alhuger

So, speaking from experience you're likely better off with a single hander for bones and most anything on the flats. Much of your casting is sight casting (unless you want to blind cast) and it's best done with a with a single hander for a whole wack of reasons. Surf casting is good fun (well, I enjoy it anyhow) I would think any spey or switch would do if it's what you have and you do not want to buy something new, I know lot's of guys seem to use both. However there are rods (fly rods even) for shore casting. I think somewhere on the board there must be a thread on this. I ended up buying the conversion kit which TFO sells and turned my TFO saltwater 8 weight into a surf caster, worked awesome. Picked it up from Fishtales I think. You certainly want saltwater lines. The handle the heat better. A lot better. The outbound lines kick ass. al

I dunno, I think Ireland is stunning (I've never been to Scotland) but beat fishing sucks, seriously sucks, IMO.

I actually just chatted with a guy in the SFO airport and he had fished there this year and has fished there for 7 years now. His comments were much of what has been posted here. In fact he said he was hand lining fish, was not even bothering to cast anymore, the fishing was that easy. He also said the fishery is mostly un-managed. If that's true, go while you can. I know lot's of guides who do the Alaska thing also do Russia, might be worth posting a place like spey pages to see if you can get the guides to comment. al

Sundance, Clive, Have you guys thought about getting an AD&D club going? You seem to have a committed estrangement to reality and commonly accepted science and I'm sure that alone would put you ahead of the curve for pretty much any fantasy based role playing game. I think you guys would have a good time with it. If not, then maybe you might consider the Flat Earth Society? I hear their doors are always open. al

Dude, you need to readjust the tinfoil hat you're wearing, the black helicopters over your house are having difficulty reading your thoughts.

Thanks a bunch, that's been the consistent feedback. al

I thought it was a clever subject! Honestly with the work it took to get that Bougle anything was on offer towards the end. I actually ended up buying it from a priest. Make what you will of that. al

Yeh, he likely can tell a fantastic fishery when he is in one. The bow is not (in my opinion) as pretty as allot the water we have around us but it's tough to beat for a trout fishery. al

So I've managed to lose my center screw for my Hardy Bougle MK IV. Anyone know if anybody local services Hardy or carries spare parts for them? I know I can send it off outside Calgary but would prefer something local if possible. al

Nope.

Good article. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/19/sports/1...rss&emc=rss

I think we'd all be that much poorer with your absence.

Ahh, very cool. I have only ever caught them as incidental catch although I *love* catching them. One of these days... I have seen photos of guys taking them on poppers which looks like it would be a riot. Thanks for sharing the pics. al

That's a nice fish. How do you catch them when they're in the salt like that?

That's a nice tie.

You're over reacting. As I pointed out to taco, I think everyone needs to enjoy the sport. If you're within the limits of the law, have at it. Obviously it does not mean I have to like what you do if you opt to kill a record sized fish. Life's funny that way eh? At the end of the day, this is fishing. Just fishing. It's not where I set my moral compass although I am a strong advocate of sustainable fisheries. As for you starting to hate the site, are you sure your reactions (like that above) are not adding to it sucking just a little more every day? al

You both apparently chose to ignore my last sentence "Of course everyone see's it their own way. You need to enjoy the sport on your own terms.".

Amen.

Cool, any clean ones in the system?

This would be a long conversation which while it might entertain people it's unlikely to change either your or my viewpoints on the topic. If there is a compelling reason (like you need to eat it) then I support kill fisheries where they make sense ecologically. Killing something as awesome as either of those fish simply because they could, sickens me a little. Of course everyone see's it their own way. You need to enjoy the sport on your own terms. al

41+ lb brown caught in the US: http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/living/20...cord.trout.wwtv Thankfully they killed it so they could get endless grip and grin and photos. al

Laurie, is a great guy. Please tell him I say hi. For what it's worth, for anyone thinking on going, the K-tok is a mind boggling watershed and I really mean mind boggling. I imagine it holds the sort of life our fisheries on the Columbia, on the Skeena and elsewhere did before they were mismanaged to the point of breaking. You can fish all day and seriously be into large, bright clean salmon (Chinook, Chum, Sox), rainbows, dollys and grayling non-stop. The amount of life coursing through that river is something you need to see before it's a thing of the past. al

I love his stuff. I have cast a few of his sticks. Great stuff. I think the TFO 12.6 DeerCreek is something he had his hand in, with Mike Kinney maybe? Either way the DC 5/6 12.6 is also a sweet stick. al

Sorry about that. I did not realize I had not de-barbed them, my bad. For the record though, golden trout do not taste good enough to warrant the hike, especially when you are apt to lose so much fine gear bringing them in. al

I fish a 360 Compact Airflo (22 ft) with 15 ft of type 6, 15 of type 3 or 12 feet of t-14. I have not found a floating head I can get to feel right so far. I generally fish a TFO DC 12.6 for the bow. My preference is the type 6 or 3 with that set up, I find moving t-14 a bit tedious with that rob and line combo. al