HenHackle

Great report! Just spent 15 minutes looking at your other reports including that nasty drift you guys took down in Montana. Appreciated the link.

It reminds me of somebody's mother... For such a slob, he's surprisingly anal about finishing off the fly. He did two half hitches, followed by two whip finishes, and then he applied head cement!

Yeah, I remember that one, too. Who could read it and ever forget?! I guess you could come up with hollow complaints about all trout if you really really tried: Brooks -- too beautiful. Rainbows -- too acrobatic. Browns -- too difficult. Lakers -- too deep. Goldens -- too remote. Cutthroats -- too easy. Bulls -- too hungry. Each trout is unique and has special qualities. I think Dawson was relatively new at the fly fishing game when he wrote that book. I wonder if his thoughts on bulls have changed over the past decade?

My first fish on a dry happened as I was trying to untangle fly line from my feet. The fish took the fly I had left on the water and when I finally straightened up the mess, I discovered I had a trout on! Cutthroat, obviously. Your story is much better, Birchy! Nicely done. HH

Funny little story by the author of Huckleberry Finn inspired the jumping contest. You could read this when it's hot and the fishing is slow! http://etext.virginia.edu/railton/projects/price/frog.htm HH

Good idea, Dutch! I'll do that too the next time I'm in Alberta. White guy with a Japanese accent. They'll think I'm crazy for sure ...

I'll have to start tying up some tapered leaders while I'm sitting around home.. guess I should get a leader wallet too. Well, you could always go out and buy a leader! But I agree that putting together your own leaders is a good thing to do. Sounds like you're having a bit of fun out there. Good luck and keep us posted.

Considering the, ahem, logic of recent American foreign policy, a nuclear first strike against Canada makes complete and perfect sense. The question becomes not if but when? And where? Moose Jaw? Tuktoyaktuk? Dildo? Happy 4th, cousins! HH

It's not often I read a long thread right to the end, but you guys are keeping me entertained! Some of the fish I remember best are big ones I have lost. One in particular stands out. On the Bow I hooked a monster in the late evening on a caddis. I guess I wasn't really expecting the strike, thinking that there were a million caddis on the surface, why would he ever grab mine? But he did. And he was gone really fast before I even got a proper look. But I felt the old primal tug and it was stronger than usual. Then I saw and heard the splash! No doubt -- this was a serious fish. My partner only saw it happen out of the corner of his eye too, but he commented "There was some serious water displacement." No, I never caught the fish -- he broke off my 4x tippet -- didn't even get a good look, but I'll remember him...

Wasn't that a Deer Hair Caddis?! Super use of the rotary function. I now have a rotary vise but don't take advantage of it enough. Old habits die hard Great video! You took a bit of time to produce that. Would love to see more video of tied flies on the Net, especially stuff that's a bit tricky -- spinning hair, for example. Thanks

Thanks for posting your flies, Kungfool. A couple of years ago I fished the Livingstone for a couple of days and had great success with a similar midge pattern beneath a high floating dry. Ok, Ok, there are times when you can have success with a bare hook on that stream, but on the days I was fishing, quite a few more fish hit the midge than the dry.

I sure like the Gamakatsu hooks for small nymphs and midges. They are as sharp as a hook can get. Kind of hard to find in various sizes even here in Japan. Most shops will carry only a size or two. I have to admit that I usually forget which brand of hook I used for which flies I used! I have so many different kinds of hooks. Almost all of my smaller hooks are Gamakatsu, so I remember them well and can attest to their quality.