Boat Bass Bike Beats

Time/Date: 1320, 01-Dec-11
Location: Fredericton, NB

Anyone & everyone who is reading this should take 20 minutes & totally clean their email inbox. Delete all the unnecessary, and archive the necessary.

Or just go & declare email bankruptcy, and delete all of them.

JFDI. You'll thank me for it later.

Onto the good stuff.

Boat

I can't remember if (or how in depth) I mentioned my boat.

Right before I went to Idaho for work, a friend sent me a text saying he was selling his boat & looking to upgrade. I replied back, "how much?" My next text message was "Sold!"

The boat is a Grumman 1752 aluminum hull with a Evinrude 50hp two-stroke motor.

And I can't be happier (though I still dream of someday owning this).

Not only did I purchase the boat via text message, I also paid for it via email Interac transfers while in Idaho.

Ain't technology wonderful.

Of course, due to various travel & changing of the seasons, I only got out once in it before we winterized it. But it's ready to rock for next spring!

Bass

Of course, now being a boat owner, the logical next step would be to fish more from a boat. To facilitate that (i.e., having even more of an excuse to fish), I decided I'm going to enter a few of the local bass tournaments next year.

But I'm doing them with the fly rod.

Kicker is, rods must be less than 8' in length for tournament angling.

My 6wt Redington Predator setup, at 7'10" fits the bill nicely, and I've had considerable good fortune fishing with it already. But I wanted another bass-specific fly rig, preferably in the 7/8wt range for tossing bigger bugs and such.

To top it off, Cameron Mortenson of The Fiberglass Manifesto and his unholy army of glass geeks might have been able to brainwash me a bit on the smooth casting actions and fun fish-fighting capabilities of fiberglass rods.

So I posed Cameron the question: recommend a decent 7/8wt fiberglass rod that is under 8' in length.

He came back pretty quick with Cabela's CGR. At 7'6", it does the trick, and at $99, it does said trick quite affordably. Conveniently enough, I was in Idaho & heading back to Boise, where there is a Cabela's located pretty close by to my hotel.

Cabela's CGR. 7'6", 8wt, 3pc. My bass-buggin' rig.

I'm all about supporting your local fly shop. As much as humanly possible. But sometimes you have to bend your own rules. Especially when it comes to a 7/8wt fiberglass rod, under 8' in length, and under $100. Besides, where do you think the reel, backing, line & bass-bug fly tying materials are going to come from?

On top of that, when Chris at Fredericton Outfitters starts carrying the Sage line up this winter, do you think I'll be able to resist this?

So support your local fly shop. 97% of the time, at least.

I did get the CGR out once before things shut down for the year (same day I took the boat out for my one & only ride as a boat owner). The unholy army of glass geeks were right: it does cast smooth...once  I figured out the action & how to cast it...

Thanks, Cameron! And sorry, Chris...I won't ever do that again.

More Bass

I ordered a couple fly fishing for bass books. They should be here soon (edit: I just rec'd a call; one of them is at my local independent book seller awaiting pick up now!!)

Once I dive into them a bit, I'll share what they are & whether or not they're worth your hard-earned time & money.

Ummm....Support your local independent bookstores!

Bike

In my quest to be a cheapskate, burn less gass & save money live a more sustainable lifestyle & lessen my impact, I'm gonna try to become a bike commuter.

(Note: I'm not sure what I'll be commuting to, however. I don't work locally. I'll figure something out.)

I got in touch with Kent, local twitteratti and guru of all things pedal-driven. Never settling for something easy & always looking for something I can leave incomplete (fly tying app? learning photo editing software? building a homemade wind turbine?), I wanted to build my own bike and perhaps learn some (semi-)practical knowledge of bike maintenance.

Kent set me up with a frame, seat, fork, derailleurs, cranks, and a bunch of other thingies I don't know the name of, as well as a shopping list of other do-dads. The two local bike shops, Radical Edge & Savage's, filled out the rest of the stuff on the list. And Kent is gonna learn me how to wrench a bike this weekend.

(Note: I can't say enough about how awesome & helpful the dudes at Savage's were. Go there for all things bike. Seriously.)

Kent's asking price: fly fishing gear & local knowledge.

Mat receives: bike & bike maintenance knowledge.

For the second time this post: "Sold!"

I'll post some pics of the bike build we're doing this weekend in an upcoming post.

Ummm....Support your local bike shop!

(Sense a theme yet? This wasn't planned. Seriously)

Random Cool Thing #1

Using Google Maps to outline the route on an envelope.

Random Cool Thing #2

This piece of graffiti.

Beats

More reggae. Enjoy.

(click here if you can't see the video below)

Watch This Video

This helps explain the sort of economics vs. environment bullshit that is spoon-fed to us by a lot of people who have microphone time in the media.

Recreational resources are more valuable than the commercial consumption of resources in so many cases. Striped bass is one of those cases.

Striped Bass Gamefish from Taylor Vavra on Vimeo.


It's time to end the 'short-term gain' myopia that plagues our society. It's time to start thinking about long-term consequences of our actions...and regulators inactions, too.

Do some forward-thinking and apply this to Atlantic salmon farming. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans is an accomplice in the potential decimation of wild anadromous fish by the aquaculture industry.

Go to StripersForever.org for more information.

The Most Epic All-Encompassing Post of All Time

Time/Date: 1600, 29-Nov-11
Location: Fredericton, NB

Epic Topic #1 - Mooseknucle Lanyards

As mentioned before, I've been (periodically) writing some dispatches for Jeremy on the Mooseknuckle Lanyard blog. Well, I can say that all that hard work & perseverance has paid off...with my very own lanyard!!!

I was pretty excited to see the lanyard in my mailbox.

So excited, in fact, that I forgot that what I was really hoping to show up in my mailbox (i.e., a payment for an invoice & out-of-pocket expenses worth a lot of f**king money) didn't show up today. After three hours in the kitchen, I took the lanyard off and realized the cheque didn't show up.

But YAY! Lanyard!

I'll be rocking the lanyard on my upcoming trip to Guatemala!

Epic Topic #2 - My upcoming trip to Guatemala!

I leave in 12 days.

Not that I'm counting or anything.

I'll write more on this in the coming days, but for now, watch this. And just picture my smiling face holding one of those bad boys by the bill after catching it on a big, eff-off, 9" girly-pink popper on my fly rod.

Note, however, I will be wearing a shirt while doing this, as my fair Canadian features usually take a solid 3 months to become accustomed to sunlight, and I will not be attempting some sort of shaka/rock-star-horns-of-the-devil hand signal while holding the sailfish.

There might...might...still be a spot or two available on the trip, if you're so inclined. Get the details here.

Epic Topic #3 - Big Sugar

I got to see Big Sugar again!

They played Thursday night at the Market in Fredericton, with another Canadian act of the 90's, Wide Mouth Mason, opening for them.

It was good. Read Crash's blog about them here. He also snapped some video of the show, too; it's in that post.

As a few readers might know, Gordie Johnson is one of my four favourite musicians, Canadian or otherwise. The Grady show back in the fall of Ought-Nine was pretty epic, but I am super-pumped Big Sugar is back together & touring.

Random Big Sugar notes:

• My first Big Sugar album was 500 Pounds. I got in 1993.
• I first saw Big Sugar at the Social Club in '94 (I think). I paid $5. I was also...um...not of legal age.
• When Big Sugar played Fredericton's Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival in 2002 (?), I did not attend. However, I had a perfect listening experience sitting on my porch...4 blocks away...
• When Gordie was touring with Grady & played the pub at Zees, I was tasked to provide hospitality for them, as they were using Lava Vodka Lounge as a green room. The band autographed their Good As Dead CD for me in return. That's on my wall above my desk.
• Gordie is the only human I know who would exchange Heineken beer for Moosehead Lager (aka locally as 'Moose Green'). Moose Green is the swill we export to other places, keeping the tasty Moosehead Pale Ale ('Moose Red') & Moosehead Light for ourselves.
• Big Sugar sells earplugs at their merch table. They know they play loud, and acknowledge it accordingly.
• The band reunited to play the 2010 edition of Harvest; it was that performance that resulted in them recording new music & touring together as Big Sugar once again.

Epic.

Epic Topic #4 - Shitting Bricks

Twitter followers might have seen the following last night:

'This' in the tweet refers to this:

Yeah, that's right. I lost ("misplaced") my new Hardy reel and also very nearly had a coronary about it, as I thought it might have been in the back seat of my truck and thus lifted by some miserable prick.

It wasn't. It was in my top-secret filing cabinet drawer, with four other fly reels. Imagine.

Epic Topic #5 - Reggae music

My lovely gf & I caught a reggae show on one of the nights of our trip to Mexico. Being lame resort & such, the band stopped playing at about 11PM. By the end of the encore, I was waving Yanqui Dolla at the resort's MC to have them keep playing.

I like reggae, though I'm not that knowledgeable about it outside of the Marley's. I like this track, though.

More on this whole reggae thing in the future.

Epic Topic #6 - Cooking

I've been cooking like a pimp...if pimps were known to cook.

In the past couple weeks, I've mixed & mashed together:

• white chocolate chip & macadamia nut cookies
• chorizo & lamb chilli
• Jamaican jerk chicken tacos
• chocolate chip cookies
• Singapore curry noodles & chicken
• oven-baked flatbread sandwiches
• creamy sweet potato soup
• Mexican style agua de fruitas

Plus, I can heat up apple cider...like a pimp!

Traveling for a lot of the year meant laziness took over when it came to cooking; we usually ate out or got take out. A lot. But at $30-60 a dinner, a new fiscal responsibility has taken over.

Cooking saves money. Especially when cooking in bulk, i.e. about 4lbs of Singapore curry noodles (cost to me: about $11. Cost at restaurant for ~4lbs of Singapore curry noodles: $68).

Listening to reggae while cooking: awesomeness. Try it.

Epic Topic #7 - Purging

I'm in the midst of another purge of clutter. This will be the topic of yet another upcoming post, but for now, I highly recommend you read Dave Bruno's The 100 Thing Challenge. You can help keep the clutter down by getting it on Kindle...like I did (Kindle app for iPod Touch, to be precise). Dave's blog is here.

That's all for now.

Recycled Fish: Take the pledge!

Time/Date: 1130, 22-Nov-11

Location: Fredericton, NB

I am very pleased to announce I'm joining the team to help spread the gospel of Recycled Fish.

Through this site (and soon through WaterworksGuiding.com as well as Fredericton Outfitters & Anglers), I'll be sharing tips from Recycled Fish to help readers become stewards of our environment and live more sustainable lives.

To be blunt, a person can be a 100% catch & release fisherman, but if they live an unsustainable lifestyle, catch & release doesn't make a lick of difference.

"Our Lifestyle Runs Downstream"

Recycled Fish is different from other conservation groups. This isn't a group where a person pays their annual membership, gets a sticker for their truck window & maybe goes to a $100/plate dinner/auction once a year to feel good about themselves. Recycled Fish makes you think about how your lifestyle affects the natural environment, and provides tips & techniques to help you lessen your impact on it. 

Best part is, many tips, techniques and ideas pertaining to sustainability can save you money. Burn less gas, use less electricity = burn less money.

I'll be sharing some of the Stewardship Tips from Recycled Fish each week.

A lifestyle of stewardship means a healthier place to live. It saves money, it feels good and feels right, and it is the missing ingredient in consistently catching more and bigger fish.

"S.A.F.E. Angling"

Another project is S.A.F.E. Angling - Sustaining Angling, Fish, Ecosystems. The project is designed to get anglers the best information on how to be a steward on the water. It equips you with the practices and products you need to be a steward on the water and to practice eco-friendly fishing. Read more about it here.

TAKE THE PLEDGE!

Take Recycled Fish's Sportsman's Stewardship Pledge and start making some small but significant & positive changes to your lifestyle to make a difference.

• I pledge to live a Lifestyle of Stewardship on and off the water. Living as a steward means making choices throughout my daily life that benefit lakes, streams and seas - and the fish that swim in them - because my Lifestyle Runs Downstream.
• I will learn the fish and game laws where I hunt or fish and always abide by them.
• I will practice Catch & Release and Selective Harvest faithfully and responsibly.
• I will "police my resource" by turning in poachers and reporting polluters.
• I will make up for "the other guy" by cleaning up litter wherever my adventures take me.
• I will boat safely and responsibly, never trespass, and treat other enthusiasts respectfully
• I will provide my time, money, or other resources to support stewardship efforts.
• I will take steps to see that my home, lawn, vehicle, workplace and everyday lifestyle are as fish-friendly as I can make them by reducing my water, energy, material and chemical footprint.
• I will encourage others to take on this ethic and will connect others with the outdoors to grow the stewardship community.
• I choose to serve as a role model in protecting what remains and recovering what’s been lost of our wild and natural places.
• I am a Steward.

For more information on Recycled Fish, please visit their website. 

Follow Recycled Fish on Twitter and Facebook.

Miss me?

Time/Date: 1135 AST, 16-Nov-11
Location: Home!

To summarize:

Fishing, drinking, sleeping, eating, attending friends' wedding, feeding crocodiles, napping, reading.

My first experience at an all-inclusive resort was fairly brilliant. It rejuvenates the mind & body...to a point.

Then it definitely weakens the mind, body and soul once you pass that point. I didn't quite get there, but self-imposed detox starts today anyway.

One thing I will make clear: traveling to a resort in Mexico is NOT traveling to Mexico. What I did in March was travel to Mexico, in all its glory, guns and goats and all.

Both trips had their positives and negatives. Were I to choose one over the other...I'd take the resort over the guns & goats.

Here are a few pics.

Bridge of our blue water fishing charter

I made a friend. His name was Ed. We went fishing for baby tarpon together.

My first (baby) tarpon

Another baby tarpon...and proudly sporting my Fredericton Outfitters fishing shirt!

The gf & I weren't messing around with our 1.5L Bubba keg drinkin' mugs :)

Here's some music to celebrate my return to blogging & my semi-retired country gentleman lifestyle.

On vacation

Time/Date: 2045, 06-Nov-11

Location: soon to be elsewhere...

My field season is done, and my beautiful girlfriend & I are going to a friend's wedding down south for a week.

It's been a long (LONG!) field season, but its provided me with a lot of opportunities to travel & fish (and make a little bit of money). But now I'm on the shelf until after New Years', so I'm looking forward to being around home for two months.

(Not including the trip tomorrow and that trip to Guatemala for sailfish in December)

But yeah. Excited to be at home for a bit!

(BTW, not taking my laptop on this trip)

********

I did some tying for the trip, because this won't be a week-long, lay on the beach trip for me. I've never done an all-inclusive when I was in my booze-swilling prime (that ended in 2010) and I'm not a lay on the beach person (I get fidgety after 20 minutes), so there might be some fly rod wanderings taking place.

Gotchas!

I'll be back in 9-10 days...hopefully with some additions to my Species Journal to share.

Here's the new track from the Black Keys. Enjoy.

Random Idaho/Joseph Conrad Post

Time/Date: 1205 MST, 21-Oct-11
Location: The dark recesses of my mind, Idaho

"I watched a snail crawl along the edge of a straight razor. That's my dream; that's my nightmare. Crawling, slithering, along the edge of a straight razor... and surviving."
-  Col. Kurtz, Apocalypse Now

Seriously, though...It's not that bad here.

But I am definitely looking forward to getting home to my girlfriend, dog and friends, & finishing this field season.

Here's what's going on:

• Though I've been slack posting on here, I have posted two dispatches on the Mooseknuckle Lanyards blog. You can read them here (Dispatches from...Idaho?) and here (Dispatches from…wherever..: Red State (of mind)).
• I'm working on a new page to add here. Time is limited here due to the length of the work days & 45 minute commute each way, but I think it's gonna be kinda cool. I'll let you know when it's up. (UPDATE: the page is up. It's called Species Journal. Give it a look)
• I'm getting slightly concerned with the aquaculture industry on both coasts. Read this article from the Atlantic Salmon Federation's journal & judge for yourself. Weigh in on the comments section if you so desire.
• Travel: besides getting home from Idaho, there's a trip to Mexico for my friends' wedding in early November (Yucatan bonefish, maybe?) and a sailfishing trip to Guatemala in mid-December. And I'm having dreams of (more) redfish and tarpon, so we'll see how that works out.

Here's some music.

On ending slumps.

Time/Date: 2220, 10-Oct-11
Location: Yellow Pine, Idaho

A picture says a thousand words.

A picture of a tweet with a picture says 2000 words...plus up to 140 characters on top of that...

Three fish brought to hand during a 45 minute lunch break. Slump over.

Thank you, Idaho.

And to Matt for sending me here to work.

Now to fish more to justify that $96 fishing license.

On slumps.

Time/Date: 2300 MST, 06-Oct-11
Location: Yellow Pine, Idaho

I'll be honest: this post might not apply to the occasional weekend warrior that fishes every second or third Saturday morning for a few hours. I understand (without any sort of prejudice at all) that, while you enjoy fishing, it's not high on the priority list; wives/kids/jobs/household chores/whatever have to be attended to before fishing can be even thought of.

This post is more for the three or four or more times a week guys & gals that are obsessed with fly fishing. Out on the water, fishing hard, for hours on end, for days at a time.

And not catching anything.

My recent (current?) slump started precisely when I released my second Atlantic salmon ever. Which happened approximately 15 minutes after I released my first Atlantic salmon ever. I was feeling pretty good about myself (you can read about it here).

Two days later, I was back at it again.

Cast. Mend. Swing. Step. Repeat.

Hours go by, but, hey, this worked the other day. I did my homework. There were fish around, too; they were jumping throughout the run & the pool. A tug! Damn, it didn't take. Oh well, there's fish around, though!

This is the first stage of slumps: overconfidence, bordering on delusion. It's almost karma that a slump is starting.

Cast. Mend. Swing. Step. Repeat.

Days go by. Changed flies. Changed leaders. Changed spools. Adjusted speed of swing. Started dead-drifting bombers. Flies are changed more frequently. Back to swinging.

Slump, stage two: self-doubt.

Cast. Mend. Swing. Step. Repeat.

Rain for a couple days didn't stop me, nor did the high water from the rain. But it slowed me down. And I started swearing.

The fish are still jumping, though. All over the place.

Stage three: annoyance

Cast (casts start falling apart).

Mend (and mend and mend and mend...and yank the fly out of the fish's mouth).

Swear (did I mention I'm now swearing aloud, and fishing by myself? Great for tourism...).

Swing (fly's hung up on a boulder...give it a tug...fish comes up with it...the fly comes loose in midair).

Swear (again).

Step (and slip).

Swear (again),

Repeat (for 12 out of 15 days).

Stage four: anger & self-loathing.

********

Based on numerous experiences, in life and in fishing, firsthand or secondhand, the following are possible outcomes from here:

• the slumping angler finally catches his fish, and falls to his knees sobbing with tears of joy & elation;
• the slumping angler tells off all the Atlantic salmon (and, inadvertently, the two elderly anglers) within earshot, and goes fly fishing for smallmouth;
• the slumping angler, in a moment of frustration, purposely makes his Helios rod from a 4-piece rod to a 12-piece rod;
• the slumping angler, tired of seeing photos of fish in magazines, books a flight, hotel & guide in New Orleans for sight fishing for redfish.

Wanna guess what two-and-a-half out of four outcomes I've done?
(hint: I don't own an Orvis rod).

********

This is the part that might lose me a few fans...well, I don't have any fans, but it'll probably cause a few people to think of me differently.

The following are things I hold to be true, and they tie in quite well with slumps:

"Well, you know...it's just being out there, enjoying the fresh air and nature and stuff...."

Bollocks.

If I wanted to just enjoy fresh air and nature and "stuff," I would own a backpack and a pair of hiking boots, and that's it. Or maybe a bicycle. Or maybe I'd go sit on a park bench with some breadcrumbs for birds.

I would not own a 3-weight, a 5-weight, a 6-weight, an 8-weight (4-piece), an 8-weight (5-piece), an 8-weight (2-piece fiberglass), a 10-weight, and a 12-weight. I would not be standing privates-deep in 50°F water in the rain in 25mph wind gusts. I would not be collecting Aeroplan & Alaska Air points like some sicko hoarder from reality television for future fishing adventures & schemes.

I do this because the pulse of energy, transmitted from leader to line to rod to me, when a fish takes my fly, is my crack-cocaine.

I fish to catch fish. It's what I live for (now).

And then I let them go. All of them.

"You know what they say: a bad day fishin' is better than the best day at work!"

I say this one myself sometimes. For me, it's largely true: I'd rather fish and get skunked than be at work.

But when it's howling wind, sideways rain, four or five degrees above freezing, and there's a better shot of not catching a fish than catching one...add in waking up at 4AM, spending over $100 on gas (and $35 on beef jerky?!) in three days, arguing with your girlfriend about fishing, losing flies, and chipping your windshield....

...maybe it's just better for you to go to work.

"10% of the anglers catch 90% of this fish."

I don't know if this is true or not.

If it is, I want to be in that 10%. Honestly, I want to be even better than that.

I'm not there...yet. But I'm trying my damnedest by learning one or two new things to help me reach that goal each day.

It's just this effin' slump is getting in my way.

"You can't catch anything without a hook in the water."

Yup.

That's why I go fishing in howling wind, sideways rain, when it's four or five degrees above freezing, and there's a better shot of not catching a fish than catching one. And why I don't mind waking up at 4AM, spending over $100 on gas and $35 on beef jerky in three days; and I deal with arguing with my girlfriend about fishing, losing flies, and chipping my windshield....

You're not from Texas...

...but the guy who wrote the following post is.

And so are the fish that he writes about.

This is a guest post by the one & only Brandon Robinson (finally!!). Brandon is the brains behind FlyStock and is a fairly prolific freelance blogger. You can find Brandon on twitter (@OneBugIsFake) and see a directory all of his guest posts on his website.

Not only did he write this kick-ass piece on his home waters, Brandon even chose the music to accompany the post!

Thanks, Brandon!

********
BRUSHY CREEK UNLIMITED - THE GUADALUPE BASS
A guest post & photography by Brandon Robinson

How often can an angler say that he catches fish found no where else on earth?  Okay, there are a bunch of Cutthroat guys that can say that, but who else?  There are two species here in Central Texas, more specifically the “Edwards Plateau ” river systems that can say that about.

One is the Rio Grande Perch, which isn't a perch at all.  In fact, it is a cichlid, and according to those smarter than me, it is the only cichlid native to these United States.  They are ferocious fighters, can grow up to a pound and a half, and can be readily taken on a fly.  They aren't my favorite fish here, but I do love to catch them.

The other fish is the Micropterus treculii, the official State Fish, the Guadalupe Bass, or Guad for the cool kids.  Again, according to those smarter than me, the Guadalupe Bass is only found in a smaller region of the “Edwards Plateau” than the cichlid.  This is a fish that prefers to feed on insects and smaller baitfish when they are in their predatory prime, rather than other sunfish.  This of course, makes them different than your regular bass, perfectly suited to be targeted on the fly.  So much so, that fly fishermen call them the “Texas Trout”, out of fondness for the little waterborne creature. This was an amazing thing for a brand new fly fisherman to discover.

I first started fly fishing after a month or so trying to regain some semblance of skill with conventional tackle.  The girlfriend (at the time) and I had just watched 'A River Runs Through It' when she let on that fly fishing was something that interested her.  I've always harbored a crush on the art as well, but only a crush.  To me fly fishing was an untouchable movie starlet or magazine darling, and I was content on just watching the movie over and over.  Being the spectacular type of boyfriend that I am though (ladies...?), I did some research for the girlfriend's benefit and discovered a wealth of information and supplies nearly at our door step.  The shop owner was a young fly-savant, and the son of a preacher.  I nicknamed him Brad Pitt, logically.  She was excited at my discovery, but wanted to wait for lessons.  I didn't.

My birthday came around, and while I rarely celebrate the event, it seemed like a good enough reason to justify jumping the gun and buying a fly rod without the previously agreed upon lessons.  Forty-five for the rod, fifty-five for the reel, sixty for the line, and ten dollars in flies later, I was in the water of a little creek right by the house called Brushy Creek.  After succeeding in getting one “Dee Snider ugly” cast out in front of me, I watched my dry fly disappear behind a small splash.  It was then I realized I had hooked my first fish, as well as my soul.  I was never going back.  In two years I have fished and re-fished as much of that creek as possible, and have brought to hand many species of fish from her depths and shallows. Nothing in that river compares to catching our two native celebrities.

Like little bundles of nuclear lightning, Guadalupe Bass are some of the hardest fighting fish known to freshwater.  They are the kings of their environment and they use every inch of the river to fight against you.  Naturally, they have no natural predators to speak of, their biggest challenge is something well known to you Cuttie-Freaks, hybridization.  Particularly with Small Mouth and Spotted Bass.  Hope exists; recently the State has begun to stock genetically pure Guads in certain waters, they have also stopped stocking non-native bass in those areas and thankfully, many others.  These little guys are tough, and there is some water in which they have outlasted the small mouth invasion.  Where exactly that is, is a closely guarded secret.

Generally speaking, I spill my secrets.  I will tell you everything, every little piece of intel I know on the subject.  Provided of course; that I discovered the information, when we meet you have a fly rod in your hand, or we are in a fly shop.  If intelligence is entrusted to me however, I don't share it but with a certain accepted few.  This is one of those areas, not discovered but entrusted.  A pristine flowing creek, not far from town, that is chock-full of Guads.  In four fishing trips there, I have yet to see a single largemouth caught or swimming.  Because of that fact (and the eating habits of sizable Guads), bait-dunkers and key-chuckers believe it to be a bad fishery and leave it alone.

But let me tell you, it is fly fishing heaven.  I can tell you the name of the creek: Brushy.  My home waters, my own fly-fishing 'school of hard knocks', and absolutely the most beautiful creek in Central Texas.  When you fish this area, you know you are in a magical place.  Wind may be howling, but down in the water, you are largely protected from it.  It lives up to its name though, so your 9' four weight is for the birds.  Literally, in the trees is where you'll spend most of your time.  As fun as Tenkara sounds, I can't imagine welding a eighty-nine foot fairy wand out here either.  I can tell you, this is where my Eagle Claw shines.

After spending a small fortune in gas traveling to find water, I wanted to fish locally.  I had thought Brushy to be off the radar due to our current shortage of dihydrogen-monoxide, however I intercepted some chatter at the fly shop that gave me hope.  I decided to act on it.  Despite the 88th day or so of 100+ degree heat, and the tropical storm strength winds, in my gut I knew the fishing would be good.

What happened in those few short hours with my fiberglass four weight, Morrish's Small Fry, and a couple of Backstabber variants, was a refreshing reminder of why fly fishing is such an amazing way to fish, and while Texas will never replace Florida as my home: Brushy Creek will always be my home waters.  Given the current worth of a picture, and allowing for the Canadian/US exchange rate I present to you, a weeks worth of verbage, in these pictures...

 

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