Friday Music Post

It's grey, wet and gloomy.

Stuck indoors - I'm working on something cool, but would rather be elsewhere.

This track comes on.

I dig it. It fits the mood.

Enjoy, and have a great long weekend.

- MT


(Can't see the embedded music track above? Click here)

Happy Hump Day

I realized a moment ago today is the third anniversary of 411#3.

Send out the clowns.

Or, enjoy this track instead. Either way is fine with me.

(Can't see the embedded video? Click here)

Big things are going to happen over at the other site this weekend. 

Trust me. 

Details will be here on Tuesday, after the long weekend.

You've been warned - I'm aiming to amaze with this change.

Keep it real.

-MT

Friday Music Post

This one screams summertime - enjoy!

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In other random news, having found myself now sharing a pretty friggin' large apartment with only my fishing gear and Awesome the Dog, I'm in downsize mode. And also in saving for #VanFund mode. Details to come...eventually...but here's a sneak peak

The goal of #VanFund

Friday Music Post

I first heard this track on a replay of the Strombo Show on CBC Radio 2 on a long, lonely nighttime drive back home a couple weeks ago.

The drums and guitar are goddamned powerful.

Some hints and tones of Explosions in the Sky (a personal favourite) in this tune, me thinks...

Enjoy.

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Friday Music Track

Beyond 'Legend'

Five Reggae Artists You Might Like (That Aren't Bob Marley)

You find yourself at a party, discussing music with a few people, and you let it slip that you like reggae music. The host's girlfriend happens to overhear.

"You like reggae?! I LOVE reggae," she exclaims, and off to the sound system she skips.

You wait for it. You know it's going to happen. Sure enough, Bob Marley's Legend is switched on, most likely track 3 ("Could You Be Loved") or track 4 ("Three Little Birds").

You smile and nod, realizing at least it's better than the Katy Perry, Psy, or whatever else that was just on the speakers.

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This isn't a knock against Bob Marley & The Wailers or Legend; I happen to have Legend as well as a few other Marley albums. I think he was an amazing talent, an amazing individual, and I thoroughly enjoy listening to Marley. I particularly like listening to Live!, Catch a Fire, and Uprising over Legend, but hey, that's just me.

Saying you love reggae music but only having select tracks of Legend in your music library is like saying you love sushi, but only order the chicken teriyaki roll. 

You're missing a whole bunch o' awesome doing that. In both cases.

So I'll help you out a bit; below are my five reggae artists (and a few of their albums) to ease you off of Legend and into a new realm of groovy beats.

1. Peter Tosh
Legalize It is his most popular album, followed by Equal Rights. Another option is Live & Dangerous, or you can get a taste of almost everything from The Best of Peter Tosh.

2. Black Uhuru
Their Red album has been one of my most frequently listened to albums in the past few months, but I haven't dived into any of their other albums...yet. Bear with me.

3. Aswad
London-based Aswad have busted out over 20 albums since the mid-seventies. Albums to pick from are their self-titled Aswad or Live & Direct; personally I went with Aswad's The Complete BBC Sessions double album set; I couldn't resist a good deal.

4. Gregory Isaacs
More "make out" reggae than "party reggae," Gregory Isaacs pioneered the lovers rock sub-genre of reggae. Unbelievably, he has over 500 albums released in his name. So where to start? Try Night Nurse or one of the many compilations, such as Best of Gregory Isaacs or The Millennium Collection.

5. Burning Spear
Winston Rodney, aka Burning Spear, first arrived on the roots reggae scene in 1969 and continues to perform and release albums to this day. With over 30 albums released, there's lots to pick from. Get started with the Marcus Garvey / Garvey's Ghost double album, Jah Kingdom or Resistance, or dive in with a compilation album such as Burning Spear: Gold.

BONUS ALBUM
King Tubby & Soul Syndicate
I debated including, and decided not to include, King Tubby & Soul Syndicate in the list of five. For one, they cross the boundary from roots reggae to dub. Secondly, this was (to my knowledge) their only collaboration. King Tubby was a pioneering sound engineer with his name on, in my estimates, three million reggae albums; if you like what King Tubby does with Soul Syndicate in Freedom Sounds In Dub, it won't be hard to find more of his work. I really like Freedom Sounds in Dub, and you might, too.

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Disclosure #1a: I am not a reggae guru, nor do I claim to be. I like listening to reggae music, but I have never desired to dive into the history or the backstories and connections that exist within the genre.

Disclosure #1b: Nowhere in this list do I say "Top 5" or "the five best" or anything of that sort; it is simply "five," as in "Five Artists That Aren't Bob Marley That You Could Possibly Listen To And Like Instead Of Listening to Bob Marley." Also, as I said above, this is not to shit on Bob Marley or to say these artists are better than Bob Marley. They're just different.

Disclosure #2: I prefer roots reggae to the other sub-genres of reggae, as this list will demonstrate. Perhaps exposing Legend-only reggae listeners to other roots reggae artists might make it a little easier to broaden their music libraries.

Disclosure #3: I will state again, for the record: I am a non-pot-smoking reggae fan. It's true: we do exist. Also, for the record: I don't give a rat's ass if you smoke pot or not...just don't do it on my damn job site.

Disclosure #4: All of the album links go to Amazon.com, of which I am an affiliate. In plain words: you click on the Album link, go to Amazon.com, and if you buy the album, I get a commission of 4% (I think...).

And now, on a lighter note...

I dig the new Headstones tune

Canadian rockers The Headstones are back with a new album, their first since reforming for a mini-tour in 2011 after an eight-year hiatus.

The first single off from Love & Fury is titled "Long Way to Neverland." I dig it. Check it out below.

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Bass and boats and beats and other good stuff

It hasn't been intentional neglect of this website over the past few months. It's just there's so much to do & to see here.

It doesn't seem proper to hide away with a laptop, indoors, for the 2-4 hours it takes to research/write/edit a post. Especially since enjoying the climate of Vancouver Island was the main reason for us claiming Winter Refugee Status here.

That being said, it's been six weeks of living in our new apartment. It's time to develop an iota of self-discipline and a sensible personal schedule to ensure content is posted here in something resembling a semi-regular manner.

At least I haven't been idle: I've been planning, scheming, and taking notes for all sorts of topics and actually fishing a few times. 

Here's a preview of what's to come:

• Addicted to SMB - see photo at right.
• Must-have add-ons for the Diablo Paddlesports Chupacabra
• Paddling my new Jackson Kayak Cuda 14
• Trying (& failing) to develop a great smallmouth fly - Working title: save time/money, tie a Clouser Minnow
• (Slowly) becoming a fishing pier rat - more relaxing than you think
• Product reviews for some cool new stuff from Columbia Sportswear - emphasis on 'cool.'
• Evernote + Fly Fishing - it's a thing. Seriously.
• Music - expect a return of music at the bottom of most articles and posts.
• Essays - some of which will be posted after they've been rejected from magazines.
• Book reviews - and possibly not all fish-related. Oh, the horror, right?
• More music - get your speakers/headphones ready.
• Recipes - why the f**k not, right? A man's gotta eat...
• Fun and adventure - photos may be included.

In addition, be sure to check out my racket over at The Saltwater Fly Journal; there's a bit of a new look along with a new 'About' page, updated Links and the all-new SWFJ Bookstore.

And, as always, thanks for reading. Y'all are alright in my books.

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Ross Neilsen & company are getting ready to release their new album, Resurrection, later this month. Leading up to the launch date, Ross has been releasing one track from the new album each week.

This track is called Need You More, and I think it's pretty damn good. Check 'er out.

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Settling into island life, part two

I wake up each morning, make some coffee, and watch the sun rise over Coast Mountains, Quadra Island and Discovery Passage.

I like it here. A lot.

Last week I found out there's a public fishing pier ten minutes' walk away; that it's 600' long & I'd missed it for over three weeks is not lost on me: there's lots left to explore here.

So now I'm the proud owner of a couple Ugly Stiks, in both spinning & casting forms, and a box of heavier-than-most-trout metal jigs. Fun times.

I'm still in "Island Fishing Overload:" there's so many species and so many places, it's tough to nail down exactly what to fish for, and where. 

I'm still in (what I consider) a shoulder season of fishing, as in, tossing size 18 chironomids for 10" stocked cutthroat is all well & good, but there's 4lb smallmouth kicking around somewhere in this same lake and I aim to catch it...if only the bloody water temperatures would come up a bit... Oh well. All in good time, my bronze-backed friends.

Until the water warms, I can idle my days..evening...tides...away, chucking gear from the pier for rockfish...

Or casting small Rolled Muddlers from the beach for cutthroat.

Or swinging streamers for the ever-elusive steelhead.

Or slowly stripping #18 chironomids from the lacustrine depths while seated (or standing) in my Chupacabra.

Or...

Yeah, so you see what I mean: it's pretty awesome here.

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East, then west.

If things had gone to plan, I'd be sitting in an airport right now, bound for a return trip to Africa.

But for various reasons, most of which weren't confirmed until yesterday afternoon, I'm tapping away at my desk instead. This, in my mind, is not a bad thing.

Time > Money. Don't ever forget that, kids.

— Mat Trevors (@mattrevors) January 11, 2013

I like my work all fine & good, but an extra week at home is appreciated. Even if it means a 33°C temperature difference.

Note: It's an unseasonably mild day here in New Brunswick. Had I written this earlier this week or last week, that temperature difference would be more like 48°C. For my 'merican cousins, that's the difference between 81°F and -5°F.

So if things go to plan (version 2.0), I'll be sitting in an airport or on a plane next Saturday, bound for a return trip to Africa.

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If any of you follow along with my dribble on Twitter and Instagram, you're probably all aware of our plans of relocating. But in case you missed it, here it is: after I escape the clutches of work in Africa, we're moving to Vancouver Island.

We'll be doing our best Beverley Hillbillies impersonation with our moving truck, which may be familiar to car manufacturers, dealers and me as my 2003 Ford Sport Trac.

Valuables that can't be left behind & must be loaded on the truck include my Chupacabra kayak, fishing & tying gear, my bike, my lovely girlfriend's ever-growing book collection, as well as numerous personal & kitchen effects, including my various coffee snob paraphernalia.

And we mustn't forget Awesome the Dog and his crate, too.

After we pile a small U-Haul truck's worth of gear in and on a small truck, we'll then drive from the eastern side to the western side of the world's second largest country in February, known to some as 'winter.'

We're making the move for a number of reasons, but is best summarized by these two reasons:

• I'm on a mission to bridge the divide between the East Coast and West Coast rap scenes, and to prevent any escalating violence while promoting a confluence of the ideals and creativity of hip hop and rap from both coasts*. 
• My lovely girlfriend, Awesome the Dog, and I all absolutely hate winter. And both my lovely girlfriend and I would like a change in scenery, at least temporarily. Awesome is unable to communicate whether he wants a change in scenery as well, though. 

Note: The twelve months of fishing Vancouver Island provides, as opposed to six months of fishing here, has absolutely nothing* to with the decision.

* - Denotes a blatant lies, also known as a 'fibs.'

Follow along on this farcical adventure, complete with tweets of frustration and photographs of triumph and/or disaster on the aforementioned Twitter and Instagram, as well as here on mattrevors.com, in February, 2013.

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Enjoy a tune:

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My Top 5 Albums of 2012

Everyone's got a year-end list of highlights and memories. I'm keeping it simple with naming my favourite albums of the year, with a couple of songs from each.

Check 'em out & let me know what you think.

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1. Matt Mays, Coyote
I've been a Matt Mays fan for a while. I liked the self-titled Matt Mays + El Torpedo in '05. I liked Terminal Romance (2008) even more. Coyote beats them all, hands down.

2. Jack White, Blunderbuss

When I first heard this album, I thought it was going to be my album of the year. Though it's edged out by Matt Mays above, it is still a great album and a must-have.

3. Big Wreck, Albatross
Big Wreck's In Loving Memory Of... (1997) remains one of my favourite albums of all time, so this one might slide in here on sentimental value...or it may not: it's a great album, with or without sentimental reasons. I was one of many people  uber-excited to see Ian Thornley team up again with guitarist Brian Doherty for a reincarnated Big Wreck.

4. Japandroids, Celebration Rock
By far the most 'fun' album I added in 2012. Love it. It deserves to be played loud. One of my main memories of working in Niger in early December will be cranking this up on my headphones to drown out the call to prayer over the loudspeaker on several occasions.

5. Gary Clark Jr., Blak and Blu
Mad guitar skills, rocking blues. What more can you ask for? A great album, start to finish.

Honourable Mentions:

Ross Neilsen, The Shack Up Sessions
Any blues fan absolutely needs to have some of Ross Neilsen's albums in their collection. The Shack Up Sessions are an acoustic companion to some of Ross's hard-rawking blues albums.

To see the full performance of the show previewed below, click here.

Crooked Saws, Mo'Fi
Dirty. Whisky-chugging. Bar-brawling. Greasy. Blues.

'nuff said.

More randomness

It's been a while since I wrote an essay of complete random bullshit, and, since I haven't posted here on ten or so days, now's as good as time as any.

1) Niger
Yes, Niger (not Nigeria. Two different places).

I'm going to Niger tomorrow for three weeks or so (and possibly again in January).

Hopefully I won't land what Bjorn called a grand slam of dysentery, malaria and getting kidnapped.

I will have internet access but have no idea of the workload as of yet, so posts may be sporadic. Well, more sporadic than usual...

There's no fishing there, which really doesn't help me write content for Traveling Angler Tuesdays.

Which brings us to...

2) Traveling Angler Tuesdays
Traveling Angler Tuesdays might be placed on hold for a little while.

I have no fishing trips planned or schemed (but some are dreamed). I am working on a few subjects for upcoming posts (doing liveaboard/mothership trips, using booking agents, etc.) and I was hoping for a few guest posts from other Traveling Anglers I was in touch with, but for now, this Traveling Angler isn't doing too much angling.

If anyone would like to contribute a guest post with how-to's or other fine points of being a Traveling Angler, by all means, get in touch, but I'm not chasing people down.

Trying to track down fishing addicts to write something is like herding cats, for f** all.

Not that I blame them. I'd rather be fishing, too. I'll always be a fisherman that writes, not a writer that fishes.

3) Pic of me with the best Key Lime pie ever

I'd shoot someone for a piece of that Key Lime pie right about now.

And that, folks, is why gun laws are tight in Canada. We'd shoot people over pie.

But not dog shit. Never dog shit. That's just irrational.

4) International Fly Tying Symposium
Last weekend I was in Somerset, New Jersey for the tying symposium; my first 'official duty' as Clear Cure Goo's writer-not-in-residence. I had a blast meeting a lot of folks that I had only spoke with via Twitter/Facebook/Instagram/Skype up until that point.

I understand turnout was a little down this year; a lot of that had to do with people dealing with the aftereffects of Hurricane Sandy.

Thanks to Brian of CCG for letting me tag along and to everyone for stopping by the CCG booth to say hi. It was great meeting y'all.

Note: I'll probably write a little more about the IFTS on the Clear Cure Blog soon, so keep your eyes peeled for it over there. 

5) Being sick sucks hole.
Honestly, I've been having my ass kicked by a cold/flu since the tying symposium in NJ, so I haven't been posting too much here, there, or anywhere else for that matter.

I've been combining various elixirs and concoctions for the last few days. The congestion remains...but I seemed to have made a new friend that appears after certain medications have been mixed together:

As I'm 28 hours away from boarding multiple tin-pigeons (with their healthy recycled air) for the better part of a day and a half, I'm hoping adding some Buckley's flu medication into the mix finally knocks this bastard down the basement stairs for good.

I'd like to take the elephant with me to Niger, though...

6) Being sick isn't the only excuse, though...
As I wrote many weeks back, I've been using my side project, The Saltwater Fly Journal, to share a lot of content that previously would have been posted here. Stuff like this. And this. And this, too. So sign up for email/RSS updates (right hand sidebar, underneath the Redington banner) so you don't miss anything awesome on The Saltwater Fly Journal.

Because someday, there will be awesome stuff there. Trust me.

7) The following people/blogs need to keep doing what they're doing...
...because it's damn good:

• Warmwater Chronicles
• Smallmouth Fly Box
• Pine Island Angler
• Stream2Stream
• Chi Wulff
• Salt 396
• and many, many more...

8) Some people just don't get it.

"Kramer goes to a Fantasy camp? His whole life is a fantasy camp! People should plunk down $2,000 to live like him for a week." George Costanza

Someone recently referenced that quote while talking to me about my life. Some days I think it it's bang-on.

But that particular day I just purchased this to keep strapped to my body 24/7 in Niger.

Fantasy camp, my ass...

9) I love this website.
I like to mix it up once in a while here: fly fishing and lifestyle.

That lifestyle probably doesn't jive for the majority (go back to 1) and 8) on this list) but I'm sure two or three of you are interested in it a little bit.

Oh, that link might be classified as NSFW and/or the kids. There's a lot of swears in there.

My apartment is in a state of flux right now. I call it controlled chaos. The clutter and squalor quotients are kept to a minimum, at least. The kayak, fishing gear and all the fly tying materials in the living lend a certain loveable ambience to the place.

UFYH gives a much-needed dose of reality to the realm of cleaning & organizing: cleaning sucks, but it needs to be done (for advanced level reality, give this guy a read...if you can handle it)

It's a good site to read when things get out of control.

10) The new James Bond...
...was ok. It was no Avengers, by any stretch, but it was good.

11) Music for your playlist
A few tracks I've been listening to recently, give 'em a listen:

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Things of Three VII

The seventh edition of three items/subjects/places/people worth checking out to make life as an angler and global citizen far more enjoyable.

1. Recycled Waders

The 'nook sack from Recycled Waders

There's a few smallish players in the fly fishing industry that have come on the scene over the last few years.

I think it's great; I'm one of those hippy communist free-thinkers people that believes a resurrection of cottage industries is the way out of the mess globalization has created. That is, people creating their own goods or services (& destiny) as opposed to slaving away at a soulless job while worried about a pink slip arriving at any moment.

Vedavoo & Smith Fly have been getting a fair amount of press and rightfully so, but another one you should check out is Recycled Waders.

The concept is simple & brilliant. They repurpose leaky waders into 'new' useful gear: packs, wallets, reel cases and the like.

Waders don't get sent to the landfill, and the gear at Recycled Waders is very reasonably priced, likely due to decreased material costs. Win-win.

I purchased the 'nook sack and think it's great; it fits exactly what I need and doesn't let me take more than what I need. Thus fulfilling those hippy communist free-thinking minimalist tendencies I lean toward.

Reduce, reuse, recycle indeed.

web: recycledwaders.com

2. Fly Fishing for Coastal Gamefish by Dr. Aaron Adams
As a self-confessed nerd, this book seems as though it was written for "fishing nerd me.' There's a lot of science in it. I think it's awesome.

I picked it up this summer when we were visiting Asheville, NC. I read it in a tent, on the hostel's balcony, on the beach at Sullivan's Island, in the hotel in Massachusetts, on the plane to Nunavut and on a boat in Belize. I read it just about anywhere a person could read a book.

If you're an angler heading for any inshore fishing anywhere south of the Carolinas (& north of Venezuela) and want to understand the various habitats, fish and prey, this book is definitely for you.

Is it for everybody? Definitely not, especially if the most literary or scientific thing you read each week is my rambling bullshit.

Whether you're a nerd or not, it's worth having on your bookshelf for reference.

web: fishermanscoast.com, or buy here

3. Sweet Home Alabama - The Southern Rock Saga
This is a cool documentary on the rise of Southern Rock, if y'all have an hour to kill.

In fact, y'all should put everything on hold for an hour to watch it. It'll do you good.

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Things of Three VI

The sixth edition of three items/subjects/places/people worth checking out to make life as an angler and global citizen far more enjoyable.

Random, somewhat-out-of-context photo of me & my first bonefish. Yes, I'm proud of it.
(Photo by Dylan Rose of Fly Water Travel LLC)

1. SCOF Issue #5
Yes, I'm late to the party. It was released on Sunday. I even read it on Sunday. Things of Three comes out on Thursdays. It's the 'th- th- th-' thing: THings of THree on THursday. It's a principle THing.

Anywho, back to SCOF, aka Southern Culture on the Fly. I think it's their best issue yet. It's the one-year anniversary issue. The redfish footage from Louisiana is cool as hell. Definitely watch both videos, especially Captain Gregg Arnold discussing the strip-strike. Right to the end.

And note my pumping out a little promo/review of SCOF #5 has little to do with the editor rowing my girl & I around on a lake one fine Sunday afternoon a few months back in what turned out to be a guided trip. The issue stands on its own. If Grossman & Co. ever put out a shitty issue, me promoting it will be part of the payback for the fishing trip. Well, that & the case of PBR I left in the boat cooler.

Check out SCOF #5 by clicking here or the image below.

web: southerncultureonthefly.com

2. Clear Cure Goo Brushable
Clear Cure Goo's brushable UV-epoxy is an absolute joy to use: simple, clean, effective. I've yet to scratch the surface for its many uses, but I've used it on Clouser Deep Minnows for both fresh & salt, for stiffening up deer hair collars on a few different patterns, as well as on the Clear Cure Charlie (which happens to be the unseen fly stuck in that bonefish's mouth in the pic above).

Brian Carson of CCG is a cool dude; he's developed several different types of CCG UV-epoxy, plus the CCG eyes and bodies. From reading along on their website, they put the different formulas & products through the ringer to perfect them before making them available to fly tyers. I haven't tried any of the CCG epoxy besides the Brushable, but I will be real soon. And I'm looking forward to it.

Note: That's called foreshadowing in the literary biz...

CCG's pro staff features some of the rising stars in the fly tying world right now, too; guys like Thomas Harvey, Brad Bohen and Pat Cohen. It'll definitely be worth your while to be checking in on CCG's blog page in the very near-future to see what those guys and many other CCG's pro staff will be up to.

Note: That's also foreshadowing. Trust me on this. Let's just say the next time I write about CCG, I'll need to add in the standard disclaimer. But not yet. The Brushable was purchased on my dime. And worth every penny.

web: clearcuregoo.com

3. The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer
Last Friday I threw out a request to the twitterverse for some new music to listen to.

I received a few replies featuring a lot of good bands.

But this one is my favourite.

Blues rocks. Especially blues that rocks.

H&AM has three albums. I now have all three. They're good. Check 'em out.

web: harpoonistaxemurderer.com

Things of Three III

The third edition of three items/subjects/places/people worth checking out to make life as an angler and global citizen far more enjoyable.

1. Howler Bros apparel
If shallow people were to align a product line with their 'personal image' (*cough*), I wouldn't blame them if they chose Howler Bros of Austin, TX. From their About page:

We are Howler Brothers. We are not really related by blood. But we are bonded by many shared callings: surfing, fishing, paddling and the good things that come with these pursuits. Things like fire pits, really good tequila, limes, and pre-dawn coffee.

My surfing career was cut short by lack of waves, a fear of sharks and limited motivation to learn how to surf. But I do like fishing, paddling (for fishing), fire pits (we call 'em bonfires), tequila, limes, limes/lime juice in tequila, and coffee (pre- or post-dawn makes no difference to me).

But that's neither here nor there.

Howler makes clothing that is durable, comfortable and practical. Some would say stylish, but I use practical in place of stylish; as in, "Can I where this in public without my lovely girlfriend being embarrassed?" For Howler's apparel lineup, the answer to that is a heck yeah.

I just received my (third) order from Howler this AM and I'm impressed as always. Their t-shirts are the most comfortable (and softest things) I own. And that hat is just damn cool.

Know who else digs Howler swag? This guy. Oh yeah, it's true.

Website: howlerbros.com

Social: @HowlerBros & facebook.com/howlerbros

Note: Cameron over at The Fiberglass Manifesto has a TFM promo code for $10 off your order, check out the details here.


2. My (new) old-timey shaving kit
This started as a multi-paragraph rant about much of a money-grab cartridge razors have become, but instead I'm just posting this pic:

A better shave, a more enjoyable shave, and a far less expensive shave. Less plastic waste, too. Bam.

After using the double-edge razor for the first time, I was already looking forward to my next opportunity to shave.

That's telling in itself: I normally hate shaving.

Website: classicedge.ca
Resources: sharpologist.com

3. Wolves
Last week it was Coyote. This week it's Wolves, from Big Wreck's Albatross album. Enjoy.

The Clear Cure Charlie

Disclaimer #1: I am not a professional fly tyer.
Disclaimer #2: I am not a professional bonefisherman.

Both of the bonefish eats I had on Friday were on this fly pattern I tied up before the trip.

During marathon tying sessions prior to departure, I quickly tired of wrapping both flashabou and v-rib on the hook shank. Enter the Clear Cure Goo (laziness breeds ingenuity, folks).

Using the Clear Cure Goo instead of v-rib probably saved three-quarters of a minute for each tie, and it was fun pretending it was becoming irradiated to give it superhero powers when I blasted it with the ultraviolet light (e.g., the Hulk, Spiderman, Radioactive Man, etc).

An additional bonus to using the CCG is it makes the fly nearly indestructible. Like it had...superhero powers!

Disclaimer #3: Yes, there's a zillion patterns and recipes that are derived from Crazy Charlies (no tail) and Gotchas (with tail). This could be called a Gotcha, because it has a tail. I don't really care what it's called, it seemed to work, so I'm sharing it.

• Hook: Tiemco 811S, size 8
• Thread: Fire Orange, size 6/0
• Eyes: small bead chain
• Tail: 8-12 strands of pearl Crystal Flash, ~1.5x length of hook shank
• Body: 4-5 strands of pearl Flashabou wrapped flat on shank, coated with a fine smear of Clear Cure Goo Brushable & irradiated with UV light
• Wing: clump of white calf tail
• Head: Fire Orange thread

Gone Fishin'

The last fly of many tied in the past 36 hours to get ready for this adventure.

If taxis, airports & airplanes goes as planned, I'll be on a muthaf**kin' boat in Belize tomorrow afternoon.

Barring any high seas acts of piracy (most likely committed by me), I'll be back in nine or ten days.

It's Friday. Crank this tune up & have a great weekend.

Things of Three

Three items/subjects/places/people worth checking out to make life as an angler and global citizen far more enjoyable:

1. Fish Tales Fly Shop, Calgary, AB
The positive side of getting weathered in at the project site in Nunavut last week is getting to meet Matlock (aka @findeep) for a quick fish on Alberta's Bow River and going for sushi with him & Cod (@chroniclesofcod) during a seven-hour layover. Best layover ever. Wet socks & all.

Matlock picked me up at the airport and we headed to his local fly shop so I could grab a license. The fact they had been closed for about an hour didn't really slow things down much; they unlocked the door and got me set up with both a license and the new issue of The Drake for my flight home.

Fish Tales is a great shop, loads of inventory and run by a seriously kick-ass nice dude. If you're in Calgary, it's worth a stop. And Cod guides outta there, too.

Check 'em out on the web here. For a Google Map, click here.

Supporting your local fly shop isn't a cliché. Try rolling into a BassPro or Canadian Tire to buy a license an hour after they're closed. Yeah, thought so...

2. The Shack Up Sessions
This is Ross Neilsen's new solo album, recorded inside the Robert Clay shack at The Shack Up Inn in Clarksdale Mississippi, just down the road from the famous crossroads of highway 49 and 61.

It's good. Really good.

Ross has been mentioned a few times here, and his music is on my regular rotation of playlists & albums. And for good reason: his songs are at times rocking and whisky-chugging, and always soulful and honest-to-goodness blues.

This album is a little less loud but still everything one could ask for in a blues album.

Ross also had a special message for the fly fishing crowd that reads this: "Keep yer poles bent."

You can preview and download the album here & on iTunes; for a physical copy shipped, click here.

Ross can be reached via his website, rossneilsen.com, and through Twitter, @rossneilsen.

And if this picture doesn't brighten your day, check your pulse.

Ross (right) & Karl's search for a bass player brought interesting characters.

3. William Joseph HemoCuts
One of my favourite fly fishing accessories. Probably one of the best sub-$20 items in the fly fishing industry, in my mind.

Pros: easy to grip, easy to open, pinch barbs up to 1/0 saltwater hooks, cutting blades are sharp, and they lock down tight when shut.

Cons: they don't make a big, eff-off size for toothy/salty critters.

Check 'em out here.

Out of Alaska

After numerous attempts, I discovered proper form for redeye flights last night: I fell asleep before we backed away from the gate in Fairbanks and was out cold until the descent into Minneapolis. Brilliant.

Thus closing this Alaskan chapter of my life.

It was a good trip, but the lack of sleep from working night shifts did me in, and yesterday's hunt for pike on my 7wt ended up being more of a snipe hunt.

But there were highlights...

Highlight #5:

• Working night shift that far north was cool and it made for some pretty combination sunsets/sunrises.

Highlight #4:

• Catching my first grayling on the fly. It isn't a technical fishery by any stretch, but they were fun for a diversion. Small flies, light leaders, etc. Pretty fish, too; though I didn't take any pictures save one. I needed the pic for the Species Journal, after all...

Highlight #3:

• This is more a personal thing than an Alaskan thing: I decided on new path for this site. Maybe not a new path; perhaps widening the path is more apt. More on this in a very-near-future post.

Highlight #2b:

• Finding this cabin in the middle of nowhere down a random dirt road while looking for a fishy spot. Something about it brought a smile to the cockles of my heart.

Highlight #2a:

• Seconds after finding the cabin, the realization that I sometimes can't believe I get paid for this.
• This also ties in with Highlight #3...but hours later, while being chewed alive by bugs and being busy as hell, this upbeat attitude diminished slightly. I was still excited about Highlight #3 and the cabin, however.

Highlight #1:

• Being present in the precise moment in space and time to be able to see this:

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So that was Alaska. 

Quick shout-outs to:

Matt H - may he have good fortune with his new Sage Largemouth rod & not have anymore minor incidents with company rental trucks.

JR at Big Ray's fly shop - thanks for the help. My inability to roll-cast that robin-sized diver on my 7wt in no way diminished the appreciation I have for time spent giving me directions for the pike hunt.

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Here's a tune.

Appropriate title, considering I'm on the verge of wandering over to the complimentary bar to fix one for myself. Aeroplan Elite status has its perks.