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3. Turbulence and Trout: Heaven and Hell in One Location, Page 2

Yes, please!!!

Crashin' at Kyle's! Got floor space? ... A chicken coop?

Hey, thanks for the kind words on my writing, guys. Payed? Done that. Pays pretty low for this kind of writing. Wish it weren't. Working on figuring that one out nowadays. Mebbe, like the fishing itself, it should remain a hobby.

Caddis were tied with nylon "rug yarn" from Joann's -twisted. Lotsa colors available and very translucent. Tends to darken bit when soaked though. There’s a thread …ah! -the White Nymph thread- … where I describe the material to Bruce.

Stonefly ext body:

The material is … artificial leather fringe for “Indian costumes”, from fabric stores. It comes on spools in the chains and ribbon aisle at Joann’s. I've said about my tying that I’m “Crafty... like Joann’s”! :) I get a kick out of DIY in my fishing; Snubbing my nose at conventionality, sort of. Not to scoff at conventions, but to be courageous in the face of... terror (as in Terror Management Theory). I feel powerful, triumphant, when I can catch good fish on … just about anything.

The stuff looks a bit like Bob Clouser’s “Furry Foam” but much smaller and thinner. It comes in two widths and two colors. I get the light tan bc I want a pale belly color. It takes color markers well. It’s a little stiff so it works best for shorter abdomen’s. I’m pushing it with stones but they (the smaller ones anyway) do work very well. The stuff makes great and easy nymphs. Makes lousy worms.

Louis, I sort of hate the thought of messing up your beautiful fly boxes with my crafty creations. Maybe you should get an experimental box that no one else sees, to save you the embarrassment. I never open my boxes in a crowd -feigning secrecy. :)



Jigs: I found fish to take them just fine -at least in those turbulent waters.

Paul, if you could see my fly boxes you wouldn't worry a second. I use all kinds of crazy stuff in my ties, and love thinking up odd patterns that only the trout will approve of. Sometimes. Recently a guy I know who ties professionally was looking at one of my strange creations that had produced very well last season. I thought it was imitative. He said, "You know why the trout ate that? They've never seen anything like it before." The more I think about it, the more likely his assessment seems. So far the fly is working again this season. Also, I rarely tie exactly as someone else does, something you probably don't do either, but ideas from other tiers can be found throughout my ties. Lloyd Gonzales's use of thread and flexament was (for me at least--if not for the trout) a key element in the fly I tied for my recent redemption episode, modeling the overall design on Kelly Galloup's bent hook spinners. Without some previous forays into hook bending with Lloyd, I might not have had the nerve or tools to put the curve in the hook as well. Eric (Crepuscular) showed me a mayfly tie last year that resulted in a change to my standard emerger pattern. I have tied your little unweighted olive nymph, but with Coq de Leon for the tails and legs, and a poly yarn wingcase. So, thanks for satisfying my curiosity and for the inspiration.

No to the chicken coop, although now I'm thinking how great would it be to have fresh eggs every morning.

Floor space, yes, and an air mattress. :)

Ha! I've got a real guest bedroom - and two toilets! And walking distance to Au Sable steelhead and Clark's Marsh sunfish and bass (and right now, morels!)...Paul, if you ever find your way this far east, I can put you up in style. The Pine and the Rifle might not have as many fish, but they are fine trout streams, beautiful and picturesque, full of eager biters on dry flies (mostly browns in the Rifle, and mostly brookies and rainbows in the Pine), and a surrounding area most rich in wildlife and plant life. Just took my first Field Biology field trip with the new class today, and then went morel picking afterward. Woods are blooming with wildflowers, and our first serviceberries are finally popping out in beautiful white bloom. Few mosquitoes but LOTS of ticks! Everything is behind here by at least 2-3 weeks if not longer.

Well, expecting the hordes of terrorists - er, I mean TOURISTS - this coming weekend, I'm hoping I can knock my persistent head cold back and make it out to the Rifle for a couple of days of real trout fishing, then retreat to the lesser-known ponds for some weekend fishing for brookies, rainbows, and those tasty yellow perch...

BTW, Kyle, you are also invited!

Jonathon