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Perhaps I should mention all the great Beach Fishing here on Vancouver Island using Two Handers...for the next couple of months the fly fishing off the beaches of East Coast Vancouver Island is likely some of the best Salt Water fishing to be had anywhere and it is so close Don't be shy..use Two Hands This is a nice Coho ,One of many caught off the beaches across the street from our Store Pink Salmon are curerntly running and in Big Numbers..C

Go up to the Noel Shore are...big fish to be had... C

It's always great to get off the island and over here to Alberta...love trout fishing and you all have a great fishery...although trout fishing is about to get much better on the island it is much more seasonal... Great to see you all again C

Trout Speys and floating lines...loaded my reels today and am a bit anxious to play with some of these new lines....I don't think we utilize these Small Two handers nearly enough as dry fly tools..so,for those wanting to see accurate and explosive casting techniques join in and get your feet wet... C

For all you budding stars drop by South Bow fly and Tackle this coming week-end to see the all new Tubeology Tube Fly accessories ...also Spey casting Talks and demos ...a large range of rods and lines will be on hand such as Snowbee,Beulah,CND,Hardy and more....We will aslo be tying many exciting patterns for Trout and Steelhead all on tubes and their accessories...this is going to be fun... Starts Friday Morning .. Call the store for details C

Opps...here is that picture If you want to chat about this or tie a fwe of these patetrns please come by South Bow Fly and Tackle this coming week-end...Fly tying Friday Evening,Saturday Morning early and possibly Sunday afternoon if there is time...I will be using both Eumer and the new Tubeology accessories... C PS...sometimes I will even place a small bead in frnt of the hook so it can't get lodged into the tube

Notice the Tube set-up with this Steelhead...I positioned a smaller tube inside the Junction tube to get teh hook to the rear as much as possible C

There are many trains of thought on tying and fishing tube flies....SOme want to have the hook locked into the junction tube while others like me want to have the hook trailing losely and as far back as possible...in fact I will often take along with me in my tube fly wallet a series of smaller tubes to insert into the Junction tubeing so that I can position my hook where I want. A fixed hook will act as a rudder and in some cases is a good and needed thing..while others need to have the hook as far back as possible(Steelheaders using Intruders) C

During the days that I will be at South Bow Fly and Tackle I will have a lot of different coloured Polar Bear hair with me and will tie a good number of Minnow and Steelhead patterns with the different colours....Polar Bear is indeed very durable..I wonder why! For those of you familiar with Bucktailing on the Ocean for Coho and Chinook then you will be familiar with what historically has been Polar Bear hair Streamers tied very long,up to 6 and even 7 inches... certain areas of the animal have very long hair..this is very sought after these days as the supply of Poalr Bear dries up... C

You have everything as it should be for you...there was a time when 85% of fly casters cast right and reel right...these num,bers have significantly reduced over the past 20 years because of the availability of right and left hand retreive reels. My favorite way to Spey cast has been for many years is Cackhanded -off the wrong shoulder...my stroke is much shorter and the muscle memory is set for this...but do learn to use both hands high...better for teh mind! C

I sort of played around today a bit tying a streamer using Polar Bear,DNA and some Salt Water Flashabou,Tuffeleye all tied on a Tubeology Tube body finished off with a small ,screw on Black Monster Cone...this fly gets attention in all waters.. The Polar Bear belly maintains a shape during the swing or retreive..it is very possible when tying this fly to make the belly much more thick, creating a bigger silouet. Recently on atrip I used this type if fly pattern in fresh water and was somewhat amazed at the visibility of the eyes .. Big eyes get lots of attention

Switch rod users will want to play with the CND GPS lines on hand...these longer belly lines are Sweet! C

A little Insight into Polar Bear hair.... One of the or perhaps the most bouyant Natural hair on the Planet. Translucent in a big way..great light defraction not hollow like elk,deer,moose and so on. Accepts dies very well that doesn't bleed And best of all..Canadian..our cousins south of the border have to use Buck Tail unless they have friends this side or can get some certified supplies which is difficult to get. Polar Bear Dubbing mixed with Seal and other natural fibres is simply the best. At the Recent fly fishing show in Calgary I had more than 250 small packets of Polar Bear in over a dozen colours and lengths,was surprised at the lack of interest..however, I realize that here on the west coast we use Polar Bear so much for Salt Water flies that it is only natural for us to require that as a staple for fly tiers. Here are a couple of small Salt Water patterns that can be used in both Salt and freshwith great results,,note teh transparency of the White Polar Bear hair on the Kathy's Coat..this is a great Coho patetrn but crosses over very well

If you notice this fly doesn't yet have a cone head on.. if you look closely you can see there is actually a threaded end behind the mandrel head...this system lets you choose during your outings different colour and density coneheads for different needs...a real breakthrough for the fly fisher that fished into the conditions I will see if I can tie a few other patterns over the next few days and get them posted...we are having a sale at the store and am really quite busy with that and the renovation. These are really effective flies. C

During the time I will be in Calgary for the Spey Casting demo we will also be tying Snake and Silicone tube flies during the days when at the store...what I really like about these flies is that we can actually change the colour and density of the Cone Heads...The Silicone tubes make the fly become very squiggly and produce great movement.. Drop by to try a couple C We will be tying during Friday Morning and Evening,and Saturday late Afternoon

For those of you interested in Single Hand Spey Casts using Skagit type lines we will have 3 set-ups from 6wt to 8wt for all to play with...I really love these set-ups and can see these as a wonderful additon to any fly fishers arsenal... whats interesting is that the rods are not particularly fast or expensive and these set-ups can be adapted to almost any half decent rod...love 'em C

Friday Morning we will be at South Bow Fly and Tackle doing some classes on SPey Casts and overviews on rods,lines,reels, and history,a few slide presentations and fish tales ;of course,Friday afternoon we will have private casting instruction and during the evening we will have Tube Fly Tying and talking about various materials Saturday Morning casting demo will be from 10-1,and then back to the store for some Tube fly tying and discussions on "the fly cast" and other technical stuff! Friday night also will be tying some great Intruders on tubes and stinger set-ups. Sunday will be a few Private casting clinics and if lucky fish a bit...and another demo if therre is interest If I am able to I will have some of the Brand New Beulah not yet released Single and Spey rods along.. C

I am going to have the entire selection of Elixir ,Tonic ,CND and Snowbee Spey line with me...will also have some new lines not yet on the market to play with...and as a bonus we will also have some great Skagit type lines for SIngle handers on hand...looking forward to this years edition of our annual demo.. C

If the weather holds for us then I am really looking forward to this years Spey casting demo and clinics during the week-end of April 16th thru 18th... We will have about a Dozen Set-ups for everyone to play with and try .And yes there will be rod styles from Super light to Traditional...Beulah<Snowbee<Hardy and more. I am also going to have One of the Tigereye Maxwell 15' rods there for you all to see where it was and where we have come...I have to say that I have been fishing the 12'6" Beulah Platinum #6 lately with their Tonic line and WOW...super smooth and definitely a rod set-up I should have been using much sooner. Here on the Island we sort of get into a mind set of BIG SKAGIT AND HEAVY TIPS WITH HONKER FLIES>>>>but I am now recognizing that many times we are actually missing the boat. SO,I am looking forward to discussions about all of this when we are at South Bow Fly and Tackle on the Friday night...make sure you can come by and add your imput C

Why re-invent the wheel..I would suggest for you to go down to South Bow Fly And Takle and put the Beulah 4/5 into your hands...this is the small rod that started the Switch Rod revolution and for good reason...add to this reasoning that the Beulah Elixir Line was also designed for this rod that ironically crosses over to the rods that followed... Rmember that the Beulah 4/5 Switch rod is a true trouter,Sweeeeet C

The first of many I am sure...great C

On the Saturday Morning we are going to have a 2 hour presentation at the Fly Shop followed by a quick Lunch Break and then off to the River for a full casting Demonstration where we will have some time for participation from anyone wanting to get a few tips and help. And then back to the Fly Shop for more time at the store and technical help. On Sunday morning there will be some private casting time for those wanting to participate and learn...there will be a fee of $100 ...please pre book...send me a PM or n\book thru South Bow Fly and Tackle A special note here..it is not always necessary to use big sticks to catch big fish...here is a Steelhead landed today on a Beulah Switch rod, lined with the Beulah Elixir fly line and Snowbee Reel and Polytips...The Elixir Line is a very sweet to handle smooth Scandi type line that fishes with various Polytips...note the Fly...it isn't necessarily large but heavy..tungsten Dumbell Eyes. Courtney

It's that time of year again to try and get into a nice Bow River Brown...So this year we will be at South Bow Fly And Tackle on Friday Saturday and a bit of Sunday for some Spey Casting chat,demo and clinic thats April 16,17 and 18. There is going to be some serious talk about what Spey Casting really is all about and why. Techniques,Lines,Reels,Rods,Running Lines,Heads and so much more. As a bonus we will be tying flies again but this year there will be something very special ...we will for the first time in Canada be tying the new to North America Tubeology Tube Fly...now this is something else that will open many doors for all you fishers.... There will be much about this in the years ahead ...Tube flies are here to stay...One of the unique features about these accessories and flies is that you can simply screw on different colour and density coneheads as you might need them..WOW C

Nice Fish... How are the Trout? Heard you had a bad winter so far... C

We sell the CND lines at Nile Creek Fly Shop...should you want one... C