Tuesday, May 26, 2009
New Flies for 2009
Eastern Trophies will be reopening the fly catalog on the website soon. Featured will be the fly patterns used to take big fish, really big, 2x tippet type, often toothy fish. Some patterns offered will be Galloup's Sex Dungeon, Butt Monkey's, Zoo Cougars, Blondes, Articulated Monkeys and Articulated Flatheads. These patterns and others will be available in many colors. In addition, there will also be fly patterns for Muskies. Eastern Trophies will also have it's own successful patterns offered on the site like The 6th Man and Flash Fly Clousers. If you have any questions about the flies we will carry or placing an order just send us an email or give us a call.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Ummmmm Murphy.......He's Into My Backing!!!!!!!
So on a recent float, Chris Murphy and I floated the middle section of the North Branch to see what kind of trout we could hook into. Chris had some recent floats and the fishing has been on the slow side up there for the past week. It's always a good time to float, try new patterns, joke and around and to just spend the day on the water with a good friend.
We hooked some trout early on some flash fly clousers and smaller streamers both with floating and sinking lines. But still, we caught nothing on any size. The fishing was slow. Being in the front of the boat, I hit every spot I could in the first few miles of river, but the fishing was slow and the takes that I did have were soft. So we eased into a "go to" run that has always produced fish and Chris had just anchored up the boat when I made my first cast high into the run. Thats when I saw the flash.
By the time Murphy had anchored up as was moving to the back seat in the boat, I was hooked into what I thought was a pig. I saw the fish roll in about 3 feet of water on one of the two 6th Man flies I was fishing. The brown took off down stream hard and within seconds I was into my backing. Yes backing. Yes I have the regular length fly line also. Grizzly, good knot buddy.
At first when the backing to fly line "bump" went through my fingers I thought I had a cross over in my line which would cause huge problems. About 20 yards into my backing I told Chris that we were going to have to chase this one because I couldn't get any line back.
As we pushed down river to get my fly line back the brown began to roll on the surface and that's when I knew he was foul hooked. After a long drawn out fight of about 10 minutes we finally got the brown in the net. It wasn't some huge, goliath brown I had hoped for, but it's still a solid trout on the North Branch.
We hooked some trout early on some flash fly clousers and smaller streamers both with floating and sinking lines. But still, we caught nothing on any size. The fishing was slow. Being in the front of the boat, I hit every spot I could in the first few miles of river, but the fishing was slow and the takes that I did have were soft. So we eased into a "go to" run that has always produced fish and Chris had just anchored up the boat when I made my first cast high into the run. Thats when I saw the flash.
By the time Murphy had anchored up as was moving to the back seat in the boat, I was hooked into what I thought was a pig. I saw the fish roll in about 3 feet of water on one of the two 6th Man flies I was fishing. The brown took off down stream hard and within seconds I was into my backing. Yes backing. Yes I have the regular length fly line also. Grizzly, good knot buddy.
At first when the backing to fly line "bump" went through my fingers I thought I had a cross over in my line which would cause huge problems. About 20 yards into my backing I told Chris that we were going to have to chase this one because I couldn't get any line back.
As we pushed down river to get my fly line back the brown began to roll on the surface and that's when I knew he was foul hooked. After a long drawn out fight of about 10 minutes we finally got the brown in the net. It wasn't some huge, goliath brown I had hoped for, but it's still a solid trout on the North Branch.
Monday, April 20, 2009
And the trout say...."Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr....."
So with the North Branch high and cold, I took some clients to fish on the Casselman River, expecting to have a productive day. As a guide, I am constantly trying to figure out what the fish are doing. Factors such as clarity, flow, temperature, pressure, and such can really change how the fishing is going to be that day. Hence the phrase, "thats why they call it fishing."
The Casselman usually fishes well in the Spring. The hatches are good and the trout that are stocked are usually very healthy and often huge. Spring rains and snow melt keep the river at levels between 150 -250 CFS and the river is a god card up your sleeve when the other rivers just aren't fishable.
With snow in Western Maryland a week or two ago, that really changed things along with the cold nights. With temps in the mid 40's to start the day, we were looking at tough conditions. In the past, I and my clients have been able to move fish using larger streamer patterns. But this day, little luck. With few bugs hatching and low temps fish were deep and out of site. I also think that some of the higher flows pushed some of the stocked fish up unto PA. We were able to hook up two nice trout though. One Brook Trout took a Flash Fly Clouser fished deep and another Brown Trout took a 6th Man being worked back upstream through a nice run on the lower river near the PA line.
But as any fishing day goes, its always a good day to be out on the water helping clients improve their skills, give them some new techniques and at least give them something to take home at the end of the day besides the thousands of cast during the day.
The Casselman usually fishes well in the Spring. The hatches are good and the trout that are stocked are usually very healthy and often huge. Spring rains and snow melt keep the river at levels between 150 -250 CFS and the river is a god card up your sleeve when the other rivers just aren't fishable.
With snow in Western Maryland a week or two ago, that really changed things along with the cold nights. With temps in the mid 40's to start the day, we were looking at tough conditions. In the past, I and my clients have been able to move fish using larger streamer patterns. But this day, little luck. With few bugs hatching and low temps fish were deep and out of site. I also think that some of the higher flows pushed some of the stocked fish up unto PA. We were able to hook up two nice trout though. One Brook Trout took a Flash Fly Clouser fished deep and another Brown Trout took a 6th Man being worked back upstream through a nice run on the lower river near the PA line.
But as any fishing day goes, its always a good day to be out on the water helping clients improve their skills, give them some new techniques and at least give them something to take home at the end of the day besides the thousands of cast during the day.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
First Trophy of the Year
So every year there is always that first day out on the river after the long Winter. Chris Murphy and I spent that day on the water a week or so ago. It was good to be out on the water regardless of catching fish or not.
Fishing was slow in the morning but did pick up in the afternoon. We fished deep and slow but only managed to pick up about 6 fish throughout the day. I did manage to land a 20" brown which was the first trophy caught for the year. The browns on the North Branch are pretty notorious for being fiesty and active in the Months of January, February, March and April. This is the post spawn time when they are looking to put some weight back on after their spawning activity in November and December.
The brown I was able to hook took a #2 6th Man being stripped back up through a riffle from about a 60' cast the straightened out off of a good 5' deep run. Basically, after the fly swung through and straightened out I would strip about two inches and let the fly flutter in the riffle. Chris Murphy who was on the oars that day was laughing at me because I made the strip retrieve into a song. As I was counting the seconds on the pause and humming along, I was hammered by something. It felt big what ever it was. After a few seconds on solid pull on my rod, it crested to the surface and boiled. Chris and I both saw it. It was big, but we weren't sure how big.
Every time someone hooks into a big fish, I always have the split second thought about this fish possibly being huge. I am not talking 20-25" huge. I am talking 30" plus huge. Some day, someone is going to hook into a pig like that and it will be a very fun day.
Regardless, that thought went through my head as I fought this fish. It held strong. It turned into the deeper run which flows beside the riffle. I coulnd't budge her one inch. I could feel her head shake and pump the rod. There was no doubt this would be a trophy fish. But, would it be that true monster that I know swims this river?
No, it wasn't. But the fish I did hook, was solid, beautiful and was the only fish I hooked and landed that day. It was a good start to the year.
I will end though, with some thoughts about the huge browns that swim the North Branch. We have seen them. These are the 28-30"+ fish that roam deep. We have caught 26" fish, but not 30" and longer. As an angler that targets trophy trout, when I fish, this is what I am after. Some day, someone in my boat is going to hook into a massive fish and when we do, that day will be a very good day.
Fishing was slow in the morning but did pick up in the afternoon. We fished deep and slow but only managed to pick up about 6 fish throughout the day. I did manage to land a 20" brown which was the first trophy caught for the year. The browns on the North Branch are pretty notorious for being fiesty and active in the Months of January, February, March and April. This is the post spawn time when they are looking to put some weight back on after their spawning activity in November and December.
The brown I was able to hook took a #2 6th Man being stripped back up through a riffle from about a 60' cast the straightened out off of a good 5' deep run. Basically, after the fly swung through and straightened out I would strip about two inches and let the fly flutter in the riffle. Chris Murphy who was on the oars that day was laughing at me because I made the strip retrieve into a song. As I was counting the seconds on the pause and humming along, I was hammered by something. It felt big what ever it was. After a few seconds on solid pull on my rod, it crested to the surface and boiled. Chris and I both saw it. It was big, but we weren't sure how big.
Every time someone hooks into a big fish, I always have the split second thought about this fish possibly being huge. I am not talking 20-25" huge. I am talking 30" plus huge. Some day, someone is going to hook into a pig like that and it will be a very fun day.
Regardless, that thought went through my head as I fought this fish. It held strong. It turned into the deeper run which flows beside the riffle. I coulnd't budge her one inch. I could feel her head shake and pump the rod. There was no doubt this would be a trophy fish. But, would it be that true monster that I know swims this river?
No, it wasn't. But the fish I did hook, was solid, beautiful and was the only fish I hooked and landed that day. It was a good start to the year.
I will end though, with some thoughts about the huge browns that swim the North Branch. We have seen them. These are the 28-30"+ fish that roam deep. We have caught 26" fish, but not 30" and longer. As an angler that targets trophy trout, when I fish, this is what I am after. Some day, someone in my boat is going to hook into a massive fish and when we do, that day will be a very good day.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Sunday, September 28, 2008
The Fate of the Savage
So there is concern about the health and stability of the Savage River Dam. A few years ago, damage to one of the four valves/gates on the dam was discovered. As far as I know, The Army Corps of Engineers is operating the dam on 3 valves. One valve is damaged. An engineering consultant was called in last year to evaluate the damage and discovered that there was “pitting” on all of the valves. The report suggests that all the valves be replaced. Now, there are liability concerns because of homes down stream of the dam, but I think the engineers who looked at the valves need to cover their “butts” because they are the one’s who signed off on the report. Just remember, the dam can operate successfully on just two of the four valves.
With all of this commotion, there are many rumors about the fishery below the dam down to the confluence of the North Branch. There has been talk of removing the trout with shocking and netting and there has also been talk about “opening” up that section of the river to fisherman so they river is clean before they drop the water levels so that repair work can be done on the valves.
I think this issue needs to be seriously looked at from all sides. The Savage River as a fishery is amazing place and arguably the best trout stream in Maryland. With the river being part of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed one would think there would be federal money that can be used. Who knows though, with our country’s economy. There must be an option though, that saves the fishery and gets the valves repaired.
The word is getting around and people are getting involved. I am currently in the process of talking with Trout Unlimited and there are also local chapters that are aware of the situation. As anglers I think the best thing we can do is voice our concerns and keep our thinking caps on. In regards to a timeline, we are probably a few years away from anything happening. Feel free to email me or your local TU chapter if you have any ideas, concerns or remarks.
With all of this commotion, there are many rumors about the fishery below the dam down to the confluence of the North Branch. There has been talk of removing the trout with shocking and netting and there has also been talk about “opening” up that section of the river to fisherman so they river is clean before they drop the water levels so that repair work can be done on the valves.
I think this issue needs to be seriously looked at from all sides. The Savage River as a fishery is amazing place and arguably the best trout stream in Maryland. With the river being part of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed one would think there would be federal money that can be used. Who knows though, with our country’s economy. There must be an option though, that saves the fishery and gets the valves repaired.
The word is getting around and people are getting involved. I am currently in the process of talking with Trout Unlimited and there are also local chapters that are aware of the situation. As anglers I think the best thing we can do is voice our concerns and keep our thinking caps on. In regards to a timeline, we are probably a few years away from anything happening. Feel free to email me or your local TU chapter if you have any ideas, concerns or remarks.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Has Anyone Seen This Guy?
We have been having a slight issue recently with an unknown character placing signs on our car. He seems to show up everywhere. We have called the police and they have taken fingerprints. Please if you have any information about who this is, or if you see this person contact the proper authorities.
Please don't take this serious. It's a joke.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Brothers In Arms
So a few years ago while talking to good friend and fellow guide, Ken Pavol, he mentioned an archeological dig next to the North Branch of the Potomac River near the private take out for our Buffet Float. As I took clients out on trips over the past few years, I witnessed from a far, the activity that has gone on around the Barton Archeological site in Western, MD.
Archeologists have been finding artifacts that date back to the Paleolithic Indian period (10,000-7,000 B.C.). I wonder how things looked back then. How did the people here use the river? What did the water look like. What kind of fish were here. It’s amazing. You can find more information at the link below. Enjoy!
http://www.mountaindiscoveries.com/images/fw2007/diggers.pdf
Archeologists have been finding artifacts that date back to the Paleolithic Indian period (10,000-7,000 B.C.). I wonder how things looked back then. How did the people here use the river? What did the water look like. What kind of fish were here. It’s amazing. You can find more information at the link below. Enjoy!
http://www.mountaindiscoveries.com/images/fw2007/diggers.pdf
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Yadda, Yadda, Yadda.......
Trying to think of a topic to write about, I thought, “Why not just babble?” I figure I can touch upon things regarding tactics, philosophy, equipment and such. So here it goes.
I think the one thing that has helped me become a successful angler is my sense of efficiency. When I fish, I am going non stop until I am done. I have had people call me the Polish Drift boat because when I wade I never stay in one spot and I cover a lot of water. When I wade fish alone I usually cover 3-5 miles in a day. Most of the time I am fishing streamers and I never cast to the same spot twice unless I get a turn, roll or a strike. When I do fish streamers I usually stick with a flash fly clouser or kreelex type fly. I have never found such a more effective fly for both wild fish and stocked. You can catch just about anything with this fly pattern. Most of the trophy fish on my website were caught with a flash fly clouser. When fishing streamers, I also use pretty heavy tippet. I don’t ever go below 3x and I often fish with 1x and sometimes 0x. You never know when you are going to hook into something big and with larger fish the tend to strike and turn in the opposite direction that the fly is working.
As far as rods, I am a Winston guy. Yes my favorite color is green but that’s not why I like Winston. I like the action of their rods, I like their workmanship, but I have been most impressed with there service. Lifetime guarantee on the rods, quick repair service and at times they have even shipped loner rods for me to use while my other is being repaired. I own a couple Winston WT’s, Boron’s and there Vapor’s. They are simply awesome rods in my book. Reel wise I would lean to Ross as my first choice and Orvis as my second. Both companies have good service and the drag systems on the reels I have work well with anything from small trout to tiger musky. Fly lines are all SA (scientific anglers). You can’t beat the quality, the coating nor the feel. Tippets and leaders are all Rio. Fly wise I tie a lot of my own patterns but also look to Umpqua, Kreel Tackle and a few patterns from Orvis. I will say the Orvis RS2 dry fly is an amazing fly. Often times last year while guiding on the Savage River, that fly was the fly that got clients onto some nice 18” brown trout. I use it in a size #18 in olive color.
When I first purchased my boat (raft) from NRS is was pretty basic. There was a frame with a front seat. There was a seat for me to row. I had them bend and cut bars so that I could furnish a floor so that I could stand in the middle and also place a platform in the rear. Through the years I added equipment trays made of heavy aluminum. These could also be used as casting platforms when fishing to selective trout or tiger musky. They give about another foot of height to the angler when they stand on these and fish. About 3 years ago I was trying to figure out how I can make the support thigh bars that you often find on Hyde and Clackacraft Drift boats. I thought for months how I could make something out of PVC, or Aluminum or anything. I thought I was an idiot when I thought to myself, “Why not just order them.” Dugh! So I did. After paying about $350.00 for two they finally arrived. So I sat in my garage and pondered about how I could attach these things to the frame on my raft. I finally figured out how to drill out some brackets that NRS makes and then they would just slide into these and bingo, thigh bars. That was pretty much the final step to making my boat as close to a drift boat as possible. Mind you, my boat is heavy. Its not fun taking it out at the end of our “Buffet Float”. But it does an amazing job. To be in the front of the boat, perched up, leaning against the thigh bar is something to be cherished and enjoyed. So, when you come on your trip with me, and you ask your buddy if he wants the front of the back. If he says it doesn’t matter. Just take the front. Trust me. I have updated my boat a little more this year. There is a rear casting deck now which is just like the front. I eliminated some other support bars and decking to reduce the weight of the boat. I also added a new aluminum storage box which can hold more equipment. There are also rod holders to keep rods at the ready. Lastly, and guides might go googoo and gaga over this, I have a guide caddy. It’s basically a storage unit that holds tippet material, forceps, hook files, flies and such all at the ready. I have mine located on my cooler right in front of me. This takes away the need of wearing a lanyard all day long.
Knots are fun aren’t they? Practice them. That’s all I can say. It took me ages to consistently make a good nail knot. How did I learn them? I Googled it. The steps are all there. From there, it’s just practice. From fly line to leader I use a nail knot going through the fly line. From leader to tippet I use either a double surgeons, or blood knot. From tippet to fly I use a pitzen knot or clinch. A loop is sometimes better and lets your fly move more freely in the water. One tip I practice is after a client catches a good fish, take the time to retie your knot. Regardless of how long it takes you to tie a clinch knot it’s worth it. If you don’t that next fish could be a 30” Brown Trout that could break you off because of a small abrasion on the tippet to fly knot. It takes me about 15 seconds to tie a clinch knot, and those 20 seconds are worth the time just in case that next fish is a pig.
I think the one thing that has helped me become a successful angler is my sense of efficiency. When I fish, I am going non stop until I am done. I have had people call me the Polish Drift boat because when I wade I never stay in one spot and I cover a lot of water. When I wade fish alone I usually cover 3-5 miles in a day. Most of the time I am fishing streamers and I never cast to the same spot twice unless I get a turn, roll or a strike. When I do fish streamers I usually stick with a flash fly clouser or kreelex type fly. I have never found such a more effective fly for both wild fish and stocked. You can catch just about anything with this fly pattern. Most of the trophy fish on my website were caught with a flash fly clouser. When fishing streamers, I also use pretty heavy tippet. I don’t ever go below 3x and I often fish with 1x and sometimes 0x. You never know when you are going to hook into something big and with larger fish the tend to strike and turn in the opposite direction that the fly is working.
As far as rods, I am a Winston guy. Yes my favorite color is green but that’s not why I like Winston. I like the action of their rods, I like their workmanship, but I have been most impressed with there service. Lifetime guarantee on the rods, quick repair service and at times they have even shipped loner rods for me to use while my other is being repaired. I own a couple Winston WT’s, Boron’s and there Vapor’s. They are simply awesome rods in my book. Reel wise I would lean to Ross as my first choice and Orvis as my second. Both companies have good service and the drag systems on the reels I have work well with anything from small trout to tiger musky. Fly lines are all SA (scientific anglers). You can’t beat the quality, the coating nor the feel. Tippets and leaders are all Rio. Fly wise I tie a lot of my own patterns but also look to Umpqua, Kreel Tackle and a few patterns from Orvis. I will say the Orvis RS2 dry fly is an amazing fly. Often times last year while guiding on the Savage River, that fly was the fly that got clients onto some nice 18” brown trout. I use it in a size #18 in olive color.
When I first purchased my boat (raft) from NRS is was pretty basic. There was a frame with a front seat. There was a seat for me to row. I had them bend and cut bars so that I could furnish a floor so that I could stand in the middle and also place a platform in the rear. Through the years I added equipment trays made of heavy aluminum. These could also be used as casting platforms when fishing to selective trout or tiger musky. They give about another foot of height to the angler when they stand on these and fish. About 3 years ago I was trying to figure out how I can make the support thigh bars that you often find on Hyde and Clackacraft Drift boats. I thought for months how I could make something out of PVC, or Aluminum or anything. I thought I was an idiot when I thought to myself, “Why not just order them.” Dugh! So I did. After paying about $350.00 for two they finally arrived. So I sat in my garage and pondered about how I could attach these things to the frame on my raft. I finally figured out how to drill out some brackets that NRS makes and then they would just slide into these and bingo, thigh bars. That was pretty much the final step to making my boat as close to a drift boat as possible. Mind you, my boat is heavy. Its not fun taking it out at the end of our “Buffet Float”. But it does an amazing job. To be in the front of the boat, perched up, leaning against the thigh bar is something to be cherished and enjoyed. So, when you come on your trip with me, and you ask your buddy if he wants the front of the back. If he says it doesn’t matter. Just take the front. Trust me. I have updated my boat a little more this year. There is a rear casting deck now which is just like the front. I eliminated some other support bars and decking to reduce the weight of the boat. I also added a new aluminum storage box which can hold more equipment. There are also rod holders to keep rods at the ready. Lastly, and guides might go googoo and gaga over this, I have a guide caddy. It’s basically a storage unit that holds tippet material, forceps, hook files, flies and such all at the ready. I have mine located on my cooler right in front of me. This takes away the need of wearing a lanyard all day long.
Knots are fun aren’t they? Practice them. That’s all I can say. It took me ages to consistently make a good nail knot. How did I learn them? I Googled it. The steps are all there. From there, it’s just practice. From fly line to leader I use a nail knot going through the fly line. From leader to tippet I use either a double surgeons, or blood knot. From tippet to fly I use a pitzen knot or clinch. A loop is sometimes better and lets your fly move more freely in the water. One tip I practice is after a client catches a good fish, take the time to retie your knot. Regardless of how long it takes you to tie a clinch knot it’s worth it. If you don’t that next fish could be a 30” Brown Trout that could break you off because of a small abrasion on the tippet to fly knot. It takes me about 15 seconds to tie a clinch knot, and those 20 seconds are worth the time just in case that next fish is a pig.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
2008 Season Begins With a Bang
Wow! What a start the 2008 season. The first trips that I was able to run this year was this past week of June. Usually, my first trips are in March or April at the latest. With all the rains this Spring, the North Branch has been running high and off color until a 2 weeks ago. With the river back to fishing levels, we have been on the water everyday for the past week.
We floated the Buffet section of the North Branch about a week ago and had few numbers of Smallmouth bass caught. The water temperatures were still in the 60's and the fish were still in spawn mode. For now, the lower North Branch needs to heat up a little more before it becomes productive. Flies that were able to produce were, clawdads, the 6th man and rattling sliders.
As far as the middle trout section words can't describe, but I will try. Clients have been amazed and this is probably the best trout fishing we have seen in 5 years on this section of the river. Trout are ranging in size from 12-23", so far. Clients are hooking up mostly rainbows with a brown or two per trip. Clients are complaining of arms cramping at times and needing to take breaks when we are anchored up in our "go to" spots. Catching too many trout is a good thing. Rainbows 16" and up are testing clients skill at fighting fish. Larger fish have been taking flies hard and we have had numerous fish snap clients off on the strike while using 1x tippet. Clients describe this years rainbows as footballs and that they can't even find fishing like this out west.
Flies that have been working are clawdads, squidwords, the 6th man and flash fly clousers. Fish are taking flies in the riffles, behind rocks and up on the bank. We are sticking with no less than 2x tippet and clients are using 6-7 wt rods. Keep an eye on the website for updates and also pictures on both the guide page and the trophy page. For the clients that have floated with me before........."Hit Em, Hit Em"
We floated the Buffet section of the North Branch about a week ago and had few numbers of Smallmouth bass caught. The water temperatures were still in the 60's and the fish were still in spawn mode. For now, the lower North Branch needs to heat up a little more before it becomes productive. Flies that were able to produce were, clawdads, the 6th man and rattling sliders.
As far as the middle trout section words can't describe, but I will try. Clients have been amazed and this is probably the best trout fishing we have seen in 5 years on this section of the river. Trout are ranging in size from 12-23", so far. Clients are hooking up mostly rainbows with a brown or two per trip. Clients are complaining of arms cramping at times and needing to take breaks when we are anchored up in our "go to" spots. Catching too many trout is a good thing. Rainbows 16" and up are testing clients skill at fighting fish. Larger fish have been taking flies hard and we have had numerous fish snap clients off on the strike while using 1x tippet. Clients describe this years rainbows as footballs and that they can't even find fishing like this out west.
Flies that have been working are clawdads, squidwords, the 6th man and flash fly clousers. Fish are taking flies in the riffles, behind rocks and up on the bank. We are sticking with no less than 2x tippet and clients are using 6-7 wt rods. Keep an eye on the website for updates and also pictures on both the guide page and the trophy page. For the clients that have floated with me before........."Hit Em, Hit Em"
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Second Annual 2 Fly Tournament
The Second Annual Project Healing Waters 2 Fly Tournament was once again a huge success. We were blessed with great weather, great conditions and great fishing. I was lucky to have my daughter with me and also a close friend, Bobbie Parsons.
This year I was matched up with Army Vet Andrew Hill. I was impressed with Drew’s casting ability having only been fishing one time before. We had section #7 this year in the morning which was the same section we had last year in the afternoon. We had tons of fish to work to and we got off to a good start hooking up about 10 fish in an hour. The last fish of the morning came tough but we worked the water hard and did pretty well. We were able to measure one of three fish for the day during our morning sessions. It was a 19” rainbow which later had dibs for tying the largest fish of tournament.
When fishing this tournament, it’s good to keep your eyes off the scoreboard because you really have no idea who measured their three fish and who didn’t. You also have the luck of the draw also in regards to which section you have and when. Often you will follow a group that did well on a certain section and the trout will be very hard to hook again. Best thing to do is just keep changing your presentation, depth and of course fly.
In the afternoon, Drew and I both had good numbers on the bored hooking 17 trout. Drew did a nice job catching a few trout right when are time was running short which later helped us with our ranking. We measured two more trout which added to our points. We were also able to keep all four flies which gave us some additional points. All and all we had a great day.
In the afternoon, after taking Sarah and Bobbie down river to fish a little we walked back up to the tent. I had no idea Drew and I were going to be even close to placing for the tournament, but we got lucky. We placed second and tied for the largest fish of the tournament. After receiving our awards, we took some pictures and made our way back home. Pictures will be either on the website or here on the blog soon.
I just want to give a special thanks to everyone who was involved. PHW is an amazing organization, not only because of the people involved, but the purpose behind what we do. Bobbie, thanks for taking such great pictures and spending the day with us. Ed, Doug, Tim and everyone else……..Awesome job. Can I come back next year?
This year I was matched up with Army Vet Andrew Hill. I was impressed with Drew’s casting ability having only been fishing one time before. We had section #7 this year in the morning which was the same section we had last year in the afternoon. We had tons of fish to work to and we got off to a good start hooking up about 10 fish in an hour. The last fish of the morning came tough but we worked the water hard and did pretty well. We were able to measure one of three fish for the day during our morning sessions. It was a 19” rainbow which later had dibs for tying the largest fish of tournament.
When fishing this tournament, it’s good to keep your eyes off the scoreboard because you really have no idea who measured their three fish and who didn’t. You also have the luck of the draw also in regards to which section you have and when. Often you will follow a group that did well on a certain section and the trout will be very hard to hook again. Best thing to do is just keep changing your presentation, depth and of course fly.
In the afternoon, Drew and I both had good numbers on the bored hooking 17 trout. Drew did a nice job catching a few trout right when are time was running short which later helped us with our ranking. We measured two more trout which added to our points. We were also able to keep all four flies which gave us some additional points. All and all we had a great day.
In the afternoon, after taking Sarah and Bobbie down river to fish a little we walked back up to the tent. I had no idea Drew and I were going to be even close to placing for the tournament, but we got lucky. We placed second and tied for the largest fish of the tournament. After receiving our awards, we took some pictures and made our way back home. Pictures will be either on the website or here on the blog soon.
I just want to give a special thanks to everyone who was involved. PHW is an amazing organization, not only because of the people involved, but the purpose behind what we do. Bobbie, thanks for taking such great pictures and spending the day with us. Ed, Doug, Tim and everyone else……..Awesome job. Can I come back next year?
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Project Healing Waters 2 Fly Tournament 2007
2007 was the first year of the Project Healing Waters 2 Fly Tournament. This coming Sunday will mark the second annual 2 Fly Tournament at Rose River Farm just outside of Culpeper, VA.
Last years event was amazing to say the least. The tournament went incredibly smooth regardless of it being the first year of the event. The weather was amazing. But most importantly it was simply a fun day of fishing with the veterans and volunteers of Project Healing Waters.
Before the event last year, I talked to my daughter who was 6 at the time. I explained to her about how some of the soldiers would be in wheel chairs, some would have prosthetics and many would have noticeable scares and injuries. She seemed to understand and had an incredible amount of sympathy for them.
There was one thing about last year the truly impressed me. There was a vet, forgive me but I don’t remember his name, but he had lost both legs and was in a wheel chair. Sarah was very curious and empathetic about this guy and she whispered in my ear something to the effect that she was so sorry about his injury and that she was going to pray for him. Trying to instill independence in her, when she asked how his prosthetic legs attached to him, I told her to go ask him. So she did.
For about 45 minutes this guy showed Sarah all there was to know about the amazing bionic legs that he was fitted with. To say the least, she was amazed and impressed not only with the courage that this soldier had, but that he cared enough to show her the person he was. That really hit home with me.
The soldier I was paired up with last year, Russel Martin was a pretty good angler. He was mobile and was able to handle the rod and reel pretty well even with slight limitations he had due to his injury. In the morning when we met, Russel basically said he could take care of the fishing, and would only need help, landing fish. It was at that time that we both agreed to set out to try and win the tournament last year. Sarah seemed to be ultra confident in her Dad’s fishing abilities but I had doubts. The morning session went pretty well. We caught a bunch of fish and measured a few. I did manage to break off a #4 woolly bugger though to a pretty large rainbow on the hook set. I was impressed that he busted through 2x tippet. Moments after that, the trout jumped out of the river trying to lose the fly it had in the corner of its mouth. I attempted to search the river bottom for about 10 minutes after the morning session to no avail. We were down to only 3 flies for the afternoon session.
You see, with the 2 Fly Tournament, each angler gets to flies. If you lose them, you are done. The veterans have special powers and always seem to have a fly on hand regardless. They are kind of like super heroes and magically have flies tied on their lines if a team manages to lose all four. But the pressure was on for the afternoon session and we were on stage located at the main pool behind the pavilion. It would be an understatement to say the afternoon was productive. We landed 15+ fish and my partner and I put on a pretty good show. Will I tell you the fly that did the trick? Sure. It was a #12 Lightning Bug. But I won’t tell you what we did or how we fished it. That’s a secret and I plan on using the same fly and tactic this year. My fingers are crossed as I type.
It’s not about winning this tournament though. It’s about spending time with some people who have done so many amazing things. There is one thing that ran through my head last year and will run through my head in the coming 2 Fly Tournaments and that is about the soldiers that didn’t make it home. Regardless of what religion you are, or what beliefs you have, they won’t be able to fish at the 2 Fly but they will be in my thoughts and my heart.
Last years event was amazing to say the least. The tournament went incredibly smooth regardless of it being the first year of the event. The weather was amazing. But most importantly it was simply a fun day of fishing with the veterans and volunteers of Project Healing Waters.
Before the event last year, I talked to my daughter who was 6 at the time. I explained to her about how some of the soldiers would be in wheel chairs, some would have prosthetics and many would have noticeable scares and injuries. She seemed to understand and had an incredible amount of sympathy for them.
There was one thing about last year the truly impressed me. There was a vet, forgive me but I don’t remember his name, but he had lost both legs and was in a wheel chair. Sarah was very curious and empathetic about this guy and she whispered in my ear something to the effect that she was so sorry about his injury and that she was going to pray for him. Trying to instill independence in her, when she asked how his prosthetic legs attached to him, I told her to go ask him. So she did.
For about 45 minutes this guy showed Sarah all there was to know about the amazing bionic legs that he was fitted with. To say the least, she was amazed and impressed not only with the courage that this soldier had, but that he cared enough to show her the person he was. That really hit home with me.
The soldier I was paired up with last year, Russel Martin was a pretty good angler. He was mobile and was able to handle the rod and reel pretty well even with slight limitations he had due to his injury. In the morning when we met, Russel basically said he could take care of the fishing, and would only need help, landing fish. It was at that time that we both agreed to set out to try and win the tournament last year. Sarah seemed to be ultra confident in her Dad’s fishing abilities but I had doubts. The morning session went pretty well. We caught a bunch of fish and measured a few. I did manage to break off a #4 woolly bugger though to a pretty large rainbow on the hook set. I was impressed that he busted through 2x tippet. Moments after that, the trout jumped out of the river trying to lose the fly it had in the corner of its mouth. I attempted to search the river bottom for about 10 minutes after the morning session to no avail. We were down to only 3 flies for the afternoon session.
You see, with the 2 Fly Tournament, each angler gets to flies. If you lose them, you are done. The veterans have special powers and always seem to have a fly on hand regardless. They are kind of like super heroes and magically have flies tied on their lines if a team manages to lose all four. But the pressure was on for the afternoon session and we were on stage located at the main pool behind the pavilion. It would be an understatement to say the afternoon was productive. We landed 15+ fish and my partner and I put on a pretty good show. Will I tell you the fly that did the trick? Sure. It was a #12 Lightning Bug. But I won’t tell you what we did or how we fished it. That’s a secret and I plan on using the same fly and tactic this year. My fingers are crossed as I type.
It’s not about winning this tournament though. It’s about spending time with some people who have done so many amazing things. There is one thing that ran through my head last year and will run through my head in the coming 2 Fly Tournaments and that is about the soldiers that didn’t make it home. Regardless of what religion you are, or what beliefs you have, they won’t be able to fish at the 2 Fly but they will be in my thoughts and my heart.
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