No, I'm Not Dead...yet

  Rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated.
    Yes, I am back after taking over a month off from blogging.  For those that have faithfully followed this blog for years and for those just discovering me, I send you my apologies.  Sometimes life just throws a lot at you all at once and you need to prioritize what is important.  As you can imagine, blogging is one of those commitments that comes in last in a long list of priorities.
    Despite my absence from the blog, I have not remained idle not have I stopped painting.  In fact A lot of things have happened over the last month that are really quite exciting.  I wont go into all the boring things that have been happening with my day job but I will say that the next twelve months are going to be a very exciting time for me.
    On the home front, I spent some quality time with the family on a great camping trip to the beach.  Collecting shark teeth and roasting smores over a campfire was just the remedy for a stress filled few weeks at work.  The camping trip came right after a very painful biking crash that took the better part of two weeks to recover from.  Luckily nothing was broken but I was missing a lot of skin and received a few deep boon bruises that have slowed me down a bit.

    After that, my brother-inlaw and a buddy of mine took a backpacking trip up to do a little trout fishing in

the hills of South Carolina and Georgia.  With the scabs of the bike accident still healing, the lugging of a forty pound pack wasn't the best thing to do but once we got to fishing it all just kind of melted away.
    For those that enjoy packing all you need in a pack that can fit on your back, setting off into the wild, and loosing all cell phone coverage, you know just how great the adventure can be.  In the end, you hurt, you stink, and it may take a good ten minutes to scrub the dirt off but you always leave with a smile on your face.  I caught more trout in two days than I could keep track of and for the first time in over two years I didn't care about taking pictures.  It was a bit freeing to not have to think about taking pictures of my catches but when I got home I began to wish I would have at least taken a few shots of the beautiful trout I had hooked.

    I did a lot more stuff (including fishing) over the past few weeks but I am not going to go into it and bore you all with the details more than I already have.  From here on its all looking forward.
  Yesterday I picked up my paints for the first time in quite a while to paint a few fins.  My wife love the look of bluegills and frankly I enjoy painting them.  Unfortunately for her, the bream never stay in our house for very long.  The past three bluegill paintings I have done have been quickly snatched up by eager customers and every time my wife lets out a deep groan and pout followed quickly after by the statement, 'Awe shoot, I loved that one.'.

    If you follow my facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/hexfishing then you have no doubt already seen this work.  To my surprise I received four messages inquiring about this piece within hours of posting it.  As of right now it has not sold but the amount of interest shows me just how many people love the little bluegills as much as I do.  You might not want to brag to your buddies about the mess of bluegills you caught the other day but for a simple fun afternoon there is not much better than hooking a school of these aggressive bream on a fly rod.
Two Bluegills On Blue
overall measurements (including wash) 11inx14in.
For Sale

  And since this is a blog that has a long history of trout photos, here is a rainbow I took a photo of the other day at our new Cabelas trout tank that just recently opened right down the street.  I don't know how much I will actually buy there (I still love local small businesses) but the trout and bass tanks are a pretty cool thing to look at.

Splashing Paint For Trout

  I did a little splashing of the paint today as more of a stress relieving practice than anything else.  I had a few things in mind to paint but when it really came down to it I painted what I enjoy painting the most.  Big surprise - Its a trout.

  Here is how it started an a few quick brush strokes and a bit of drying time later we had a finished piece.
As a stress reliever this did the trick and it felt good to finally have a small bit of time to sit down and do it.  My work schedule has been killing me and finding time to spend with the family, much less paint for fun, has been at a premium lately.  Unfortunately it looks as if the coming months will only get worse so if you are a devoted follower of this blog then I apologize in advance for the lack of posts that are bound to happen.
 If you would like to purchase this original trout watercolor just shoot me an email.  It will go relatively cheap to the first good home that wants it.

Tenkara Revolution

  That's right, its another Tenkara Post.  I was asked to go fishing the other day by my little boy and I thought it high time I taught them how to cast and handle a fly rod on their own so with a little coaching and demonstration I handed him the rod and he let loose.

  I have been extremely busy lately with various projects and my day job so creating art for the sake of art has taken a bit of a backseat.  However as I sit on a rare amount of free time I decided it was high time to create my own little Tenkara Revolution Poster.  Tenkara has developed into a cult like obsession for the true believers and a zen type of fly fishing for others but one thing holds true for all those that do it - they all have a little renegade in them.  Embracing that inner revolutionary is a part of the experience.
 Now about a little recent fishing I've done lately.  Last weekend I took the rod to the pond. I know its no monster but boy was he proud of it and to hook and catch a bass on his own was a big thing.  If you are looking to get kids into fly fishing and want a setup that has style that is easy to grasp then join the revolution and go get yourself a Tenkara rod and forget the reel.  However For you older folks who might think the Tenkara thing is a simple thing below your skill level you might be surprised with the wide rang of skills it takes to master this eastern style of stream fishing.  It is best described as fly fishing boiled down to its simplest form that takes a few minutes to learn and a lifetime to master.
 I absolutely love taking mine on trips and backpacking adventures.  Its simplicity and light load allows one to be free from all the trappings of fly fishing gear.  If you haven't don it yet - what are you waiting for?

For those of you wanting this design for yourself then check out my tee shirt shop
Hexfishing Designs
Choose your color, and size tee and show your inner revolutionary.

Marmot Limestone 6P Tent Review

    I recently returned from a great week long camping trip with the family and thought that I'd do a gear review on a piece of equipment that has seriously blown me away.  First off - to all those that follow my blog strictly for the fishy posts - I did try to do some red fishing but the constant 30mph winds and downpours of drenching rains real killed that idea.

  Looking on the plus side however, the rains and chilly winds that battered the coast over the five days that the family and I spent camping allowed for some great family bonding.  It also allowed us to thoroughly test out the new Marmot Limestone 6 Tent and boy did it get a test.
  Our last tent was a Target special that had served us for the better part of a decade but for the last two years my family and I discovered that in rainy weather it was little more than a water collection device.  On our last adventure to the hills in the upstate of South Carolina we had so much water in our tent that our sleeping bags acted as gigantic sponges and we all braved a restless night only to awake and find we all had an epedimic of trench foot.  Only a good two hours near the fire allowed us to again become functional humans

  That is why when my wife and I saw that REI (An outdoor store we love) had a Marmot Limestone 6P for sale, we jumped on it like a tick on a hound dog.
(Incidentally, for those camping on the Carolina coast, or any heavily wooded area, ticks are a real serious hazard.  Just ask my poor little boy who got a few - including one on a place no male should ever have to use a tweezers... ouch!!)
  Anyway... The Marmot Limestone 6 person tent came in two colors; the traditional o.d. green and the new bright orange.  Being a guy that doesn't necessarily like to be a beacon in the woods for every passerby, I opted for the green but the orange is still a sharp looking tent.

  The setup was ultra easy, with two main poles and two short struts that slide into fantastic rod socks on the outside of the tent, it all came together in a few minutes.  The rain fly also was literally a snap as it hooked directly to the main tent at the anchor points.
  Once the tent is set up, we went in and were completely blown away by the space we had.  Our last tent we could barely stand up but in this baby there is just about enough headroom to put in a ceiling fan. Another feature we really enjoyed was the added vestibule in the rainfly for keeping hiking shoes and dirty sand shoes dry before we got into the tent.  With the onslaught of rain we had, this little feature got plenty of use.  Nothing is worse than mud and sand on the floor of your tent and this nice addition allowed most of the dirt to remain outside.  As anyone who has ever camped with kids knows - this is no small accomplishment.

  As for the tent handling the rain - all I can say is that it did its job way better than I would have expected.  In fact, not a single drip of moisture ever fell from the rainfly or seeped in from the sides or floor.  On one of our days it rained so HARD that even the tarp we had spread over out picnic table leaked on us, the Marmot Limestone Tent however- which was fully exposed to the 30mph winds and rain - repelled the water all day long.  When we went to bed it was awesome to find our sleeping area bone dry.
  Simply put - the Marmot Limestone 6P Tent is a fantastic rain proof shelter I would recommend to anyone!

Free Art Giveaway & An Interview

    So you missed my last art contest, no worried because thanks to Hammer Creek Fly Fishing you now have a chance to win yet another piece of fishy art from www.Hexfishing.com.  All you need to do is click over and enter to win - extremely easy only you better hurry!
While you are there check out the interview Kyle did of me.  It was a flattering experience to be asked to comment on my art.  Doing my best not to sound like a complete idiot, I answered a variety of question on both my art and my life.

Rainbow Fin Winner

Congratulations to Gidgett Andree, who entered the contest via Facebook, for winning the 'Rainbow Fin' painting.  All entries from the G+, this blog, and facebook where giving a random number and then with the help of Random.org - a winning number was selected from the digital hat.  Thanks to all of you that entered and rest easy, there will soon be another contest up for you to enter.  Congrats Gidgett.
If you are not following Hexfishing on Facebook by now - click over and get connected.

Real Men Fly Fish

Do you need another reason to pick up a fly rod? 

“Now Hurry up, We’re burnin’ daylight.” 

― John Wayne

The Hammer Creek

     If you are like me then you enjoy discovering new and interesting sites that can be used to further your knowledge in the art of fly fishing.  Hammer Creek Fly Fishing is one of those sites you are going to want to bookmark. Not only is it extremely well put together and organized but it has an extensive library of original fly tying videos that are top notch.  For a guy like me that is always consulting youtube for tying advice, I strongly recommend bookmarking this great site.
    Kyle, the owner of Hammer Creek, has a love for fly fishing that has driven him to create this site and so when he asked me to come up with an original logo that would stand out beyond the hum of all the other sites, I jumped at the opportunity.

   Starting with the name and the industrial feel of the site with its great photography and black and white imagery, I began to explore creating a unique trout logo with gears and a eye catching appeal.  All told I think we went through about four solid revisions until we settled on this highly original logo.
   One element incorporated into this design that you might find interesting is how I created the gears.  Using the accessories end of a Chevy small block as inspiration I was able to cobble together a very intricate set of gears and flywheels.  Its not your typical spots on a trout but I think it sure gives the logo that rough industrial feel we were going for.
  Click on over to Hammer Creek Fly Fishing and tell Kyle hi.  Check out his videos and follow his blog.  You wont leave disappointed.

Turkey Hunt Turns Into Bass Hanging

    I went out this morning with the intent to bag some turkey but as with most of my hunting expeditions - I left empty handed.  I have been trying to get a turkey for the last three years to no avail and I have come to the conclusion that Ben Franklin was right; the turkey is one of Americas wiliest birds. I might not agree with his idea to make the Turkey the national bird - I believe the Eagle is doing a fine job - but It sure is a difficult bird to hunt.  Either that or my disgraceful turkey call need a lot of work.

  So with the temps rising into the 80's and it becoming abundantly clear that the birds had returned to their roost, My buddy and I left our respective blinds and strung up the rods.  Luckily for us there is a two great ponds on the property loaded with bass.
 Today I left with nothing under a 1.5lb bass to show for my efforts and every single one was caught on a top water bass popper I carved from wood and hand painted.  It was truly a rewarding feeling to see this #1 bass bud I carved be attacked by numerous large mouth bass.
So I might not have bagged a bunch of feathers but at least I didn't leave feeling like a turkey.

I need to make a few more of these because unfortunately this one was lost at the pond.

Painting Tiger Trout

  This morning with a cup of coffee and a bit of time to kill I came up with this painting.
Tiger Trout are one of those rare natural occurrences that hatcheries now use to their advantage.
By fertilizing a brown trout egg with Brook trout milt, these beautiful and sterile fish are born with a very aggressive and predatory nature that allows stream keepers to use them to control fish populations without causing long term harm to the streams in which they are placed.
The colors that hey are born with very as well and can range from the brilliant yellows and oranges of a brown trout to the dull skin color of darker species but the one thing they all have is the unique striping that sets them apart from all other species.

This painting will soon be posted up for sale at www.hexfishing.com and can also be viewed at www.facebook.com/hexfishing .  If you would like to know how you can own this original painting then shoot me and email.

"March Tiger Trout"

Watercolor on Paper

10in x 9in

For Sale

Don't forget to enter the contest for a FREE original painting at http://ayearonthefly.blogspot.com/2014/03/win-free-painting.html - Contest ends on the 10th of next month!

Win A Free Painting!

Here is your chance to win a FREE painting.  In an effort to boost the followers of my newly created https://www.facebook.com/hexfishing page, and my updated HexFishing.com site, I am offering this "Rainbow Fin" free for your help in getting the word out.  Like and share this bog, hexfishing.com, and our Facebook page and you will be entered to win this brand new - original painting.

  Make sure you leave a comment below or on our hexfishing Facebook page and you will be entered.

    The painting is a rainbow trout fin done in acrylic on a 14x11in canvass.
 "Rainbow Fin"
Acrylic On Canvass
14in x 11in

Contest will end on the 10th of next month and announced here and our facebook page. Winner will be selected via Random.org - Good Luck!

The Drift Life

  As some of you might have seen, yesterday I posted a salt fishing graphic just to give a little variety to the 'Salt Life' stickers that have flooded the sticker market.  Well, for all you inland anglers that couldn't give a rip about the salt - here is what I came up with.  I added the distressed look just because... well it just looked cool.  Its a short post today but I think the graphic says it all.

  As always, if you want to use any of my images, please contact me for pricing.

Assault Angler Graphic and Antler Sheds

    Messing around with the sketch pad yesterday I came up with this salt fishing graphic.  After working on Angler 360's logo and graphics for their product line, I fell in love with working on salt fishing graphics.  No doubt that many of you near the sea have seen the deluge of 'Salt Life' decals on the back of trucks but If you are like me then you are a little tired of them.

  I'm not saying that they are bad, I'm just saying that it is no longer original to have a decal on your truck that everyone else has.  This graphic however says it all.
  Next month I plan on spending a little time hunting Speckled sea trout and reds off the Carolina coast from the deck of a kayak so it is fair to say my head is in a salty state of mind.  For all of you out there that hunt fins from the deck of a flats skiff, I figure that this graphic might speak to you.
It goes without saying that if you would like to use this graphic - please contact me for purchasing and usage rights.

  On a completely separate subject.  The other day I took my kids out exploring and my little boy spotted this gem in some isolated woods.  I know there is guys out there that pay big money for dogs that can hunt up shed like this one but for my money I will take my little Eagle eye boy any day.  For a little kid that loves the outdoors it was a find of a lifetime.  I love living in the south!

Bass Off The Bottom

    Its not a style of fishing I usually go for but when a guy asks 'hey, you want to go fishing?' you just don't say no.  Besides that, a change of pace is a welcome thing so last week I bundled up in 30 degree weather to go to an up-state reservoir to do a little trolling for trout.
   No, I'm not insane and yes I know that the picture is not of a trout.  It is a bulky large-mouth bass boarding on five pounds and it was by far the best fish of the day.  The story behind it is just about as interesting as the size of the bass.
   While trolling a back water at about 50 feet the boats sonar began to pick up a rising rock pile so as quick as we could we cranked up the down-riggers to about 20 feet and then dropped them back down to 45-50 feet.  As soon as that weight hit the forty foot mark I saw the rod bounce but thinking it was just the weight settling out I let it go and set the other rod.  Then the rod double over and I thought I had hit the rock pile at 50 feet and unleashed the rod from the rigger.  As soon as I pulled on the rod I knew it was no rock pile but since we were trolling for trout I thought I had one huge brown trout on the line.  Never in my wildest dreams would I believe that a bass would hit my trout spoon at forty five feet in the middle of winter.
    The state record for both brown trout and lake trout were both pulled out from this lake so the thoughts of big trout were dancing in my mind as I fought the fish and the rest of the crew cleared lines and weights.

    As soon as the fish cleared the water we knew we had no trout on the line.  To date it is the largest bass I have ever hooked.  The lyrics to "Five Pound Bass" by Robert Earl Keen played in my head as we gently netted the fish and celebrated a great fish.
    Prior to this great catch, my fishing partner was having a little fun at my expense because I had been fish-less all day.  He on the other hand he had hook three small trout on his side of the boat.  His sarcastic laced 'Its not a contest' line however never again crossed his lips after my bass hit the boat.

  My many thanks to Sam for taking me and Marty out and despite a bone chilling cold day, we all had a blast!

Side note:
  You might have also caught that I said that this trip took place last week so the thought that might cross your mind 'why did it take so long to post?"  The truth is the very next morning, the family and I left for Phoenix for my sisters wedding and I just haven't had time to warm up the computer till now.  I did manage to post these pics on my HexFishing Facebook Page so If you like Hexfishing then you had the early scoop.  If you are on facebook then click over and get on board - The button on the right of the screen with the giant stonefly will take you there.

Troutalope, Streamer King, Music, & #GlassIsnotDead

    On a Monday that again finds winter weather smacking us in the face I thought I'd give you a few links that could occupy your time.
  First off I got this awesome sticker in the mail the other day from www.troutalope.com.  I helped to design this logo for Steven and now that he had them made into stickers I just had to have one.  It looks sweet on the back on my jeep.  Click on over and pick yourself up one for a more than fair price.  You will be the envy of all your fishing buddies.

  Second up is a recent design I did for The Streamer King.  The logo says it all.  You want some killer streamers then click on over and get some hand made brown trout killers.  They are the King of all streamers on the water.

And finally I leave you with a pick of my weekend activity.  Friends, steaks, beverages, Roger Creager and Rober Earl Keen On the radio, 70 degree weather, and a coozie from Cameron over at the fiberglass manifesto and #glassisnotdead- not a bad way to pass the afternoon.  Don't worry northerners, spring is on the way soon.