toolman

And you identified the line hanging from the passing Duck, as Fluro carbon?

A beauty tie. Here's a couple of Caddis larva from the Bow river in May.

The Loop Blue 8116, that Max has mentioned, is a very sweet rod for the uses you describe, Russ. The Loop Blueline series and in fact most of the Loop color series, has been renamed this year and there are only a few of these Blue 8116's left available in Canada. I have been using the Blue 7116 and I am picking up the 8116 very soon, as well. These 11'6" fast action rods, work very well with Scandianavian Shooting line systems and its moderate length allows you to cast tight up against the banks, without having the rod tip in the branches each cast. It is very capable of rocking a 90' footer out to the sweet spot. Your Islander 10wt. is a perfect match for the rod you seek and the fish you want to catch. The Beulahs speys, are very nice rods as well, but I have'nt cast the 12'6" 7/8. Look for a fast action rod, 11'6" too 12'6", in a 7/8 wt., as these rods/line systems allow you to work from the shorelines and in tight quarters most effectively, yet still give you big casts with a small casting stroke. If possible, come out for a couple of hours and cast a few Spey rods with Max and I on the weekend.

I know what you mean about sharp rocks being a problem, Islandguy. Each year during the spring ice out on the Bow river, many sections of the river get scoured heavily by the thick ice flowing downstream. It breaks and lifts the shale on the stream bottom, which creates a lot of sharp edges that will snag and slice any tippet that touches it. Tough to fish in this water when the fish are hugging the rocks, which they often still are, in late March. The sharp edges generally start to erode and silt in, during the high water run off period that follows in June. So, it's somewhat of a seasonal problem. ps. I have heard good things about Seagar FC and the Snowbee Magic line, but have not had an opportunity to try them yet.

I have worked with Fluro for the past several years, for my subsurface fishing. Some of the brands I have used were not very good and I had problems. Later, I realized that my knots were not helping any and worked on taking that part out of the equation, but I still had not found a pure Fluro material that I was 100% happy with. In the past year, I started using Frog Hair Flurocarbon. I have used it in a wide variety of conditions and for different species as well. Since then, I can't say I have had any problems that could be directly associated with the performance of my Fluro leader/tippet material or knot connections. As Islandguy mentioned, the Co-polymers available today, have a sound reputation as bieng dependable and having excellent performance properties, including, good shock resistance and elongation, high tensile strength, small diameter, low visibility, good turnover etc. I like to use these Co-polymers (Gamma), for surface use and sometimes subsurface as well, to balance the sink rate of the fly, to the sink rate of the tip bieng used. The Fluro can get my flys deeper, faster, but sometimes too fast, especailly with weighted or large flys, creating too much droop if the tippet is long. It is equally important that the fly sinks slightly faster than your Polysink tips, which are density compensated so that the tip will sink first. If the mono tippet used on a sink tip is too thick or too long, then your sink tip may have to drag the fly/mono down too depth, because of the high floatation factor of Monofilament Nylon leaders/tippets. Most Polyleaders that I have used, have a moderate elongation factor, which helps absorb sharp spikes in the line load and protect the Fluro tippets. Fluro is a harder, smaller diameter material than nylon or most co-polymers of equal B/S, and Fluro has excellent abrasion resistance against rocks and ice. It is fairly stiff in the larger diameters and has great turn over if the leader/tippet/lengths are balanced correctly for the fly size and conditions. The knots that I have used and find to be the best for my Fluro leaders and tippets include... Surgeons knots for building hand tied leaders, using 3 wraps for 12lb. and up, or 4 wraps for 10lb and smaller.... the Homer Rhodes non-slip loop knot, for motion on the fly... a Palomar knot when I need to get tough or with large fly patterns, connecting to barrel swivels etc...and a Hook Bend Knot, which is a Palomar knot that I have modified, for tying a dropper fly off the hook bend on a tandem/triple fly rig..... Perfection loops for L/L connections. So, I would conclude that Flurocarbon requires more attention to detail and is less forgiving than Co-polymers or 100% Nylon, but the benefits I have discovered in using the Frog Hair Fluro for fishing sub-surface, has often made a noticeable difference in my catch rate.

Happy Birthay Dave...now take the day off and go fishin'.

They see it, as the trout see all in their world, including the fisherman, but ignore the hook if the fly has enough of the key features they are looking for that day, such as profile, size, color, motion or combinations of all of these things etc. But, the most important feature of a good fly, is how it is presented to the trout. We can purchase realistic immitations of any insect that the trout may be feeding on, but when it comes to the business of making perfectly natural presentations, that we can not buy.

Starting the new year in fine form Rick. Thanks.

I cast right/left hand and reel left hand only, without a lot of bad memories to make me feel a change is necessary. Is right hand retrieve technically better, probably, as it manages the line/reel better, preventing snags on the handle etc. and you can usually wind faster with your dominant hand if you are RH'ed as well. But it's not for me and I'm willing to live with the perceived handicap for a while longer. As for hook sets on the swing, it depends on what mood the fish are in and the direction they are pointing/swiming when it takes the fly. Meaning, whether the fish moved laterally to take the fly or did it turn downstream and strike etc. or did it rise up in the water column and turn back down, or simply inhale/mouth the fly and not even move etc. A different reaction may be needed for different situations and most often the only indication of a grab, strike, bump, pull, tap or tug, is through that thin little line in your hand. From the information transmitted through your line, you react.. hopefully correctly. Decoding the message through your line is difficult, untill you learn how to discern the subtle differences between a bump, tug, grab and what this information tells you about the fishes behavior and how it is approaching and reacting to your fly. Sometimes the fish is telling you to change your presentation and that is often the best course of action, not changing your hooksets. Trout also behave differently in varying water temperatures or when there is competition for food, different lighting conditions, different types of insect hatches etc. We as fisherman need to adapt to the current conditions at hand. I spent a couple of seasons fishing the swing for trout in the dark and feel that it has helped me to develop these skills. Sometimes you just need to let the strike loop tighten up on the reel, then sweep to the shoreline, other times it's just a lift to tighten at the end of the swing, and other times a strip set is needed. Experience and practise will teach you when and how. I helped Hawgstoppah learn how to Spey fish the two hander this past year and hook sets were really giving him a problem. He must have lost the first thirty fish he hooked and then things quickly changed for him and he landed something like, the next 22 out of 24. Eventually, you will learn how to get in the zone and start stickin' em any time they even look at your fly. As we all discover, there are a lot of details to consider in the swing business.

Next time I find a bait bucket on the river, I'm gonna take a black marker and write on the side of it.... "Property of Bhurt"

Just a reminder, the Report a Poacher (RAP) 1-800# is printed on the back of everyones fishing license.

My Delta 7/8 can have coiling issues in colder temps, but as Al pointed out, not much of a problem with the Delta 6/7. I agree that it is likely the difference in diameter between the two line sizes. The AF Ridge running line that I use on my AF Scandinavian heads, works very well in cold temps. The Elixir lines are excellent and even in -10C air temps we had earlier this week, there was virtually no coiling issues.

Ya, that wuz me...I wuz gunna shute the sunsabitchez, but the cop per' done talked me oudofit...wink...wink.

Uhh yeah, that was me, maybe...Did I mention that I lost four new tires in the war on poaching in 07'...so you must have meant the red ***truck...yeah that's it, I drive a red ***truck, with four new tires....ehhem...

I'm up three nuthin' on you already, Max...

Well, 2008 is shaping up to be a great year. I got to bust three poachers chucking bait and whacking trout on the Bow this afternoon....Multiple charges laid, trout seized. Man, its only January and I got three notches to put on the cork already. Remember, it's everyones responsibility to call RAP to report violators. Please take the time and do what's right to help protect our resources. We owe it to our kids. The RAP program only works if we do our part. Big Thanks and congrats to the C.O.'s at Fish Creek Provincial Park and the fine folks at RAP. Well done!

Great fun meeting all of you guys today. Let's do it again real soon. Anyone got pics?

Many good memories from 2007 and many good friends made, as MTB and Hawgstoppah mentioned. The trip of the year would have to be the Steelhead adventure I had with Brian... My best fish, well there were a few, including my first Steelie for sure, but there's a big brown that I got to meet last March that gave me a thrill I will never forget. I could post the pics, but you've all seen them enough. My goals for 2008... Pedal to the mat...Spey rod in hand...I'll find em'...photo's pending.

Exactly my same thoughts. Those who "contribute" to the community, will always get a few tips from me. Just send me a pm and I'd be happy to help. My advice for the new fisherman or new members, is to get out and explore so that you can discover your own secret spots, as they are to be found most everywhere on the Bow River. Also, maybe try posting in the fishing get togethers as a way of meeting new anglers and sharing fishing spots etc. I personally have invited many new anglers/members out to join me on the river each year, as do many other "contributing" members here at FFC. I don't feel our online fishing community is supposed to be a free guiding service. There's plenty of good information shared here, openly, with all members and we should be proud of what we have built as a community. That said, no one has mentioned the conservation perspective that must be considered. As an angler who has spent his fair share of fishing time, contributing to the war on poaching on the Bow River, especailly in the city, I cringe when someone makes a post about all of the big trout they caught at such and such location. Poachers are reading these reports as well. Not to mention, the extreme fishing pressures that a given location quickly receives because of the hype. In conclusion, I'm not telling anyone what they should think, just clarifying my own views on the subject.

Forgot to add, if anyone else wants to join us and needs directions, just let me know and I'll send you a pm, before I head out in the morning. Bhurt and Wetduck will also be joining the Spey gathering. There might be folks showing up as early as 8:00am, but I will likely only be there around 9:00-9:30am. The early morning forecast is for +1C, wind 30km SW, which should put the wind somewhat at our backs. Which in my view, is a good thing for casting and a south wind is often good for fishing.

That would be great Colin, Cheeler. See you there.

I'll pm the location to you, pkk.

I have been working on using a bit of overhang on my Elixir 380gr. on the Loop 7116. It only seems to cast a few inches of OH before the point of collapase. It does cast great at the sweet spot, but it is right at the end of the heads taper, maybe an extra few inches at best. I have a few Airflow custom cut scandi heads that casts well with about 10"-12" of OH, but overall, they do not cast as well as the Elixir lines.

Looks like we will have to rendezvous at Spey Beach, at sunrise.

Thanks Birchy, that's the link I wanted to post.