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Fly Fishing
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Subject: Fly Fishing From: Laurel Date: 16 Mar 99 - 08:09 PM I just read the MUDSTOCK99 thread and that sounds like fun- especially the fly fishing. I thought since so many mudcatters seem to like th idea, why not have a specific "Catch the Fish and Music" festival up here in northern WI! Also, where do mudcatters like to fly fish? Anyone tried Whittlesey Creek near Ashland, WI? I heard it is really great! Laurel |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Vixen Date: 17 Mar 99 - 11:09 AM I'm from CT, and I've wet a line in the Shetucket (which is my back yard), the Housatonic (BIG brown trout); the Battenkill in VT; the Delaware, Beaverkill, and Willowemoc in NY; and countless small streams (after native brookies--my favorite) and lakes (sunfish, small and largemouth bass, and pickerel) in New England. I've also tried fly-fishing for bluefish in Long Island sound, and saw lots of BIG TOOTHY fish that I was afraid to catch--Bluefish LOVE going for flies "popped" across the surface. They will practically jump into your waders... I do all catch and release in fresh water, because I don't like to eat fresh water fish--I use barbless hooks. I had on monster hooks the day I went after the bluefish, because I LIKE to eat them, but I was afraid they were going to eat me first... Folk and fly fishing, hmmmmm, The AFAFFA? Vixen |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: catspaw49 Date: 17 Mar 99 - 11:33 AM Sometimes I just get confused. All this fish stuff...bass,bluefish. Then there's the fly fishing part. I didn't know it was a sport; hell I didn't know you could catch flies that way. We just swat 'em. But if it's your thing, I been to Albany, Georgia and man do they have flies there. You'd be more than welcome I'm sure. I really don't think they'd be too hot on a catch and release thing though. catspaw |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Vixen Date: 17 Mar 99 - 12:12 PM Dear Catspaw-- Yup--flies is the national bird in some parts of this great nation. I have a tee-shirt with a green drake (a green mayfly about 1.5" in length) wielding a fly-rod with a human on the end of the line, and the caption reads, "fly fishing." It's one of my favorites. Next to my mudcat shirt, of course! Be careful though, catspaw--you can get hooked on the sport AND its multitudinous opportunities for fresh air, scenic surroundings, Peace & Quiet, and sick puns. V |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Liam's Brother Date: 17 Mar 99 - 01:43 PM Well, Vixen... Not strictly a fly fisherman but all that kind of gear fills my closet. I employ any necessary method short of nets and dynamite. Not from CT but I do get a license there every year because Liam's Sister-in-Law is from West Hartford and I visit her family with her. One of her cousins is very adept at fly fishing the Farmington. I have access to a semi-private fishing warm water "fishing preserve" (actually, a golf course) in Unionville, CT, not too far from the Farmington River. Nothing fancy or record breaking, mind you. Holds hefty bluegills, chain pickerel, rock bass, largemouth, yellow perch, etc. I have taken brown bullheads on dry flies in one interesting little hole! Suggest we hook up this Spring. I'd love to check out some of your favorite spots. Don Sineti and Chris Morgan are at The Sounding Board on 8MAY. I will be up for that almost certainly. What do you say?
All the best, |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Vixen Date: 17 Mar 99 - 02:25 PM Dear Liam's Brother Dan-- I may be able to make the Sounding Board on 8 May. I haven't been there in about 15 years. If I go, I'll be sure to let you know. Would you and Liam's Sister-in-law and/or anyone else be interested in a trip to Casino-land? The Wonder of the Connecticut Woods and all? There is a terrific little trout pond about 3 minutes south of Foxwoods on Route 2, where 2 and 201 intersect. The pond is opposite where 201N meets 2. I haven't been there much since the casino went in, because the traffic is brutal, but it used to be a terrific spot. I suggest it for several reasons--it's about an hour from Hartford, and you just stay on Route 2 the whole way; you can find it yourself if we can't meet up somehow; it is a good and *challenging* fishin' hole (more on the challenge below); it's convenient to other diversions if some members of your party prefer them to fishin' or the fishin' is lousy (or just too challenging on that particular day!) Here are the challenges: I think it's fly fishing only, and it may be catch and release only now too, because a lot of places are going that way to keep the trout alive. I think C&R is nifty, in part because it helps environmentally, but also because the trout get suspicious in their little pea-brains, and it makes them more of a challenge to deceive. Other challenges of the pond include: There are few places to wade into it, and they have been set up/maintained by the state and Trout Unlimited. You might think you're on a nice gradual gravel slope into the water, when GLUG, you're in water over your wader top in mud to your knees. Also, you need a well-controlled back-cast, or be proficient at roll-casting, to get any decent distance. The big fish are "out far and in deep," but you can get some nice 8" to 12" fish about 12' from your boots. Hint--don't fish from the dam--everybody tries it, and some people catch fish, but I've never had the luck there that I've had in the underbrush. Tight lines, as they say-- V |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Lonesome EJ Date: 17 Mar 99 - 03:08 PM I love fly-fishing. It requires a finesse that other forms of fishing lack. It also requires a knowledge of habitat, the learned ability to "see through" the surface structure of the river, to discover the pockets where trout lurk.I love to stand thigh deep in a spring creek on a bright summer day, surrounded by cottonwoods, aspens, and snow capped peaks. Even if they aren't biting. I remember the first fish I caught on a fly, using my new reel, rod and waders. He was a fingerling rainbow so small he went through the holes in my brand new net. I also remember the 20 inch brown I hooked on a dry fly by a crumbling wooden bridge on the Madison, how it took me 5 minutes to land him. I set him free to return to his deep hole behind a living-room sized boulder. In "A River Runs through It", McLean says " I am haunted by waters." I know what he means. |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: catspaw49 Date: 17 Mar 99 - 03:24 PM Hey, I think I might be getting it now. You use the flies to catch the fish!!! I'm still alittle lost as to why you'd want to stand asshole deep in a creek if the flies ARE biting. Plus it would seem to me to be a lot harder to fish for the flies first than to catch a fish with a fly. Have you tried a worm? How about a boat? You know, a #8 over the side, snag a few fightin' crappies......Just somethin' to consider. catspaw |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Vixen Date: 17 Mar 99 - 03:25 PM Well Spoken, LEJ-- Speaking of McLean--Has anybody heard the song "Cold Missouri Waters" based on McLean's other stories about being a US Forest Service Fire Ranger? Richard Shindell sings it on Cry Cry Cry with Dar Williams and Lucy Kaplansky, but I can't remember the songwriter off the top of my head. Outrageously "water-haunted" song. Give it a listen if you can find it!!!! V |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Lonesome EJ Date: 17 Mar 99 - 03:32 PM Cats...I have a friend who was flyfishing at nightfall, and as he rolled his line through the air, a hungry bat snagged it.He spent several minutes playing the bat until he finally reeled it in and netted it. This is true. |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Vixen Date: 17 Mar 99 - 03:51 PM Bats are a fairly common thing, actually, if you like to fish at dusk...and they will buzz your backcast. But I've never actually hooked one. I had flying squirrels sailing out of the trees at me one night--and that was pretty weird. I had to take their picture so I could find out what they were, since my flashlight only showed me little eyes gleaming in the foliage. Eerie as hell. Water-haunting, even. I'm signing off for the day--gotta go home and get some work done--ie music stuff! Maybe I'l stop by city hall and pick up my fishin' license! V |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: skarpi Iceland Date: 17 Mar 99 - 05:11 PM Hallo, I had to write to this thread, I do not know much about fly fhising but here in Iceland we start fhising in April,In ”lfusriver Dan have you heard about it, if you want any info in may about how the fhising starts in the rivers here in Iceland, well let me know . I think I will go and learn something about fly fhising so I can be with my son. sl n. skarpi Iceland. |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: gargoyle Date: 18 Mar 99 - 12:10 AM
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Liam's Brother Date: 18 Mar 99 - 02:08 AM No, catspaw... sorry to say totally the reverse. The basis of the whole thing is that it is the fish that catch the flies. The people just attempt (not often successfully) to fool the fish into thinking that the feathers, twine and metal offered by humans are flies. If fish didn't catch flies, this would be called something else... tennis, polo, badminton, folksinging, I don't know what!!! All the best. |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: mountain tyme Date: 18 Mar 99 - 02:59 AM Livin back here in a ravine there is a virgin trout stream running about a mile thru my domain, an with my old ratchet reel and split bamboo rod I've had some pretty good times. About gloaming it gets so hard to see I set aside the flys an bait up with flour and herbs and start pickin the banjo. Now the bats hang around like flys as long as I don't stop playin the banjo. The long leg Herrons which usually hang around my pond eating crawfish go airborn at the site of anyone, but will come about a half mile from the pond to the banjo and walk right up to ten or fifteen feet and set down and listen so's long as I don't stop playing. Other than wanting to share this ever entertaining event with other banjo playing Mudcatters my intent is to draw the attention of 49 (_o^^o_) cats to learn him the simple method of catching Herrons so's he can put a feather in his cap. Also using the bait mentioned above the trout are in effect pre-seasoned. Hint....Depending on the humidity, Kieth & Stanley seem to work as well as Scruggs. |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Hank Date: 18 Mar 99 - 09:07 AM Whats this about a boat catspaw? I just drive my truck out to a likely spot, and drop (not cast, too much work) a line out my door. Best fishing ever, and you can listen to the radio. What? You can't drive your truck on water? Must be a (in a tone most likely to call the wrath of everyone on the xenophobe thread) southerner, we do it all the time up north. |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Vixen Date: 18 Mar 99 - 10:43 AM Ok, here goes...I've been a little confused by some of these posts but I think I've got it figured out. Allow me to summarize and clarify: Some of you think we're talking about using fish to catch flies. Dead fish are best, but that's not fly fishing, it's fish flying. Please do not confuse this with what you can do to the dead fish--that's fish frying. Then there are those of you who are talking about imitation flies, the creation of which is know as fly tying. This activity is not to be confused with those who go to casinos with lots of money--that's high flying. There has been some mention of catching bats--this is different sport altogether, and it's not *cricket*, if you catch my meaning, to lump it in with fly fishing. It can be associated with baseball, but that might be stretching it, since those guys are paid big bucks to catch balls, not bats, and we don't want to talk about that on a family website. Then there are those of you who are obviously ice fishing. You are seriously misleading people. Fish do not eat ice, and if those poor southerners manage to get a cube on their hooks it's just gonna melt in the bayou. Some of you have mentioned worms. I've passed your names on to PETA. And to that poor benighted soul out there in the ravine--the herons are just coming by to see what kind of fish you might catch. They've never seen anybody catch fish with something that looks like that. If you hook a whopper, they're gonna spear it for you. Removing tongue from cheek, V |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Vixen Date: 18 Mar 99 - 10:45 AM Oh No! I just realized. The herons aren't waiting to see what you catch with your banjo--they want you to bring out your BASS!!!!! V |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: catspaw49 Date: 18 Mar 99 - 10:55 PM Well first off vixen, I don't get a damn thing clearer from ...like that bat deal. See I thought you caught bats with a sticky wicket, whatever the hell that is. And on the fly thing, like I said, mostly we just swat 'em...BUT as I also added, I've been to Albany, Georgia and those folks KNOW about flies and gnats too. And they don't use dead fish. You got no trouble in Albany telling good folks from bad and good mothers from bad mothers. The good mothers all cut the seat out of their kids' pants as that'll keep the flies and gnats off their face! Damn Straight Works Too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And Hank...yea buddy...hike it on to that xenophobe thread. But I'll have you know that the old pick-up we got off Buford has been drivin' on the water for years...and it stays real dry, what with them custom fender skirts and all. Plus we ain't gotta' listen to no radio. Why sheetfar, we got 8-track!!! Now Mountain Ol' Buddy...I guess you probably read about the demise of 'Paw and Cletus's business. After the 3 days Cletus spent staring at Hamsterdance he had to be committed to the Neil Young Center for the Terminally Screwed. 'Paw was so distraught that he wandered off and was last seen hangin' out at the wastewater plant mumbling sumpin' about pants pressers. So until they improve some I won't be doin' no trippin' by myself. And I am worried as Cletus is learning to play the tipple so's he can be in an crazed tipple band to be used for world domination by the CIA. (If anyone has any idea how many threads I've referenced so far, please let me know) But MoTyme...I do gotta ask...what is a VIRGIN TROUT? I mean are they prone to immaculate spawning or what? However I was sorry to read that your bamboo rod was split. What a bummer. catspaw
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Big Mick Date: 19 Mar 99 - 01:45 PM Damn, but if after Liam's Brother's post, I was going to tell the story of how I caught a Pelican once and a Seagull the other time (still in tu..no, never mind) when fishing on the Shelter Island pier in San Diego. But when I saw those Mudcat Minds go to work, well, I can't stop laughing long enough to work it out. Maybe later. Mick |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Vixen Date: 19 Mar 99 - 02:46 PM Dear Big Mick-- Do Tell! (I like to think of myself as a wit, and several of my best friends have told me I'm half right...) V |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Alex Date: 19 Mar 99 - 08:04 PM The bat story reminded me of one of the tales from my home village on the banks of the River Tay in Scotland. My old neighbor, Mr MacDonald, loved to go fly-fishing, depite the fact that he had lost his left hand in an industrial accident. He had a prosthesis with a brown leather glove on it in the shape of a hand about to give you a handshake. He was able to use it to pull the line from the reel and cast with his right hand. I should also mention that fly fishers use a "trace" or series of five or six artificial flies on the end of the line. There he was at twilight, puffing on his pipe to keep the midges at bay and casting his line. On the backswing, he hooked a bat on the wing and as he cast forward, all the line was dragged down around him by the weight of the bat. One hook snagged his hat, another the back of his jacket, the next in his pants and then a very angry bat. Other anglers along the riverbank answered his yells but on going to his aid proceded to fall down laughing at the spectacle of a one-handed man dancing around on the riverbank yelling "Help! Help!", tied up in his own line and trying not to get bitten by a bat hanging off the back of his pants. It was some time before they recovered enough to help him. They finally had to kill the bat to retrieve the expensive lure from its wing. I wrote a song about it some years ago. My mother liked it and gave him a copy of it. |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: Lonesome EJ Date: 19 Mar 99 - 10:41 PM Alex! Please post the lyrics! That's great! LEJ |
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Subject: RE: Fly Fishing From: catspaw49 Date: 19 Mar 99 - 11:31 PM Seems as if the bat were stuck to the front of his pants it would have been a lot closer to y'alls "fly" fishin'...I dunno. catspaw |
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