Trial and Error

As per GF's previous post, I've been working on landing net projects to ease my cabin fever due to my back problem.

























It's been trial and error with one particular detail which required resin casting. The bubbling effect due to chemical reaction is something I couldn't figure out so I ended up putting my name in chinese character.

Winter: It Ain't All Bad

A River for Christmas from Joel La Follette on Vimeo.

I'm going to need to try my luck for some of these bull trout on the Met. (I could probably due without the music, however.)

fishing life

My $20 Eagle Claw.

I have a reputation among my friends for buying up a lot of cheap fishing rods. (as ksanchun once said - he can buy most of my fly rods with one of his high end rods). I buy them up sometimes thinking it will be my back up rod and sometimes hoping that I’ll find a really cheap rod that works as good as my other “good” rods. Perhaps it’s a way to feel less guilty about buying some of the more expensive rods, but that doesn’t really make sense. Whatever the reason, I have a corner full of such rods, and I enjoy fishing with them from time to time. Some work better than others, but there are a few that I enjoy a great deal, and will buy up couple more of the same, when I run into them. Such a rod is this $20 Eagle Claw 7’6” fly/ spin convertible rod. The rod says graphite but feels more like a fiberglass rod. For a $20 rod, it’s nice that there is metal hardware on the seat. The foam handle probably won’t last very long, but it will last long enough. I’ve permanently glues on the handle to be fly only. I took this guy out to Paradise Springs few days ago to put it to use. I’ve learned that with the shape of the guides, this is definitely more a summer rod, as the ice is hard to remove. I look forward to handling some big bass with this in the summer.

While I was fishing, I ran into a photographer passing by and she took a few photos of me and emailed it to me (last two photos). Nice to run into kind people & nice to know they are still out there.

가끔은 내가 가지고 있는 싸구려 로드로 낚시 하는것이 어느 낚시대 보다 더 즐겁다. 나도 좋은 장비를 좋아하지만, 비싸서 좋아 하는것은 아니다. 가끔은 그다지 좋지 않아도, 내가 좋아해서 더 좋게 느껴지는 이런 장비가, 나에게는 훨씬더 소중하고 의미 있다.

Fishfinder’s new project.

Fishfinder has taken this net building to heart and seems to have a few projects going. Here is one that I thought really nice. The final detail has changed to something else (due to technical difficulties) but here is what it was prior to that. I like this detail very much.

현철아, 가계 차릴려고 하냐? 꽁꽁 얼어있을때는 이런거 하는게 최고지. 보기좋다.

flower, moon, wine, & friend.

꽃 피면 달 생각하고 달 밝으면 술 생각하고
꽃 피자 달 밝자 술 얻으면 벗 생각 하네
언제면 꽃 아래 벗 데리고 완월장취하려뇨

- 이정보.

Lee Joung Bo is regarded as one of the most prominent sijo poets of the late Chosun dynasty. This is one that I like very much...flower, moon, wine, & friend - add fishing to that and what more can a man ask for.

* photo by Dr. Shin.

The Art Of Nature

Have you ever wondered how a trout manage to hold position in a fast flowing river without much effort? Here is one good hypothesis. Exploiting flow & frequency of vortices, use of fins, gills, & scales, and extracting energy from surrounding & form...good reading. It will give you a basis for the phrase “fish don’t’ swim, they’re swum”.

http://theartofnature.org/

The Giant Mayfly

We’re going to need some bigger hooks to tie imitations of these mayflies… they are like small birds. Great video. I love the 0:52 scene. I wonder if there is anywhere in the US that has mayflies this big, I’d love to see them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7dB51cfxek

Grant Wiswell photos.

These are some inspiring photos. Dr. Grant Wiswell is also the owner of Castaway Films (http://www.castawayfilms.com/) . Check it out, especially this one below… amazing fish.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbNOfdjjxkE&feature=player_embedded

...

man I miss warm weather & open waters.

‘Bang-Goo’-ing … inside my waders.

Actions & consequences …

As I walked the peaceful creek, I feel a trembling brewing inside my core. I break the silence and boldly play the butt trumpet … I momentarily worry about the airtight situation below, but too late, just let it rip. As I continue walking upstream, I execute the standard wader fart ventilation procedure (pumping air motion at the chest part of the wader), and I’m pleasantly surprised at the mildness of the situation. I’m thinking … “I guess them atomic hash (hamburger, boiled eggs, cabbage, refried beans) & devil’s spit chili combo wasn’t so bad after all”.

I cast & find a beautiful brook trout at the end of my line and as I crouch down to net it, out of nowhere, a second woof shoots up into my nostrils. This time it’s more potent. I look down and realize that the wader belt acted as a air lock, trapping much of this fantastic gas below the waist line. Confusion steals the beautiful moment, and I can’t even really remember how the fish was released. I undo the belt and do several squats to release the rest of this full toned and profound gas. With each squat, there’s a small reminder to take it easy on the chili next time. I put the belt back on, and continue on. An ancient proverb comes to mind ... farting is your ass's way of saying "hi" when you forget it's there…

I reach a deeper pool and I fish it methodically. As I cross the waist deep pool to the other side, the water pressure neatly squeezes out the remaining air from ankle & knee portion of the wader … a lighter memory of the cheese, brushes past my nose. It’s very subtle but undeniable. I stand inside the water for a moment, hoping the pressure squeezes all of it out … in fact I do a mini squat in the water just to make sure. At this point, I'm amazed at the situation, the tenacity of my own bang-goo.

There’s no real lesson in this, I’m just sharing my fond memory of a moment on the creek. Have a wonderful day.

*Bang-Goo also means "good afternoon" in Korean. Use it the next time you see a Korean person.

wader 안에서 방구...뭐라고 말로하기 거시기한, 특이한 경험 입니다. 오래 갑니다.

Guinea-fowl.

Although I am not a bird watcher, I love this native bird from Africa, or more precisely it’s feathers. A very special bird indeed.

* These are flies I found on web, not ones I tied.

Tying Glass Bead Flies by Joe J. Warren

Now that I have a glass rod, tying some glass bead flies to match it. This is a great unique book that shows glass bead flies. Hard to find but great book to have.

얼마전에 뜻밖에도 구슬 가계에서 이 책을 발견해서 샀는데, 아주 특이한 책입니다. Glass bead 를 사용하는 훅을 자세하게, 그리고 다양하게 보여줍니다. casting 할때 돌에부딪치면 깨지는것 빼고는 유리 구슬을 아주 좋아 합니다.

from start to fish.

Slow Fishing – awesome rod

I love looking through the photos from Slow Fishing Japan (http://dyun5.exblog.jp/) while listening to the recommended tunes….this time it’s “Massive Attack / Psyche (Flash Treatment)”. Check this mind-manifesting rod.

American Museum of Fly Fishing

A place to visit. 꼭 가보고 싶은 곳.
http://www.amff.com/

greetings from an old friend.

I received a holidays greetings from an old friend in Texas and I was glad to find a STLHD sticker in there. I was glad because I was worried that my friend had completely abandoned his fishing. See, this friend is one of the guys who encouraged me into fly fishing some years ago, telling me brief but enticing stories about fishing in Alaska (where he is from). I sometimes see friends put away their fishing rods for a long time, sometimes for good, and it’s a strange thing to think about. I guess the hustle in our life can & will do that, but sometimes one just loses interest for one reason or another. I guess it’s strange for me to think about because it’s a hard thing to imagine (not fishing for good). It's one of those silly things, my own barometer of how friends are doing – when I hear about their fishing. Anyways, finding a fishing sticker assures me that my friend is doing well.

* you have a beautiful family, blessed.











going forward, I'm going to make an effort to write in both languages. Not a direct translation, but close enough:

오랜만에 친구에게 연말 안부 카드를 받았습니다. 그냥 봐도 반갑지만, 그 안에 낚시 스티커가 있어 더 반가웠습니다. 꼭 그렇지는 않지만, 나는 친구들이 낚시 관련해 뭐를 하는지를 얘기들으면, 왠지 그것이 그친구에 전반적인 상태를 읽을수 있는듯 합니다. 낚시를 많이 하는것이 꼭 좋은것은 아닙니다, 가끔은 스트레스가 많아서 그럴수도 있으니까요. 하지만, 그래도 그런 얘기를 하면서 서로에 안부도 듣고, 같이 나눌수 있다는것이 참 감사할 일입니다.

Old hook comes back:

The transparent rubber line, the off-centered pearl bead, and the gold round hook were kind of new to me, but one who told about this hook said it used to be around a few years ago. There are some hooks that often get lost over period of time and come back by popular demand.

very tempting...

I've been eyeballing such a thing ... so I can just wake up and start fishing. Looks like a lot of fun.

Beautiful Fan:

My artist / Craftsman friend recently worked on this beautiful cherry trout painting on the fan and I was lucky enough to receive one myself. I love this. It is too nice to take it out to the water all the time, but I do like to have it in the creek when I am resting on the rock in hot summer day. Thanks friend!

Two Faces of the Creek:

I recently had a chance to drive through the creek area and had to stop in to see if there is any good spot to fish for an hour or two. I remember how it was about two months ago and now, I see totally different scenery. I realized that the creek has two different faces one in winter and one in non-winter. Even if I couldn’t do much of fishing, I loved how it looked decorated with ice on the rock and on the water.

my lucky net.

Fishfinder sent me the completed landing net (he built from scratch) over Christmas and I was eager to put it to use. I hopped over to Paradise Springs today and put the first fish of 2011 in the new net. It took some figuring out but I managed to find the fly these picky trout would bite.

현철아, 진짜 고맙다. 정말 의미 있고, 마음에 드는 선물이다. 잘쓸께, 나중에 너거랑 같이 고기 두마리 넣어서 사진한장 찍자. Net fabric 도 잘 고른것 같아, hook 도 걸리지 않고 딱이다.

4,000 Dead Birds Drop From the Sky

Very strange and disturbing news...
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/04/us/04beebe.html?src=twrhp












excerpts from NYT:

"About 10 p.m. Friday, thousands of red-winged blackbirds began falling out of the sky over a town about 35 miles northeast of Little Rock. They landed on roofs, roads, front lawns and backyards, turning the ground nearly black and scaring anyone who happened to be outside.

Samples have been sent to labs, one in Arkansas, the other in Wisconsin. For now, state officials are speculating that the birds may have died as a result of stress, startled by fireworks in the area, or perhaps by lightning. But, Mr. Stephens acknowledged that the cause may never be known.

One thing is almost certain: the bird drop is not related to the 83,000 fish that died a few days earlier in the western part of the state, the biggest fish kill in Arkansas that anyone can remember. In that case, the victims were almost all drum, and almost all younger ones. That suggests the culprit was disease."

juxtaposition