Well I have finally gone High
Tech on you guys. I am not talking about blogging; I am talking about my new Driod
Razr Maxx smart phone by Motorola. I have been using the basic fold out version
of the Samsung without all the bells and whistles for years and thought it was
about time for me to move up and join the rest of the mad text scene. So now I
am not only into the text mode, but into all the other features that comes with
this incredible phone. You wonder how and what will be coming out next or
better yet can the industry top what they already have; well I know they can and
my Driod will be out dated in a couple of years. This may be old hat to most of
you guys but this is a big step for me, especially when I told my wife a couple
of years ago that texting was dumb, because I could dial a number and actually
say what I needed to say in less time. As time has past I can see a need for
texting, because on some days I can only reach my family or friends with a text
message. The one great feature I really like about this phone is text talk,
which keeps me from typing with my fat fingers. So now you all know that I have
reached new heights in communication. I only hope I can keep up.
I hope to use this blog as an avenue to express my thoughts and adventures of all of my fishing expeditions and any other journeys I may undertake.
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Getting Tougher to Reach my Goal of 100 Super Bluegills
I got back on the water this
week for a couple of days. The lake has been falling and cool nights have put a
damper on the catch ratio. There has been very little bass action on top or subsurface; but that is Smith Lake , deep, super clear and heavy fishing pressure. This
lake has had three bass tournaments in the past month and that plays a big part
in whether the bass is active. I have always heard that lakes that have a
tremendous amount of pressure should be fished completely different from the
way everybody else fishes the lake. I have taken that statement to heart some
years ago when I started Micro Light fishing and Fly Fishing on the lake. These
two methods of fishing are seldom used on Smith which has made it quite
productive for me over the years, especially with the fly rod. I have only seen
one other fisherman use the fly rod on this lake over the past ten years, and I
hope that trend continues. I am still working on my goal every time I launch
the boat here and today and Wednesday were no exception. Both days produced 20
to 25 bluegills with only a few big enough to count towards my goal. Wednesday
was tough because the lake was falling and I had to go with subsurface flies
such as the Upside Bream Killer and a size 12 Cream Nymph. I only landed a couple on
top using the Humpy Green dry fly. Today was somewhat better but still limited surface
action. The Muddler Minnow was the fly that got their attention today, but it only
produced one good gill and a couple smaller ones. I used the Cream Nymph the rest
of the morning to finish the trip. I can’t go to Smith this time of year
without trying the Boogle Bug, but there was no action at all with the Spots
and Largemouth bass. I thought I would never wish for hot humid weather but
that is what it is going to take to bring back the top action. I am now 32 big
bluegills away to reach my goal. It is getting tougher now that the spawn is
winding down. I only have 2 to 3 weeks left. Wish me luck!!!
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
The Beginner Package For The Fly Fisherman on a Budget
I know when you mention fly fishing to the average individual they either think expense or intimidating. I have had numbers of individuals tell me they would like to fly fish but they just don’t think they can afford the sport or it is too complicated to learn. One does not have to spend a pile of money to get into fly fishing. In fact you can purchase a fairly good combo at most outlet stores. Way before purchasing the equipment there has to be the desire to learn the sport and next learning how to cast. Some individuals may take fly casting lessons which can cost anywhere from 50.00 to 100.00. To save money you can always get someone you may know to let you cast their fly rod for free. A suggestion here, don’t waste money on a fly rod and reel until you have had a chance to use one. I taught one of my buddies how to use one of my fly rods in last than hour last year on
Friday, May 11, 2012
Irritation and Frustration Can Occur Even in Fishing
I know fishing trips can’t be
perfect all the time and I realize that sometimes things just don’t go as
planned. I did a post some time back on whether you consider yourself a perfectionist
when it comes to fishing. Well, I guess you could put me in that category because everything has to be working to perfection for me when I am fishing. One
might say why do you put yourself through all that pressure or stress? No pressure or stress here for me because this
is the way I have learned to fish, but after all these years there are some
things that still get next to me such as----
Line tangle on fishing rods---I
hate it when your line from one rod in the boat, Suv, or truck gets tangled
into the line of other rods in the boat.
The best way to avoid this is to clip your fly or lure into your hook
keeper on your fishing rod, then wrap the line around the rod using your guides
on the rod to hold the line tight to the rod itself. There is no way for the
line on the rods to get tangled that way. One of my buddies had two of his rods to
get tangled with his fly rods the other day in the back of his SUV. He spent
the better part of 4 to 5 minutes getting the line on the rods untangled, what
a mess.
Line bend---I am talking
about the bent line in your leader after it has set in the guide for a while.
Even the line stretcher can’t get this bend out at times. I really like my
leader to be perfectly straight when I am fly fishing. If your leader is
straight without bends then your presentation of your fly will land more
realistic. One of the guys I fish with never uses a line stretcher, instead, he
just removes the leader from the package and ties a fly on and starts casting. I
have mentioned and even shown him the technique of how to secure a straight
leader, but he says that is wasting time. He seems to think casting will get
the leader in working order---everybody to his own!
The tip of your fly line
sinking below the surface of the water; a good line dressing will keep your fly
floating nicely on the surface. The sinking fly line can cause problems with pick up and
can also hinder the cast itself.
Line twist at the tippet end
of the leader is one thing I have been wrestling with and I think I have solved
this problem. I switched to a larger tippet and flies with less hackle to help
with this problem. Nothing more irritating than a twisted tippet when you are landing fish
A bad cast not only cuts down
on fishing time, but it can also cause knots in your tippet or upwards to your
leader. This is really true if you are using a dropper which extends the leader
length. You will know when you have hit that sweet spot with your cast. It is
that feel and the sight of fly rolling perfectly out on the surface of the
water. I have never been a big fan of false casting a lot. My son does a lot of
false casting which in turn causes knots in his leader at times. Don’t get me
wrong there is a time and place for false casting but with me, I use less false
casting than the average fly fisherman.
This last one is listed for
those of us who use boats. There is nothing more frustrating than to have some
of your equipment on your boat to go out after you have got on the water. This
can really put a damper on what was supposed to be a good day. Well, there you
have it some of my under the skin-irritating things that get next to me. Have I
missed some, if so feel free to add your own?
Monday, May 7, 2012
A 3 in 1 Punch for Today's Post--Nearing the GOAL!!
Today’s post is a 3 in
1 punch, with three different topics all in one package. I did a post about a
week ago on the tiny Tippet Ring. I was looking for an easy way to attach your tippet
to your leader, well I found it. Yesterday’s trip involved testing this little
bugger and it proved to be a winner. I really like the fact that you don’t have
to tie a blood knot when attaching your tippet to the leader when using this little
ring. It is so handy you merely tie the tippet into the ring and you are good
to go. I broke off a couple of times yesterday in a few trees and had to replace
my tippet both times and was back to fishing in a matter of seconds thanks
to this little ring. I hope it performs as well with dries and nymphs as it did
with the poppers and buggers. I did notice I didn’t get one line twist when
using the ring. Now on to the next bit of news—
From time to time I am going to be featuring new blogs that I
have found and joined up with. Today’s feature blog is Spare Time for Fish by Anthony
Gardner. This blog has some great information on Warm Water Fishing. The blog covers
everything from fly fishing accessories, fishing for crappie, crap, bass and
yes bluegill. In fact, food is covered in this blog as well. If you haven’t checked
out Spare Time for Fishing it is worth the look.Now for my quest or goal; for those of you who have been keeping up with my goal I am trying to land 100 super bull bluegill during the spawning period. Well, yesterday it just got easier. I started the morning at
One lone bass which was a largemouth that had been caught in the tournament. It had hook marks inside it's upper lip--this one came on the Olive Boogle Bug with the 5 wt. no more bass action after this guy
This one was really fat and put up some kind of fight on the 4 wt. I think next time I will bring along my 3 wt.
These count toward the goal, a couple here were near a pound. These 10 put me 38 away. I ended the trip with 16 brought to hand. I fished an area today where there was less boat traffic. The boat traffic is a killer when one is trying to fish on top with the fly.
Friday, May 4, 2012
Landing Super size Bluegills in Rock Creek on Smith Lake
Rock Creek was the target for
today’s fishing trip. I wanted to go back to some of the areas I had fished
three weeks ago on my bluegill quest; with a new plan in mind. The overcast
skies and low humidity made the conditions much better than three weeks ago. I
decided not to concentrate so much today on the bass, because here lately the
topwater action has been extremely slow for the Spotted Bass and Largemouth Bass. I wanted to see if I could find the
big bluegills back on the beds since I was fishing right after a full moon. As a lot of you know
the moon phase triggers the spawn in early spring and again in June and the
last one in late July or early August. This, of course, can vary in different parts of the
country. I knew the bluegills would be back in the nooks off the main creek
channel. As fate would have it I found my first big cluster of monster beds in
a pocket of the main Rock Creek channel at 7 AM. I counted twelve huge beds with three
big bluegills located on three of the beds. I have found that not all the beds
are occupied on the second and third spawn, and in this cluster, there were only
three beds being guarded. I positioned the boat so I could be horizontal to the
back of the nook. It was a perfect set-up with no wind and the water surface
like glass smooth. The water was extremely clear so I knew I couldn’t get close
or they would jet out to deep water. My first cast was at least 50 ft . and the Betts popper landed gently on the backside
of the bed clusters. I never move the popper, I just let it sit there for a few
second and wham the popper was gone, and the big bull-headed straight for deep
water. All big bluegills in this lake have the same objective when they take
the popper to go deep and try to find the structure to break off. This one lost the
battle in a depth of 30 ft . I repeated
this process six different times throughout the morning, locating beds and enticing
the big takes and having a blast fighting these brutes on my 9 ft . 3 wt. The great thing about today’s trip was the
hit, I could actually see the fish come up from 8 to 10 ft . deep to nail the fly. In fact, they would create a
small wake towards the popper as they inhaled it. I can’t begin to tell you
guys what a rush it is to experience that kind of action towards your offering, but of
course all you know this I forget sometimes I am not conveying all this stuff
to armatures. I ended the trip around 10 AM
with at least 2 dozen bluegills which included some smaller females and males,
a couple of small bass, and of course the 6 big boys I kept for my quest. I am
now 26 away from my goal of landing 100 supersize bull bluegills during the
spawn. It is going to be close but I think I may make it during the last spawn.
Adding to my Super Size Bluegill Goal
I made a quick trip to Rock Creek yesterday to fish areas of
Smith that I haven’t fished in years. I forgot how beautiful the Rock Creek
area is, especially the high rock wall formations with all the cave holes
carved out in the walls. I was competing with a huge bass tournament with some
125 boats zipping up and down the creek most of the morning. I felt good about
landing fish on top especially some nice Spots, but they were not cooperating. Even fishing the fly rod by myself in Rock Creek couldn’t
entice a hit. I was fishing the Boogle Bug brand on my 5 wt and had my 4 wt
rigged with size 8 Wooly Bugger. I have to add a plug here for the Boogle Bug;
it has to be the best of the best when it comes to poppers. This popper is so
durable and tough that they will last season after season. Back to the trip, I
fished from 6 AM until 9 AM using nothing but the white Boogle Bug
which during that time produced some nice bluegills to add to my total count
for the spawn. I did release some smaller bluegills that for some reason
thought they were big enough to inhale the size 6 Boogle. The key to getting the big hit was placing the
popper right against the rock wall. The hit would come 10 to 15 seconds after
the popper had landed lightly on the water’s surface. These big bluegills seem
to know when the presentation was heavy instead of light meaning no action. I never
used my 4 wt all morning, because the action was fairly consistent on the
popper, so why break up a good thing. After today’s outing, I am 48 away from my
goal. Saturday morning I hope to add to the total and have some quality Spots
to report on.
This bull inhaled the size 6 Boogle
Supersize gill off the wall
Three of these bluegills were between 8 and 9 oz. I said when I started my goal I would only count 8 oz. and above --the top and bottom gills were 16 oz. --they are like landing a spot when they turn their wide bodies sideways. They gave the 5 wt a bend!!---these 5 put me 48 away from my goal.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
My Favorite House on Smith Lake--- and Fishing With Jason
I made an outing today with
my son Jason. He had a day off so we decided to fish the lower end of Ryan Creek on Smith Lake . We were at the lake at daylight which is the best
time to land quality fish using the poppers. The morning started off with a
bang when Jason landed a nice 18” spot using an olive Wooly Bugger. The fish gave the 9 ft . 4wt. all it could handle by stripping drag numbers
of times before he finally landed the fish. Jason is really into landing nice quality Spotted Bass. Nothing was happening on top,
and the morning was slow especially after the sun came up. I will be making
another trip tomorrow in hopes of adding to my bluegill goal---stay tuned.
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