I caught my first chinnok salmon and hooked my first steelhead on my fly rod last week. I only started fly fishing 5 years ago so I have alot of catching up to do. Thanks to FAOL, I have learned so much about the sport that I feel confident enough to go after any species. It seems like the more I fly fish, the more I want to catch different species on my fly rod as opposed to “just the biggest”. When I only spin fished I didn’t seemed too concerned about the species I caught. Some of my nature loving friends are bird watchers and they keep a “life list” of the different species of birds they have seen. I am considering doing this with the fish I catch on the fly rod. Does anybody out there keep a “on the fly” Life List?
Sugar maple
Fruit bat
White Birch
Silver Birch
Cormorant
Horseshoe crab shell
Plastic bag
Beaver dam
Oak leaf
Bridge piling
Blue flannel shirt from LL Bean with occupant
Coil of monofilament with rusted hook
Brown stick
Green bush
Red channel marker
72 species of fish at least on the fly so far. 42 of those in California of which 32 were caught in Southern California Waters south of Los Angeles. The majority of the California caught fish were saltwater species but include 12 freshwater and 2 anadromous species. I only counted the various varieties of rainbow and cutthroat trout that I have caught as 1 species each . 26 species were caught on one three week trip to Australia. 4 species on one trip to Canada.
I think the most species I have ever caught in one day was 7 - on San Diego bay
There are at least another dozen species that I could expect to catch in southern California that I have not caught so far including bluefin tuna, dorado, white sea bass, carp, smallmouth bass, redear sunfish and others
There has also been fair hooked mollusks (squid, clams) , crabs, and crayfish.
I have been flyfishing for 15 years.
The number of species I have caught is just a reflection of where I have fished and not the result of any sort of goal. I started tracking just to show people how diverse our California fisheries are. I don’t consider this race. I have seen some pretty cool fish though.
If all I ever caught was bluegill, I’d still be happy.
peregrines,
I love your list. You need to send me the patterns for the flies that can catch such a diverse list. I have found grasshopper and ant patterns very effective on oak leaves.
caribe
PS Tailingloop… You have an amazing list. Having access to saltwater is can really add the variety, but, I love your blue gill comment.
Try to keep it under your hat, but in saltwater I?ve had pretty good luck with sparse Lefty?s Deceivers on large whistle buoys at the mouth of inlets, regardless of tide. Size 2/0 blue over white, with a little pearlescent crystal flash in the tail seems to be the ticket.
Your thread got me thinking, and on reflection it?s the fish I haven?t caught yet that stand out?. Golden Trout, Coho, Smallmouth and Muskies in particular. And though I?ve caught ?bows and winter steel, I?d love to land a McCloud rainbow or a Skamania (summer) steelhead on a dry fly. Some exotics like Mongolian Taimen or huge Nile Perch in Africa that I?ll never get to, also fire up the imagination
Tailingloop, great list, and you?re right about those bluegills.
Brad,
Although we had pictorial evidence of the incident, we were WAITING for a confession. We now have THAT ( to wit, your post). Papers regarding same are in the mail to your attorney/s.
Ahaaa! Just goes to show ya, patience pays.
Here is however, an offer to mitigate the matter. A box of flies ( preferably dry- small) in quantity of no less than 12 dozen. Several ( vast quantities) furled leaders ( lighter wts.) A $100 gift certificate to an Albertson’s Liquor dept. ( to help forget the whole ugly matter). Ahahh, and I almost forgot, a large jar of pimento stuffed olives ( “SELECT” size of course).
Please consider the above proposal so that we may let this matter " pass under the bridge".
I catch a lot of “self” the last time my lovely wife acccompanied me to the Umpqua. she came down to the river to check on me and found me trying to get a size 14 beadhead Zug out of the middle of my back.
She saved me, it was catch and release, and I love mashed down barbs…ModocDan
Although I do check off my birds, it never occurred to me to keep a list of fish caught.
Too much like counting I guess.
There are a few fish I look forward to catching in the future, like some of the saltwater speedsters.
'Till then, I’m just happy when I get a nice one, of any kind.
I don’t actually keep a list, guess maybe I should. By now it would be a long one, even if I left off the inanimate objects. But I always keep an eye open for opportunities to meet new species face to face. I finally got to add northern pike to my list this year, for instance. Just out of curiosity, does anyone keep a similar record of the places they catch their fish? The diversity of types of water I can fish in also intrigues me.
