2011 Show Season is Officially Underway!

Well the 2011 show season is officially underway, well for me at least.  This past weekend found me at the Marlborough Fly Fishing Show.  I was there manning The New Fly Fisher booth in support of the Newfoundland & Labrador Outfitters Association (NLOA) as part of the episodes we filmed there in the summer of 2010.

The Marlborough Booth Just Prior to Show Opening

Our adventure began on Wednesday January 12 as James Sidney, one of our cameramen, and I travelled from Ottawa to Marlborough.  The weather was less than friendly and we were driving straight into the Boston area for what would appear to be just in time for a major snow storm.  We didn’t have to travel far to find snow as it began in earnest just down highway 416 from Ottawa.  By the time we crossed the border and travelled down the secondary highways along the west slope of the Adirondacks winter was in full force!  James and I began to wonder if we might have to pull over and spend the night to ride out the storm.  Looking back the snow coming down on the rural farms was beautiful and scenic, almost postcard like.  I should have taken some pictures but we didn’t want to stop and both hands were on the wheel to allow for any ‘drive by’ images.

As we passed through Utica, New York the clouds lifted and things looked brighter.  The roads were clear and we began to make up lost time.  We ran into a few other snow squalls that made for an interesting drive.  Snowflakes’ coming at you in full force at night reminds me of the jump to hyper-space in Star Wars! 
Snow ploughs were out in full force and by the time we arrived in Marlborough at around 8pm Streets were clear and with the exception of the snow banks along the road you would never had known there had been a major snow fall.  Luck was on our side as we were travelling just behind the leading edge of the front.  The Boston area received over 20 inches of snow and we were fortunate to miss it.  The rest of the weekend featured beautiful blue banner skies and crisp temperatures.

During the show I presented a couple of destination seminars on the Atlantic salmon opportunities in Newfoundland and Labrador along with a presentation on the trophy brook trout Labrador is famous for.  Saturday’s programs were particularly well attended.  Feedback from show attendees was unbelievably positive.  It seems The New Fly Fisher is well known through our WFN and NESN broadcasts.  
I managed to catch up with a few friends at the show such as Jeff Currier and make a few new ones in the process.

James is a great caster and our location adjacent to the casting pond was perfect for him.  During his breaks he managed to get up there on one occasion showing everyone his soon to be famous Sidney Shoot!

James Demonstrates His Soon To Be Famous 'Sidney Shoot'!

This weekend coming up finds me at the Somerset show, the world’s largest fly fishing show.  It is a show I have always wanted to visit.  We will be there once again in support of NLOA and the shows we filmed.  If you are in the neighbourhood please drop by.

Pause and Reflection-Thoughts on 2010 & 2011

As the holiday season winds down and 2011 begins it is time to pause and reflect on 2010 and look forward to what 2011 offers.

2010 was one of my busiest years.  A situation I enjoyed and one I want to build on for 2011.  My travels took me all over North America, from coast to coast.  Over the course of the year my role as one of the co-hosts of the New Fly Fisher T.V. show took me to Nanaimo B.C. to film with long time friend Brian Chan, Red Deer and Edmonton Alberta, Labrador, Newfoundland and Montana.  I managed my first Atlantic salmon on the fly.  Topping it off with a 39” 15 pound nickel bright salmon on a 7 weight, definitively a fish I was not expecting!   While filming in Red Deer we landed right in the middle of the Hexagenia or ‘Hex’ emergence.  Large browns sipping huge duns and spinners were a sight to behold. As the light faded to a level too low to film we, including James our cameraman, transformed into excited kids as though it was Christmas morning as we cast to huge browns slurping and gulping well into the evening.

Big browns and 'Hex's' in central Alberta

My trip to Montana was one I had wanted to make my entire life.  Chasing gulpers on Hebgen Lake was a dream come true.  A definite ‘bucket list’ event!  I can’t wait to return.  Not only to fish the region’s lakes but to continue exploring some of its blue ribbon rivers and streams too!  

Fishing with Bob Jacklin in Montana was a pleasure

In addition to my New Fly Fisher filming I also appeared as a guest on the fledgling BC Outdoors Sports Fishing show, currently airing on W.F.N.  Together with editor and host Mike Mitchell I filmed a total of three episodes and look forward to filming more in 2011. 

2010 also saw an increase in the number of seminars and club presentations.  Amongst the highlights included a fall stillwater school in California , a stillwater school on scenic Fortress Lake and two hosted trips to the Parklands region of south-western Manitoba.  Please see some of my previous blog entries for complete reports on these trips.  The trips and seminars proved successful and rewarding for both me and my students.  I will be returning to these regions again with an expanded presence while introducing you to additional regions as well.  Instructional guiding on the lakes around north central Alberta will also continue in 2010 so if you are in the area and your plans allow contact me.

2011 is already booking fast and a number of months, such as June, are already full of seminars and trips.  I will be heading back to the Parklands region once again hosting both a weekend and week-long trip.  The week-long event is already full just through word of mouth!  I will be providing additional details regarding the weekend event shortly.  Limited to a maximum of 12 anglers, my Prowling the Parklands hosted trips include food, accommodation, seminars and one on one instructional time with me.  At this time the Parklands region offers arguably the finest stillwater fly fishing in North America.  You have the chance to trade blows with large fat rambunctious rainbows, browns and tiger trout in an unbelievably un-crowded setting.

Big browns, rainbows and tiger trout await in the Parklands region of S.W. Manitoba

As a result of the positive feedback we received in 2010 I will be joining Jeff Currier and Pete Erickson in March as we provide another weekend fly fishing seminar in Boise, Idaho.   Our seminar will provide detailed comprehensive instruction on a variety of subjects including warm  and salt water fly fishing, Euro nymphing, advanced stillwater techniques, hands on knot tying, casting instruction and much more.  Additional details are forth coming shortly.

I will once again be providing seminars at Fortress Lake Retreat, a weekend event in July and a week-long session in September.   The September session will have a specific focus on sight fishing for Fortress Lake’s trophy brook trout.  The sight of a huge brookie pouncing on your fly right before your eyes burns into your psyche forever, please join me if you can!

Join me at Fortress Lake Retreat in 2011!-Photo Courstesy of Dave Jensen

In May I will be travelling south to California once again for another stillwater school.  As with my fall 2010 session I will be working with Bill Forward from Forward Bound Guide Service.  I am looking forward to this event as chironomids, Callibaetis and damsels should all be beginning to stir.

I will also be working with Brian Chan and Mike Mitchell from B.C. Outdoors Sports Fishing magazine providing the popular Learning with the Pro’s stillwater seminars.  This year we will be at Ruddock’s Ranch in early June and Roche Lake Resort in September.  Our September event, as was the case in 2010, will have a definite advanced flavour to it.

Please visit my Calendar page on my site and stay tuned for specific blog and Facebook entries regarding each seminar.  I hope to have these completed shortly.

Response to my on-line store proved positive in 2010.  The addition of my latest book, Stillwater Selections and DVD filmed with Brian Chan, Learning with the Pros-Stillwater Fly Tying-Volume I was well received.  A number of you picked up autographed copies as Christmas gifts.  There will be another planned expansion in 2011 offering access to additional specific stillwater products so please stay tuned for these announcements as soon as they are firm.  I am hopeful for an announcement on the first level of expansion as soon as late January or early February.  A few additional details are awaiting to be finalized.

I wish everyone all the best for 2011 and hope you manage to squeeze an extra day or week on the water.  Explore a different region or chase a different species if you can.  The lessons learned often transfer back to what you are familiar with making you a better angler in the process.  Hopefully I will see you on my travels in 2011 and perhaps we can spend some time on the water together!

Season's Greetings

It’s hard to believe another year has almost past.  Man, as I get older the years fly by faster.

White and bright!

We have lots of cold weather and snow here in north central Alberta.  We will definitely have a white Christmas.  Right now it is -16C outside but the beautiful blue skies and sun lights everything up.  It’s weird having to wear sunglasses when I go out in sub-zero conditions.  Our dog sure seems to love it.  Ploughing through the snow is a favourite sport with her. 

No fishing for a while yet!

Tessa is now nearly a year old.  She is full of energy and loves to get into everything she can.  I am already looking forward to her joining in the boat with me next season.  Hopefully she stays in and doesn’t use it for a diving board like she did on her first trip out earlier this year.

2011 promises to be as busy as 2010, maybe even busier, no complaints though! I am just putting the finishing touches on my school and seminar schedule.  My travels will once again take me across North America.

Based upon your feedback and requests there will also be some new additions to my on-line store. As soon as things are concrete I will let everyone know.

Right now I am busy catching up on some writing assignments with a number of others pending.  I am looking forward to kicking back and relaxing between Christmas and New Year’s, watching Premier League Soccer and the World Junior hockey championships. 

I wish everyone who follows my Blog or through my Facebook page the very best over the holiday season.  Thanks once again for your emails, kind words of support and best of all your stories.

Best of the season!

New Additions to Fly Craft Store!

As probably most of you are aware, this past year I updated my website.   It was time for some changes and a facelift.   Based upon the number of requests I had received for my books, DVD’s and Quick Release Indicators a component of this facelift included a Store page.  My Store page seems to be a positive addition as indicated by the positive feedback it has received.

Plans are in the works to add a variety of other products to this page so stay tuned.

The first step in my planned expansion is the addition of my latest book, Stillwater Selections and DVD, Learning with the Pros-Tying Stillwater Flies Volume I.  As with the book, Stillwater Solutions Recipes my latest DVD is a joint venture with good friend Brian Chan.  Both of these items are now available via my site both individually and as a combo.  The combo packages offer a savings of over 10% as compared to the individual prices of each item within the combo package.  You can watch a short ‘teaser’ of the Learning with the Pros DVD below.

I have also added combo packages for my first book Fly Patterns for Stillwaters and DVD Tying Fly Patterns for Stillwaters along with my second book Stillwater Solutions Recipes-Volume I and DVD Tying and Fishing Stillwater Flies.  Each DVD contains in part many of the patterns featured in each of the books they are partnered with.

Please visit my on line store for more information on both my new book and DVD along with my previous titles.

The Perils of Social Media

Social media has become part of our everyday lives.  Facebook, Twitter and blogs are just some of the avenues we have at our disposal.  The world now communicates and markets itself in a totally new way.  I have become a fan of Facebook and the benefits it offers and of course I enjoy communicating through my blog.  But for the pros of social media there are also a few cons. 

One of my good friends chose not to have a personal Facebook page.  Someone however, decided he should.  As part of bet with friends this person set up an erroneous page.  The goal of the bet was to see who could have the most friends by the end of a set period.  I was first alerted to this when my friend asked me to become his friend via Facebook page.  I did not accept, feeling something wasn’t right as through prior discussions my friend had stated that he wasn’t interested in having a Facebook presence.  After a quick phone call it was clear my friend was being misrepresented.  His page was gathering lots of friends who were asking questions of him.  In some instances these questions were answered!  I, along with a few other mutual friends reported the site to Facebook via the report/block feature at the bottom of the page.  Another friend went on the page and posted that the page was false.  His posts were removed by the originator of the page!  Despite these efforts the page remained and his list of friends continued to swell.

Finally, the originator of the page contacted my friend via email advising him of what he had done and why.  Hoping that my friend would approve!  This person even suggested to my friend that he continue with the page and what he had set up.  My friends response was swift and to the point.  His privacy, integrity and reputation were placed at risk and my friend asked him to terminate the Facebook page immediately.  My friend also asked for him to contact of the ‘friends’ to let them know that the page was false prior to shutting it down.  Fortunately my friend’s request was granted and the page has since been shut down. The issue resolved to my friend's satisfaction.

So despite the benefits of social media there are still a few out there who have their own unique version of how things should work.  Be wary. If you see or experience something like this yourself take the steps to make sure it stops and if possible so it can’t happen again.  Make sure your privacy settings on Facebook for example are set for what you want the world to see or not see.  Learn all you can it pays to be educated.

Haig-Brown Symposium

This past weekend saw the last of my planned seminars and appearances speaking at the Haig-Brown Fly Fishers Symposium.  Over 200 people attended the two day event having the chance to see a number of quality speakers including Brian Chan, Skip Morris, Peter Morrison, Dana Sturm, Don Freschi, Tom Johansson, Todd Oishi and me.  Talks began at 9am on both Saturday and Sunday.  I provided sessions on How to Find Trout in Stillwaters and a Hatch Guide for Lakes. 

The Haig-Brown club was top drawer in their organization and providing a great environment for the speakers.  Saturday night for example they organized a pizza and beer event for speakers and attendees to mingle.  This symposium runs every two years so if you are in the neighbourhood in 2012 make a point of sitting in.  There should be lots to learn!

Knee deep on a Vancouver Island Beach

In addition to the symposium I had the chance to spend a day on the water chasing sea run cutthroat trout.  Barry Stokes from Islander Reels and I explored a couple of beaches in the Victoria area.  The weather was pleasant and we bumped into a few other friends who were taking advantage of the sunny conditions.  Cutthroat were present, which is always an issue as these fish are notoriously nomadic.  Chasing sea run cutthroat is more of an experience trip rather than one of numbers.

The social aspect of beach fishing for cutthroat

We used either Aqualux lines or in my case Rio’s Outbound hover and small minnow patterns.  Barry managed to land a beautiful 18-inch sea run on one of his neat streamers.  Small forage fish such sculpins are popular forage items for these beautifully spotted fish.  

Barry lands a nice cutt!

A unique seaside home

Casting flies knee deep on a gently sloping beach is both relaxing and therapeutic.  During our day we saw a variety of wildlife including sea birds, harbour seals and on one beach a family of seven otters came down to inspect what we were up to.  Unfortunately they did not get close enough to snap a picture.  Beautiful creatures they are we all wondered what toll they took on the local cutthroat population.

Sea run cutthroat are gorgeous

Sea run cutthroat are fragile and as they often spawn in tiny creeks and trickles they are susceptible to urbanization and development.  Creeks most wouldn’t know existed or be aware of their significant importance as spawning and rearing habitat.  As new developments are built these small creeks are often manipulated and in some instances in the past filled in.

Final Fall Fling?

On the Prowl for Pike-Photo Courtesy of Bill Gouge

So far this November I have been blessed by clear skies and relatively warm temperatures.  You know the kind that makes you wish you were on the water.  I am still busy with seminars but I did manage to sneak out on one of my local lakes for some late season pike on the fly.  Joining me was my friend Bill who had purchased a trip with me through a Trout Unlimited Canada donated trip I had provided in 2009.  Each year I donate a number of guided trips to Trout Unlimited Canada to support their efforts to conserve, protect and restore Canada’s coldwater resources.

Shoot to Target-Photo Courtesy of Bill Gouge

We had tried getting together only a few weeks before but cold windy conditions made use think otherwise.  On this day Bill and I were greeted by light winds, highs of 10C and beautiful sunny skies.  In the past my local lake had a warm water discharge that concentrated baitfish attracting lots of large nasty pike.  The plant that generated the discharge closed its doors and my pike magnet was gone.  The channel the outflow created has grown over and after an hour or so of prospecting we had nothing to show for our efforts.  I was a bit disappointed that things had changed but in many ways it was good that I would have to explore and learn new areas of the lake.

Bill's First Pike on the Fly

Thankfully my efforts paid off and Bill, who had never caught a pike on the fly, was rewarded with a decent fish, the best we would get for the day.  Bill got his fish on a variation of a Fire Tiger Half N Half I tied using Super Hair.  It got pretty beat up during the fight but thankfully synthetics comb back into shape pretty quickly.

Pike are Tough on Flies

We were using 9 and 10 weight rods, floating lines and Rio’s Toothy Critter leaders to start.  Once we had consumed the wire tippet after a few pattern changes I replaced it with some of Rio’s 20lb Knottable Bite Tippet.  Rio’s Knottable Bite Tippet is outstanding, durable and a dream to tie knots with.   Rio's Bite Tippet is so flexible and user friendly that I use my favorite knots that I use for traditional nylon and fluorocarbon leaders. 

The Knottable Bite Tippet also has a secondary function that some might not be aware.  It is excellent for large articulated flies such as those developed and popularized by Kelly Galloup.  It also works well for Intruder style patterns too.

I Almost Have It!-Photo Courtesy of Bill Gouge

It was an articulated pattern that I was experimenting with that lead to my getting my right thumb into a place it shouldn’t go.  One of my favorite patterns for pike is an all white Popsicle Leech.  I wanted to make a larger version of this proven pattern and after meeting and talking with Kelly Galloup I knew that articulation was the only way to go.  I decided to leave both hooks on the fly which in hindsight wasn’t quite the way to go as removing the trailing hook proved challenging as the pike refused to let go.  I am not a big fan of jaw spreaders as I worry about their effect on the pike and most times I end up loosing them when the pike shakes its head.  They spring free and pinball of the boat and typically end up in the water.  Often I am able to get my fingers under the chin flap of the pike causing it open just enough to reach in with a large pair of forceps and remove the fly.  So I began to work on getting my fly free.  I started by holding the pike in the water using my right hand.  Although I am left handed I have evolved into a hybrid of sorts doing many things right handed such as using forceps.  Somewhere in transferring pike between hands and fumbling with the forceps and fly my right thumb ended up in the center of the pikes mouth, as though it was sucking it.  It wasn’t too painful but those things can exert a fair bit of pressure.  The one thing not to do was pull my thumb out as this would have made a right mess. Part of my guiding includes education but this might have been taking things a bit too far.  Now the jaw spreaders came out and with a few seconds I was able to extricate my thumb.  I had a number of ‘pinholes’ on either side of the thumb and I was squirting blood for a few minutes which delayed my preparing lunch. Bill thought it was pretty funny, as did eye.  Thankfully it wasn’t a larger fish or my new nickname might have become ‘Stumpy’!

No Harm No Foul!-Photo Courtesy of Bill Gouge

It looks like now my season has drawn to a close, as there are lots of snow icons appearing on the weather forecast.  I am looking forward to the down time so I can turn my guns on planning and preparing for the 2011 show and fishing season.  I am sure if the weather warms up a degree or two so it is tolerable I might sneak out to find some open water somewhere.