Things of Three IV

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

1. Snook
They hit hard. They pull hard. And they look cool as hell.

Note: They're also quite tasty, but they're more fun to catch than to eat.

Photo by Dylan Rose of Fly Water Travel LLC

2. Idaho Angler
There's something to be said about walking into a shop and being recognized from a previous visit almost exactly a year ago to the day.

Friendly, helpful & knowledgeable, plus everything once could need for fishing in Idaho or anywhere else for that matter, including a huge tying section featuring materials for both fresh & salt.

If you're in the Boise area, a visit to Idaho Angler is a must.

Website: idahoangler.com
Social: facebook.com/IdahoAngler
Location: 1682 Vista Avenue  Boise, ID

3. Bonefish on the Brain
Dear Bjorn,

At first, I thought you were a little OCD about having a website dedicated to only one species of fish. Especially a fish living in waters far from your home address. A fish you have only one or maybe a couple of chances per year to go fishing for.

But then I caught one. And I get it now. I really do.

I'm already scheming an escape to catch more.

Sincerely,

Mat

Website: bonefishonthebrain.com

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As some of you might have seen on a recent Facebook post, I'm taking a break from Facebook. This US Presidential election thing is bringing out the worse in some people. These are people I consider friends, either in real life or in the online realm. I respect your right to your opinions but the outright negativity, from both left and right, is depressing as f**k. So yeah, I'm done on Facebook until November 8th or 9th or so (besides, Twitter is far more enjoyable than Facebook).

That being said, y'all should get out and vote. No matter what your political leaning is, exercise your right to vote. Canada had a federal election last year and the turnout was downright dismal. Don't be apathetic; apathy is more depressing than the negative shit. Go vote.

This link will not be shared on the ol' Crackbook by yours truly. If anyone wants to share it, it'd be appreciated, but it's not necessary.

Keep it real.

Mat

Announcement: Launch of Traveling Angler Tuesdays

I am very excited to announce the launch of Traveling Angler Tuesdays here at 411#3, starting this Tuesday (June 26th)

If you caught the Out of Alaska post yesterday, you might recall seeing mention of a new path (or, more accurately, a widening of an existing path) for the site. Well, this is it.

I travel a lot. I fish a lot. I carry gear with me when I travel. I know I can share a few tips, tricks and gear reviews to help out both beginner and experienced traveling anglers alike.

So starting this Tuesday, and every Tuesday after it, there will be a new post to inform, entertain and enlighten you, the Traveling Angler.

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To kick off Traveling Angler Tuesdays, I enlisted the help of Dylan Rose of Fly Water Travel LLC and proceeded to pester him with lots of questions about fishing, traveling, working at Fly Water Travel, guiding Gierach and playing jazz.

So click over on Tuesday, June 26th to read my interview with Dylan!

To find out more about this tarpon & the guy holding it, check out the interview with Dylan on Tuesday!

Enter your email address to subscribe (I will never, ever spam, sell or trade your email address):

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.

A rut in the Last Frontier

"Just go behind the kitchen, walk along the fence until you reach a gate. The river is right there."

It's true. The river is right there. About 2 minutes' walk from where I type this.

"The river was there." Ernest Hemingway, Big Two-Hearted River

I'm willing to trade sleep for fishing. I've done it before. Loads of times. When I was bartending, it was a fact of life: finish counts & cash out, grab gear, grab coffee and go. Fish most of the day, and repeat.

But not this time. I'm gonna sit this one out.

Sleep deprivation and high, fast, chocolate-coloured water aren't my thing just yet.

Give me another three or four days to reach a sufficient level of desperation and depression.

West Fork of the Tolovana River, near Livengood, AK

Video streaming websites are blocked on this project. I blame drillers and their porn sites. It's always the drillers' fault. Unfortunately this means no tunes appended to posts. If you need a music recommendation, go listen to Matthew Good's Lights of Endangered Species. It's good. Trust me.

The Guatemalan Chronicles - Day 5

Click here to read the previous posts in The Guatemalan Chronicles.


After our second day of fishing was done, our heroes of the saga piled their gear & themselves into a minibus and headed up into the mountains to Panajachel.

Jon from iFished.com used his local connections (i.e., Mrs iFished) to set Salty & I up in a nice local hotel for the next few nights. It cost $30USD...for three nights. Awesome.

After checking in, we set out for a late meal at Pupuseria Chero's, which was absolutely delicious. And cheap. Like, 34 Quetzals cheap...about $4.35USD. Awesome.

The "legendary" broken tip

Sunset on the drive to Panajachel

It was a nice conclusion to an awesome day of fishing.

The next morning, we headed over to Chichicastenango to their giant outdoor market. It was sort of intense...and I felt like a giant there, as the average height of the local folk is apparently 5'2" (Salty should have felt like Godzilla).

Someone has coffee growing in their yard. I'm jealous.

Coffee

Market day in Chichicastenango

After picking up some ingredients for our epic meal time to be held later that evening, we piled back into Fish Allen's car and headed back to Panajachel. In Pana, we ate at Chero's (again!) and then proceeded to visit...

THE BEST GODDAMNED COFFEE SHOP ANYWHERE!

(this deserves it's own post...and will get it)

But for now, here are a few more pics of Panajachel.

GODZILLA! Or, no, it's just Salty!

Street merchants saw Salty coming from a mile away...

...and not just because he's tall!

Lake Atitlan & a volcano across the way

The spread at the greatest tweet-up ever held 

The foyer at our hotel

More to come...including the story about THE BEST GODDAMNED COFFEE SHOP ANYWHERE!