth so I added this element to the sketch. Just more proof that Buggers kill trout.

Yellow & Brown

Not much to post today. Still sore from hiking into and out of the canyon the other day but its a hurt I can deal with.  I'd readily do it again for another trip like that in a heart beat.  And I'm still glad I didn't get hit by a snake - those things are worse than than bears.

Hillend Fly & Backpacking SC

Here is a fly I got from the Hillend Dabbler blog from across the pond. It is interesting to see the flies they are coming up with over there. I am sure that some of them kill trout out in the Americas as well.

Also I just got back from a great backpacking and fishing trip to the Chattooga.

My friend Kevin (He's the guy on my left, your right) and I started out Tuesday by packing in our gear to a remote area called Big Bend. Our stream side camp was Ideal. Water on three sides and a great fire pit complete with stone chairs and a large flat rock for cooking. With the sound of running water through the night, I had very little trouble going to sleep (the Crown & Coke might have helped that as well.)

We caught quite a few nice, if not large trout and had a great time. Spent a lot of time scrambling over rocks and waterfalls (big bends 30 footer) and trying to find were the trout were hiding in the 92 deg heat. We found them in deep oxygen rich moderate flows where only my olive woolly bugger would entice them to bite.

The most interesting event on the trip was this copperhead making a meal out of Kevin's rainbow. For the record, this was the second time in my life I've seen a snake eating a trout. The first time I was chest deep in water and the snake was a 3-4 foot brown snake 2 feet from my head. This guy was secure in a rock and although a deadly snake,was not close enough to bite.

Another deadly snake was less than 100 feet up stream. It was a 2foot eastern diamond back rattler. This guy was coiled up and angry looking so we gave him as much room as we could. Normally the site of a diamond back would be exciting enough but after seeing the copperhead down a trout, it came in second as the most interesting site of the day.

Black Ghost

Emerger & My Burner

Here is a little emerger from the blog of Dave W. (http://davewiltshireflytying.blogspot.com/) I liked the look of this fly so I whipped up a little paint on paper.
Also I add here my little home made camping stove. In the age of recycled and going green, I have put away the heavier propain stove for this isopro fuel tin can stove. Simple to make and only as heavy as an empty coke can, this littlestove will burn constant for 10 minutes and boil 2 cups of water in less than 5.

To make this great little alchohal burner, take two cans,cut off the bottoms -1/3 from the bottom, slide the two bottom pieces together, poke burner holes around the rim of one of the sides and then add a filler hole in the center of the bottom af the can. I have added a special nut and bolt bought at a local hardware store for 25 cents. Fill with a little fuel injection cleaner - I use the yellow HEAT-.

Summer On The Flies

Here is a Bigerrfish creation: Red Princeonamid. It a red white and blue sort of week and this little guy fits the colors of the season nicely. For bass trigger colors are quite effective but in the drab world of trout flies where dun, olive, black, and pale yellows dominate the scene it is worth remembering that trout eat to live and sometimes what triggers that basic instinct is a flashy color with action. Try this fly with blue, black, purple, yellow, green, and yes... RED and see yourself if this theory works for you.

God Bless America

I can not add to perfection so I present it here along with the Patriot Fly. I encourage all to re-read this document in its entirety and just THINK about how it applies to our government today.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.
--------------------------------------------
If one looks beyond these opening words into the list of grievances you just might see some parallels to today's society.