one fly

Various fly fishing organizations have competitions/ events named “one fly” (Jackson Hole, Yakima River, Trout Unlimited..so on). Usually these events are fund raising events that benefit some good cause, usually for conservation. For some of the longer running events like the Jackson Hole One Fly, the entry fees are super heavy ($5K-$10K per team), and even then getting a spot in the event is done through a drawing. There are always more applications than spots, which I guess is a good thing (for conservation). There seems to be plenty of other ‘one fly’ events that may be less famous, but also doing great work. With some serious casting practice this year, I hope to participate in one of these competition event, and get involved in the good work they do for conservation. In most of these friendly competitions, winning is secondary to camaraderie and love of the sport. The real contest is between anglers and the fish.

So with that in mind, I’ve been “training” myself to select and use only one fly each time I go out to fish. If I lose the fly, then I pack up for that day. In doing so, I noticed three significant changes. One, when I tie a fly, I seem to take more care in making sure it’s well made, and durable. I glue down the thread where needed, and make sure the finish is tight and secure. The last thing I want is that one fly coming apart during the day. Second, when I pick out the fly, I choose it carefully, thinking about the location, weather, time of day, so on. Third, I cast each cast with care. I know that if I get hung up in that bush, or even worse somewhere below I cannot see, then I am through for the day. All three things are areas I need improvement in anyways, so competition or not, this will be good for my fishing habits. Of course, with the one fly, I stay away from the 7X, 8X tippets. Nothing lighter than 4X….at least for now.

I read somewhere that fishing with one fly is like playing the entire 18holes of golf with one club…difficult. I have to wonder, will I catch more fish because I am intensely more sincere with each cast, selection of fly, and better made flies? I won’t make any unrealistic promise to fish this way every time I go out to fish, but I will do this a lot this season, and at the end of the season, I will see if this allowed me to grow in some way (or not). I like catching fish and I am certainly a fan of catching many & bigger fish, however without challenge, I might as well go fish in a tub filled with fish.

the chase is on

I recently had the experience of hooking a northern pike, only to see it thrash in the water, and cut my line clean. Since then, I have been pretty much obsessed with landing this particular northern in this particular body of water. I have seen it a few times afterwards, but have never successfully hooked him on again. It’s a funny thing, that one fish made all the other fishing somehow different … I am now on a mission. I think about him often, and the strategy to get him back on line. I day dream about landing him, getting my old fly back, and then letting him go. Oh that will be sweet.

I have since then been buying & tying different larger pike sized flies, in various colors. I have never really fished the bigger flies, so it took some getting used to, casting mostly. The years of experience with lure fishing have given me good foundation for the retrieve, but casting a wet, heavy, and mean hooked big fly keeps the attention on full alert. Last night, a few beers and a TV show on pike fishing got me tying on the bench again. Perhaps it was the beers, but somehow a bunch of bastardized flies showed up in my box out of nowhere. Hopefully soon, I will be writing about how one of these flies brought that pike into my net.

this moment in time

Whenever I have a chance to fish in Korea, I prefer to fish the locations that have the giant boulders and deep pools. I sometimes it there and think about how long these boulders had been sitting here, and how time has shaped them into these smooth organic shapes. I think about how these boulders will continue to sit there long after we have gone back to the earth. There will be no trace of out footsteps on these boulder, the only footprints left will be in our memories. I like landscapes that have the expressions of a long history, it reminds me that we are only visitors here, and that the only thing we can do is appreciate it.

photos by Bae Jung Hwa (rainbowfly)

gold hog

met this golden hog late in the afternoon.

working the yellow woolly bugger

I took a stroll to the local lake this weekend morning, and put the yellow woolly bugger to good use. I fished the entire morning with two flies, and on this day the crappies and bass seemed to like the color and size. I was catching a lot of small fish, and then it started to rain so I was calling it a day – made the last cast, then Mr Largemouth took interest in the small fly. The 4 pounder was caught on the last cast.

we meet again

I took my girl friend to the creek this spring. It was quite warm day, but it was so pleasant to be in the creek ourselves and throw some of the flies that I tied myself. For the first time this year, I was able to meet beautiful cherry salmon in the creek. It all happened when I successfully matched the white parachute after seeing one flying in the air. That day was more special when my girlfriend caught another one using nymph and indicator at the deeper water.

Oh crappie

I like you crappie.
you dance like a butterfly
and sting like ... a crappie.

new tying bench

Charles just received his new tying bench he had built. He’s already working on updated drawings for his next bench. Happy tying!

first largemouth bass

My friend sent me the photos of his first largemouth bass ever. It's a small guy, but it's a largemouth. He’s always been a diehard trout guy, and has refused to try catching anything other than trout. Hopefully this bass and the 끄리he’s been catching recently will change his mind about other species. Of course he also caught a pretty large rainbow as well. Nice catch!

porker

almost snapped my 4 weight in half...

Daily Catch

Sometimes I feel I can do this all day long…