Cross Canadian Ragweed- Alabama

A classic CCR tune. Check it out

Fashion Meets Fishing

My eldest sister brought this to my attention today, and I thought it was an interesting topic for the fly fishing community. The article has some good points and it could effect all of us fly tiers, check it out. Here are a few quotations from the article, full article is located at the URL below.


“They’ve been genetically bred for fly tying, and that’s what they should be used for,” Mr. Brown said.

Fly fishing feathers — which individually are called hackles and as a group called saddles — are harvested from roosters painstakingly bred to grow supple feathers. It takes more than a year for a rooster to grow feathers long and pliable enough for use by fly fishermen. Because no one could have predicted the fashion trend, there are not enough to go around.

“The fashion world is a vastly larger animal than the fly fishing world,” Mr. Whiting said. “We can’t keep up with demand. Things are pretty crazy.”

“It’s business. We’re happy to sell whatever feathers we can to whomever,” said Mr. Lanning, who has received some calls about his feathers. And, he likes the look.
“I think it’s kind of cool,” Mr. Lanning said. “I think it’s kind of sexy, to be honest with you, for lack of a better word.”


http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/29/sports/when-fashion-meets-fishing-the-feathers-fly.html?_r=1

Courtsey of NY Times

Catch 22

So with late spring and high waters we can usually expect to know that salmon flies are coming off and that due to the conditions we are not going to have those epic days we've all heard about or experienced in the past. Enjoying the absolutely incredible day this morning I was walking one of the dogs that hang around the grounds (way to nice to be cooped up inside) and we were checking out the river height and what flutters by but a big beautiful salmon fly. This is a rather large Stonefly adult that can produce some epic hatches that fish can't get enough of. This is a large amount of protein for the fish so they have the potential to go crazy for them. Check the bug out, pretty sweet.

As soon as I let this guy go, a big bird swept down and ate him....haha piss

Stonefly shucks everywhere.

Sizable Golden Stone, the goldens were off today as well

Molly dawg...

T.P.O.T.W

Matthew Ley is a good friend of mine that I have been hunting and fishing with for many years now. Matt and I grew up learning to fly fish together, although the competitive nature of our youth is now over Matt and I still have a hell of a time fishing and hunting together. Old school picture from around Spring 2007. Got to love the fly vests.



Saturday Festivities

Well the wind decided to blow on us Saturday but we got through it. Many of the Longhorn employees came out to help us eat and enjoy the day. As the day moved along, there were drinks and stories that were shared, many laughs and even an old fashion BB gun was passed around hoping to harass some cans.


Our Best lunch customers, Maggie, Chloe, and Cash

Laramie, giving the latest information on our Fly Fishing Gear

Start them young, casting lessons all ages welcome.

Free boat rides...haha our first customer looks super thrilled.

Evaporation....Hate it when that happens.

Bats!!

So being around the fishing community for several years now I've heard all sorts of wild stories of trout eating interesting things, amongst mice and other good sized fish I've heard of several instances of trout being observed eating bats. Haha Yeah sounds pretty crazy, but I took couple minutes and looked up this fact. Here was the first website that mentioned the flying vermin being eaten. http://www.theriverguide.com/articles/browntrout_articles.htm

And of course I decided to tie one, for starters.  Since I've been in a mouse tying mood, it was relatively easy to add wings to the pattern I've been using for mice. It came out pretty sweet, not sure how it will cast but it would be pretty epic to pull a fish on a bat.  I'll do some field work over the summer and hopefully have
some picture evidence. 

Mouse Eaters and Red Rocks



Life on the road tends to get into your bloodstream, I tore up the pavement for three hundred miles within two days for a half day of fishing....It was worth it. There are instances in life that make you do things that might not seem sane, but camaraderie, beautiful landscapes and the hope to escape the hustle and bustle fuels the fire to go on these little adventures. Even though you will have more travel time than time on the river. Life is to short, go fish. Here are a few pictures from my most recent trip.

The Toyota Landcrusier eating pavement mile after mile

Perfect time of year to travel around WY, green and lush

First fish caught for the trip, I fished a mouse until I caught one, (three casts)

Tried a bigger mouse so there was no confusion with the fish about what they were eating.

Perfect camp overlook

This ones for you Andrew

GRAND OPENING TODAY

Doors open at 8 A.M. and lunch will be served around noonish. Come cast, eat, visit, or just say hello. Casting demonstrations, casting contest, SALES shop wide 15-40%.  Casting contest with Prizes at 1:30 P.M. We would love to see you today. The food will be hot and the drinks cold. Welcome to The Wicked Winds Fly Shop.

Friday Product Review (Spudz Cleaner)

On this product review we are going to look at something that is a bit smaller than the previous product reviews. I'm not sure about most of you guys but I know that my sunglasses are never clean. But years and years ago I a little product that I thought would be handy, a Spudz lens cleaner on a key chain like apparatus. I still have this little gadget today. To have a lens cleaner handy for your shades is important everyday, whether it is headed fishing or driving home with the sun in your eyes, you need clean glasses. Check em out, great buy for around 6 bucks. Made in USA.

Vermin Infestation

So as any fly fishermen knows catching a trout on a mouse pattern is something we all strive to do. For the next couple days I'm headed to a place that I have fished annually for four years now, these annual trips are always a blast and we look forward to them year long.  This place is generally full of a crazy number of fish and they are always hungry. Years past we have caught them on any pattern that you wanted to throw, sofa pillows, leeches, hoppers, the list is endless. So I was pondering the upcoming trip and I wanted to up the challenge this year. I first thought about getting a counter and counting the actual number of fish I caught, but that really isn't my style (the numbers are pretty stupid anyhow), then I thought "How about catching them on mice?" Perfect, the mouse patterns that I have are typically pretty big, or way to cool to fish (articulated super-mouse)  for long periods of time (thank you Andrew). So I've been at the tying bench all morning working off the pattern I have in my brain, the Morrish mouse. Anyhow I came up with some sweet ties, some deer hair some wool, all foam backs tho. Pictures aren't great but check them out. Hopefully I'll come back with some pictures of some mice eating fish. Tight lines

The Rat Pack

Introducing the King Kong Daddy

So as most of you can tell I enjoy fishing streamers, I love the fish that eat streamers. Big fish eat streamers. So I frequently tie streamers... They have gradually increased in size over the past couple months. This particular tie is huge...hence the name. The overall length is six inches, it is heavy. Although the fly is heavy it moves enticingly well through the water, there is marabou and rabbit strips that give the fly a flowing realistic look. It is articulated of course with two number 2 hooks with a single solid bead about an inch long in the center. I'm working on getting an articulated fly to not hang up on itself while casting, hopefully this single bead will work.  Check them out, if you want to full recipe email me at imperez25@gmail.com. Cheers

Bead added weight and should in theory aid in keeping the two hooks from catching each other.

Micky and the Motorcars....

A while back a good friend of mine Matt Ley from Cheyenne, WY introduced me to Micky and the Motorcars. My Pandora played them again today, so I thought you guys should check them out.  For all of us that are familiar with the stretch of I-80 that this song is about then you can really relate. Enjoy

Fish On! Fish On! (crazy Jeremy Wade (River Monsters) English accent)

DAY 1

So I was finally able to get out and enjoy some fishing, I have successfully caught some American Trout. This past weekend we had the chance to float some central Wyoming tailwaters, although the water was super high and there was plenty of moss around we managed to pull a few fish. The odds were against us on Friday we got to the boat ramp and the wind was howling. Oh well, we put in and row to the far side and make a drift....tick...fish on...finally (been a long spring).  Get the thick little rainbow to the net, and a massive weight lifted off my shoulders. At that moment the wind stopped, it seemed like the clouds parted and we were off. The rest of the day was all bonus. Hooked a really nice brown in the next run, he ate a homemade monster streamer. Nick Fulton a good friend of mine, who was the captain of the boat caught some really nice fish that day as well. Pictures to follow.

Finally my first WY-American fish this year.

Apparently brown trout think my big nasties look like a nice treat.

Meat eater, good solid brown. Nice fish



Stellar cut-bow, this fish had it all, length, girth, and a shovel head



Really Really nice cut-bow

This fish has been around, nice work (miracle we got it landed).
 Meat eater too....

Streamer city

Fat brown, more streamers. Beautiful fish

DAY 2 

Through a mutual friend the beautiful Anndee Meyer, (featured earlier in the post A Sight for Sore Eyes) Nick Fulton and I were invited to Casper to fish with Anndee and Jason Hamrick. Amy, Nick's wife joined the fun as well. The weather was a touch on the eccentric side, lightening and rain kept us close to the banks ready to pull off when lightening was threatening. But we managed to pick up a good number of fish, again the water was super high.  Jason and Anndee really know the river and set us up with the right bugs and pointed us in the right direction on the water.  They can be found at http://www.wyocowboydrifters.net/, Great weekend, thanks again Nick and Amy, Anndee and Jason.

Amy Fulton with a respectable Platte River Rainbow

Good rainbow

Solid through the tail cutty, really good fish.

New addition to the Evolution

A late creation for the Worm post, candy cane style, Twisted and glued chenilles.  Check it out, pretty sick

Worm Nation