The world famous Brewer Auditorium (aka the Mecca of fly tying) will host the Penobscot Fly Fishers annual Fly Tying Expo, this Sunday, November 18th from 9 am to 4 pm.  This show is open to the public and admission is FREE.  25+ tyers from around the state will be participating, demonstrating their tying prowess (and peddling some tying related “stuff”) throughout the day.  There will be a beef stew lunch with homemade pies for dessert (donations accepted).

For more information visit the PFF website at www.penobscotflyfishers.com or contact the Expo Coordinator (yours truly).

Livin' the dream

Temperatures are rising, both in the air and in the water.  As the water temperature approaches 60 degrees, the smallmouth bass are on their beds and are usually quite aggressive.  For me, this signals the start of bass season.  This is a great time to grab your favorite bass flies and fly rod and head to the water.  On Memorial Day, a buddy and I did just that.

I know that fish do most of their feeding below the surface but there is just something about catching fish on the surface.  It can be brook trout sipping dry flies or smallmouth bass slammin’ surface poppers, it is hard to resist the urge to fish top water flies.

On this night, I was joined by good friend “Tandem” Rob Dunnett.  We arrived at the landing a little after 4:00 pm.  The water was calm, like a big sheet of glass.  Water levels looked to be a tad below normal.  We loaded our gear and launched the SS Lady Di.  The ol’ Yamaha fired right up and we proceeded to skim across the water as we headed “up river” to try our luck.

Rob tied on a modified “Angel of Death” fly (aka black gurgler).  I tied on a Lady Di Foam Frog.  Equipment for the night were TFO 7 weight 4 piece rods, 7 weight floating, weight forward lines, Dan Hodgins Signature Series furled leaders with 8 – 10 lb test tippets.

A wind blowing up river can turn a good night bad, but tonight that was not the case.  Very light breezes made for easy casting.  We drifted at river current speed, casting to the shore and we were not disappointed.  Bass after bass, attacked our offerings.  Mostly in the 10 – 12′ range with a few larger.  As many say, these fish have shoulders!  They seem to very strong for their size.  Current must be their weight room.

Anglers are usually rewarded with a couple of tail walking leaps before the spunky bass come to the boat to be released. Here is a video of Rob catching one of his smallmouth bass.

We fished but a mere fraction of the water that night but had plenty of action.  We were also treated to several “treats” while on the river.  Fluttering caddis flies covered the water at times.  One of Rob’s fish had a mouthful of stoneflies which were also quite prevalent.  The “non-fishing” highlight of the evening was 3 pairs of Canadian geese and their gosselings parading along the shore, quite a sight!

After spending an enjoyable evening with a good friend and catching 30+ fish, we retreated back to the boat launch already making plans for our next trip.

Angel of Death (black Gurgler)

Hook:  Mustad 3366 size 2 or 4
Thread:  Black Flymaster Plus, UTC 140/210, Uni 3/0
Tail:  Black bucktail with a few strands of Krystal Flash, 1 1/2 – 2 times the shank length
Body:  Black ice chenille/Estaz
Topping:  Black foam, width equal to hook gap, folded over top

Several products that we routinely use when fishing are TERRIBLE for fly lines.  sunscreen and bug dope are two such items.  Whenever possible, apply these 2 items to the backs of your hands and then use the backs of your hands to apply them to other parts of your body.  That way the parts of your hands that touch your line (and flies) will be free of these harmful chemicals (Thanks to a Lefty Kreh video for that little trick!)

Line care/maintenance is not just a once a year thing.  If you fish a lot, you should be caring for your line throughout the fishing season.  Take care of your line and it will take care of you!  It is a good idea to clean and condition your line every 3 or 4 trips.   You will be amazed at the crud that gets on your line from the water.   It will lengthen the life of your line and decrease friction when casting which will also lengthen those casts!

Okay, now to you fly line care.  Fly lines are a lot like people.  When at work, they are tightly wound and they at times get dirty.  So the first order of business to get your line ready for vacation is not to grab a beer and head to the recliner.  However the fly line does need to unwind, clean up and relax, just like us.  For the line that means getting the line off the reel  get a good cleaning.  There are a few ways to accomplish this.   It is always a good idea to check with your line manufacturer for any specific cleaning/conditioning requirements.  (There is a list of some line manufacturers at the bottom of this post)

Cleaning method 1 – Take a 5 gallon bucket filled with warm (not hot) water and some very mild soap.  Strip the fly line off the reel into the bucket.  You don’t need to detach it from the backing unless you want to.  Let the line set for a few minutes in the warm water bath and then  take a cloth and soak it in the water and pull the line through the cloth to clean it as you pull it from the soapy bucket into a bucket of clean water.  Then pull it from the clean water through a dry soft cloth onto the grass (or soft surface, not your tarred driveway!).

Cleaning method 2 – Walk around your yard as you strip the line from the reel be careful not to step on it.  After all the line is off the reel, use a soft cloth soaked in warm soapy water (mild soap) to clean the line by walking the length of the fly line pulling the line through the cloth.  Follow that up with a wet cloth with no soap to rinse the line.  Then pull it through a dry cloth to get the excess water from the line.

Cleaning method 3 – Use a commercial line cleaner.  There are numerous choices on the market.    Many are cleaners and conditioners in one step.  Follow the instruction on the box.

After your line is cleaned, the next step is to condition it.  ArmourAll is a product that many folks use.  There are also, several quality line conditioners on the marked.  Check your line manufacturer to see if there are products that they specifically recommend.   After the conditioner is applied,  your line need to be loosely coiled for storage.  You can enlist a fishing buddy, your spouse or offspring (good luck with that) to assist with this process.  Have them hold their hands 18′ apart and wrap the line around their hands.  Then hang the loose coils in a safe place for it’s vacation.

When you are ready to go fishing, all you will need to do is wind your “happy” line back onto the reel and you are ready to go!

Tight lines, Don

Global Fly Fisher – Fly Line Maintenance

http://globalflyfisher.com/fishbetter/flyline_m101/

Cleaning your fly line

http://www.cyberangler.com/flyfishing/clean_fly_line.html

Rio Fly Lines

http://www.rioproducts.com/cleaning-fly-lines.html

Scientific Anglers Lines

http://www.scientificanglers.com/insider/2011/12/care-maintenance-fly-lines

Cortland Fly Lines

http://www.cortlandline.com/content.asp?id=707

The site has a nice  History webpage that details the history of Grog and the family that currently runs the site.  In your younger days, you many have thought that Grog was some sort of alcoholic beverage in a jug that you slung over your shoulder and pulled the cork with your teeth.  Wrong buck-o!

The Grog website is one of the best, if knot (a little play on words) the very best knot tying website that I have seen.  There are knots for everyone.  You can visually learn to tie a Climbers’ Alpine Butterfly Bend, a Boaters’ Running Bowline, and Fishermans’ Palomar Knot , and just about everything in between.  There is a sequence of photos for each knot that shows each step with crisp, clear photos that are animated to step you through the knot tying process.  Back it up and play it again if you don’t quite get it or go directly to any step/photo along the way.  In addition there are videos for each knot.

Just when you thought that this website had everything a person needs relating to knots.  Not so fast, in June of 2010, they released an iPhone app.  Following that release, nearly all the knots were re-photographed and a new app was release in February of 2011.  Recently for those of us that haven’t sipped the iKoolaid, they have released an Android app for your Android powered smartphone or tablet.

Now you can have your “pocket reference manual” with you on your smartphone at all times.  You can watch knots being tied while test driving your Barcolounger in the living room, in the john (not Holyoke), on the way to your favorite fishing hole (if you aren’t driving) and while tying on that size 20 Elk Hair Caddis.  Doesn’t get much better than that.

The charge for the App is $4.99, about the cost of one grande Choke-a-Loca-Frappa-Crappa-Latte Expresso with caramel drizzle from Starbucks..  Grab your computer or smartphone and a short length of rope or fishing line and visit the website (or download the app).  Make sure you give yourself plenty of “site time”, you’ll need it!

I give this app/website a 4.5 Rusty Rat rating.  The only thing keeping it from the coveted 5 Rusty Rats is that there is a cost for the App.  Yes, I try to be frugal at times.

Cubby has developed a technique for spinning deerhair that is very unique and works quite well.  It is one of those things that you have to see to believe.  Can’t be explained, guess that is why  Cubby commands such an expensive hourly rate for teaching it!  haha  You need to see it a couple of times before it clicks in but once you have it, voila!

Cubby spends his working hours asking “what can brown do for you” (translation, “scouting out fishing holes”), off hours he spends his share of time behind the vise or in the outdoors.

Recently Cubby has made a name for himself starring in fly tying videos for Kevin McKay at Maineflyfish.com.  His videos have gone viral on YouTube.com.  I am not really sure what that means but it sounds pretty cool.  I am sure an internet geek somewhere has a magic number of viewings and when that number is exceeded, it is considered VIRAL.  I would say that number for fly tying videos is somewhere between 15 and 20 viewings.  Two of his latest, the Barnes Special and the Canadian Hopper are very well done and definitely a must see for tyers of all levels.  Hats off to Kevin and the Cub-ster on a job well done.

I am very happy that I had the opportunity to spend time tying with Cubby at the vise, if you get the chance do it, you won’t be sorry!

Welcome to the Vise Squad

Holden – We have a new member in the Vise Squad.  Mallorie Ruth Haulk recently joined the Vise Squad as it’s newest member.  Mallorie was born on March 20, 2012.  She was 9 lb 5 oz and 21″ long, a keepuh’ by any standard!  Everyone is doing well.   Mom and Dad (Ryan & Erika), big sister Natallie, Auntie Anna and Nana and Papa were all happy to finally meet her on Tuesday.  Papa is really looking forward to working with both Mallorie and big sister Natalie at the vise in years to come!

A pleasant surprise came mid-day when the PCCA  presented our booth the coveted “Most Active Exhibitor” award for 2012!  Those busy little hands paid off!

It was great to see so many friends, both old and new at the show this year.   An old friend from my EMVTI days dropped by and chatted.  I hadn’t seen Scott since the late 70′s.

There are so many great exhibitors at the show, wonderful people.  If you didn’t get a chance to make the show this year, mark it on the calendar for next year, you won’t be sorry.

All were Dick Brown patterns and well defined in his book Bonefish Fly Patterns.  With the help of one of the members of the Vise Squad the order became a reality.  The Hairy Crab Legs flies were brought to life with the application of a neat product called Tuffleye.  It is an acrylic product that is a substitute for the sometimes troublesome 5 minute epoxy.  I applied the Tuffleye over a  partridge feather carapace, simulating the crab’s shell (more on Tuffleye coming in a later post).

Bonefish guy picked up his plethora of piscatorial delicacies.  I asked him to send pictures and that he did.  Looks to me like those cute little, Holden Maine bonefish flies, experienced a nice little vacation courtesy of Bonefish Guy.  I am sure these little guys were packed away carefully until they arrived in paradise.  I am also pretty sure that Bonefish Guy carefully tied one on to the end of a safety line (tippet) before casting them out for a drift in the gin clear, tropical waters.  Then the fly got a special little treat, a thrill ride in the north end of an amusement ride called the Torpedo of the Flats.   After a short, harrowing thrill ride, Bonefish Guy pulled in the safety line and retrieved the fly from the Torpedo ride.  The Holden Maine fly enjoyed the ride so much that Bonefish Guy threw him back out for another lazy float in the warm salt water.  WHAM!!  What a vacation!

Thanks to Bonefish Guy for sending me a picture of the Torpedo of the Flats amusement ride.  Nice fish, nice hat too!.

Bangor Daily News Outdoor bloggers “Act Out with Aislinn“  Aislinn Sarnacki and “Out There” John Holyoke will be in the BDN booth and yours truly, “Vise Squad” Don Corey will be in the Annika Rod and Fly booth.  Be sure to drop by and say “hello”.