31 DAYS, NO 30 – WELL, WHATEVER, CHRISTMAS IS COMING

November 30, 2009

Ever wonder how many turkeys it takes to provide Thanksgiving dinner for those who didn’t opt for ham or prime rib? I’ll bet the number is staggering. Yes. Of course I know it is tradition, but honestly I’m not all that fond of turkey. (I don’t eat trout either, much prefer lamb chops.) My preference would be salt-packed prime rib. We have a local restaurant which does it, but it can be done at home. I think it is called Salt-Crusted (or encrusted?) prime rib, if you wish to ‘Google’ one up. 

At any rate, the holiday formally dedicated to team over-eating is over and shopping at the local market, for a while at least, it back to normal. Less than 30 shopping days until Christmas - unless you shop on the Internet, which will cut down on gas consumption and road rage, not to mention finding a parking spot within hiking distance to your destination.

If you’ve had an idea of purchasing something fly fishing related for any of the people you must buy for, here are some suggestions. This idea was fueled by an email from a gentleman wanting to get someone started in fly fishing. The ‘someone’ was having some financial hard times and the person asking for help was willing to purchase the necessary items to get him started.

We all should be so lucky. At any rate he had some idea of where the giftee lived and what his fishing options were likely to be. In this case Trav did the research and found items at the local LL Bean store (the place the ‘giver’ wanted to shop). Trav recommended three outfits, all 6 wt. two were under $100 and the third $300. My personal recommendation would be similar except I would prefer a 5 weight just because it is lighter in hand and easier to ‘stop’ than the heavier rod.

I have recommended the Scientific Anglers Ready to Fish outfits many times, the rod is very acceptable, and the rest of the outfit, reel, line, leader, a couple of flies and a video to get started are just dandy. We have given several away at the Fish-Ins over the years. Cortland makes an outfit like that as well. Either of those would make a fine back-up or spare rod for friends to use when a person graduates to something else.

Another of the annual questions to us and on the Bulletin Board is which Fly Tying Kit do we recommend. Well, we don’t. That is one of those things where you get a few good things and the rest is mostly stuff you won’t ever use. We do have a super good article, listed on the Fly Tying menu, Basic Fly Tying Kit for a Christmas Gift (or any other neat opportunity) by the late Al Campbell. You will find it HERE.

Anyone who fishes with flies has received a gift from a well meaning friend or relative which is pretty useless except it has something related to fly fishing. The fiber optic lamp with trout swimming through the branches of a downed tree fits that description, along with the shadow boxes of various kinds of trout’s, or the hanging plaque with the Fisherman’s Prayer. Did I mention the tee shirt with “The Way to a Fisherman’s Heart is Thru His Fly.” A better choice would be a couple of nice fly boxes. If the person you are buying for is a fly tier you might spring for a couple empty shadow box frames where he could mount a couple of his best flies. You can find those at your local Michael’s store.

There are tons of good fly fishing books on the market, but unless you know what the person already has in their fishing library it is very easy to pick up something which looks good and find he already has it. Nothing like having doubles of books when you wish you had one you hadn’t read. Steer away from that one; you might however pick up a nice calendar with fish (trout if he is a trout fisherman, pan fish if he isn’t, and something big with teeth if he’s a saltwater angler.)

[Editor’s note: The easy way out is a gift card and then they can buy what they want.]

Not too expensive and he will think you are very thoughtful.

Since I mentioned the tacky tee shirt I do want to mention some winners. If you have a local fly shop or Cabelas store you might look for a nice fishing shirt. Long sleeved, with large cargo box-type pockets which close with Velcro. Made of a soft fabric which would dry quickly (we get wet) in an earth tone color, nothing very loud as fishermen prefer to blend in with their surroundings. Look for shirts by Sage (yes, that Sage) and Columbia. I also have a shirt by Aqua Design which looks like a summer sky - very effective on saltwater or lakes with blue sky background. It also has printed mesh ventilation action back and under arm inserts with square tails for in/out wear and sleeves that roll up with tabs to keep them up. (Same as the Sage shirts.)

Another winner is a baseball type hat. The Night Light Cap has four LED bulbs and a "click" switch built into the bill. One click illuminates the two red lights that are great for nighttime activities and preserve night vision. The second click illuminates the two white lights that work great as a hands free flashlight for finding your way off the water or through the woods. The cap is made of durable, yet lightweight nylon and is vented to help wick away moisture. Replaceable batteries included. Trav and I bought two from the folks at Chota and sent them down to Tom Travis in Florida for his son Ryan so they could enjoy the night fishing while Ryan was home on leave. Neat idea and they do work! Have someone who finally wanders off the stream or lake in the dark? Now you know what to get them.

If you are still running out of ideas, post your question on our Bulletin Board - something to the effect of: Wanted, neat Christmas gift for 45 year old bluegill fisherman. You could even designative a price limit. We have a very creative readership; you just might get some very good suggestions.

Hope you and yours had a wonderful, safe and blessed Thanksgiving. As Red Green says, “Keep your stick on the ice, we’re pulling for you.” Don’t you just love him?

LF

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