Why do I go into these blanking spells.

So to say it has been a rough couple weeks on the water would be an understatement. I never really have been all about catching the fish, and if I blank here or there I just see it as God keeping me honest. The time on the river makes me happy, but also allows me a lot of time to think. It is funny where your mind goes when you are on the water. Sometimes I just end up going though conversations in my head, sometimes I try to think like the fish I am trying to catch. This past Saturday I slept in a little and only hit the water at a quarter till 9. That is a late start for the area I was fishing and I knew it made my morning that much harder. To top it all off Sarah was finishing up her CPE program that day so I wanted to be home a little after lunch.

some river shots from a slippery rock

Knowing my luck lately I decided to go to a spot that I knew would produce and I would not be running into too many people. The problem with this spot is you need to cross some slippery rocks to get there. I made it to my spot and then knowing that I had blanked my last three or four times out I decided to sit for a minute and listen to what time river was telling me. What I got was maybe I should throw a dry fly, a blue winged olive to be exact. On the surface of the water which was a clear as a thin pain of glass I could see trout taking tiny flies. It was not a hatch my any means and the hits were not regular, but I thought lets give it a go.

So I did and as soon as I made two or three casts another fisherman walked right through a spot I was fishing. Maybe that is why I had been blanking these past couple weeks. After that I decided to sit down and take a couple pictures of the water and my rod. I was fishing with my Orvis Clearwater Classic 9 foot. I use a 5wt Battenkill reel with it and which is a good setup when I'm fishing water where I can make a lot of big false casts but not throwing a heavy fly. After the water settled a little I noticed something disturbing the surface down steam from me a little. So trying not to kick up too much mud and muck from the bottom I walked way around the spot and approached from down stream. It was a trout running for under a rock to one spot in the current to snag a fly. I knew I was in from the moment I saw the fish take a natural fly. I took a cast short just to see how it was going to drift in this hole and then let a good cast go. The drift that follow was a good as I had hoped.

Just to point out the fish is on a downed log but look just above the rod and see how clear the water was, those rocks look like they are on dry land.

The end product was a nice sized trout to take a couple quick pictures of and then send back on its way. So that ended my troutless streak and it felt great to get that over with. I fished a little while longer then my mind kicked in. It is almost 11 and my wife has not called or texted saying she is home and taking a nap, but I am just guessing she is sound asleep. Then I must have been thinking again because I made two stupid mistakes on hook sets that ended with me snapping flies off in trees behind me. Those were my last two olives and I still had no call or text. I tied on a Cahill and made one cast when I thought I heard my phone. Thinking to myself there she is I quickly dug though my waterproof bag to get my phone, but missed the call. When I finally got to the phone it was her parents house.

Now put your self in my shoes, where would your mind go. Well I tried calling her and there was no answer, so I decide to call it a day and go home. I didn't want to call her parents till I was back at the truck so, I rushed across the slippery rocks again and got to the other side. Once I was on the trail I called Sarah's phone a couple more times only to get a voice mail. Now I'm not one to worry too much but the river is a great place for your mind to run because you can feel so wide open. So with that much room to run my mind went for a short jog as I moved swiftly to the truck. Just as I was crossing the foot bridge to the truck Sarah called, sounding sleepy I know she was just tired from her last on call night. We chatted for a minute, and when I got off with her I called her parents house. It was funny because it ended up being that her dad who wanted to gloat that the Phillies had pulled to within a game or two of the Braves. I had texted and maybe even called him in the last couple weeks to ask him if he thought this was their run, but his return call was just timed poorly. That didn't matter because I really did need to get off the water and head home, so I took off my waders and jumped in the truck and drove back to the city.

I'm hoping that next weekend I can convince Sarah to come along to the north Ga mountains and take some pictures of trout, also a couple action shots of me fishing for them. The weather has been crazy hot so that might not be an option but I will keep my hopes high. It could be a lot of fun now that I no longer have a case of the blanks. To sum things up I honestly think Sarah's CPE was great because I got out fishing a lot, but it ended up being all I thought about on the water. Which after just shy of two months took its toll a couple weeks ago and ended this past weekend with my mad dash to the truck. I am feeling better already and I think I am ready to get back to catching fish on a regular basis.

I hope to do a lot of blog work this week so be sure to stop in and click around. I want to put a new and important piece of gear in that section, along with finally getting round to making that wish list and maybe a couple other surprises along the way. So be sure to pop in for a visit this week.

-Bruce

The Refill

So I was on the water last Saturday morning. I was fishing a deep swirling hole that was dug out by a stump and a large rock. My first thought was to throw a grasshopper but after a couple minutes of no looks it was time for something new. Maybe I'd switch what level I'd be coming at the fish and decided to go under water so I put on a nymph. I tied on a prince nymph(I showed them a couple posts back) and it worked like a charm I had a fish hit right away. I couldn't get the fish to hand but was pleased that I had a hook up. Then two casts later I got stuck on the bottom and lost the fly.


Now you loose a fly on the stream no big deal you just reach in your vest pull out your nymph box and get a new one. Well when I got my box out of my vest and opened it. There was a problem I was out of prince nymphs. I was also out of zug bugs which look close to the prince nymph. I was not happy for a lot of reasons but the biggest was I had to go from a green fly to a tan fly and thats not going to work normaly. Another reason was unlike the guys who buy flies I tie them and should never really let my box get so low on flies.

Well that got me thinking I wonder what else I'm missing. When I looked in all my boxes I found that I was missing a lot. My caddis box was hurting and as I was standing in the water I actually said out loud 'thank God there isn't a caddis hatch going off today'. I also looked at my other dry fly boxes and same thing there lots of empty spaces.

The nymph box was the one that I was the most mad about. It had me mad because nymphs are my go to flies when the fishing gets slow. I was on the water looking at my box and I had a bunch of rough looking stuff. Normally I am very good at keeping up with my boxes but with the new rod and the excitement of maybe catching some big fish on it I just did not get a lot tied. Well this week has been all about getting those boxes filled.

This is a cork has nine prince nymphs on it. I like to have 3 sizes of one kind of fly. It is so nice to fill those empty spots in my boxes. It is rewarding because I can see my progress as the slots get filled, and tying flies is relaxing for me. There is a chance to slow down and put some thought into something other then work or life. I think by Friday night I should have most of my boxes restocked with fresh flies.

When I was in my home town last week I found some old fly tying stuff that my brother and I collected for years growing up. I called my brother Jason and asked if he cared if I took some of the stuff to GA with me. He is living in Wisconsin on the lake and is not fly fishing as much if at all anymore. So I took brought hackle, some beads, and some deer tails back here to GA. One of the hackles I got was cream/white colors so now I can tie some classic dry flies. I think in the up coming weeks I will be posting on the Cahill. Also the blue winged olive, the adams fly, and the griffith's gnat. The lesson to be learned here is if you tie your own flies it is your own fault when you are standing waist deep in the water trying to figure out what your next move is with no flies. Just remember check your boxes a couple nights before even a small trip.

-Bruce

First New Rod As A Married Couple!

Last Thursday I was online reading article about carp fishing, and also found some people who fish these things regularly on a message board I like to follow. It hit me I want to be able to either catch big fish or bass, and the river is so warm now the only fishing worth doing in the city is carp, or bass. So I used an equation that my father-in-law told me about how many bicycles a person should have but instead of bikes I used fly rods.

Tabulate the number of fly rods you have + one = the number you should have(thanks Bob)

Well as anyone who is married can tell you most of the time finances are a thing that people fight the most about. I took it upon myself to shop online for a rod that would bring quality but not break the bank. I love the big brands Orvis, G.Loomis, Redington but that being said I can't always afford them I have one and one day will get more. I've got a wife who has spent years and years in school and she will be looking for a real job when this unpaid internship ends. I think I'm making enough money to get by but not enough to buy the good brands. That being said I put it out in the world that I wanted a new rod and had a big speech planned out in the event Sarah gave me any flack about it. When I asked she paused a minute and said when do you want it?

Shock, is the one word to explain how I felt when she gave it the green light. So

we made a plan to go to Bass Pro and get a start up kit. I decided an 8 wt. was the way to go because I could handle big flies and big fish with it. Saturday morning Sarah was finishing up her on call and I when trout fishing. I hooked up with two but lost them, and then the tubers and bait fisherman started to move in on me so I came home. Then around 6 or so we hit Bass Pro and then went to Lake Lanier so I could just throw it for the first time. It was nice to put a big fly on and not even know it was there when I was casting.

I learned my lesson with my big 5 wt that getting that first fish is the key, so today after church and before a huge thunderstorm rolled in I hit the river. I hooked up with one little bass who wasn't willing to stick around for pictures, but that was okay with me I was seeing storm clouds and thought it was be a good idea to take my new 9 foot lightening rod back to the truck. I had a case I used with my first rod and reel(which was stolen years ago) this new rod and reel fits well.

So I went with a White River Dogwood Canyon 9 foot 8wt. I like it a lot it is not as stiff as I thought it would be, but that being said it is an 8wt and can handle big flies and hopefully I can give a full report on how it handles big fish really soon. As I tried to tell Sarah aesthetics are not tops sometimes in this sport, but that being said it always comes into play at some point, and this rod is a maroon color(same color as my first rod) real cork handle, and the reel has a drag which will be helpful on those future large carp. The reel is nice looking as well because it has a throw back look. I have made some casts in two days with this rod, that are as long as I have even thrown.

Now the hunt is on for that first carp. I'm really looking forward to posting a picture of a 20 lb plus carp in hand. I'm hoping to land one within the month so wish me luck and keep checking the blog for that day. Thanks Sarah for supporting this addiction that is fishing. It is something that I honestly think you are starting to understand with this title you used the other night Fishers of...... Well...... Fish . I can not wait for the weekend that I get a personal photographer following me around the stream capturing casts, and hopefully some trophy shots. Okay all as always do the best you can do.

-Bruce