"Little Tikes" on the Little Res.

Katy, Connor, and I went to "Little Res." on Beaver Mountain for a well needed reprieve from my 55 hour work week. I guess "fish eat metal" too. I lined up my XP, but between the micro-bursts and Connor in my back-cast, I decided to put it away. Plus Katy kept catching fish after fish and I couldn't seem to find any awake...except this small shad taken on a #16 zebra midge.

Between the three of us, we caught over 20 fish in a couple hours. It was a fun family outing to start out the spring.







Connor takes his business serious. There's a couple spots I have in mind for Connor to catch a Brookie on his own (Connor didn't hook this fish, but he did a good job holding the rod while it tried to get away).





We ended the day at Wendy's. Connor worked up a mean appetite for a hambuga

Lee's Ferry

This was my first trip to Lee's Ferry. Kyle and I have been trying to plan a trip here for the past couple months. We finally got the trip together, but the weather wasn't what we hoped.

The night before, I barely slept. I kept thinking "What flies should I use?", "How should I rig my line?". It felt like Christmas Eve and I couldn't wait to see what tomorrow would bring.

It was an amazing site as we meandered through the red rock canyon. After a few disappointments, we settled on a run. With today's crowds, we had little chance of moving to a new spot.

I struggled to rig up my flies with cold fingers. I chose to fish the lower section of the run. The drift took some time to figure out. The dynamics of the flow was incredible. There were so many opposing currents of water. But once I found the right drift, I was rewarded.

I moved to the run Kyle and Ty were fishing, but I couldn't get the right to left drift down. 60+ foot drifts were new to me. I missed a couple strikes and came unbuttoned with one. I was able to coax one more to my fly, but that's all she wrote.

The fishing wasn't fast, but it was still a great experience.

The Ambiguously Gay Lock-Smith

Cheap Antron Substitute

I picked up the tip from Roughfisher.com for a great Antron substitute. I went out and bought 8 bundles of "Needlecraft" latch-hook yarn from Robert's Craft. It only cost me $3 for the equivalent of 16 cards of Antron.

Bulk Order Scud Hooks- UPDATE

***********5/5/09 Update on scud hook order.

I received 300 more scud hooks in the mail. I haven't been able to give them a thorough look over yet, so I will wait to post new info on the hooks. But I will say they are sharp! I emailed him and asked for any way I can ensure I get these hooks and if he can give them for same cost. I would be willing to pay more if needed. I will give a full report as I have new information ***********

***Update on the update - I emailed the guy and he responded back within a couple hours. He is sending me 300 more hooks #12, #14, #18 from a different manufacturer. I will post another update on update. ***

I received the hooks Monday. The eyes are closed off (good, meaning no gap where the loop comes around), not extremely bright, no noticeable burs or imperfections, a med-gauge wire scud hook

100 #12 - Not very sharp
100 #14 - Almost as dull as the #12

200 #16 - seemed sharp. Passed the "Finger Nail" test. I still need to try them in action to verify if they pierce fish lips

100 #18 - doesn't appear very sharp, but better then #12 & #14. But the hook point curves around too close to eye making for a small gap between the two. Compared to a TMC 2487, heavier wire and about 35% less gap between eye and point.

I will try the #16 in action. But not impressed by the hook's sharpness. I guess I got what I paid for...about $.04 a hook.

I'm going to e-mail the guy and let me know I was disappointed. I expected them to be sharper for "Chemically Sharpened" hooks. These hooks appear to either be bathed too long or not enough in the chemical bath for optimum sharpness.

Daa-gummet!...That's a Fine Howdy Doo

Skunked!

After fishing a certain stillwater for the third time this year, I thought I was going to get that nasty smell off my back. First cast, Wham!, down goes my indicator! But I missed. That would be the first and last strike of the day. About an hour of flailing in the wind without any glimpse of hope, I headed back to the truck.

I still had about an hour of light, so I decided to hit a stream on the way home. But to my dismay, what was once a fisherman's easements is now a tangle of barbed wire and "No Trespassing" signs. There was still one hole within public access for me to try.

As I walked to the water's edge, something caught my eye. It was four Rio tippet spools lying on the bank under a branch. Some poor sap must have had the misfortune of dropping it. They aren't in the best shape; most likely rotten. But I'll clean the spools up and hopefully have some back-up tippet in case of an emergency. Although I caught a few decent browns on this water earlier in the season, my luck didn't last.

Bulk Order of Scud Hooks

I thought I would give these a try. $23 with shipping for 500 in sizes 12-18. They are chemically sharpened. I'll post a review once I get them.

Backside of Stoner Mountain

I met up with Kyle and Matt tuesday and fished the backside of Stoner Mountain. Still trying to figure out my point and shoot camera.

New Vise!

I went from this...


to a couple of these...


To this...


I picked up a Griffin Blackfoot Mongoose rotary vise from Sportsman's yesterday. I've had my eye on this vise for a long time. I like the Montana Mongoose vise but I don't thinks it's worth $120 more. I picked this up for $80, but most places I've seen online are asking $150. ??? I likes a good deal!

I began tying flies when I was twelve. My friends dad taught us how to tie a zug bug and a "grizzly hackle peacock" in preparation for a scout hike to the Uintas. I started tying flies with my mom's sewing thread and my dad's shop vise. I collected feathers from a farm by my house (great source for peacock herl!) I bought el cheapo from Angler's Inn and was amazed how much easier it was to tie flies with a fly tying vise (instead of a bulky shop vise).

I really like my new vise, but I have to re-learn how to tie with it.