Getting a Grip...

Photo of grip shapes I used on my glass rods (L to R): Full Wells, Superfine, Half-Wells, Garrison, Cigar, Ritz. I sometimes get little bored with the Reversed Half-Wells shape, which is prevalent on contemporary graphite trout models.

Sceptre Rod Testing

After yesterday's snow, I decided to stop by the nearest trout stream and test cast my latest rod. The plan was to check out the stream conditions and the water clarity for the possible weekend outing. I did some test-casting in my backyard last week, but I wanted to try the rod on the water. Amy joined for the ride, too. She is responsible for today's photos of me casting.

I found the stream high and murky, on the blustery March day. Last season I was fishing dry stonefly imitations at this time of the year, and I was pleasantly surprised to find very sporadic scuttling stones with occasional small trout rising. This was by no means a full blown hatch, but it came as a nice surprise, considering the raised water levels and turbidity. The water visibility was about a foot.

I strung the rod with #5 line. Remembering that I tested it in my backyard with this line, I made some casts over an area where I saw a single, lonely rise. While the rod felt slightly underloaded on the shortest casts, it was deft and precise with more line in the air. This will be a very nice line choice for larger water and stealthy long casts with grasshopper imitations in the late summer and fall. The strong wind was a bit too much, so I switched to the DT6 line. I like testing rods in the wind-it is a real fishing situation, while it's so easy to make perfect casts on a windless day. The rod felt sweeter with the heavier line on the shorter 'presentation' casts, punching the loops into the cross-wind. One small trout smacked my dry stonefly, just when Amy got cold enough to get back to the car. After this little fish I had another swift take, before I was too cold to continue. This got my blood working and I can only hope that this wave of unseasonably cold weather will soon disappear. The trout are ready for spring, and so am I!

Speaking about flies-I've been experimenting lately with a moose mane as a body material for dry flies. It proved very easy to work with, and I have yet to test its durability. Here are photos of some flies I tied with it, with different colored backgrounds. Two hairs in contrasting colors create a perfect, flat segmented body.

Sceptre Glass Rod

I finished Sceptre staggered ferrule 7'10" #5/6 glass rod. The wraps are claret with tan single turn accents-depending on the light source, they turn different shades of burgundy. Unfortunately it's too cold to fish today, but I feel it will complement my Lamiglas 8' #5 perfectly. It won't be long and I will be able to test it on some spring creeks and make better comparison.

Reel Extreme

Different fly reels for different applications-extreme sizes (2.5" vs. 4.5" O.D.)

Sceptre Handle & Soft-Hackled Suspender

I have just finished the handle on my Sceptre blank. It is a Ritz style cork grip combined with Struble D3 seat with imbuya insert. I am hoping to have the rod finished by the weekend.

I must admit I haven't been in the 'tying mode' lately... Last week I tied some variations on soft-hackled olive emergers. The folded strip of packing foam will allow the fly to swim half-submerged, suspended in the surface film. Can't wait for spring hatches to give it a go...

Old Fly Reels

"The more things change, the more they remain the same," says an old French proverb. What kind of a reel a fly fisher needs for an average spring creek trout? In spite of all "modern developments" in fly reel design-LA concept is certainly not new, very little has changed in reels' functionality.

For spring creek fishing I like the simplicity of a click and pawl reel and the subtle counterpoint of a glass rod. Older reels have a special charisma, and they balance glass and cane rods perfectly.

Poodle

Poodle-a nice parachute atractor fly/terrestrial imitation.

Sceptre Glass Blank

I have just received my Hardy made Sceptre glass blank. It is a 8'6" model rated for lines #5-8. The blank is a classic Hardy with white spigot and brown patterned glass. I will probably end up shortening it somewhat, since it is little too long and powerful for my needs.

Nature's Art And The Lonely Mayfly

January was as eventful as I could ever imagine. My sister Sonja came to visit and we spent an incredible time in the Twin Cities, Chicago and Iowa with friends and family. The picture on the left titled The Global Warming (with Sonja, our friend Cheri and myself) is just one of many photos taken during past several weeks.

January has been incredibly cold. This is my third winter in MN, and it is definitely the coldest one so far. My thoughts would often wander from my piano or computer desk, to the glass of Laphroaig or Glen Garioch, to the frosty windows of our apartment. Surrounded by the art of nature- the icy window arabesques, which remind me of lavish 'rose and scroll' engravings found on fine English shotguns, I dream of mayflies. The large Ephemera drakes on the tranquil limestone stream will tempt the largest and wariest of trout.

The fly on the picture is based on the pattern known as Duncan's Mayfly, but it has some modifications.

Hook: dry fly;
Tail: 3-5 moose body hairs, the butts form the wing veins;
Body and wing: caribou hair-tips are tied by the tail and butts form the wing;
Rib: pale yellow waxed thread and fine gold wire (counter-ribbed);
Hackle: grizzly, wound through the hair butts.

Trim the wing to form the desired shape.

Small Flies

Small flies for selective trout-midges, ants, PT's... The largest fly pictured is a size 22 Pheasant Tail.

Happy Holidays!!!

(The picture from the book titled "An Album of the Chalk Streams" by E. A. Barton. Barton was a fly fisherman, physician and an amateur photographer, who published his photographs of English chalk streams in 1946.)

Pink Bear Trout Streamer

I like sparseness in tying hairwing streamers for trout. Hair of a black bear is a great material for salmon hairwings, but I like it a lot for trout streamers instead of bucktail.

Thirteen Diawl Bach nymphs for Fiberglassflyrodders fly swap are done, and ready for mailing.

Holmfridur Streamer

I found out about this Icelandic streamer in 1991, and it has found a place in my fly box ever since. It is a great warmwater and coldwater streamer, and a super easy fly to tie.

Body: No body! Instead, tie a small bulb of red tying silk or estaz (pictured) to help offset the wing;

Wing: Brown over yellow marabou;

Beard: Red or orange hackle fibers mixed with flashabou.

Woodcock Feathers

The wing feathers of European Woodcock (Scolopax rusticola) have a stunning combination of brown, rust, tan and grey tones. Known for centuries as a traditional fly tying material, they are somewhat similar to snipe covert feathers. They are indispensable for classic wet flies, but can also be useful for various dries and emergers. I've been playing around with several variations on the familiar theme (see previous blog entries)...


Woodcock & CDC Flymph

Tail: Lemon wood duck
Body: Wrapped CDC feather
Collar: Woodcock covert feather


Soggy CDC Caddis (Freshly Hatched Caddis)

Body: Cream opossum
Wing: Ginger CDC
Support hackle: Grizzly-brown rooster, clipped on the bottom
Front hackle: Woodcock covert feather (single turn), slightly oversized

March Brown Dry (Triple Hackle)

A high floating dry fly for freestone streams, this March brown imitation utilizes three kinds of hackle: undersized badger hackle (body), grizzly-brown (support hackle), and reverse tied woodcock soft hackle in the front.

Waterhen Soft Hackles

Feathers of water birds are fascinating... I have just received some waterhen (moorhen, Gallinula chloropus) feathers. The close up shows beautiful olive colored covert feathers, while feathers found under wings are drab grey. The texture of barbules is superb for both wet and emerging dry soft hackles.


Waterhen Bloa (traditional)

Body: Yellow silk dusted with mole dubbing
Wing: Grey feather from under wing of waterhen


Large Olive Soggy Dun (V. M.)

Tail: Microfibetts
Body: Olive silk dusted with mole dubbing
Support dry hackle: Badger clipped on the bottom
Front hackle: Waterhen olive covert feather tied in reverse

Shoot the Breeze!

Today's wind was more than a mere breeze. It was brutal! Amy and I stopped by the Trout Run in Decorah and snapped some pictures (see below.) What a sweet looking spring creek!

On our way up north, I had to stop by my favorite spring creek for an hour and throw some flies at persnickety browns. I found fish working below the foamy riffle, taking emergers with the lightning speed. Soggy duns which worked so well for the past several weeks were ignored by fish. I switched to drowned soft hackles and the same thing happened. Finally, the PT nymph went on the tippet-I was exploring the hatch backwards. The first trout slammed the nymph immediately, and than the second, larger one... The wind was so strong, it almost made impossible for duns to escape the water meniscus. The fish were taking nymphs right under the surface.

I must say it wasn't a pleasurable fishing due to the terrible wind which made casting almost impossible. However, my glass rod worked just fine, shooting into the breezy gusts.

Mauve Soggy Dun

Another variation on the similar theme... This Soggy Dun with mauve colored body should work especially well for greyling. It has brown super hair body over white UTC thread, microfibetts tails, badger support hackle (clipped), and reverse wound snipe soft hackle in the front.

Fast vs. Slow

Just got back from NE Iowa again... Today was cold, damp and more windy than the weather guy said it would be. For the entire day I saw only one fisherman in the distance and had the stream pretty much to myself.

The trout were cooperative but less aggressive in comparison to the previous week. I had only two half hearted takes on leeches, but there was some good surface activity. I fished half damp duns, then switched to emergers, and at the very and of the day got several strikes on soft hackled drowned dun/emerger.

I fished Lami 5wt/Milward Flycraft combo until the lunch, and switched to the recently built Lamiglas 7'6" 6/7wt on the brown vintage blank. I liked the new rod with 6DT the best, even though it is a bit powerful for this stream. I am surprised how great caster this rod is... It has absolutely nothing in common with contemporary Lamiglas Honey rods/blanks. It is quick and shoots line like crazy. I actually had great fun with the rod, shooting little flies into openings among branches and exposed roots on the opposite bank. I missed several fish on the greased line presentation with it-the soft Honey Lamiglas is a better rod for wet fly work. I just can not imagine better rod for streamers, and large western dries/grasshoppers. For now it is going to be my dedicated smallmouth bass rod, too.

Tuna Tube

Bluewater tube fly with slinky fibre, conehead, and lots of flash.