OneMoreLastCast

Well Done Dave. Feels good doesn't it? It's been a long time since I had anything in print, so I'm a little jealous, but happy for you. September 1st is too far away. I wish Fusion came out every two weeks. It's damn hard to find good reading material on the magazine racks these days.

Sorry if this offends, but I don’t agree that this is a great post. Thought provoking yes, but great, I have to say no IMO. If you ask the question whether or not fishing is humane or not, and saying that sometimes you feel guilty, I believe that you do feel it is not humane and should not be doing it. Having decided that it isn't humane and feeling guilty yourself, deep down, you must feel that noone should be doing it, thus the post on a board like this one, full of people that love to fish. If you feel guilty while doing something, you should not be doing it and should have made that decision before you began doing what you would feel guilty about doing. I would never judge anyone for hunting, but I know that I would not feel right personally doing it, so I don't. If someone decides to hunt, good on them, it's just not for me. Although I don't hunt myself, I definitely understand the love for it, the need for it and really like it when someone shares their meat with me. I respect everything involved in fishing, and never take it for granted. The last feeling I could ever imagine having while fishing is guilt. The fact is that we are the top dogs on this beautiful planet and hooking a fish is so far from something any human being should be feeling guilty about compared, to everything else going on out there. We continue to multiply and encroach on wild lands and water, often if it wasn't for fisherman, the fish would not be there to be caught. I have no regrets and feel no guilt for anything I've done, or will do in the future, because if I knew that it might cause feelings like you say you experience while fishing, I didn’t do it and won’t in the future. I live my life to be happy and make the people around me happy. By being active in the conservation of the waters I love to fish, I can ensure that those waters will be properly maintained and conserved so that my great grandchildren can hopefully share some of my experiences. Please don't get me wrong, I respect your feelings and opinion, I just don't share them. I want to look forward, to looking back.

It would be difficult for your buddy, but I can't see even the A-Holes out there not understanding the situation and being accomadating if they knew his situation. If he is alright with it, I would recommend nicely letting the other anglers in the area know his situation and hopefully they would give way. I know it would be tough for him. My Mom is in a wheel chair and my brother works with disabled kids, so I know how pride might not allow this, but I personally think this would be a situation where letting others know should be fine and everyone can enjoy this great passion we all share here.

I have to throw in Sublime as well, because like Dube said, if it's hot, Sublime always hits the spot. I have found myself listening for music that would fit well into my fishing video's that I am in the process of cutting up and shooting. Every once in awhile a song comes on that instantly puts a scene in my head that I decide I "Need" to shoot. Hopefully I get some ideas from this thread for some more.

Nice stories Rick. I love Grandpa Stories, and it seems we had similar characters as Grandfathers. We'll have to swap some stories over some beer around a campfire in September....By coincidence, we'll be in his ol' stompin' grounds. I'm glad it wasn't that tough to get my Union card a couple decades ago....

Celine Dion on the Way down and on the Way home.... I couldn't pick one artist, I like a good mix myself. It would be mostly Punk/Alternative. A little Bad Religion, mixed with some newer stuff.....and of course some Chili Peppers as well. Anything but Classic Rock though.

Be warned if your wives get deep into fly fishing.... You won't be able to go out and buy those fishing "Accessories" that you "Really need", because if she gets too educated, she'll know that you don't need them I'm lucky that my wife lost interest after a few fish and said it wasn't for her. She comes occassionally, but usually just reads a book on the bank, so I can still spend recklessly on equipment and accessories that I "Want"...errr, I mean "need". "Honey, my rod has pretty much had it, so I think I'll go down to Gord's and pick up that new T & T H2".... "How much?......and didn't you just get a new Sage?" "It was over $1000 bucks, but if I pick it up now, He'll give it to me for $850, and that Sage was a gift from a client and is totally the wrong type of rod for the fishing I do."..... "What Ever" A few of my buddies on the other hand, not so lucky.

It's too bad that you didn't have a plan B in place, but now that you found this board, you should be able to put one in place for next time. Unfortunately, there are people out there, (and here), that have no respect for others that share the same passion as they. Often, we post advice on where to fish, hoping that the people taking the advice aren't like the people we talk about in these posts. When I post a location to a new fisherman that is asking, I like to throw in some advice on manners/etiquette as I did in a post, (by coincidence), on Policeman's Flats. http://flyfishcalgary.com/board/index.php?...post&p=5893 I agree that confrontation isn't the way to go. I would just move on because win or lose, I would feel pretty stupid after the fact thinking that the confrontation was over "fishing". I fish to fish. I fought in the ring all my life, so if I wanted a fight, I'd just climb back in the ring. I saw two guys get into it a few years ago on the bank. One guy left all pissed off and the other guy left shortly after. I happened to be walking by the second fellow on my way upstream and he was laughing. I asked him what he was laughing at and he said that the other guy beat the hell out of "His Truck". When I asked him why he thought that was funny, he said, "My Wife dropped me off". So some other angler was going to get back to find a pretty nasty surprise waiting at the end of their day of fishing because some guy with rage issues picked the wrong truck.

Ummm.....You are gonna put a shirt on when we hit the river right? I had a beauty going, but after 45 degree weather in Vegas and swimming in the pool with the kids, it filled in. So it's not too impressive anymore. I'm just making an assumption, but I have to believe a call to Guiness might be in order if Max decides to post a pic.

I agree. Although it sucks sometimes to lose a fish that you really wanted to see up close, I get great satisfaction out of having a big fish that I've snuck up on take my presentation. Especially a Big Spooky Brown sitting tight to a bank sipping on mystery emergers. I boxed all my life and have played poker for years, so I started using comparisons to these when it comes to landing fish. They go along your line of thinking kind of. In boxing, it sucks to get knocked out, (Personally don't know how it feels ), especially in the early rounds. My trainer said to me once, "If you get knocked out trying to win the fight, so be it. It's better than not trying to win and getting the shite kicked out of you for round after round after round, only to lose a decision". In poker I have a similar comparison. If you get knocked out of a tournament really early it sucks, but it sucks more playing for many hours only to go out one or two spots away from making the money. Both comparisons are saying what Toolman said. It is not so bad to lose the fish after a short fight, compared to a long drawn out fight and losing it at your feet. It's nice to see an experienced fisherman like yourself adapt and change techniques and theories. That's what I love about Fly Fishing. You can learn for the rest of your life if you're willing. As you've seen Toolman, I either lose the fish right away, or it's in my hand right away. Even with an old, little rod like mine you can get them in quick with practice. I'm too lazy to chase a fish, I just figure I'll get him next time. The one night was funny with Max fishing below me when I hooked into a good fish. The fish started downstream and I knew he was gone, so I just stood with a smile on my face and let him go. Turned around and started casting to the next one. There was no use chasing him through Max's water and stirring his run up, plus....when you're beat, you're beat. Although, there are times when I feel like a good fight and enjoy a good battle, and I'll take the extra measures to land a fish..... See you later this week and we can test out some new landing techniques

Those bears better watch their backs when my Wife goes for her Saskatoons. If you think that Big Griz looked scared of the Momma Cougar, wait'll you see the look on their faces when they see my wife walking up with bucket in hand. mmmm....Saskatoon Pie. I agree with Rusty though. I like Wild Strawberries so much, I planted a bunch in the backyard. So good when I can get to them before the kids.

Too bad you couldn't find a good spot on the "Fabled" Elk Trib and I'm glad to see you made it out okay, since you were by yourself. Just so you know for next time, it's the second most populated Grizzly Bear Valley in North America, next to the Flat Head Valley. I didn't figure the Classified Waters thing would deter us for too long. It's always Albertans fishing that river because the BC boys know the really good creeks in the area. Nice pics. I wish I had a picture of a bug we found up there a few years ago. We name it the "Tammy Fay Baker" Bug, (Rest her sole). It had the body of a bumble bee, great big eyes with these really weird eyelash things coming out of its head. I've never seen anything like it and have never found it in any searches. We were going to keep it to show people, but then we started thinking it might be the "Last" one of its kind and let it go. The river fishes great BTW in the fall when the water levels come down, so hopefully you get another chance to try it out.

I'm up tying flies in my hotel room and figured I'd share a secret for catching more fish at this time of year. I don't have the means to post me tying, but you can't get better than A.K Best. Hopefully this helps you catch more fish. Nice to see I'm not the only one still using an Old School vise....for now. Got the new rotary waiting for me when I get home. Enjoy

I am not sure how I am being judgemental. It started with a question and then a few replies, with mostly opinions on whether or not someone chooses to use a pump or not. There were some posts on different people's mindsets on "Matching the Hatch" or picking a good attractor or imitation, compared to an exact imitation, (which is great to see how other anglers think). Then you step in and state that what you stated, (which was not based on any fact), with nothing to back up your statement. It was like someone that butts into the middle of a conversation to say what they have to say, whether it has anything to do with the conversation or not. The statement about being judgemental about other fly fishermen is simple. By making a statement like you did, you are coming across as judging a person that might use a pump. Only a Biologist or a Fly Fisherman would use a Pump, so you must be pointing your judgement at other fly fishermen, (or Biologists I guess), that use pumps. I really didn't even pay attention to the other thread. I posted my thoughts, which were directly at people that would let other fishermen that "crowd" them wreck their day. It wasn't in any way directed at the posts that directed someone to tell others to F@*k off, etc. It's all fine and dandy to have a little fun here, and if you find it fun to do what you did in the other thread, so be it, continue doing it if you like. But that is totally different than coming in and making a statement that has the potential to take the thread in a different direction from the original purpose....and as you can see, it has, but that is my fault. As far as being relaxed. You have no idea how relaxed a person I am, as anyone on this board that knows me can attest to. I am done with this particular discussion. If we can get back to the original idea of the topic, that would be great. No hard feelings. BTW Weedy. Nice reads, thanks.

That is why boards like these are great. You get views, opinions and experience from a wide variety of people, and if you come in with an open mind, people might just learn something. BTW K, September looks like a go...I can't wait.

When using a pump, your are sampling the very last food a trout has ingested means extracting items from the esophagus or gullet area of the digestive system. The esophagus begins at the back of the throat. It is a short muscular section that expands to take in larger food items. Once the food item passes through the esophagus it enters the stomach where digestive enzymes quickly break down and discolor food items. So you are wrong. To each his own. Use one or don't use one, but this proves that not only are fly fishermen judgemental of anglers that don't fly fish, but of people that fly fish as well. I wish people would do some research before spouting off, or is this another one of your "Stir" things up posts you like to do? I could care less if someone agrees with the use of a pump or not. I have fished with some very reputable fishermen that use them, write about how to use them and use them in their videos and on TV, so if these people that are Biologists, etc. feel okay using them, I do too. Tim expressed his "Opinion" and that is great, but if you are going to start stating facts, know what you're talking about.

Browns can be aggressive in smaller creeks. I've had big browns come out from under the bank to chase the little Brookies on my line occassionally on Stauffer. But I agree with Toolman, it was most likely a Bull Trout because it came back a few times at different fish. I've seen Browns take a quick swipe at a fish on my line, but they never seem as persistant as the Bull Trout. Edited By MTB...Just because.

This goes without saying, and don't ge tme wrong, I don't mean to offend or be rude. So please don't take this wrong. You can't pump a fish if you haven't caught a fish right? When you pump a fish's throat, as you said, you already have an idea of what they are feeding on and are either hoping to back it up, see what else they are eating, see what stage of emergence the fish are taking the insect, etc. I won't go into how fish feed on Chironomids, but trust me, you want to be as close as possible to the actual insect. I agree that there are times when you would want to use a variation of the exact insect that fish are feeding on, ie-murky water you might want to use a larger, darker imitation. But for the most part, the idea of "Matching the Hatch" is to imitate as close as possible what the fish are feeding on. Fish are very habitual creatures that will refuse an imitation for the slightest difference from what they are expecting. This is why you would want your imitation to be as close as possible to the actual insect. I, along with others I've fished with on this board, spend as much time studying the insects in the water as I do fishing. If not more time. I do it to learn as much as I can not necessarily for that day, but for future days I will spend on the water. Trust me, learn as much as you can about the actual insects the fish feed on and when, rather than the patterns that others are using or patterns that should be working and a person will catch more fish, more consistently. In a river I can turn over rocks, etc. to find the insects where in a lake I can't. This is where a throat pump comes into play. The only time I ever used one on a river is when I catch an abnormally fat fish and want to see what it has been feeding on that the others haven't been, or when I haven't been on the water for awhile and want to give myself or the people with me a little help. Otherwise, I only pump on lakes. Again, don't take offense to this. I like the topic and I am actually surprised it hasn't come up before.

Have a good trip. It's too bad more people don't listen. I'm leaving it alone too. I've fought long enough. The points seem to get misunderstood anyways...

No offense, but this is one of the strangest ideas I've seen applied to a fish's feeding habits. If I pump a fish's throat and find 15 dark Chironomids, 1 scud and 1 Damsel fly, I can be pretty sure that it would be a pretty good idea to tie on a Chironomid pattern to imitate what most, if not all of the fish are feeding on. Insects hatch in cycles, usually at different times of the day, week, month or year, so if the insects that are hatching happen to be BWO's, I'm pretty sure if you pumped any of the fish you might catch, regardless of the imitation you used to catch it, you would end up with a vile of BWO's. I will say that some people pump fish in order to study the feeding habits of the fish, not purely to "Cheat" and see exactly what the fish are feeding on. This is coming from a person that will change a pattern that is working, in order to find others that work. I either pump fish when I want to back up something that I have theorized, or when the fishing is slow and I am with someone that I really want to get into some fish. Your theory is backwards I believe though. If you pump One fish's stomach and find it full of a particular insect, you will likely find 30 more that are the same and only one that might have decided to feed on something else. Thus, the term "School" of fish.

We don't want to get into this again do we....eh Harps? There's enough information on the internet on the positives and negatives rather than do it here again. Like mentioned, the storm drainage does a lot of harm and people doing what Mark did needs to be done more often.

Brunsie is correct. You do not pump the stomach, you pump the throat of the fish. If you pumped the stomach, the fish would die. I do it all the time and have never felt it hurts the fish what so ever if done correctly. It is done when the fish is in the water and 90% of the insects sampled are still alive, and the other 10% have recently died. So it shows that you are definitely not going very deep with the pump. I wouldn't recommend doing it without someone that knows how showing you, or at least watch a video or read some good instruction on how to do it. I do it mostly on lakes, but will also do it on a river now and then. I will also never pump a fish that I don't think can handle it, or when the conditions might be hard on the fish...ie-warm temperatures, Stressed fish, smaller or bigger fish. I use the slot size rule. I try to take samples from nice healthy 16" or so fish because they seem to handle it the best. It might be considered cheating by some, but I believe in using advantages available. Most of the techniques, materials, etc. would be considered cheating by some of the old timers if you asked them.

Can't say there is too many out there that made as much this spring as I did while fishing....or playing poker in Vegas. Good luck and I can't wait to see the pics, and take some of my own soon. Even if it is September, I know those ones will be worth the wait. It really sucks to be sitting here in Fort Mac getting paid to basically do nothing. I could be getting paid to be gettin' some sun on the water somewhere.

Wow, great picture Reg. Would you mind if I keep a copy for myself. Strictly for me, I won't post it or share it. I might use it for a background or screensaver, but that's it.

A hybrid Brookie and Laker. There's a lake in Alberta where they were stocked. I don't know if they are still there and I never fished for them. If I remember correctly, it was a 19 KM hike in. I don't have my AFG to check, so I could be wrong on the distance.