Spending Time With my Little Fishing Buddy

My wife and I spent last week keeping the Grandchildren and really found out what it was like to have small kids again. Not that I am complaining, my wife and I love our Grandchildren, but numbers of years have passed since our own two children were little. My wife pretty much looked after the baby sister as Bryson calls her while I spend time with him outside. I am sure some of you remember and even experience on a daily basis what a 3-year-old little boy can do in just a day’s time. Since he and his sister were with us for four days I thought it would be a good time to work on Bryson’s casting skills using the spin-cast setup I bought him a few weeks back. This little guy really impressed me with his casting of the little 5 ft. ultralight rig. We would work on it every day for about 5 minutes and then go on and do something else. I didn’t want him getting tired or bored with the learning process so a few minutes worked well for him. He loves the outdoors so I had a few activities planned to start with helping me shampoo the carpet in my boat.

Got to get the nozzle set just right for a light spray on the carpet

Finally got it correct after getting wet himself

Getting all that dried blood, dirt, and grime out of that carpet is a chore, but we both finally managed to complete the job, I must say it looked as good as the day I bought it. This is the 2003 Anniversary Edition of the Bass Tracker, which was the year they started welding the body, no more rivets. I bought this boat used off Craigslist four years ago and have really enjoyed using it on Smith Lake. As most of you know I use my 8 ft. Raider boat on Walker Lake for the big bull bluegills.

I worked in a short half-hour trip to Walker Lake today before the Grandchildren came and landed a couple bass using poppers. I didn't have a lot of time so no boat just standing from the bank. I only fish this lake in the early spring, but today my excuse for revisiting the place was fly line. I was trying out a new line which is another story later on.

Reflecting Back on Some of my Previous Post The Last 3 Years

Writing a blog has afforded me so many opportunities. The first and foremost is conversing with some of the best fly fishermen throughout the United States. The second is the finding, researching, and using some great products on the market for fly fishing; and last being able to record and look back on some of the best fly fishing trips I have ever experienced for bluegills, bass and trout using the fly rod. I thought it would be neat to give my viewers an opportunity to view and read some of my past post from Fishing Through Life over the past 3 years. In fact I will be coming up on my 3 year anniversary next week as a Google Blogger, so what a better way to celebrate it than to reflect back on some my of previous post.

Post 1

I would have to say an April bluegill outing this year had to be one of the best I have ever experienced for super large bluegill.
Post 2
The month of June produced the best trout fishing trip ever for me on our local tailrace. On some outings everything seems to fall in place and this trip proved it.
Post 3
The month of October has to be some of the best times to land quality bass on Smith Lake using the big Poppers.
Post 4
Hot July 2011 with my brother in Mississippi had to be one of my best crappie fishing trips.
Post 5
Discovering some large poppers that will get you some explosive hits—and at the top of my list has to be the Boggle
Post 6
The Tippet Ring has saved me money on leaders and without the help from one of my blog buddies I would have never known about it
Post 7
One of my blogging buddies told me about this amazing fly reel that has proven its worth many times over
Post 8
Finding this fantastic fly rod while searching for the so-called High Sticking fly rod on the net was one of my best finds ever
Post 9
Discovering why it is so important to buy American
Post 10
Finding a fly line that will handle the many big poppers I cast 
Hope you enjoy reading these as much as I enjoyed writing them for you guys.
 

Fishing The Super Light Fly Rods For Trout & Bluegills

If you read my post much you will find that I am really into fishing light fly rods. I am talking fly rods you can use all day and your arm or shoulder doesn’t give out. I thought I would devote this post to some great deals on super lightweight fly rods. I have never fished anything longer than a nine foot, so I will keep it in the 7 to 9 ft. range. Keep in mind that most all the fly rods shown below are over 100.00 bucks. I found out some years ago when I started fly fishing for trout that the lighter the fly rod the more the cost. I never purchase a fly rod without knowing the weight.

The Temple Fork Signature Series is an excellent fly rod for the money and the 8 1/2 ft. weigths in at 3.1 oz. --my son has this fly rod and really likes the lightness. Price--110.00 to 120.00 depending on length---if this rod is purchased through Percy's Flies you get 2 doz. free flies with your purchase

The Pursuit by Redington is an excellent fly rod for the budget minded as is the Temple Fork fly rod above. The 8 1/2 ft Pursuit weights in at 3 oz. Price--119.00

Super nice and extremely light the Redington Trout Classic is one of the lightness fly rods in this price range of 150.00--this fly rod in the 8 1/2 ft is 2.6 oz and the 7 1/2 ft. is 2.3--I have the 9 ft. in the 5wt. which weights in at 2.9 oz.

A fast action fly rod by St. Croix the Imperial in the 8 1/2 ft. 4 wt. weights in at 2.5--the 9 ft. 5 wt. weights in at 2.8 oz. Price 200.00 for the 4wt. and 180.00 for the 2.8 oz---If you purchase this fly rod at Percy's Flies you get 10 dozen free flies with your purchase of this Imperial Fly rod.

This medium action Greys XF2 Streamflex in the 9' 2 3/4" length 3 wt ----weights in at 3.1 oz.--this rod actually feels lighter than the 3.1--it is quite possibility the lightness fly rod I have ever used in the 9 ft. + length---a dream to cast---worth every cent of the 289.00 price

This is the Orvis Superfine Touch fly rod which weights in at 2 3/8 oz. in the 9 ft 4wt series. This is an exceptional fly rod and the reason I know this is a friend of my has this series and it is unbelievable to cast--Feather Craft is selling this fly rod with any trade-in of any old fly rod you own for 380.00--It sells everywhere on the web for 475.00--



This is the Hardy Lightweight Classic which weights in at 1.35 oz for the 7 ft. 3 wt. --the 8 1/2 ft. weights in at 2.4 oz--Price 7 ft. --395.00---8 1/2 ft. --425.00 --the price gets higher as you get lighter





And Last, the "Orvis Helios Ion" -----this is a chunk of money to spend on a fly rod but if you are going super light then the 8.4 ft. 3 wt weights in at 2 oz. and if that isn't light enough for you try the 7 ft. 3wt which weights in at 1.2 oz. the price for either is 795.00---I didn't find anything fly rod lighter than this series anywhere on the net. I don't think I will purchasing this brand anytime soon but I just wanted to share with you guys the varied weights of some of these classics fly rods. Thanks for viewing!!

Fishing The Spent Mayfly in Late Summer For Rainbow

Today was my chance to fish with the Spent Mayfly on the upper portion of the tailrace. I was planning on fishing below the pump station in hopes of landing the bigger rainbow, but repairs were being made on the access point in that area so I stayed in the faster water above the pump station. I started at the first access point where I found two other guys fishing above me and I thought I should just move on, but something told me to stay and give the Mayfly a try here.  As usual no rises at all; but I was still determined to fish the dry for a while. After a few cast I had my first rainbow of the morning. I continued working the same area for a couple of hours, which was all the time I had to fish.  There were numbers of fishermen in front of me working the other spots up the tailrace so I decided not to move.  This place gets a tremendous amount of pressure so one has to be on his game to even land a trout, in any of the areas that hold fish. In other words these are highly educated trout. 

This guy was fishing too in the early fog, right after I got this shot off he/she flew on  to tap into another hole 

The Mayfly right where the hook set was suppose to be top lip---this one was really a lot fun on the 7  1/2 ft. 3wt Temple Fork--

The base of the dam is over a 1/4 mile wide----need a dam this size to hold back the amount of water on the other side

Two generators control the amount of water being released at any give time of day--the water here at the dam and 1/4 mile below is between 56 to 58 degrees--notice the white PVC tube, that is the tube used to dump the 3000 trout a month into the area below.

Landed this bow on the famous Zebra Midge. I always have one handy when I am fishing here.

The Spent Mayfly, is just a little variation from the original Mayfly, I like this pattern much better because of the amont of hackle, which in turns helps the fly to stay afloat longer. I was kind of proud of myself today after talking with four other guys who said they didn't land a single trout.  I would like to think my success today was from my own ability, and not from just being at the right place at the right time.  With all the speculation aside I still had a great morning fishing a place I am slowly getting accustomed to.

Missing my Goal to Land 100 Super Size Bream

Sorry to say I missed my quest again this year to land 100 supersize bluegills during the spawning period. I ended the quest at 78. I thought I would make it this year but there were other fishermen going after the gills especially when they went on the beds. I landed the majority of my big bluegills really early before they ever went on the beds. I found during the months of March and early April the bigger bluegills are cursing the banks to select areas they are going to fan out for beds. This is a prime time to catch them because no one else is actually fishing for bluegills during this time. Once they go on the beds you better get there early or else you lose out on the best size fish. Walker County Lake is the one place I landed some monsters this past year early. I did catch some counters on Smith, but the really bigger bluegills are going to be in lakes that are managed properly to grow that size fish, and Walker is really blessed with the big fish. So I would say I was lucky to have landed the 78 I brought to hand and I am going to look forward to next year’s quest.

What Would be Your Top Five Fly Patterns to Use Nationwide

After Tuesday’s outing, I was wondering on the way home; what would be the top five flies that most trout fishermen would pick to fish anywhere in the United States, regardless of the hatch? My top five would be  a mixture starting with: 

My number one choice for going down under would have to be the tungsten bead head Zebra Midge in sizes 18 and smaller.

The Pheasant Tail is my second choice in size 14 and 16, again tungsten bead head

My third fly would have to be the Griffiths Gnat, this little jewel works for me when nothing else is happening on top---size 18 and smaller

 The famous Mayfly in size 14 and 16 is an awesome dry for me on the Caney Fork in Tennessee and has also produced on the Sipsey tailrace

My last is another awesome dry pattern called the Bomber. This fly resembles the Parachute Adams, but has more hackle and stays afloat longer. This fly is tied by Alan at Small Stream Reflections, he has landed lots of brook trout with this one pattern.

A Work in Progress Using The Bomber Dry Pattern

This post is dedicated to rest of the summer and into the fall fishing. I am referring to the tailrace fishing below Smith Lake. For the rest of the summer and late September I will be trout fishing the tailrace below Smith Lake. I will forgo the lake fishing until fall. The lake this time of year is extremely slow due to the tremendous generation and extreme heat and humidity. One can just take a look at the parking lots on the lake and figure out right quick that there is very little action.

The tailrace fishing will give me a chance to hone my skills for trout and at the same time learn more about some of the different areas on the Sipsey. I am going to devote more time to fishing the extremely slow water below the pump station where bigger rainbow have been spotted. Those trout are extremely weary and harder to land due the constant pressure in that part of the tailrace. Streamers are the choice of flies there and it will present a challenge for me to fish this pattern because I seldom ever fish a streamer. My trip Tuesday proved to be another work in progress as the images below will show.

I arrived with the usual fog and mist on the surface due to the tremendous amount of humidity in the air meeting the cool water surface of the tailrace--really a peaceful view early

My first rainbow of the morning using Alan's Bomber, I am sooooo impressed with this pattern

One of many log jams in the fog one has to encounter while either wading or walking the banks. Some of the larger rainbow hang out right below this structure. A dry works best in and around these logs because you can't get much of drift here with a nymph.

This flower is native to this area, I don't know what it is called but I wanted to see if I could get a good image in the flower mode---better than I expected

The Bomber comes through right before I called it quits. I never landed a fish all morning on nymphs.

Drift wood everywhere in this place--did you guys know people pay big bucks for a chuck of wood like this?

Looking up hill from down below only a few feet from the cool waters edge. Once you descend down into the gorge the temps drop 15 degrees. This is what makes coming to place really nice especially in the hot humid days of August.

Tailrace Fishing can Really be a Challenge

Fishing trips for me is always a learning experience, especially if the trip doesn’t turn out the way I imagined before I leave the house. The tailrace today was the ultimate learning experience. I left the house with the intention of using a variation of the Mayfly patterns; all reports indicated on the Sipsey Forum that the Mayfly was the success fly. After arriving at the waters edge with a guy from Huntsville tagging along beside me, I made it to my first honey hole, where he moved on up the tailrace about 100 ft. to another great hole that I was going to try if my first choice didn’t work out. ( so much for fishing along this morning) I decided before I ever made a cast that my dry pattern wasn’t going to be successful, no rises. In fact it was kind of strange in that there was absolutely no surface action at all. So being the optimist I made my first cast and as the fly landed in a fairly fast run I thought I just had to get a take on this cast because the drift was so perfect. Just goes to show perfect cast and excellent drifts don’t always produce. I finally gave up on a variety of dries after realizing I was wasting valuable time with a limited amount of shade fading fast. I didn’t move although I wanted to go up and try a couple more holes before the sun got them, but I knew the trout were here. I switched to my go to nymph which was the Zebra Midge using an indicator on a 5X tippet. I made a couple of cast with no success, and decided to move the indictor up on the leader about 10” to get a little more depth on my midge. I proceeded with another cast and finally got the drift I was looking for and ever so slightly the indicator moved and my first bow of the day was netted. I have to say the trout made its presence known on the 3 wt. I continued to make cast after cast with no more success, so I moved on up to one of my holes near the dam. As I approached the area I was going to fish I notice there was still no rises at all in fact as I walked the bank up to the hole I saw no activity. I continue with the Midge pattern and on the second cast I set the hook on another nice rainbow that went straight down stream. I landed the trout by bringing it to the shore and not using my net, because it was easier and quicker going to the shore as opposed to the net. I can’t explain why the bite was over after this fish but it was like someone turned out the lights and everyone went to bed. Sometimes it doesn’t take a lot of fish to satisfy and today was the case. Just being here was a plus and today’s trip will continue to make me come back here time and again because I want to keep learning about this great sport? 

The Zebra Midge did the trick with this nice rainbow   

Ancestry Report + Trout Fishing the Bomber Dry Fly

Wednesday the 25^th I left for Mississippi to work on our family’s Ancestry tree and got back last night. I am trying to finish up both sides of the tree before fall and then have the information published. Ancestry will proofread and published all the material you have in your tree for an extra charge, but for me, it is worth it. This has been an ongoing project of mine for the past two years. I decided not to research your typical tree diagram where you have endless names of your decedents. I wanted my children and their children to remember what their grandparents and great grandparents were like so I wrote backgrounds and profiles of all the decedents. In other words, I was only interested in the direct descendants of the Trussells and Daves families. To do this I had to talk to individuals who were older than me and get them to tell me what their grandparents were like. The libraries in the different small towns they all live close to had a lot of information telling what life was like back in the early 1800s which was extremely helpful. Former Governor J. P. Coleman researched and wrote a book telling what life was like in the late 1700s and 1800s. This has to be one of the most interesting things I have ever done. I am really glad I started this project because it has given me a chance to see what my decedents went through during that time and how they survived on just the land they lived on. O.K. I have bored you enough-----------------

Now for the trout fishing trip, I made on Tuesday the day before I left. I wanted to make a trip before I left because I knew I wouldn’t have another chance to fish until this next week. I was trying some of the Bomber flies I had Alan to tie for me at Small StreamReflections. I am so impressed with this pattern because of its ability to stay afloat so well and ride high on the surface and two how well it gets the attention of the trout. I arrived at the water’s edge around 7 AM and started casting these little flies a few feet upstream. The water surface still had fog but I could still see the bomber as it floated down a fairly fast run across from me. The very first cast produce a take but I missed the hookset because I wasn’t expecting to connect that fast. On the third cast I managed to set the hook on a nice rainbow. For the next couple of hours, I stayed with the bomber because it was my producing fly for the morning.

The third cast produced this beauty with the Bomber--I missed about as many as I landed. For some reason I was either too late on the set or the trout was missing the fly. I tend to think it was my late hook set.

I think the colors on this stocker trout are less vibrant as opposed to the colors on native trout. Don't get me wrong they are still amazing to view. Sorry for the poor image, I am still in the learning stages.

As I said this pattern has got to be one of the best I have ever fished here. During the week is the best time to fish this area because one has the water to themselves, and today it was just me and my Bomber pattern. Thanks, Alan for making this a great trip.

Gone But You Guys Are Not Forgotten

Hi Guys
Been gone this week and not onto the blog as I should be. I have a number of interesting post coming in the next couple of days. Stay tuned!!!

Experimenting With Scent Attractors for Fly Fishing

There were several things going on during my fishing trip Saturday. One was trying to reach my 100 super bluegill quest, during the spawn, two was trying a land a quality Spot, and three was trying out a scent attractor on flies for bluegills and bass. The first goal I didn’t accomplish, because I think most of the big bull bluegill had move into deep water at least 30 to 40 ft. The second goal was missed with only one small largemouth brought to hand using the size 4 Boogle Bug. I discovered right after I launched the boat that the lake was falling contrary to what the report had said. Sometimes one can’t put a lot of trust in the generation schedule for Smith Lake. As most of you know water falling on any body of water can put a damper on the catch ratio. Fish tend to go deep during this period and stay deep until the water level stabilizes. I did manage to land fish but just not the quality bass.

Now for the third goal; I have said I learn something every time I am on the water and today was no exception. I wanted to try a product that claims to entice the bite for bass and bluegill so I had my small little bottle of bass attractant. I only used it on a couple of wooly buggers. I can’t say for sure that the scent attractor work to get more hits, but it seem to add a little more confidence on a slow morning. The attractant didn’t effect the action of the bugger because I didn’t add it to the tail of the fly, just the body. I didn’t try it on any dry fly. I am wondering if any of you guys have experimented with scent attractant on flies.

Sorry awful image but you get the drift with the Boogle deep in the throat the only bass of the morning

All of these guys were caught on a couple of small poppers, and the rest on the wooly bugger. I have to say none will qualify for my quest. They were a lot of fun on the 3 wt. As stated in the post the bass scent attractor was used and I would like to think it help me land more fish on an extremely slow morning-----falling water

The Hat Makes the Fisherman or Does the Fisherman Make The Hat?

I don’t know if you guys notice that I am more of a hat guy than a cap fisherman. I use to wear a cap all the time back when I was younger and didn’t mind the sun and could tolerate the heat more, but as I got older I wanted to avoid a lot of sun on my ears and face so the hat was born. Since switching to the hat I’ve become more aware of the comfort and looks for me. I don’t know why but I have always related the hat more to fly fishing than your traditional cap. I guess over the years seeing some of the greatest fly fishermen ever wearing a hat while fly fishing convinced me of the connection. The hat really had its resurgence when the movie “A River Runs Through It” came out. This movie not only revitalized fly fishing but it also helps sell a lot of fly fishing hats during that time. After seeing the movie I knew then that the hat had found its permanent home in fly fishing. I own three different hats that I use while fishing and one straw hat I wear while I am moving the yard. I have convinced myself that I need a new felt fly fishing hat for this winter. I did a Google search recently and came up with a lot of choices. I thought that you guys might want to take a look at some of my favorites I found.  

This was one of my first choices. What I really like about this hat is the mesh opening and of course the solid top, this hat is from AdventureHat

This was one of my first choices. What I really like about this hat is the mesh opening and of course the solid top.

This could be my winter felt hat it comes in dark green, tan and brown. The only thing this hat is missing is the small quail feather in the band. It is from Orvis

Although I am not in the market for a straw hat this one really got my attention, I really like the flat top and the compress brim. This one is from Villagehatshop

Another good looking straw hat that is in the form of a Stetson design--this hat is also from Villagehatshop

The crushable feature is what got my attention here with this hat, it is from Villagehatshop

The Aussie Wool Crusher is an awesome looking felt hat with the leather band it is from Adventure Hat

I am not in the market for an all-leather hat, but I thought some of you guys might be interested --it is from Adventure Hat

I know this post is about hats but I was so impressed with this cap. In fact I order one for the fall, it is a little too hot for it now. It is from Cafepress