Vol. 13 No. 29

SUMMER BREAM

            Summer fishing can be frustrating...or moderately successful.  Here are some suggestions for mid-year success. 
Come July the weather was will be hot .  If the heat index doesn’t get you first, the lack of fish will make you question your willingness to leave a nice cool fly tying bench.  Water temperatures in small ponds can reach into the eighties and catching fish becomes work, even at dusk. Frustration builds when a pattern produces a few fish then nothing for the rest of the summer.  Face it, it’s summer and things aren’t going to get better.

FISHING MINNESOTA

There is a lot about Minnesota Fishing that needs improvement, but it is only fair to also tell you that what is wrong is small in comparison to what is right with Minnesota.

Minnesota is the 12th largest state among the 50 states that makeup the United States of America. Minnesota is 400 mile long (north to south) and is 200 to 350 miles wide (east to west) depending where in the state you are at moment. Minnesota’s vehicle license plates say “Land of 10,000 Lake”.

UNDERSTANDING THE CADDIS

To become a more efficient angler during the caddis hatches, one must understand the caddisfly and the different stages of its life cycle.

Trichoptera means "Hair Wing". More than 200 species of caddisflies have been found in Montana waters. The adults are often called "sedges" and sometimes "moths" by the unknowing. The adults fly in a rapid and erratic manner. The sizes can vary from 8‑24. The basic colors are olive, gray, tan, brown and blackish. The adults live on the average of four weeks and tend to be crepuscular or nocturnal in nature. There are three ways that the caddis will lay their eggs:

HAPPY EASTER

For Christians around the globe Easter marks the most important event on the calendar, the resurrection of Christ. It is on this fact that Christians places their hope and faith; that as Christ was resurrected from the dead so too shall we who believe in Him be resurrected.

MORE ABOUT YOUR CASTING

Last week I must have hit a tender spot when I wrote a column titled “About your casting”. There were several nice comments on the Bulletin Board about it as well as many more suggestions for improving your casting. I’m going to include them in this column so they don’t get lost along with more ideas and comments from me.

ONE AND ZERO

The ice is melting off the ponds. It is not gone, but there is open water on some of the ponds. It is the Siren call and I head for the water, after a brief stop to get my license to be legal.

A GUIDE TO NORTH COUNTRY FLIES AND HOW TO TIE THEM

I picked up a copy of this book in November 2009 when I attended the British Fly Fair International. I love to travel and shop for fly fishing or tying books, as not all books printed in other countries make it to the markets in the United States. Even though this primarily a pattern book, it has some keen insights into fly fishing and fly tying history as well as useful tips on fishing the imitation.

THE GIFT (part 1)

Wow, a gift certificate to the famous fly-fishing school – The Far and Fine Fly-Fishing Academy. Although Ralph had never actual tried fly-fishing he had often envied those long graceful casts that he had seen fly caster make on outdoor TV shows.

AL'S KILLER SAND BASS LEECH

This was a favorite fly pattern of the late Al Crise. Thanks Al, for the fly pattern, materials, and memories. All of which will be missed!!

A WEE SCOTTISH TALE OF DAP

Thought I would run this wee story by you guys. One I composed some years ago about a youthful encounter with Dap, The Gamekeeper & a Cows Erse

Dap: The art of fishing a natural fly or grasshopper on a small bait hook poked though bushes over water & "dapped" on the surface.

HOOK AND HACKLE INTERVIEW

Ron Weiss of Hook and Hackle talks about rod building kits, and how Ron got into the rod building business.

This is a great interview covering the process of building your own rod from a kit. If you are considering building your own rod, this is a must listen. Building your own rod is much easier and quicker than you may think!

It appears that there is an increasing interest in Fish-Ins and several of the participants on the bulletin board are actively exploring holding more of these informal gatherings. A Fish-In is a gathering of fly fishing guys and gals at some strategic location where they can get together and swap lies and flies and spend time fishing nearby waters. Over the years there have been several Fish-Ins in various parts of the country and several of them have become somewhat of a tradition.

There has been some confusion about how these events come about and how they are organized. While FAOL has been an active participant in several of these events we have no active role in planning, organizing or funding these events. We are happy to provide a forum for individuals that are interesting in planning and organizing these events but we are not responsible for them. If you are interested in attending one of these events you can find more information on the bulletin board.