New Fishing Report

My buddy Pat and I hit the water yesterday and while we didn't pick up the large fish that we wanted to target, we did pick up an interesting mixed bag of fish.  Check out the updated "Fishing Reports" page on the right side of the home screen under the "Pages" heading.

Featured Link 7- The Story of Anton...Literary Masterpiece or Nonsense?

(Please play the video prior to reading the post.  It will help you get the full affect of the fine literature you are about to have impressed upon you.) 

 Hello there, and welcome to another edition of Master Angler Theatre.  Today we are introduced to Anton, the mythical bull.  It is a story of struggle, peril, unexpected supernatural gifts, a mythical bovine and…alright it’s kind of a strange story.  However, the people that I have shared this story with often have split opinions with some of them saying it was just weird and others saying they wish they could be Anton.  Feel free to post what you think.  Be sure to scroll down the page until you see the bull that has fly reels for eyes.  He looks like this:



I don’t know much about the guys that run the site.  It looks like they post from time to time on their blog and the posts are interesting.  There’s also a goofy video about a carp fishing tournament that was held a couple months ago.  Here’s the link:  http://isthmusflyfishing.com/about/

Lucky Hats

My first lucky fishing hat!

I believe in luck.  There it is.  I’m now on the record for saying that I believe in luck.  Half of you probably just quit reading this post, which means I can call you jerks and you won’t ever be the wiser.  Jerks!  The other half of you probably gave your computer screen a stink eye and muttered under your voice, “Well doy.”  I get it and I can’t be mad at you because you’re still reading.  Thank you and you are NOT jerks.

I need to clarify my stance on luck however.  I don’t believe that a black cat crossing your path guarantees a bad day.  I’ve walked under ladders and lived to tell the tale.  I broke a mirror once and avoided certain death although I did date a girl for way too long during that time.  Alright, so maybe a little bad luck exists.  While I don’t adhere strictly to my belief in bad luck, I do believe in good luck.  I don’t necessarily think that hanging a horseshoe above your door keeps vacuum salesmen away, but I think it can improve your outlook on things when you look at it.  After all, believing in good luck is simply an attitude adjustment.  Thinking you are lucky is a self fulfilling prophecy of sorts.  I think that if we surround ourselves with positive things, then it can affect our outlook on certain situations.   That’s why I have a lucky fishing hat.

The reigning champion.

No, I don’t believe that my hat guarantees I will catch a wall hanger every time I hit the water.  I’ve been skunked before in my lucky hat, but that doesn’t mean it has run out of luck.  It just means that the forces of evil on that particular day were more powerful than the magic that the hat possesses.  But seriously, there is a feeling that I get when I put on my lucky hat.  It makes me feel good and evokes a feeling of hope.  You should have that feeling every time you hit the water, but my hat is like having a fishing buddy.  It says to me, “Hey bud, let’s go catch some fish today.”  I do a lot of fishing alone, so maybe my hat is some sort of metaphorical companion.  I am lucky enough to have a few pictures of me holding some beautiful fish and most of the pictures have one of three hats on my head.  I am fortunate enough to have had three lucky fishing hats in my life and they all hold a special place in my heart.  I know it sounds strange that a hat can mean so much, but there are people that name their cars (the General Lee, Kit, Bumblebee, Christine, etc.) so it’s not all that strange.  I even know people that name their tablets for Pete’s sake.

While I love my lucky hats, it is important to note that you don’t pick the hat but the hat picks you.  You’ll know that you have found a lucky hat when you look back at some fishing pictures and see that you are wearing the same hat in many of the pictures.  You might even realize it when you are unloading your truck at the end of a fishing trip and toss your cap in the passenger’s seat.  For me at least, there is not a big epiphany when I have found a lucky hat.  It just kind of works its way in there. 

While you cannot pick your lucky hat, you can do some things to tip the scales in your favor.  First of all, I like to avoid mesh back hats in general.  I usually have short hair and don’t need my lucky hat accounting for early stages of skin cancer.  I also avoid hats that are trendy.  This is just a good rule in general I have found.  Think about how you would look today if your lucky hat said Von Dutch on it or had some goofy looking Ed Hardy inspired snake wearing a top hat.

NOT a lucky fishing hat!  Also, I DO NOT OWN THIS HAT!

Stick to what you know and what has staying power.  A hat of your favorite baseball team is a great place to start.  If you can get some extra mileage out of your hat by wearing on the water and at the ball game, well then that just might increase the lid’s juju.  Just make sure you account for the smell factor.  The ladies don’t like stinky hats.  You might also try a hat from a fly shop or tackle store.  Now I’m not talking about something from Bass Pro or Cabela’s.  If you get too corporate, then the luck might depend on how the stock is doing for said company.  Gas station hats are wildcards.  While I have seen some hideous hats hanging in gas stations, I have also purchased a few that still have staying power.  My hunter orange hat that has a large 01 on the front is still one of my favorite hunting hats because I loves me some Dukes of Hazard and it affords me one of my two pieces of orange required by the state of Missouri during rifle season for deer.  Finally, don’t be afraid to give a bunch of different hats an extended try out.  I have had plenty of hats that I thought had potential but petered out at the end and are now yard work hats.

The gold standard!  This was my second lucky fishing hat.

The bottom line is, I can’t tell you how to acquire a lucky hat because there is not a set of rules that nature has laid forth for this sort of thing.  All you can do is take a hat that fits you well, hit the water as much as possible with it, and see what happens.  I wish you all the luck in the world that you find one if you don’t have one.  And if you have one already, then you hold on to that sucker for as long as you can because they are few and far between.

New Fishing Report

There is a new fishing report that has been posted under the "Pages" heading.  While it was not a prolific trip in the least, I got a chance to use some new techniques and fish some new spots.

Featured Link Friday 6- Fly Fishing The Ozarks

Brian Wise, the fishing guide that operates Fly Fishing the Ozarks is an incredible fisherman. Just check out his gallery or some of his YouTube videos if you want to check his stats. While he is wildly impressive and talented when it comes to hooking fish, what I appreciate even more are his fly tying skills. He is truly an innovator and creates some amazing patterns. You can check out the videos on his site or his YouTube channel located at https://www.youtube.com/user/flyfishingtheozarks Also, they are not your typical videos. They are  fast paced, thump techno music, and have some funny mannerisms that will make you think, "What did I just see?" Anyway, check it out if you can and I don't think you will be disappointed.

Trying New Flies

Sometimes I get in a fly fishing rut and that’s not healthy.  There are times that I only fish with an olive and white wooly bugger because it looks a lot like a minnow.  Sometimes I fish a John Deere under a float because it ALWAYS catches bluegill.  I’ve gotten into a particularly bad rut at the trout parks in Missouri.  There have been a few trips over the last year that I only use my “skeleton” mini jig (that’s what my son likes to call it).  Even worse, if I don’t catch anything on my limited selection of flies, I blame the fish and just tell my fishing buddies that they weren’t biting when I share my story of woe with them.  But sometimes I choose to venture out of my comfort zone and throw a fly that I have never used before.  If I don’t catch squat with the new fly, then I simply vow to strip all of my copies of that fly down to the hook with a razor blade when I get home.  That’s not healthy either.  However, most of the time, I don’t regret the decision and often I find a new fly to add to my arsenal.  That is exactly what happened when I decided to tie on a big rabbit strip streamer last spring.

It all started when I was looking up some articulated streamer patterns on YouTube one day.  I ran across a fly that looked simple enough and whipped up a couple.  It was called an “Action Jackson” and if you want to check out the video, feel free to do so.

 

But then I got to tinkering.  I got to playing around with making the fly a single hook fly.  I played around with the collar and used some red hackle as well as webby black hackle.  I also made the body out of a white rabbit strip and pulled a olive and black rabbit strip over the top with a hook’s length of strip hanging off the back.  I changed the hook size to a large number two stinger hook.  I also got rid of the sili legs because I thought they looked out of place and forced.  Before I knew it, well I guess I had a variant on my hands.  Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not claiming to be a genius.  All fly tiers tinker with patterns and while I thought the product of my tinkering looked cool, it was unproven.  I thought it had potential though…but then again potential just means it hadn’t done jack or squat yet.  That changed one cold spring day.

I wanted to do a little pre spawn bass fishing at a farm pond that I had a lot of success on a week prior with spinning tackle.  I thought that if the bass would eat a spinner bait, then they would surely be interested in a big old streamer like my white and olive creation.  I fished for about a half hour without a bite and was about ready to commit the fly to the junk pile when I felt a definite thump come vibrating up the fly line.  Low and behold I landed a seven pound channel catfish on my variation which as far as I can remember is the biggest channel cat that I have ever landed from a farm pond.  I also landed a two pound bass for good measure.  Unfortunately, I had places I needed to be on that particular day and had to get moving but not before my new favorite fly in the whole wide world had made an impression on me.  There was only one problem.  This particular fly didn’t have a name, or should I say…it hadn’t earned a name until that day.

I had already gone through the phase where I wanted to name every variant I came up with after my first or last name.  What can I say?  I was young and egotistical at the time.  I don’t know if it is a common thing for other fly fishermen, but I can see where others might go through the same thing.  Thankfully, I grew out of that phase and came out a little more sentimental as a result.  After I had landed my fish and was satisfied with my new product, I stuck it in my hat to dry and show off to the world.  (Alright, I guess I still have a little of that ego left).  It just so happened to be that this particular hat was an Atlanta Braves hat.  From hence forth, my undulating fly became known as “The Brave”.

A wiper that I landed on The Brave.

You might have seen this picture a while back but thought I would point
out the fly the time.  This is a Brave with a little UV Polar Chenille worked
into the collar to trigger some bites on bright days.

Now that name is a little bit of a double entendre.  I have since landed many more bass when fishing the Brave along weed lines and even landed an eight pound wiper just about ten days after the big channel cat.  After it had been eaten by three different species, with some of them being a little on the big side, I thought that the fly had to be pretty brave to go where I was asking it to go.  See what I did there?  Okay, so it’s cheesy, and corny, and now I want cheesy corn, but hey man, it kind of makes sense right?  If not, whatever dude.  Don't judge me.

So what’s my point?  No, this is not a post to stroke my already overinflated ego.  The point is, don’t be afraid to get out there and throw a fly you’ve never thrown before.  There’s a pretty good chance that you will learn SOMETHING in the process.  Maybe a fly doesn’t wiggle enough or looks too skinny in the water.  Maybe you realize you need to tweak it a little in order for it to imitate what you want it to imitate. Or maybe, you your new fly becomes your new favorite fly or catches a whopper.  Heck, maybe it becomes a regular or even the new standard fly.  If I hadn’t tried new flies like a mouse, or a cone head madonna, or a backstabber then I would have missed out on a lot of fish and would have stayed in the rut I was in before I decided to give these flies a shot.

Cone head Madonna

Morrish Mouse

My boat is...really something.

 

Whenever somebody asks me if I have a boat, my response usually starts off with “Well, yeah, but it fits in the back of my truck.”  Don’t get me wrong, I love my boat.  It is representative of me in the sense that it does what I need it to do and it is not more than it needs to be.  You won’t see me shooting rooster tails on Table Rock or thumping some bass (not largemouth, the musical term) while pulling a wake boarder at the Lake of the Ozarks.  It seats one person comfortably or two people uncomfortably.  It is the perfect small boat to fly fish out of and doesn’t take up much space in my garage.  It’s perfect…for me.



In the water, loaded with gear, and ready to go fishing.

I probably need to contact the manufacturer to see if I can get on the Bass Baby payroll because I am pretty sure I have sold a few while talking to some curious strangers at the local boat ramps.  I have been approached by dozens of people and they all ask the same two questions:  1. Where did you get that?  2. Are those wheels on the back?  Respectively, I got it at Rogers Sporting Goods in Liberty, MO, and yes, those are wheels in the back.



Photo ops are a little limited in such a small boat with one person.

In most full size pickups, the boat will fit between the wheel wells and
will need to be strapped in the back with the tailgate down.

I bought this particular make and model for a few different reasons.  The first was that it was only six hundred bucks.  I have no idea what they retail for now, but if anything ever happens to my current boat, I will be buying another.  Another reason is the wheels.  They make getting down boat ramps and into farm ponds easy, especially when I am fishing alone.  It also fits in the back of my full size pickup between the wheel wells.  And while I have to leave the tailgate down when it is loaded, a couple or ratchet straps do a nice job of keeping it secure.  The overall dimensions I believe are a little over eight feet long and a little wider than four and a half feet.  These proportions ensure that the boat is really stable when I am standing in it as well as providing extra room for tackle.  Finally, it is powered by a trolling motor.  I never have to worry about getting gas, changing spark plugs, or any of that other boat maintenance that would get on my nerves.



On its side, the vessel doesn't take up much space in the garage.

On a wooden frame that has wheels on the bottom,
the boat can be moved around to its storage location.

Obviously, there are some drawbacks but they are few.  I DO NOT put this boat on any of the big lakes in the state.  I don’t want to run out of juice for the motor and get stranded because paddling this sucker is a labor intensive undertaking.  I also don’t want to get capsized when Roman Craig from The Great Outdoors comes blasting by in “Suck My Wake”.  I’m not going to be breaking any speed records with a forty five pound thrust trolling motor either.  Lastly, if I want to go fishing with three people then someone is left walking the bank…and I own the boat so it ain’t me.





So that’s my boat and I love it.  If you are ever in the market or are considering buying one, feel free to email me.  I don’t have any allegiances or profit from any sales; I just know how many fond memories it has helped create for me and is a quality product that I think you would enjoy if your applications are similar to mine.



A view from the captain's seat.

 

Thank you and a small change to the blog

Thank you, thank you, thank you.  I don't thank the readers of this blog enough, but from the bottom of my heart, thank you for taking time out of your day to view this site.  It means a lot to me that there are people that actually read some of the material that I turn out.  I've always had a desire to write and when paired with my passion for fly fishing, I find that I have a lot to write about.  Regardless of how many readers there are, I will continue to update this site with material that you hopefully find useful and or interesting.  Feel free to tell your friends about this site, but more importantly, thank you for stopping by and spending some time on the site.

On another note, there is one change that you can expect to notice about this site.  You will probably start to notice that the blog will not be updated on a daily basis during the week as I have been able to do over the last few weeks.  For those of you that do not know me personally, you should know that I am a public school teacher.  With the start of the school year looming and a new batch of students about to step foot in my classroom, I will need to scale back the posts somewhat for the next few weeks.  It is still my goal to update the blog two to three times during the week and occasionally on the weekends.  I wanted to communicate this to you because I didn't want anyone thinking that I was "phasing out" the site or was losing interest in managing the site.  It is still my goal to provide quality information, videos, posts, and stories that are either focused on fly fishing, fishing in the state of Missouri, or both when possible.  Thank you again for checking in when you can and please continue to visit in the future.  If you ever have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact me at showmeflyguy@gmail.com.

Featured Link Friday 5- Frankenfly

Alright, Mr. Frankenfly (a.k.a. Paul Beel) is just flat out cool!  From the graphics he uses to the fact that he updates his site with great content regularly, this is just a great all around blog.  He covers a wide range of topics which includes everything from salmon flies to largemouth fishing.  What I am most excited about is the Bucket Mouth League he has started.  You can find the link to this program under "Categories" down the left side of the page.  You get to send in pictures of largemouth that you land on a fly and he features some of the pictures in posts.  I've also ordered a sweet Bucket Mouth League Fly Fishers decal to go on some of my modified cigar/fly boxes.  Anyway, check out the site if you get a chance but make sure you have a little time on your hands.  There is A LOT to look at so grab a snack pack (because I know you love snack packs) and find a quiet place to geek out on some cool fly fishing stuff.  Here's your link: Frankenfly

Displaying flies

There are people in the fly fishing community that love to tie flies more than actually fish them.  An author (I forgot his name, sorry) once said that if all the fish in the world disappeared tomorrow, that some people would keep tying flies.  Maybe there is some part of our DNA left over from the cavemen that makes us want to build and construct things that will improve our quality of life.  I am a firm believer in this because I cannot tell you how many flies are in my collection that I have never fished, nor will I probably ever tie on the end of a line.  I either saw a challenge to tie a fly or had some grandiose idea about how I could catch every fish in a body of water with this new fly, even on a bad day.  Whatever the reason, there are a lot of flies in this world that will never touch a drop of water.

Another reason that some flies never get fished is because they look great to the fishermen and while they may hold a great deal of potential to the creator, the fish might not agree.  I have seen some ugly flies catch a lot of fish in my day.  I’ve even had some flies that caught a decent amount of fish but ended up catching even more fish as they fell apart and started to look ratty.  The fact that beauty is in the eyes of the beholder can be seen in other facets of mankind as well.  At some point within Ford Motor Company, a group of people actually designed, engineered, and o.k.'d the mass production of the Mustang II.  See my point.  This monstrosity might have looked good to some executives but you don’t see many being sold at Mecum or Barrett Jackson auctions.

While fly fishing is in very large part tied to science, fly tying is very much related to art.  It takes an acute eye and trained hand to take a bare hook and make it look close enough to a fish’s prey that even the fish cannot tell the difference.  That’s art!  Even Michelangelo would have to be impressed by such a feat.  So what do we do with works of art?  Well, in my humble opinion, we should put them on display for others to see.

Here are a couple of things that I have done with my flies that have either been given to me or flies that I have deemed worthy of display.  The first thing I did was to put my flies in a shadow box above some of my fishing equipment.  I included the name of the tier, the name of the fly, and the year that it was tied.  This actually serves a couple of different purposes.  The first is that it makes me laugh at how horrible of a tier I used to be.  Don’t get me wrong, I don’t plan on being published in any books or getting asked to present at any expos anytime soon, but I am a heck of a lot better than I used to be.  The second purpose is to display flies that friends have given to me.  Some are really pretty while others are some of the first flies that I helped someone tie.  Regardless, they help add to the mosaic of a developing artist and fly tier.

Yep, those are spinning rods.  There will be a post in the future that details the royal treatment the wind sticks get.

My wife also asked me recently to put some flies in some shadow boxes.  These boxes were to be placed in our basement bathroom.  Now I’m not sure if they were coincidentally planned to appear here so they could be close to water or because they are …well let’s just call them crappy.  Anyway, she gave me a couple of shadow boxes and said, “Have at it tiger.”  I found that drilling really small holes and using incredibly thin wire to attach them to the backboard seemed to work best.  Yes, fishing line would have worked better and been symbolic but I thought about that after the fact and was too lazy to go back and redo half of the project.  Anyway, I made a top water box as well as a streamer box.  Now before anyone asks, no, these are not my best fish producers.  They looked pretty and some of them have never produced a strike let along touched water.  Please refer to the sherbet colored popper for an example of a fly that doesn’t catch jack or squat.

So any who, what do you think?  Should flies be put on display or strictly be kept in fly boxes?  Feel free to leave a comment and share what you think.