Building the Case for Your Favorite Fly Rod and Reel

I know all of us have favorites, weathers its auto’s or favorite fishing spots. I am no exception, especially when it comes to my fishing equipment. When I first started fly fishing many years ago, there was not much to choose from for the individual who could only afford low end rods and reels. Sure you could purchase the bamboos but only a few fishermen could go that route. Today there are quality rods and reels on the market that most fishermen can afford. That brings me to my post title; my favorite rod and reel. I have three set-ups I used all the time when I am fly fishing those being my 5wt. and my 3 wt., but the one I am really drawn to is the my Temple Fork 8 ½ ft. 4wt. This rod has the quality and affordability for someone like me who is on a fixed income. It is extremely light at 3.1 oz. and has the backbone to handle a large fish if the occasion arises. The fast taper and can shoot a 4 wt. line with little effort. Temple Fork has produced a great rod here in the Signature Series. To compliment this rod I choose a G-Loomis small arbor reel, with a free spool action. It balances out really well with TFO rod which makes casting a breeze. The main thing that impressed me about this reel was the free spool. I like the fact that I can touch spend the rim of the reel and take in large amounts of line in a matter of seconds. This is especially useful when you are trying to get a fish on the reel real quick and you need to get line away from your feet. I find myself using this set-up more and more. It is like an old pair of shoes that you get comfortable with; you just don’t want to change. What is your favorite fly rod and reel? What makes you want to stick with your go to favorite?

What is Your Take on All the Fly Fishing Shows Aired Each Week?

With fly fishing being one of my passions I like to learn as much as I can about this great sport. I like to read articles, read great blog post, and watch fly fishing shows. I feel I learn more most of the time from the articles and the post I read as oppose to the shows that are broadcast each week. Don’t get me wrong the fly fishing shows are great entertainment, but some lack the vital information that is going to make you become a better fly fisherman. What do I mean by that statement? Very few shows that I watch give their audience the following information; the hatch, type flies, water conditions, equipment ( rod wt. leader set-up, sinking/floating line, ) season, what type of presentation, in other words are you dead drifting, using an indicator, what type of water are you fishing, ect ---so I think you get the picture. One show I watch is good at giving you most of the above info. I mentioned, which is the New Fly Fisher, but the rest I watch needs a lot of improvement in the information department. What is your take on the Fly Fishing Shows you watch? There are lots of shows that are broadcast regionally and some are aired nationwide, so feel free to critique any that you think may not meet or meet your viewing pleasure.

What are Five Lures That Will Catch Trout, Bluegill, Crappie and Bass

I want to know, what are 5 lures that can catch trout, crappie, bass and bluegill? I like lures that catch many different species of fish. Beetle Spins, Rooster Tails and Curly Tailed Grubs, are some of my favorites. While I also have lures only for bass such as plastic worms, poppers, crankbaits, etc. I love fishing for crappie, bass, trout and bluegill. So, what are some of the lures that you think would catch all species?

The Most Insane Fish Landing Ever--Determined Individual!!!

Guys this is one determined guide. They were using fly rods. The following is the description of the event.

Fishing on the Rio Negro in the Amazon area of Brazil, my buddy Keith hooked a peacock bass on an 8 wt. fly rod and the Peacock decided to run a decathlon under tree roots and through a brush pile to the back of a cove where Piranhas and anacondas live. Our guide Francisco grabbed the rod and jumped over the side of the boat and well......... you got to just watch this.
Needless to say, Francisco got a pretty nice tip for this one  ++select link below++

The Most Insane Fish Landing Ever Most Amazing Fishing Videos World Fishing Network

Unusual Bluegill What Happen to This Fish?

This is a very unusual looking bluegill. I got this image the other day from one of my buddies at the gym. He knew I loved to catch bluegill on the fly. He told me he had never seen a fish in this kind of shape. We were trying to figure out just what happen to this particular gill. One theory was the fish could have got caught in some type of net when it was small and develop the cut in its back from the pressure of the net string over the a period of time. I thought it was worth sharing. I told my buddies that you guys might be able to figure out what happen to this fish. You might say that this is the crossword puzzle of the day.

Pelican Raider Boat Stabilizer

Got a comment from Mel over at Blog Cabin Angler about the post I did on the Pelican Raider Boat. He wanted to know how the boat handled in the wind. I forgot to mention in the Pelican Raider post that there are some problems with the boat as far as wind is concerned. I was having problems last year keeping the back of the boat straight and parallel with the bank on windy days. Of course I could control the front of the boat because of the trolling motor. So I started to think about a way I could control the back of the boat, and came up with what I call my stabilizer. By utilizing an old trolling motor mount minus the motor, I solved the wind problem.

I attached a 12 gauge piece of sheet metal at the base of the shaft of the trolling motor mount. I used my band saw and made a cut l ft. up on the shaft and inserted the piece of sheet metal up through the slit and secured the metal with two 1/4" bolts----enter the finished stabilizer which now holds the boat straight in line and parallel with the bank. Surprising what a little ingenuity can do for you.

Fishing From the Pelican Raider Boat

For those of you who don’t know the Pelican Raider Boat is a mini pontoon boat somewhat stunted. I had the opportunity to buy one of these little gems 3 years ago when Academy Sports was going out of business in Hoover Alabama. I had been thinking about a smaller boat for some time because I needed something small to fish the tiny nooks in Walker County Lake. I was getting tired of paying to rent an aluminum boat every time I wanted to fish the lake. At 4 bucks a pop for rental of a boat and 3.00 to pay to fish seemed a little steep. So enter the Raider boat, which turned out to be perfect for the type of fishing I was doing on the small lake. I could cover the entire lake with one charge on my trolling motor battery and still have power left at the end of a trip. With the lake being 160 areas I could fish all those little nooks and narrow channels with ease. It was perfect with my fly rod and I had plenty of rod rack space not to mention the extra space for tackle and a couple of small coolers. I learned early on that this little boat was more than I expected, because of the quietness, stability, ease of handling with a 30 lb. thrust trolling motor. The boat only weighs in at 85 lbs. because of the heavy gauge RAM molded construction. It floated high in the water which made it turn on a dime. In short, it has been the perfect little companion for my short trips to Walker or any other little water adventure. I don't know if you'll are aware of this but if you have a trolling motor on any small boat you must have it registered. Not having it registered will result in a fine. Guess who found this out?

Two individuals can fish from this boat. Your two seats slide along an open track which extends the length of the boat. I added a portable depth finder that operates off of D cell batteries. Perfect for a drop anchor 

The Bloggers You Would Want to Meet and Fish With?

Following suit with the OBN question who is the outdoor bloggers you would like to meet or fish with? I must admit that I have fished with a lot of individuals over the years and can honestly say I have found all to be good companions on the water. I guess I can contribute my fishing compatibility with the fact that I never meet a stranger or my easy going personality. I would really like to meet all the blogges I interact with during a week, but to list my complete blog roll would be a bit boring for my readers. A few that I would wet a line with are:


Jay over at The Naturalist Angler---Jay is an accomplished warm water fly fisherman especially with the smallmouth. I gather from his posts that he is very passionate about fly fishing. He and I will be able to accomplish our goal of meeting and fishing with each other in the spring. We plan on fishing Smith Lake in late April or early May and go after some of those mean Kentucky Spots. I really enjoy Jay’s post because our blogs relate to the warm water side of fly fishing.

Nate at Nate’s Fishing Blog—I found Nate’s blog through one of my email alerts. He works with his brother Justin and they own Herman Brothers Pond Management, which currently manages more than 1500 acres of water in Central Illinois. I find it interesting how he increases the size of bluegill and other species of fish. I also find it interesting how he uses structure to hold huge trout in an area. I would love to meet Nate and just discuss his work and see some of the waters he manages. He recently did a post where he uses the porcupine attractor to attract and hold trout; in fact he lands some monster trout from these attractors.

Chris at the Bream Bum---is what I call the ultra light fly fisherman. I consider him a master with the 3 wt and 2 wt. fly rod. He loves to fish small creeks and has the ability to dissect a small stream and land some awesome looking native brook trout. He and his buddy Will are both excellent at wading and fishing these little streams in the Ozarks in their home state of Missouri.

I hope I have not offended anyone by leaving you out of the list, but believe me all of you guys and gals are important to me and my fishing. I really look forward to reading your post each day and I have gathered a ton of information from all of you. Just keep putting out those great post.