a meandering trickle

gear of the year

2012-01-30T05:10:00.000-06:00

Even after reading Gierach's books and really understanding the need to simplify things, there's no disputing it; As fly anglers, we need and use gear! Whether it's a spool of tippet and a nipper or the newest "tech pack" loaded with every gadget known, gear is an important part of angling. I've simplified what I carry on the stream a great deal and I still find myself with a little more than what I need.

A few years ago I did a post that highlighted my favorite gear from the previous year. It was gear that was new to me, but not necessarily new in the industry. They were the things that really made sense, even if they were shockingly simple. Amidst all the hype, marketing and media, they were the things that stood out to me. Here's a list of some of my favorite "new" gear from 2011...

-Scientific Anglers Skagit Extreme Intermediate Head
-Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3 (best wp p&s camera I've used)
-Simms Rogue Fleece Hoodie
-Shark Tooth Spool Tender/Cutter
-BlueSky Drifter Series Furled Leaders
-Scientific Anglers Mastery Textured Series - Nymph/Indicator Line
-Simms Stream Tread Sandal
-Fish Skulls Shanks (awesome for tying articulated flies)

This stuff was used extensively by myself over the last year or so and I can confidently say it works... very well. Amidst all the media hype and advertising, it's sometimes hard to tell what is junk and what is worthwhile. This stuff won't disappoint...

updated info

2012-01-29T05:02:00.000-06:00

Click on the link below to see upcoming events/trips/shows hosted by Tight Lines Fly Fishing Company for the coming year. Lots of stuff to do and get involved in.

--link to calendar of events--

wishful thinking

2012-01-27T05:05:00.000-06:00

Warm weather and melting snow has me thinking Spring. February seems to be the toughest month to endure here in Wisconsin. Once we get through February, March brings us the opening of the inland trout season and the arrival of the first Spring steelhead.

Watercolor rendering of the Springtime ritual of O. Mykiss....

Can't wait.

new camera and lens

2012-01-25T08:55:00.000-06:00

Two years ago I bought my first (used) DSLR from a good friend of the shop. I wanted to start with a reasonably priced camera that wouldn't bankrupt me if I dropped it in the river, but still took nice pictures. I also wanted to see if I would get into carrying a bigger camera. After I saw the first pictures I shot with it on the computer, I was hooked.

About a month ago, I passed that first camera on to Bart, who is also interested in the bigger cameras and what they can do. I upgraded to a much newer Canon and plan on adding some lenses soon. One new lens just showed up the other day, a Holga DSLR lens. It was a bank-breaker, at a whopping $30 (and that's with shipping from Hong Kong!). The same cheap camera and lens that has a cult following is now available as just a lens that's compatible with either Canon or Nikon DSLRs. I'm super excited to see what the little lens will do. It's beauty is in it's imperfections. The plus-side is that you don't have to develop a whole roll of film to see what kind of interesting effects have showed up.

Thanks again to all who follow along with my random reports, rants and ramblings. This marks my 300th post and fifth year with this blog... something I thought I'd never get into. Cheers!

with all due respect to the high life...

2012-01-19T06:41:00.000-06:00

My three favorite beers for the Winter (in no particular order):

-Central Waters Bourbon Barrel Stout (tough to find, you better like bourbon!)
-Legend's Duck Creek Dunkel (favorite locally brewed beverage)
-Tyranena Brewing's Rocky's Revenge (another bourbon brew, a little less "kick" than the CWBBS)

post playoffs therapy

2012-01-17T06:04:00.000-06:00

With yesterday's temperature floating over the freezing mark and the chilly forecast for the remainder of the week, I decided to make a quick trip over to one of the local tributaries for a few hours. The temperature when I arrived at the river was only 29 degrees, but the sun made it feel like it was about 40. I grabbed my switch rod and made my way through a few runs, swinging a black and chartreuse tube fly. Nothing. Then I decided to head to another part of the river and probe a deep pool with a heavier sink-tip and a heavier fly. After about two dozen casts, my line drew tight and there was a fish on. With the heavy tip and Skagit head (and the fish coming right at me), it didn't feel like much of a fish at first. A couple seconds later the fish broke the surface and I was (pleasantly) surprised to see that it was a steelhead, and not the usual lake-run brown. She was a pretty little girl, with blush-pink cheeks and sides and a speckled back. It reminded me more of an Alaskan 'bow than our run-of-the-mill Great Lakes steelhead. I reached down, popped the hook, gave her a smile and off she swam.

We spend many of these warm Winter days on the river. It's the perfect way to get out and re-familiarize one's self with moving water again. Most of the time, it's just casting practice and fresh air... nothing more. But in the words of Winston's Tom Morgan, "Every once in a while, a fish would come along and interrupt your thoughts."

new site

2012-01-15T22:03:00.001-06:00

It took a little time, but I finally decided to organize some of my pictures on my Zenfolio site. You can view them at this link...

last float until spring??

2012-01-08T20:09:00.003-06:00

Despite the fact that we're a week into January, we (Bart, Charlie and myself) were able to get a boat down the river today in search of big browns and steelhead. When we launched Bart's skiff it was a brisk nineteen degrees... four hours later it was in the mid-thirties and absolutely beautiful out. The first half of the float was a lot of shallow water, not the greatest holding water for fish when the water temps are hovering around the freezing mark. By the time we got down to where the river slowed and got a little deeper, the slush and mini-icebergs had caught up to us and it was like we were in the final level of Asteroids, completely surrounded with nowhere to go. We literally could not get a cast through the water without either lining or snagging a chunk of ice. I'm sure we could have waited it out. A lot of times the slush will subside after a couple hours of above-freezing temps. However, we were torn by the thoughts of playoff football and dark beer. We hit the ramp at about 11 AM and encountered our only problem of the day... an ice shelf that varied in thickness from 1-4 inches and stuck out about 15 feet from the shore. After using Bart's Clack as a battering ram, we were able to break away quite a bit of the ice and could safely pull the boat up onto the ice and slide it to Bart's trailer. Piece of cake.

Even though there were no fish to be had (we only fished about half the time we were out there), it was nice to spend one more day in the boat. This insane weather has to end soon. It feels more like April than it does January. As much as I'm OK with it now, if we don't get snow it's going to be one dry Spring. The spring creeks and tributaries will be low and clear and the fishing could be tough. I hate to say it, but bring on the white stuff!

yup, it's january

2012-01-03T05:46:00.000-06:00

I hate to even say it, but we've officially made the transition from Fall fishing to full-on Winter fishing. It's shocking that we made it this late into the season before it happened, but alas, it had to come. Overnight lows in the single digits and teens have ice-locked many of the rivers and even the biggest rivers are gaining shelf-ice at a rapid pace.

I guided a pair on New Years Eve and the fishing was surprisingly tough. Even with the warm temps and overcast skies, the fish were unwilling to come out and feed. We did hook a couple fish, but the feedback we got from other anglers was the same as ours... the fish would strike, but it was quick and the fish were not staying pinned long. I'm still not real sure how a fish with a mouth that large can hit a fly (with a stinger hook) and not actually get hooked. There are just those days where it happens. I've had days where I've had a half-dozen hard grabs and not one fish stayed on the hook. It doesn't matter how you strike them (hard, or not at all), the size of the hook gap, the water that the fish are in, etc. They just strike the fly strange sometimes and there's not a lot we can do about it. I'm usually stoked that they even hit the fly at all.

Yup, it's cold out. Time to tie flies, dream about warmer weather and fish on those rare, warm Winter days. Check out the Tight Lines website for a full list of Winter guest tiers. These are free events to attend and showcase some of the area's best tiers. They're also a great way to get out and learn some new techniques, be inspired by a new fly or simply get out of the cold and have a hot cup of coffee (feel free to bring in a bag of your favorite joe to share).

on wisconsin!

2012-01-02T06:00:00.000-06:00

Good luck tonight Bucky! Wish I was in Pasadena for this one.

merry christmas

2011-12-25T01:00:00.000-06:00

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas! May your travels be safe, may your bellies be full and may the Baileys flow freely. Felix Navidad!

old school

2011-12-19T21:41:00.002-06:00

Sometimes it's great to step back a bit...

I caught this fish today standing on a rip-rap wall under a bridge. And it wasn't on a pretty fly by any means. It was a big chartreuse bugger-looking thing with rubber legs. I backhanded a cast, fed some line out into the current and started stripping. Nothing graceful about it.

Makes you wonder.

Casting a two-handed rod is awesome. I'd do it every day if I could. And the flies we swing are beautiful renderings of some sort of creative artistic expression. But, sometimes we need to roll up our sleeves and go back to how we did it when we were younger and didn't know what the hell we were doing. It feels good to know that that way still works...

is that the sun?

2011-12-18T10:45:00.003-06:00

Heading out tomorrow with Charlie to rip some streamers. I can't believe the sun is out today... seems like it's been a week without it. I honestly thought I was in the Pacific NW this past week. Rain in December?? Fog, warm temps, strange winds... My fortune cookie told me that with great efforts come great rewards. That author must have been a steelhead angler.

stoked

2011-12-16T15:43:00.004-06:00

If I were Santa, this is totally how I'd deliver presents! This video has been out and about for a while now, but it still gets me each time I watch it. Makes bungee jumping and sky diving seem about as extreme as making a frozen pizza.

heat wave

2011-12-12T09:42:00.003-06:00

It's actually kinda warm out... I should be out fishing, but my truck is in the shop getting a new water pump. Yay.

I was browsing through my pictures the other night and found this one of a steelhead I caught this Fall. I don't know why I didn't notice it before, maybe I didn't realize how neat it was because I'd never viewed it in a full screen mode. The colors turned out really awesome and the lighting is sweet. For every hundred pictures I take, I get lucky and get one that really turns out nice. Damn, I should be out fishing today...

what a little beauty

2011-12-04T20:57:00.002-06:00

Our float on Friday only yielded one fish, but it was a pretty little fish, fresh from the lake.

dropping

2011-11-29T09:18:00.002-06:00

Well, we knew it was going to happen... I just peeked at the forecast for the next week and I finally saw a day where the forecasted high is below freezing. Bummer. This doesn't mean that the fishing will slow, it just means that we'll deal with ice in the guides and colder fingers, that's all. We've been lucky here this year to go this long without a serious cold-snap. The last couple years it seems like it's happened shortly after Halloween. We're still in fishing mode. Before we know it, that will switch to tying mode (and fishing on those rare, warm Winter days). I don't want to admit that it's coming.

Although the water temps are slowly dropping, the fishing has remained very good. It's not so cold (yet) that drastic measures have to be taken, such as super-heavy tips and different fly choices. While that time is coming, I'm not changing anything yet.

For those of you that enjoy a good fishing flick, there are a few new ones out that are noteworthy. "Off the Grid", "A River Why" and "Connect" are all out on DVD. You can buy them here, at this link...

eureka!

2011-11-22T11:53:00.004-06:00

There's one run on our local tributary that's been kicking my ass for years now. It's a great run that swings really well and is super fishy... good depth, good structure, oxygenated water and easy to get in and out of. I got there today at about 9 AM and started into the run with a black and chartreuse Intruder-type fly that I tied last night. About half-way down the run, I got absolutely rocked by a big fish that immediately took line off the reel (which my now bruised finger got in the way of). I thought for sure that it was a steelhead based on the eat and the fight. When I finally got the fish closer, I saw that it was a brown. Luckily a good friend of the shop, Randy, just happened to be walking down to the run and hustled over to man the camera. I barely slid her into the net and Randy snapped a few quick shots. She swam off strong and I stood there in awe, watching her move off into the dark water of the run. Thanks Randy for being in the right spot at the right time!

until the fat lady sings...

2011-11-19T23:26:00.003-06:00

There's nothing like the third week of November, floating in the drift boat, ripping big streamers and rolling big browns. Unseasonably warm temps have resulted in grabby fish and happy anglers. As far as water levels and numbers of fish goes, this may be the best Fall I can remember. Hopefully it stays warm enough up until Christmas and we can keep this up...

pretty sweet day

2011-11-16T10:05:00.002-06:00

The water levels on most of the tribs are back down to a very fishable level and the fish are content... plain and simple. I've gotten emails from people confirming that this was the case from as far South as the Root to as far North as the Menominee. Runs are swinging nicely and this overcast, damp weather system that's been hanging around has the fish in the mood to eat. The pictures were taken from a float that Charlie, Bart and myself did on Sunday morning. It was good. It was real good.

Did anyone catch that Monday night game?!?!

is that all you've got?

2011-11-10T11:06:00.003-06:00

Mother Nature threw us rain, wind, snow and rapidly rising rivers yesterday. In the first run alone, we experienced rain and snow. Then it switched to sleet. Then back to rain. Then snow... While a lot of the local rivers went off-color and unfishable, we got lucky and were able to locate some active fish. All in all, it was a pretty average (statistically) day of tributary fishing; One for two, cold fingers and a broken rod.

It may take the rivers a few days to drop and become fishable again, but this push of water will bring in any fish that are (were) still staging in the lake. The river temperatures are dropping, but they're still in that range where fish will be active enough to pursue flies that are fished aggressively. Covering water and being flexible with depths and colors of flies is key.

i would've never guessed

2011-11-04T18:00:00.004-05:00

I had the dilemma last night that's a good one to have... woods or water? In a last second call, I chose a river over my bow stand. My drive to the river in the dark was full of second guessing, damned if I don't discussions in my head. Not shockingly, I was the only one at the parking spot. Weekday, hunting seasons open, below freezing... all little factors working in my favor. The first hour of low light yielded little more than cold fingers and iced guides. I did snag and "land" a salmon that looked like it had been dead for about two weeks. The light crept higher and finally hit the water, making the river breathe steam and what was minutes before frosty was beginning to thaw. That's when they came. It was like someone flipped a switch and said, "Ok fellas, time to feed." For the next couple hours it was fish after fish. Strikes ranged from barely noticeable to shockingly violent. The fights ranged from lethargic to infinitely determined. Most were hens except for one very large buck that made me glad I had a 11'9" rod to absorb the persistent runs, shakes and jumps. After hooking eight steelhead and landing six, I decided to call it quits.

something a little different

2011-11-01T11:13:00.003-05:00

With some fresh venison in the freezer, I got a chance yesterday to do something I don't normally spend a ton of time trying in the Fall.... fishing migratory fish from breakwalls and river mouths. Jerry Darkes and I (check out Jerry's blog in my link list) met at first light and began our adventure of trying to find clean water and active fish on both the bayside and the lakeside of the DC peninsula. Most of our attempts on the lakeside were squashed due to the residual waves still crashing in from the day before. This had the surf all stirred up and visibility was down to mere inches at most places. At a couple of the beaches a surfboard would have been more useful than a fly rod. We did stop at one of the smaller tributaries that did have a couple fish hanging out just inside the mouth, but everything off the beach was a mess. We continued North and did find some clear water that looked fishy as hell... big rocks, eddy lines, scum lines and blue-green water looked very inviting to anything with fins. We probed it with intermediate and sinking lines, flies in all color schemes and various retrieves and drew very little attention. I had a follow from what looked like a five inch perch and also had something stop my line very abruptly. What it was that stopped my line is a mystery. It felt like a rock or something very solid, but I never touched anything else in that area, even after letting my fly and line sink even longer. If it was a fish, it was solid and very quick. I was very optimistic at this spot and I'm sure that in the Summer months it will hold lots of smallmouth, pike and other warmwater species. After a couple hours, we continued our journey to find other rivers or streams that could have enough flow to attract fresh fish. This ended up being a bust, as most of the smaller rivers were nearly dry and too small to attract much of anything.

These breakwalls and river mouths are a legit option that most anglers don't spend enough (or any) time exploring. When the rivers are blown out in the Spring, or in the Fall when the fish are staging, places like this can really save the day. Often times the fish are much closer to the shoreline than people think. They're also still very fresh and still in feeding mode. Throw on an intermediate or sinking line and grab a box of Deceivers and minnow patterns. Instead of waiting around for the fish to come to you, go find them.

halloween report

2011-10-30T16:14:00.004-05:00

The tributaries continue to fish well, but we need a little rain to freshen things up a bit. Some of the nicer runs on the rivers are barely moving and I'd love to see them start kicking again. A majority of the salmon are long dead and gone, but there are still a few kicking around, including some fresh Cohos that will hammer a bright fly and give you a tussle that will leave your arm sore. I took Randy out yesterday and he got a dandy Coho (to the left) and a dime-bright little steelhead that ate the fly and wanted dearly to fight like the big boys. The little hen still put up a hell of a fight (for her size) and even took out a little line a couple times! She came out of a fast-water slot that was maybe 20 feet long and about three feet wide. The flies hit the water and she wasted no time grabbing one of them and heading for the hills. Congrats Randy on your first salmon and your first steelhead. Most guys don't accomplish that on their first outing... you've got the mojo.

Tomorrow I'm off to fish with Jerry Darkes. We're going to probe some of the river mouths and breakwalls for fresh fish that may be looking to head upstream. This can be a great way to get fresh fish that are waiting/staging to come into the rivers. Pictures and report to follow.....

tributary report

2011-10-24T19:13:00.003-05:00

Most of the tributaries up and down the Lake Michigan coast are seeing fish now. Numbers may not be great (yet) on some of them, but the fish are there. The salmon that made their way in a couple weeks ago are at all different stages of spawning. Some are done and have become food for the system. Others haven't started yet and may be waiting for the water to drop a couple degrees, which should happen by the end of the week. I'd love to see this rain in the forecast drop some measurable precipitation on us. Most of the rivers are slightly above average (volume) for this time of the year, but we need a push for some fresh fish and the water temps to drop a few degrees. I'll be patient, it's early...

I decided not to do the one-eyed, dark-thirty drive to the river this morning and opted to have breakfast with the kids and see them off for the day. I got to the river at about 10 AM and rigged my favorite switch rod and Skagit head. A MOW Light tip went on and a purple-over-chartreuse fly was swimming by 10:15. Near the bottom of the first run, in a deeper trough, I felt three sharp tugs and then... wham, fish on! It crushed the fly and felt like a very heavy fish. It ran about 10-15 feet of line off my old Hardy and then turned and ran up the river, right at me. It broke the water twice and turned to run back downstream. I had about half of the Skagit head past the tip-top and then the hook popped free. Upon inspection, the stinger hook had somehow wrapped up and around the large bead chain eyes. It was still in a position to hook a fish, just not hold it that well. Damn. Hey, I'd rather hook and lose a fish than not hook one at all. Any day of the week. The rest of the week is supposed to be cooler with the possibility of more clouds and some rainy conditions. The fishing should only improve and numbers of fresh fish should show up in the next two weeks.

2011 musky/steelhead trip

2011-10-21T09:49:00.004-05:00

The 2011 Tight Lines Musky & Steelhead Adventure is in the books. The trip this year was one of high winds, low water, generally happy fish and good times with great friends. The first of five days of musky fishing was warm and pleasant. The following four days were all about the same: 20-30 m.p.h. (sustained) winds with gusts up 40. Mornings were chilly and the daytime highs were usually in the fifties. It really was a perfect forecast, with the exception of the winds. Throwing a sailfish fly backhand into a 40 m.p.h. gust is a risky proposition. Luckily for all involved, the only hooks that found meat were in the mouths of hungry Esox. Everyone on the trip had several opportunities at fish and there were a handful of opportunities at big fish. There was no magic color or pattern, it was just about covering water and staying focused. When the encounters came, they seemed to come in small bunches. We'd go two hours with nothing and then have three follows in thirty minutes. It was an awesome trip and our friends at Hayward Fly Fishing Company did an outstanding job putting everyone on fish.

The last three days of the trip were in Northern WI fishing the Lake Superior tribs for wild steelhead. The rivers were low and fairly clear, but the fish didn't seem to mind all that much. These conditions definitely made it challenging, but not impossible. Most of the fish were hooked in that first hour or two of the day, with the rest of the day showing sporadic activity and other hungry fish (smolt, skips and resident browns/brook trout). I swung flies for a while to no avail and spent the rest of the time indicator fishing the deeper holding water that offered the fish some protection in the lower water. Again, like the musky trip, there was no definitive pattern. If there was a fish that was active in a run or pool, it would eat. We saw fish rolling in some of the runs and there was nothing that we could tie on that would move them. I even went down to 4x tippet and a small soft-hackle and still couldn't fool the mature fish. I only managed to hook one fish that shot about ten feet and popped free of the hook. I did catch a brook trout, some smolt and a nice resident rainbow, which was really neat. I love holding those little smolt and just admiring them. They're so easy to beat on a seven-weight. Then you realize what that little fish in your hand is, knowing that in four years you could hook that fish once again and it will kick your butt and leave you weak-kneed and shocked. They're definitely cool little fish.

I wish Fall was longer... I need to get out and swing flies for big lake-run browns and steelhead, test out the new jet boat for muskies and put a deer in the freezer. Hopefully Mother Nature is at least decent to us and gives us some time before everything is frozen and locked up. We have to make the most of it, it's going to be a long Winter.

and here we go

2011-10-11T15:30:00.000-05:00

Tim and I are officially on the road. Five days of musky fishing and three days of steelhead fishing. Pictures and stories of (hopefully) epic fishing to follow.....

trapper's cabin

2011-10-09T07:00:00.000-05:00

This little gem lies along one of our rivers to the North. You have to know it's there, or you'd never be aware of it's presence. Every time I walk away from it, there are questions running through my head... Who built it and when? How many people have lived, died or been born there? Was it even a home, or just a simple cabin that was a resting place for trappers and loggers? Either way, it's a unique little spot. Water in the front and a basalt rock formation behind. Candles, cast skillets, pot-belly stove, sleeping bags and log books are a few of the amenities. For as long as it's obviously been there, it's still watertight and solid. A sign of the pride that was taken in the craftsmanship.

end of the smallmouth season

2011-10-06T09:01:00.003-05:00

Monday was my last smallmouth trip of the season. The day took a while to get going, with the water temps starting the day in the mid-fifties and rapidly climbing to just over sixty. We landed our first fish of the day at 3 PM, almost five hours after we had launched, and then caught three nice bass in succession. From 3:30 to 5 PM, there was a long lull where few fish moved and I thought the day might be just about done as far as smallmouth activity goes. From 5 to 6 however, we landed several more fish (a couple very nice fish as well) and ended the day with pair of fish within sight of the take-out. It was a slow day that, at times, showed what the river has to offer when your cards fall in your favor. The water is just getting too cold for there to be consistent smallmouth fishing from start to finish. This is the time of the season when the soft-plastic and live bait guys really shine. We just can't do what they do as far as covering water and getting offerings down to fish very quickly. In a little over seven months, we'll be back up there again, chasing those wily smallmouth and soaking up the summer sunshine.

october 1st report

2011-10-02T10:46:00.003-05:00

Well, it's October and the smallmouth fishing is still going well. I guided yesterday and had a great day with a father/son duo from Minnesota. The day started slow, as I guessed it would, with the previous night dipping into the upper-twenties. After lunch, the fish started to respond to Murdich Minnows twitched slowly in the slower water. Less current equals warmer water, just what the fish want this time of the year. I took a surface temp yesterday and in the main current it was just under 54 degrees. Along the shore, where it was 12 inches deep and no current, it was 57 degrees. That doesn't sound like much to us, but to the fish, that's a big deal. We boated about eight to ten bass and one pike. We lost about a half-dozen more and had a couple other "mystery" eats that yielded nothing. The fish were solid and very healthy looking and are starting to develop that nice Fall belly, a reserve of fat that will help get them through the long winter.

Tomorrow is officially my last day of smallmouth guiding for the season. After that, the bass bugs will go into storage and the Esox flies will replace them. It's going to be warm this coming week, which will not help the tributary fishing, although there are fish in the rivers. My favorite month for fishing has officially arrived. Lots of toothy critter/tributary stories to come...

Also, the long awaited release of "Off the Grid", by R.A. Beattie is set to release this week. This will be a full-length DVD similar to "Nervous Waters" and includes a Midwest segment with the Tight Lines staff. Look for it at your local fly shop. If it's anything like R.A.'s other movies, it will not disappoint!

end of the trout season... great three days

2011-09-29T19:25:00.004-05:00

last hurrah

2011-09-27T08:32:00.003-05:00

Four days of Wisconsin trout fishing left. Hitting the road for three days of trout, beer and cigars. Pics to follow as soon as I get back...

sweet sign

2011-09-20T21:45:00.004-05:00

So, this picture is from a campsite on one of the rivers that I guide on. It's pretty awesome and it's what we all think whenever we see a campsite that's been left in disarray. I had to stop there last week and capture it on film. You can click on the image to enlarge it, if you can't read it.

cold and colder

2011-09-18T13:59:00.004-05:00

Smallmouth fishing has slowed a bit on the river in the past week. It's not that the bass won't feed this time of the year, it's that the river has dropped a lot in temperature in the last two weeks and this "shock" phase seems to happen each year. The best time of the day has been from 1pm to about 4pm. Before that, the fish are very lethargic and once the sun begins to set, they seem to get lazy again. Low and slow has been the key to finding fish, with a small Sparkle Minnow doing the majority of the work. A small crayfish pattern drifted under an indicator worked well yesterday, as did smaller Murdich Minnows. The fish just don't seem to be in the mood to chase bigger patterns anymore. I'm anticipating this will change in the next week or so, with the fish really feeling the need to pack on the weight before the water gets too cold. More and more pike and muskies are showing themselves, which isn't a shock. This is the best time of the year to chase these fellas. The woods are starting to show more color and the mornings are blessing us with frost and frozen anchor ropes. There are lots of fish to be caught, you just have to be patient and put in your time. It may only be a three hour window where the fish are active, but a lot can happen in that time!

river cooling = fish heating up

2011-09-08T22:00:00.000-05:00

The smallmouth fishing is still solid, even with the cooler temperatures. The river temperatures here in NE Wisconsin have dropped almost eleven degrees from what they were in mid-August, but are still totally within the range that a smallmouth prefers to have for active feeding. Again, the bigger surface flies (poppers, divers, sliders and frog patterns) are still drawing very aggressive strikes. Smaller, weighted minnows twitched slowly in a down-and-across retrieve have drawn attention as well. I've tied some simple Angel Hair minnows with small dumbbell eyes (think small Clouser minnows, but with Angel Hair) that work very well when fish start to slide into deeper water either in high sun or in cooler water. Think short and sparse for these minnows.

We're also starting to see more activity from the toothy critters. Several explosions from pike (or muskies) have claimed many flies over the last week. Part of this is due to the fact that these fish are becoming more active, but I'm sure it also has to do with the fact that we're using larger flies for the first time since Spring. Either way, it's been fun. This is the time of the year that the difference from one day to another can be absolutely shocking. The flies that work, the numbers of fish moved, the air temperature... it all varies in September and can affect the fishing. It's a super fun month to be on the river because there are no guarantees. There are fish to be caught, but when, where and how are up in the air. This is one of my top-three favorite months to fish river smallmouth.

One of the pictures to the side is of a smallmouth nest. Obviously, the river has changed a lot since it was made (sometime in mid-May or early June), but it really shows how these fish do a great job of excavating a perfect little bowl for their eggs and fry to start their lives in. It was maybe 18-22 inches in diameter and made along a shoreline that had the perfect size gravel and some overhead protection from some very large trees.

early september report

2011-09-03T06:37:00.004-05:00

It's crazy how fast the woods are beginning to show signs of Fall. Almost all of our ferns are either dead or starting to die and showing their Autumnal colors and a lot of the smaller trees and bushes have leaves that are beginning to change. We have had some cooler nights, but I think this change has more to do with the dry August that we had. The Nighthawks are still hanging around, in even great numbers perhaps. And in two weeks, the random gunshots will echo through the woods on those crisp September mornings, signaling that a grouse has broken cover and hunter taken aim. I wish this time of the year would last longer than it does.

The last three days have been in the 80's and the fish have been eating well. Yesterday was particularly good, with low winds, hot, muggy air and a light drizzle. We didn't have hardly a lull in the action, with the smallmouth really banging larger hard-head poppers. There were a small handful of little fish, but most were in the sixteen to seventeen inch range and up. It was an amazing day on the river. When my boat hit the ramp a little after 6 PM, I walked up to my truck and realized that there were flying ants all over in the air. I turned and looked back to the river and between the ramp and the downstream bend, there were about a dozen simultaneous eats on the surface. Damn. I managed to find a hole from which a colony was emerging and watched and photographed them for a while. Thankfully they don't bite, I may have gotten a little close to them. With a tip of my hat and a wink to the river, I walked to the truck to return two weary anglers to their homes. On the way home, you could actually see small clouds of these flying ants hovering over the roadways. I must have hit thousands on my way. I wonder what all the Labor Day weekend campers were thinking when tens-of-thousands of ants descended on them. "Honey.... this one says it repels ticks, chiggers, mosquitoes, biting flies, horse flies, deer flies and gnats. It says nothing about flying ants!!!!"

Larger deer hair divers on sink-tips have worked well lately. Snook-a-Roos, the Swimming Baitfish, the EP Floating Minnow and similar patterns have drawn some vicious strikes. Larger poppers seem to be drawing more attention than the smaller ones as well. A lot of the topwater strikes have been more along the lines of the aggressive smash (as soon as the popper hits the water), as opposed to the gentle sips that we were getting a few weeks ago. Maybe it's just something that I've noticed over the last handful of days and it's random. Or it has something to do with the fact that the water temp I took three days ago was nearly ten degrees cooler than it was in mid-August. Maybe the fish are starting to feel Fall and eating more aggressively. We're still a month or so from their desperation phase, where anything in sight that can fit in their mouths will be eaten, but this is surely a change from the way they were eating in the heat of the Summer. It kind of reminds me of the post-spawn eats that we get in early June when the fish haven't eaten much in a couple weeks. No questions asked, no holding back, kill it when it hits the water. That's smallmouth fishing folks.

In another couple weeks I'll probably get the first reports of salmon entering some of the tributaries. These first reports usually file in right about the time bow hunting season starts (mid-September). Pike and muskies will start actively hunting right around that time and the last couple weeks of the inland trout season will be upon us. I'm off for some R&R over the Labor Day weekend.... Safe travels to all and tight lines.

slight changes

2011-08-23T08:34:00.004-05:00

Things are changing quickly here in the Upper-Midwest. The days are noticeably shorter than they were three weeks ago. The Nighthawks have shown up, a sure sign of Fall arriving. And there is a definite crispness to the evening air. The fish are showing some differences in their behavior as well. I've noticed at least one lull per day where nothing seems like it wants to move. Whether this lasts for thirty minutes or two hours, it's been there each day it seems over the last couple weeks. The fish are still there, they just seem to take a nap. I've tried going deep, going shallow, changing sizes, changing colors and none of it seems to matter. We had a great start to the day yesterday and a great ending. From about 4PM to roughly 6PM, the fish were really quiet. Nothing wanted to move, no matter where or what we fished. Then, just after 6, they started to feed again. I don't really think that this trend has anything to do with the time of the year and more to do with the weather system we're in. Higher pressure and volatile weather has the fish a bit funky. It's supposed to stabilize later this week and that should get the fish stable and active.

Last week was a great week on the river and some big smallmouth were boated. The river temps are dropping slightly, meaning that the toothy critters should be on the prowl again soon. I love Fall. The big smallmouth are actively feeding and the pike and muskies eat as much as they can before Winter sets in. Hunter and I were on a stretch of river that ended up being very near a nasty storm that dropped rain and hail on us, threw a lot of lightning and even spawned a tornado that ended up taking a man's life, not far from where we were on the river. It was scary for sure and we're lucky we weren't in the wrong place at the wrong time. Driving out of the storm, I had a big white pine come down in the road in front of us, blocking the entire road. I backed my truck and boat down the road, unable to see anything in the rain and hail. We turned around and were met by a man coming from the other way that informed us that there was "a tornado back there". Great. There was only one other road we could have taken and luckily, that one was clear. It was spooky and the aftermath spoke of the ferocity of the storm.

My fly choices have changed a bit since my last post. Poppers and terrestrials are still fishing very well on the calmer, muggy days. On the days that it's been breezy and crisp, the Tequeely has been dominant. I've tried many other sub-surface patterns and none of them seem to be as consistent as the Tequeely. Fished on a standard leader with short twitches and bumps, it's been getting eaten like candy by the bass. It's an easy fly to throw with a six, seven or eight weight and it's easy to see in the water. We've been having some fun with that fly lately. Mouse and frog patterns fished around the wood that's tight to shore has also been fun. It's not as consistent, but it has yielded some vicious strikes. There are at least six to eight weeks of great smallmouth fishing left.

august report

2011-08-14T17:55:00.005-05:00

Eventually the heat and humidity had to break.... It just had to. Nearly two weeks with a daily heat index of 95-110 degrees was starting to take its toll on anglers and guides alike. The fish were happy and hungry, but the days were miserable and the sun and lack of shade made us feel like a lizard on a hot Mexican roadway. About a week ago, the weather took a change (for the better, in my opinion) and has been in the upper-seventies to mid-eighties and nights in the fifties. The water temps have dropped a few degrees from what they were a week ago, but the fish have acclimated and are eating very well. The mornings have been a little slow on some days, but by early-afternoon, the bass have been ready to feed. Smaller poppers and terrestrials have been the most productive. Small minnows tied sparsely with Angel Hair or other synthetics have also been good when slowly twitched just under the surface. Clearings in grass mats, mid-depth logs, undercut banks and deeper boulders have been the most productive cover lately. When nothing else seems to be working, fishing poppers in the middle of the river has produced some great fish. Each day has been different, and some days it takes a couple hours to see what the fish are in the mood for. The fact that a river is dynamic and always changing keeps anglers and guides on their toes, ready to adapt to whatever the day throws our way. We're nearing my favorite time of the year. That time when a hooded sweatshirt is a morning staple. Extra water bottles are replaced with a small thermos of coffee. Ferns and some of the random bushes and trees start to show that first sign of Autumn color. Even now... if you're up early enough, you can smell it in the air.

late july report

2011-07-29T17:11:00.005-05:00

July was an epic month on the smallmouth rivers. The fish were digging the hot, muggy weather. We had over a week long stretch with a Weather Service Heat Index Warning in effect. Miserable for anglers and guides, but perfect for big river smallmouth. Most of our fish have been coming on surface stuff, except for windy days when there's chop on the surface. Poppers, terrestrials and divers have been crazy effective and when it's been calm. Minnow patterns (just below the surface) and bigger divers have worked great when there's no glassy water, but that hasn't happened very often in the last three weeks. I've had a few days in the last couple weeks when multiple twenty-inch plus fish have come to the boat. The deer have been using the river a lot in this heat, as have the porcupines, bears and other wildlife. The muskies have been laid up in the stream mouths, enjoying a little respite from the warming water temps. It's summer for sure.

mid-july report

2011-07-18T13:40:00.004-05:00

Well, it's been hot and muggy with consistent water levels. And I mean HOT! Last night at 10 PM it was still nearly 90 degrees out! This trend has yielded some amazing smallmouth fishing over the last couple weeks. This entire week the forecasted highs are in the nineties and I see no reason to believe that the super fishing won't continue. I even saw a couple flying ants on the water yesterday, something we don't normally see until the middle/end of August. Hard fishing has been intermingled with swims in the river and even siting under a nice shade tree in water up to our necks. It's easy to over-do it when the heat index is in the low 100's. Small poppers and terrestrials have been great lately. There has been absolutely no need to go deep, as the rivers are dropping and the fish are looking up. Morning, midday, evening.... it doesn't matter right now. It's hot and steamy and the smallmouth are loving it! It's been a blast lately sight fishing to cruising smallies that are working the flats or cruising the sunken timber. Nothing beats the sight of a 20" smallmouth slowly rising up off the bottom to sip in a big Chernobyl Ant.

I'm super happy with my new camera, a Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3. It's their newer waterproof point-and-shoot and thus far I'm very impressed. The shutter speed is super fast and it shoots in burst mode (very quickly), which has been fun to play around with. Full 1080 HD Video, waterproof to 40 feet, shockproof to 6 feet and a nice, large LCD screen. It's a great all-around outdoors camera for the price. The pictures above have been shot over the last couple weeks with this camera.

top five smallmouth flies

2011-07-08T07:31:00.000-05:00

Ooh, I love it when the discussion of the top smallmouth flies comes up. Let me be the first to say that no one is ever right. Each of us, as anglers, has things that we prefer in a fly. It's a confidence thing. More flash, more weight, lighter in color, easy to cast... whatever it may be. Having confidence in a fly and fishing that fly well is more important that any other single factor or element. So when a customer of mine asks me what my top five flies are, I always have to giggle. I'm quick to mention that my top five will change from year to year. Factors like water level and water temperature being the most important reasons to prefer one fly over another. I'm also fast to mention that this is my top five list for the Upper Midwest, more specifically, NE Wisconsin. I know for a fact that smallmouth anglers in the East and smallmouth anglers in the West prefer different types of flies than we do here. In many places, they fish smallmouth like we would trout. Large nymphs and strike indicators and smaller streamers such as Woolly Buggers and Muddler Minnows do the majority of the smallmouth work. My list hasn't changed much in the last couple years, so here it is. This is in no particular order, because depending on the water levels, clarity and sky, my first choice may vary from day to day.

1) Murdich or Barto Minnow (these are, in my opinion, interchangeable)
2) Boogle Bug Popper in Solar Flare or Yellow Fella (chartreuse or yellow)
3) Swimming Baitfish (Shad pattern, 1/0)
4) Menominee Mudbug in Black or Olive
5) Angel Sculpin (Sparkle Minnow)

It is my belief that these flies will catch smallmouth day in and day out in a wide variety of water conditions. If they won't eat one of these flies, it's either time to take a break, call it a day or talk to the guys fishing live bait. When smallmouth are in the mood to really feed, they'll eat just about anything. However, these are my staples, my go-to, never let me down patterns.

june report

2011-07-03T12:06:00.004-05:00

The summer smallmouth season is in full swing. We've been on the water every day since the first of June and the fishing has been great. June was an awesome month, with the exception of a few days of flood stage water levels. For the first time in the history of Tight Lines, we had to cancel a couple days because of extremely high, off-color water conditions. When the water started to recede and clear, the fish were eating like it never happened. We're nearly back down to normal summer levels and the fish are happy.

Typical summer stuff has been working very well. Poppers in the shallows, divers near the undercuts and minnows worked over ledges and drop-offs. As the water drops and warms, fish are starting to hang out in some of the riffles as well. These fish will often hammer a swung/stripped Angel Sculpin or Hot Flash Minnow. While these fish are typically a little smaller (10-15"), they are a great fight in the swift current and a great way to get a few fish in the boat if everything else slows down. The more the rivers drop and stabilize, the more definitive the patterns will become. There have been a good number of days that we've boated a lot of fish, but there was no one fly or technique that really outshined the others.

Some highlights from the last couple weeks have included Dave Higley's 20" smallmouth, Roy Bullard's 21" smallmouth and a ten year old, first time fly angler landing a 41" musky on a fly! What a way to start your fly fishing career! All of the fish seem to have come out of the spawn healthy and hungry. There were a few fish that looked a little ragged and beat up, but they're putting the weight back on and look healthy.

I'm off for two days for the 4th weekend and then it will be non-stop until mid-September. September and October are great months on Wisconsin rivers and those months are starting to fill up. It's a great time of the year for both big smallmouth and active pike/muskies. It looks like we will have internet service up north this summer, so I should be able to post more often. If that doesn't work out, it may be a while in between posts. I'll try to regularly update with pictures and reports.

smallmouth report

2011-06-09T14:50:00.003-05:00

Thus far, the 2011 smallmouth season has been epic. Our summer season started officially last week and we haven't had a bad day in the last week and-a-half. Warm weather, hungry post-spawn fish and great customers have started the season off in a great way. We're seeing pretty average/normal water levels for this time of the year, so the standard stuff has been working well. Poppers up in the shallow water and larger minnow patterns twitched over deeper logs and drop-offs have worked well. We've even had some fun with the "odd ball" patterns, like larger terrestrials and spider patterns. Tim and Nigel fooled a large smallmouth that had rejected a popper, tricking it into eating a Whitlock Nuevo Spidaire, found here. Most of the eats have been deliberate and some have even been a little lazy. It's a fun time of the year because we'll see everything from a waking fish that crushes a fly as soon as it hits the water to a very slow, lazy sip of a terrestrial from a nineteen inch fish. Every day is a little different than the last as the bass are settling into their summer patterns. We have seen a fair number of spawning beds, but most of the fish seem to be done and ready to replenish the weight that they lost during the spawn. A few large pike have been hooked, but eventually lost and there have been a couple confirmed musky sightings.

Tough days of fishing can and will happen, it's the nature of the sport. However, if the last two weeks are any indication of how this summer will roll, it's going to be a great one.

a day with my favorite boat partner

2011-05-31T15:32:00.004-05:00

Here are a few pictures from my float last week with Logan (my son). He caught so many fish that by 1 PM, he wanted to net the fish instead of fight them. And, for a three year-old, he proved to be pretty good on the oars. After seven hours of fishing, lots of sun, about a dozen Hershey's Nuggets, five beef sticks, a little rowing and three juice boxes, he was spent. He slept for three hours and I had to shake him to wake up for dinner.

I'm looking forward to many more years of fishing with my little guy...although he won't be so little for much longer.

more pre-spawn pictures

2011-05-23T20:23:00.004-05:00

Here are a few more shots from our pre-spawn trips. Thank you to Don, Dave, Taylor, Mike, Jerry, the Madison group, the Lasnoski's and Matt Opperman (and friends). We endured high, cold water and unruly winds. Thankfully for us, the fish cooperated and made the week worth the pain and suffering. 30-40 mile per hour sustained winds are nothing to take lightly, especially when you're casting big, wind resistant bass flies. Way to go everyone, thank you for starting the season off on a great note!

pre-spawn trips rocked in 2011

2011-05-17T09:27:00.004-05:00

Tim, Hunter and myself just finished up a week of amazing pre-spawn smallmouth guiding. The week started off hot and fish were taken on traditional summer patterns; Murdich and Barto Minnows, Swimming Baitfish and even poppers. The water temps were barely over fifty degrees, but after not eating for much of the winter, the smallmouth were feeding with a vengeance. Halfway through the week, a storm (containing some heavy rains) hit the region and Mother Nature threw an interesting curveball our way. The day after the storm it was nearly 80 degrees... it actually felt like summer! By the following day, the air temps dropped to the upper-forties and the river level doubled. The stretches we were on were as big as any of us have ever seen. Boat launches and docks were totally submerged, the river was full of debris and the fish didn't seem to miss a beat. We did have to change our techniques a bit, fishing deeper and slower, but the fish still ate. Olive and black MudBugs, Angel Sculpins and black Dungeons were hot. It was also neat to see some of the river's "other" gamefish, the normally elusive (on the fly) Mr. Walleye. We landed a fair number of walleye, ranging in size from 14 inches to nearly two feet. The pike were active as well, however, when we switched to the deeper, darker colored flies, they weren't as interested. Other than the unruly winds, it was a terrific week. Colder than average, yes. But once again, the pre-spawn proved that it's a time of huge fish. Eight fish of twenty inches or better came to the net and countless 18-19 inch fish. Pretty awesome considering last week there was snow on some of the riverbanks.

epic day in may

2011-05-02T21:28:00.004-05:00

With the smallmouth season just around the corner, Tim and I had to sneak out one last time on the Lake Michigan streams in search of steelhead. What transpired was one of the best mornings of steelhead fishing we'd ever had. Tim started the morning off by landing two beautiful steelhead in his first four casts. Yeah, I said that correctly.... four casts. We started in a deep corner pool and before I was done stringing my rod and tying on flies, Tim had two bright fish to hand. At the next pool, I landed one smaller hen and lost another fish that I had right to my feet. Moving downstream, we found great water, but few fish that were willing to cooperate. We headed back up to the first pools that we fished and Tim hooked and lost two more fish. By 8:30, we had hooked six or seven fish and landed three. All of the fish that we hooked were bright fish that fought as well as any Lake Michigan fish that we had ever encountered. Shortly after 9 AM, we decided to move to another river. The second river we fished looked prime, but gave up little in terms of active fish for the first hour or so. We split up and after reconvening, we fished one of the pools that I had started on. Tim stepped in and hooked and lost two fish that were bright and full of fight. We moved upstream and worked a deep corner that I had landed two fish out of on Friday. Nothing. After dozens of drifts and no success, we decided that it was time to go. However, before we left, I had to try one last trick. I tied on a fresh leader and a fire-tiger Boyer's Wiggle Minnow. For those of you not familiar with this pattern, it's a foam cigarette-butt looking fly with a tapered head that wobbles in the current when swung downstream. I started roll casting and stepping my way down the river. After a handful of casts, I thought I saw a fish in a slot move to my fly. I re-casted and the fish swung at the fly and then followed it to the bank. Tim and I watched in amazement as the fly disappeared. I pulled back and the fly simply came free. Bummer. I walked another fifteen yards and starting casting again. My fly swung just below some boulders on the near bank and felt my rod starting to pump. Fish on! It wasn't a big steelhead, but it was still a steelhead. I quickly landed the little fish and we called it a day. Thanks for the great morning Tim. What a way to end the season!

report from yesterday

2011-04-30T18:54:00.004-05:00

I had a chance to poke around on some of the steelhead rivers yesterday and found some great water that was absolutely fishable. Most of the Lake Michigan streams are receding, but still off-color and tough to fish. Some are still too big to even safely wade. If one is willing to spend the $4 per gallon for fuel, there is still some great fishing left this season, you just have to log some miles to find the rivers that are clear. The river that I fished had three gentlemen who were just finishing up for the morning by the time I got there. They hadn't caught any fish and didn't see any. They also didn't have waders or boots on, so I knew that they hadn't wandered very far from the truck. I rigged up and spent the next three hours fishing three runs/pools. When the dust settled, I ended up two-for-five, plus a handful of suckers. The two fish that I landed were smaller fish that were as bright as a mint nickel. They also reminded me a bit of baby tarpon in that they would jump several times clear out of the water and nearly go eye-to-eye with me. A third fish somehow came free of my fly and the two others broke my tippet. One of the fish felt very large and gave me little to no chance to land or, for that matter, slow down. It was a super morning and I had the river all to myself. The water temp was still in the low forties and I only saw two redds, which were both devoid of fish. This rain and below-average temperatures is really prolonging our steelhead season. By this time last year, bass were already making beds in the shallow lakes and streams.

tuesday report

2011-04-27T22:32:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was the kind of day in which an avid steelheader earns their stripes. I awoke at 4 AM to the sound of rain on my rooftop and noticed that my rear patio motion light was on, a sure sign that it was windy enough to move the branches of our trees to trigger the light. It's been a weird year for us as far as water goes. We've had a ton of precipitation since February and it's wreaked havoc on the flows. The rivers become fishable and just like that, they're unfishable. They drop, and then spike, drop and then spike. On and on it goes. I had been watching the flows for a few days and noticed that most of the rivers were back down to a fishable level on Monday. I checked the forecast for the middle of the week (you guessed it... more rain) and knew that if I didn't go on Tuesday, I'd be sitting until at least the end of the week.

The darkness and driving rain made the drive to the first river sketchy at best. There was standing water on some of the county roads, but I had faith that I would have a few hours before the runoff would affect the rivers. I opened my truck door at the first river and just about had it ripped off the hinges by a huge wind gust. Seeing as how the better stretches of this river flow through fields, I thought it would be best to head to another river that was more wooded. I arrived at the second river at about 5:45 and was the only vehicle there. Not surprising, as the morning was not fit for man 'nor beast. I already had my waders on and rod partially rigged, which I will often do to avoid hopping around in the puddles trying to get dressed. I looked and the river and she was perfect! No stain yet and the water level looked perfect. I walked downstream to the first run and started casting. A dozen casts in and my indicator slowly slipped under the water's surface. I set the hook and felt movement. Not aggressive headshakes, but it was definitely movement. I pulled and pulled and eventually raised a large steelhead to the surface. He did not like that and shot off, losing my flies in his bolting run. The run I was fishing was about four feet deep and I'm guessing that one of my flies grabbed his back or tail. Better to lose his that way than try to land a hot, fresh fish that was foul hooked, I thought. I then landed a couple nice suckers, which always get the blood flowing for a brief moment, and decided to take a hike further downriver. I came to an opening below a field and was surprised to see a ten-foot wide "river" flowing down the hillside and into the river. It was knee deep chocolate milk. Everything below that point was out of the question. I walked back up to the first run I had fished and got back into it. A handful of casts in and my indicator shot to the side and I quickly struck. In the blink of an eye, a fresh steelhead shot across the run/pool and towards a little side channel. 2x fluorocarbon snapped like it was doll hair. That's what I was looking for! A couple dozen casts later and I had a another fish hooked up, this time a smaller fish that ran down and towards the bank I was fishing from and again the tippet snapped. This is one of my favorite pieces of water, as it always holds fish, but it's nearly impossible to land a fish in. If they run down and across, there's a side-channel that you can't get to quick enough to follow them, and if they run straight down, there's a giant cedar downfall that will always get the best of you. I'd rather hook and lose them than not hook them at all. I landed one more sucker and then things started to get ugly. In a matter of thirty minutes, the river went from slightly stained to blowing mud and totally unfishable. Time to head to the fly shop for some hot coffee and warm, dry clothes.

People that I talked to later that day were shocked that I was out in that weather. It was so bad that you had to pay attention to which direction you looked or your glasses would get absolutely sprayed with sideways rain. I love those kinds of days. There's no one on the rivers and sometimes, if you're lucky, the fish are as happy as pigs in mud and ready to eat. If we don't get any measurable precipitation by the end of the week, things may be ready to go again by the weekend.

weekend report and more rain on the way

2011-04-25T10:04:00.004-05:00

As we very slowly creep into Spring, you may begin to notice a slightly longer gap in between my posts. For me, this is a good thing. It means that I'm on the water or in the woods somewhere. The last two days have been beautiful. However, that will come to a screeching halt over the next two days when the rain will come back into the picture and daytime highs will plummet into the forties. Queue the clip with the crowd booing and throwing vegetables. Some of our tributaries have just started to become fishable in the last day or two, and that may end over the next couple days. We have rain in the forecast for five out of the next seven days. It all depends on where the rain hits and how much falls, but with the ground as saturated as it is, it could spell high and dirty water once again.

The family and I just got back from a great Easter Weekend with my folks on the western side of the state. Luke (my brother), Tony (my brother-in-law) and myself snuck out for a few hours Saturday afternoon to do a little trout fishing. As I had hoped, it was overcast and cool and the blue-winged olives were on the water thick. We rigged three rods, but basically used one and split time in the runs that had the most active fish. A two-weight with a nine-foot, 6x leader and a BWO Sparkle Dun did the brunt of the work. A couple nice brook trout came to hand, but most of the fish were hearty browns in the 12-15 inch range. It was a great time and we even had a celebratory shot of blackberry brandy on the water to celebrate Luke and Lindsey's recent engagement. Congrats again you two! Sunday consisted of an Easter egg hunt, a terrific (and gigantic) meal, a little basketball in the driveway and an afternoon nap.

I also wanted to give a big "Thank You" to all that attended our showing of the Fly Fishing Film Tour last Wednesday. The show was sold out well in advance and went very well. We packed the theater and had another couple dozen people standing in the back! It was sweet to see some Midwest representation in the films this year. Thanks to Jay, Matt and the crew for all the work and making the show a huge success.

trout weekend: wind, olives and clear waters

2011-04-18T08:46:00.003-05:00

I spent Friday through Sunday in western Wisconsin, enjoying the rivers that I was lucky enough to grow up near. I was shocked to see how low and clear they were, especially for this time of the year. All three days were ridiculously windy and cool, but that was alright with me.... it kept the other anglers home and I had most of the stretches to myself. Friday and Sunday I had great BWO fishing from about 2 PM to 5PM. A size 18 BWO Comparadun did the trick both days. They didn't seem to want a simple Catskill-style dun or parachute, but rather the Comparadun. The highlight of Friday was a 21 inch brown that ate my Comparadun. It's been a long time since I've taken a 20 inch+ fish on that river, and to catch one in the middle of the afternoon, on a dry fly, was sweet.

Swung soft hackles worked great Saturday afternoon in the quicker riffles. We caught them on several color schemes, but they seemed to really like one that I did with a red yarn tail, pearl Mylar body, silver rib and a black glass bead head. A swung caddis pupa with a little partridge soft hackle also worked very well. The fish that ate nymphs didn't seem to prefer any one thing in particular. They were in the quicker water, where the riffles turned into the runs. You didn't have to make long, delicate casts, but they had to be dead-on accurate. A foot or two too far to the left or right and... no fish. However, if you could consistently hit the little pockets, drops, ledges and seams, you'd catch fish. Size 16 Prince Nymphs, olive scuds, Zebra Midges, soft hackle sow bugs and caddis pupa all took fish. Most of the other anglers we talked to were catching fish as well, but the general consensus was that they weren't coming easily. 5x fluorocarbon was a must, in my opinion.

I'm glad that I'm heading back that way next weekend for Easter. Hopefully some of the family can sneak out with me for a few hours. Trout fishing, egg hunting and a giant Easter dinner... perfect. I should have a tributary report in the next couple days. They are all high again, with the weekend rains that this part of the state received. Give it 2-3 days. I'm going to sneak out one or two days this week and I'll report on the conditions.

tributary report

2011-04-09T10:05:00.002-05:00

Tim and I were out yesterday fishing a few of the local tributaries. We met at first light, rigged up and headed to a few of our favorite runs. Tim only had a couple hours to fish (he had to open the fly shop by 10 am) so he was at it hard in the first run. I took a little more time, rigged up and ate a granola bar. The first river we went to was much bigger than average. The clarity was great and the temperature was good (about 37-38 degrees) and there were fish around. I saw one very nice, very bright fish roll in the pool I was fishing. The downside was that there was enough water coming down that crossing the river was a death wish in most spots. For a very small, innocent river (most of the time), she's had on a different face these last few days. This meant scrambling through the woods and brush to get to where we wanted to fish. In roughly two miles of river, there was literally one spot that I found that was "safe" to cross. Even then, it was a little sketchy. In the three hours that I fished, I did not touch a fish. Very strange, but I'm used to it by now. As I was walking back to the truck, I got a text message from Tim that the guys at the bridge had five bright fish in the cooler. He also informed me that they had caught them from right under the bridge. Talk about a kick in the seeds! It did make me feel better when he said that they were using spawn. Those guys that fish fresh spawn (and know how to use it) will out-fish any fly angler in the spring, it's just a fact. I enjoyed some hot coffee and headed to another river to check things out. I was surprised at the number of other anglers out, especially for a weekday. The next river I stopped at was much lower and clearer. The temp was slightly warmer (about 39-40), but I did not see any fish. I even did a "walk-through" on a few of the runs I was finished fishing and couldn't believe that I didn't kick any fish out. I often do this when I'm done fishing a run or pool. I don't barge through them and scare the hell out of the fish, but I do creep out into them just to see if there was anything holding in the run. I know that there are fish in that river, but they may be way up in the system after the recent high water. I stopped at a third (even smaller) river and walked the river all the way to the mouth. I didn't see a single fish and by contrast to the first river we fished, this one was getting almost too low and clear. What a beautiful little freestone, with a neat stain to it and nice cover.

I think I set a personal record for number of miles walked (in waders) before noon. I was dead tired and decided to head home and grab some lunch. I did see one fish caught (the guys under the bridge on the first river) but that was it. Other than the fish that I saw roll in the pool in the morning, that was it. They are there, just not in great numbers yet. I was also a little surprised not to see any early redds shined up. I know that we're several degrees away from that really starting, but it seems like every spring there are a few random fish that start considerably earlier than the rest of the pack. Rain is in the forecast for next week and that will help. We really need that warm runoff caused by rain as opposed to the freezing snowmelt runoff that we've had for the last two weeks. Last year at this time our rivers were low and warm already. This year, we may actually have a little more time (and water).

great show and a quick trib update

2011-04-04T15:56:00.004-05:00

Tim and I spent the weekend at Tom Helgeson's Great Waters Expo in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This was the first show since Tom's passing (last year) and it was a great success. Thank you to the Helgeson family and all those involved who have kept this show running and given Midwest fly anglers an opportunity to get together as a community. There is a ton of work that goes into putting something of this scale together and making it run as smoothly as it did. Thank you to all who attended.

Most of the Lake Michigan tribs are running very high and cold right now. Several of them are three or four times what they should be as far as volume and height. As hard as it is to sit around and not fish, this is exactly what those rivers need to bring in fresh pushes of fish. And the timing couldn't be more perfect. By next week, I anticipate most of the rivers should be running great and full of fish. Look for the smaller, faster rivers to drop and clear before the larger rivers. Have patience. Until then, more tying...

update

2011-03-31T16:57:00.006-05:00

The steelhead were very lazy yesterday. I guess it's understandable, with the water temps at 9 AM hovering right around the freezing mark and only a degree or two above that at 4 PM. No fish were hooked, although we did see one nicer fish jump a couple times on the seam of a deep eddy. With the forecast for the next week looking a little cooler than it did on Monday, we may be okay to fish next week. There will be some rivers that stain a little bit, but the cooler days and nighttime lows below the freezing mark will help in keeping them fishable. The rivers south of Manitowac are looking good and there are decent numbers of fish around. Those rivers are also slightly warmer, which could increase one's odds. From the Brule to the Root, steelhead are around and being caught. They haven't been coming easily, but they are there.

A reminder to Wisconsin anglers... Your 2010 fishing licenses and stamps expire tonight at midnight. If you plan on fishing tomorrow or any other time in 2011, buy your stamps and licenses today!

Here are a couple pictures from the week... The top one is a fish from Monday and the bottom one is a Pileated Woodpecker that was working a tree on one of the busiest streets in town. Very weird for one of these guys to be this bold, especially with all the traffic going by.

first steelhead report

2011-03-29T19:40:00.002-05:00

This will be a quick report... Look for more info/pictures tomorrow. The Lake Michigan steelhead rivers are in good shape. Most of the rivers swelled up big a week ago and have dropped to fishable levels once again. Charlie and I were out yesterday for a handful of hours and did well. We landed five fish and lost a few others. The more Northern rivers are still very cold and this has the fish laid up in deep pools and the deeper runs. We caught the fish in a run that was at least six feet deep and we had to be right on the bottom to get them to eat. Indicator-style leaders of nearly 11 or 12 feet were used with three sizable shot and a pair of nymphs/eggs. There was a slight stain to the water (about perfect for fishing) and all of the runs were flowing great.

Up near Door County, there is still some shelf ice on the smaller rivers, which makes fishing certain areas difficult and landing fish very tricky. There is also a lot of snow left in the woods and fields. Many of the ditches have over 18 inches in them and some areas in the woods are still around a foot. With this warming trend starting, that could mean good things and bad things for the next week or so.

The rivers are cold and the fish are lazy, but they will eat. Wait for the water to warm up a little bit before investing too much in swinging big streamers. Think small, low and slow. More to come tomorrow...

a couple more...

2011-03-25T22:01:00.002-05:00

On top is the orange version of my Dan Caddis. The beads are 4.88MM Hot Beads by Spirit River (same as the chartreuse ones from my previous post). The hook is a Tiemco 105 in a size 6, also the same as the chartreuse version. On the bottom is another new creation, an unnamed egg/worm hybrid. I think part of the beauty of spring steelhead is that they do in fact eat while in the rivers. I've heard tons of people tell me that "they don't eat in the spring, they're just striking out of aggression or instinct". I think that this can hold true to fish sitting on redds, but how to you explain that we see fish, time and time again, move several feet in a deep pool or run to intercept and eat a dead-drifted fly? If they're in the mood, they'll certainly eat a fly that's presented well. The fun part is that those aggressive fish are often not picky. So get creative with your flies. Try new colors, shapes and variations of old standbys. You'll be shocked at what can work.

creations

2011-03-24T07:50:00.000-05:00

I switched gears a bit last night at the vise and came up with a few creations that I am digging. Here are the two that I liked the most... The top one is a caddis variation that I think will work great for spring steelhead. I started fishing caddis patterns more last spring and did well on them. And I know that Lake Michigan fish love chartreuse. The one on the bottom started as a bugger/stonefly hybrid, but turned into more of a streamer for swinging. Lots of Senyo's Laser Dub, big black schlappen, rubber legs and a conehead. I'm stoked to work it through deeper runs and pools for spring drop-back fish.

read this and help our state's coldwater fishery

2011-03-22T15:39:00.003-05:00

If you care at all about trout fishing in the state of Wisconsin, please take a moment and fill out this survey. This is for the WI DNR and will help them continue to fight the good fight and keep our trout streams accessible, healthy and full of trout. There are some people in the state that would like to abolish special regulations for certain streams and make all trout streams, statewide, fall under the same category. Obviously, all trout streams are different and what is good for one trout stream is not necessarily good for the next. Some need a lot of attention and some need to be left alone. Some suffer from agricultural or industrial runoff and some are miles from the nearest building or field. You see my point. This would be a major step backwards and would undo all of the hard work and efforts put forth by groups like Trout Unlimited. Please, fill out this survey and help our DNR.

caddis pattern

2011-03-21T21:23:00.000-05:00

The little caddis pattern that I used this past weekend was Hogan's Short Shanked Caddis, by Idylwilde. I did take a number of fish while the fly was dead-drifting, but the majority came after a short drag or twitch. It's often hard to tell if the fish took the fly because that was a natural movement to the trout, or if that little twitch caused the small amount of flash on the fly to shimmer, if only just for a second. Either way, they liked it.... a lot.

an amazing weekend

2011-03-20T21:59:00.003-05:00

Every spring, a small group of us from the Shawano area set out to beat the Winter blues, knock the dust off our trout gear, drink a few beers and hopefully catch some trout. Our original plan was to head to the River Falls area to fish the streams that I grew up on. After talking to my family and friends, I found out that there was still a ton of snow in that area. After seeing the forecast on the computer, I had my doubts. Temperatures in the low to mid-fifties would cause some serious runoff issues. I instead made the call to head down to SW Wisconsin, in search of clearer waters. I knew there was less snow down there are more rivers to chose from. By Friday night, I knew I had made the correct call. Text messages and voice mails confirmed that the rivers to the north of us were indeed blown out.

We left town Thursday morning and arrived to the motel a little after noon. We checked in, glanced at some of the NCAA Tournament scores and started to prepare for fishing that afternoon. A short time later we arrived at the first river we wanted to fish. It was nearly sixty degrees and there was no one on the streams. When I saw that the river clarity was good, I knew the fishing would be great. The first few runs we fished produced many hungry trout, ranging in size from five inches to nearly seventeen inches. There was a slight stain to the water, only apparent in the deeper pools and runs. I fished an orange tungsten scud trailed by a JuJu Baetis in size 20. The smaller fish preferred the scud while my top five or six biggest fish all coming on the little baetis imitation. Surprisingly, there were very few rising fish. Matt ended up landing the biggest inland trout of his life that first afternoon, a beautiful brown of nearly seventeen inches. We also took a couple brook trout, which is always a great bonus. The second day we found the water to be more stained. It did not get below freezing the night before, so the runoff that was occurring never ceased overnight. We headed up a smaller tributary of a larger river and found the clarity to be fine. In the first run we fished, Matt bested his largest fish of the day before with another very solid brown. A little over six hours of fishing and he already had the two biggest trout of his life. We proceeded to catch fish in nearly every little run and pool that we fished. That morning, we had stopped in to visit Mat at The Driftless Angler and he informed us that there was a certain little caddis pupae imitation that had been fishing very well. I bought a handful of them and caught nearly all of my fish that day on the little green bug. We ended the day on a larger river to the West and had a little tougher time. The freezing cold melting snow dropped the temperature of the river and the fish were feeling a little sluggish. Saturday again provided excellent fishing. We returned to the first river we had fished on Thursday and hit up a different stretch. There were more people out, but there was no issue finding open water. We caught fish after fish on scuds, small baetis nymphs, Bottom Rollers and midge pupae. We ended the day on another small tributary in search of rising fish. I was disappointed to see very few risers, with the ones that were active proving to be ultra-spooky. I rigged a ten foot, 6x leader with a Griffith's Gnat and a Hi-Vis parachute midge pattern. The only fish that we could get to cooperate were the ones feeding in the slower riffles. I finally managed to fool a nice nine-inch brown into taking the parachute midge, but only after I had nipped off the bright parachute post. Sunday (today) morning greeted us with howling winds and pounding rain. The forecast for the day showed increasing rains and even the potential for a thunderstorm. We had already had an epic weekend and opted not to get pneumonia, or worse, struck by lightning. We pointed the truck Northeast and headed home.

It was a fantastic weekend, with lots of trout, some big fish and the Badgers winning their first two tournament games. With the rains that the state got over the last 24 hours, I doubt that many of the rivers will be clear for at least a few days. Many of the Lake Michigan tributaries are seeing considerable runoff and will most likely be tough to fish (if not impossible) until a little later in the week. This water is just what we need to get steelhead in the rivers. With the colder temps coming later in the week, runoff will come to a screeching halt and things should be clear for next weekend. The cold water will make the fish lethargic and lazy, but they will eat if presented the right fly at the right time. It's shaping up to be a great spring. Last year, we had so little water in most of our trout and steelhead rivers that by April many of them were at levels that are more typical of the middle of the summer. Be patient and tie more flies this week. Let the rivers clear up and things will improve.

the highwaymen and a quick report

2011-03-13T09:12:00.003-05:00

The last week has been a very busy one, with Tim and myself having speaking engagements and tying sessions with clubs in Illinois and Iowa. It feels good to get home and not have to get ready to get right back in the truck again. The clubs were great and the traveling was easy, but it does get long and tedious after a while.

Thursday morning, me and the guys leave for the Western side of the state for a few days of fishing and general R & R. I can't wait. The forecast looks like it's going to be beautiful, but maybe a little too beautiful. Temps in the upper-forties and even a couple low-fifties could make the rivers interesting. After driving to Iowa Friday, Tim and I were shocked to see that the SW part of Wisconsin and the NE part of Iowa have little to no snow left. The fields are totally bare, with just a little snow hanging around in the deep ditches and hillsides. Further North, in the River Falls/Hudson area, there is considerably more snow. Hopefully it doesn't create a mess for us. I better prepare the "Contingency Box", which consists of big tungsten-bead San Juan worms, big black wooly buggers, bright orange tungsten scuds and coneheaded Bow River Buggers. I guess I'd rather have warm temps and the possibility of a little run-off than freezing temps and gin-clear rivers.

I've heard reports this week of great midge hatches in SW Wisconsin during the warmest periods of the day. Not much in the way of the little black stones yet, but this warmer weather should have them rolling soon. The guys at the Driftless Angler have even observed some Baetis on the warmer days. I'm hoping I can have a chance to fish a few of the new midge patterns I've been working on. I've never really enjoyed tying tiny dry flies (I love fishing them, but I've just always bought them), but I've been having a blast creating some little midge/Baetis hybrids. Hopefully everyone has found some time to get out there and enjoy this special season. In my honest opinion, the trout fishing in March/April is some of the best that Wisconsin has to offer.

opening weekend

2011-03-06T21:53:00.003-06:00

The 2011 Wisconsin trout season is officially open. Bart, Charlie and myself spent the weekend down in the southwest part of the state and enjoyed pleasant weather, agreeable fish (most of the time) and some gorgeous scenery. The forecast in the early part of last week was calling for temps in the low-forties, but that turned out to not be the case. The air temps Saturday and Sunday hovered right around the freezing mark, but when the sun was out it felt much warmer than that. The water temps ranged in spots from the upper-thirties (early in the day) to around 42 degrees in the early afternoon. We saw a good deal of midge adults in the snow and in the air and quite a few stonefly nymphs crawling around in the snow near the rivers. Insect activity was most prevalent from about noon to 3 pm. There was no one tactic that proved to be the most consistent, with fish taken on dries, streamers and nymphs. The water on all of the streams we fished was average as far as flows go and quite clear.

Nymphing the seams of runs and into deeper pools was effective. A nine foot, 5x leader rigged with a tungsten scud in gray or orange (size 14), trailed by a smaller fly was one method that took it's share of fish. For the dropper, red Copper Johns (size 20), Zebra Midges (18s and 20s), Two-Bit Hookers (black, size 20) and JuJu Midges (size 20) all proved to be deadly. Likewise, a seven foot, 4x leader with a Gray Turkey Leech was also very good. Fished down and across in deep pools, this fly took brook trout, brown trout and gobs of big chubs. Bart proved to be the chub king of the weekend, landing probably ten of them from under one bridge. Today (Sunday) we put nearly all of our efforts into midge fishing on the surface. The bugs started coming off in decent numbers around noon and we had fish eating them in the slower flats and seams. The fish on the flats proved to be very skittish and wary. We did best where there was a slight ripple on the surface from the gentle breeze and in the broken water on the edges of the current. We ended up lengthening our leaders to around ten feet with 6x tippet. A lone Griffith's Gnat did the trick, as did single midges fished tandem with a hi-vis midge. They weren't huge fish, but it's always awesome to get those first fish of the season on dries. Especially when they're a challenge.

It was a great weekend to be out on the streams. With the warm sun beating down on the valleys and coulees, wildlife of all sorts were out and about. Deer were taking advantage of the partially melted fields, eagles and turkey vultures were soaring above the limestone outcrops, turkeys were grouped in the open areas and we even saw a beautiful rooster pheasant picking gravel on a sunny country road. Spring trout fishing in Wisconsin is a special time, whether the trout cooperate or not.

it just might work

2011-02-28T09:45:00.005-06:00

There's an upside and a downside to having your fly boxes already full while you're sitting at the vise. The downside is that you spend a lot of time staring at your vise, wondering what to tie next. Or, in my case, watching whatever movie is playing in the DVD player next to my tying desk. The upside is that you tend to get a little more creative. This is a really simple little fly that I tied this morning, out of boredom. It's not really based on anything or meant to imitate anything specific, but I loved the way it turned out. The big tungsten bead should put it right down where it needs to be, quickly. Maybe it will even catch a fish or two this weekend. I just need to come up with a name for it...

shows and the longest week ever

2011-02-27T08:00:00.000-06:00

The end of February means two things; 1) There's one more week to suffer through before we can begin chasing inland trout again. 2) Lots of fly fishing shows and events. Tim and I, over the last month or so, have been to a bunch of local (and not so local) fly fishing and outdoors events. I think we can assemble and take down our entire booth with one hand tied behind our backs and blindfolded. Yesterday we were in attendance at Troutfest 2011, a great little show put on by the Central Wisconsin Chapter of Trout Unlimited. Mini-seminars, tying demonstrations, raffles and good people were on hand in the midst of yet another measurable snowfall. Our forty-five minute drive home turned into an hour and-a-half, weaving our way through spun-out cars and emergency vehicles. It wasn't pretty, but we made it. Most of our local shows are wrapped up, with shows in Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois still to come. For now, the focus is on the coming weekend. I can foresee hungry trout, lots of laughs and good beer. It's going to be a long week... Here's a pic of Tim, showing us all what a proper "show diet" consists of. Good stuff.

scuds suck

2011-02-17T09:18:00.000-06:00

I didn't really mean what I said in the title to this post. I'm actually a huge fan of scuds... they're one of the few flies that I will not go to the river without. What I can't figure out is why they're so time consuming to tie well. Myself and a couple guys from the fly shop were trying to come up with a rough estimate as to the time it takes to tie one of these little crustaceans. We figured that anywhere from 8-10 minutes was accurate for a well-tied scud. Why? There are no married wings, parachute posts, spun deer hair or anything technically difficult about them. They're really quite simple. Tail, weight, rib, shellback and some dubbing. Maybe antennae if you feel like getting fancy. I think that the tricky part is getting the profile correct. Whether this means smashing the wire weight under the dubbing or clipping the dubbing on the sides, it's tough to get a proper look to these little bugs. And it's not like there's anything you can really do to simplify the pattern.

I'd love to hear if any of you have a favorite scud pattern that's a little different than what's out there on the market. Maybe a particular dubbing that works well for you, a unique shellback or a slightly different color scheme. Drop me an email (include a picture if you can) and I'd love to throw a post up with some user-submitted scud patterns.

melting snow and the final countdown

2011-02-14T08:32:00.003-06:00

I can't believe I'm sitting here and typing with the front door of the house open. Well, one of the two anyways. It feels good to let the sunlight in and even a little fresh air. We're going to lose a lot of snow this week, with temps in the low to mid-forties in the forecast for the end of the week. I can even see grass in one spot in my backyard. Days like this seemed so distant just a week ago.

If I can get all my stuff packed this week for our annual ice fishing trip (we leave Friday afternoon), I plan on sneaking out to swing flies for a few hours on Friday morning. Charlie is down in Iowa right now and I couldn't be more envious. He picked the right weekend, this warm-up should have the midges active and the trout feeding on them. A river warming up a couple degrees in the summer often does not mean much. This time of the year, however, it can be the difference between catching a couple fish (that you had to work your butt off for) and having an epic day. Rising fish, fish willing to chase bigger streamers and fish moving out of deep pools and into shallower runs to feed will all be the result of a change of a couple degrees.

It's also nice to see a little of this snow go away. Last year, we lost all of our snow in February and then had a super dry Spring. This wasn't great for our trout streams, which quickly became low and very clear. It was really tough for our steelhead rivers, which had very little water in them by April. Stretches of spawning gravel were barely deep enough to cover the fish's backs and as clear as cheap Russian vodka. This makes these fish so vulnerable to predators (namely humans) and makes their travel up and down the rivers exponentially more difficult. It will be nice if some of this snow gradually goes away and we actually get some rain this spring.

It's great to be half-done with February, the last month that we here in Wisconsin really consider Winter. With March a couple weeks away, there is solace in knowing that soon we will be casting to trout in open water. Then big pike at ice-out, then steelhead, then smallmouth........

film tour and a warm up in the forecast

2011-02-11T09:05:00.003-06:00

The 2011 Fly Fishing Film Tour is officially underway, with several stops already made on the West coast. From what I've heard, this year's films will not disappoint. Remember to swing by the FFFT website or your favorite fly shop to get your tickets. The closer we get to the date of the show, the faster the tickets will go. Also, for those of us who live in the Upper Midwest, it looks like next week is going to offer a bit of relief in the form of some warmer weather. I saw temps in the mid-thirties and even some low-forties. I'd love to slip down to Iowa or over to Minnesota (their inland trout seasons are open, WI doesn't open until the first Saturday in March) for a few days of midge fishing. These warm-ups that last more than a few days can yield absolutely epic early season fishing. However, the next few weeks are full of outdoors/ fly fishing shows that we (Tight Lines) will be attending. For a list of the shows we will be at, click here. These are great local programs that showcase amazing tyers, presenters and small grassroots organizations that aim to help protect our watersheds. A great way to spend an afternoon and your money will go to a good cause.

best fly box ever made

2011-02-10T08:42:00.003-06:00

One of the perks of being a full-time guide is that we often get chances to play around with new products and test them on a day-to-day basis. I was impressed with several new rods, lines and clothing items this last summer, but the one piece of gear that really made me grin was actually a fly box. When you're a smallmouth guide or angler, let's face it...the flies are one of the most fun parts of the game. They're also not quick to tie and can be quite expensive. Some of the new diver patterns are up to nearly $10 a shot! With the incredibly rainy summer that we had, I was sick of worrying about my expensive patterns getting wet and possibly ruined. Enter the Cliff Justin Case. I ran a two boat trip early in the season with Nelson and noticed that he had a pair of these huge blue boxes. After checking them out, I knew I had to have a pair myself. I got on the phone, ordered them and they were in my hands in less than a week. These things are serious! Waterproof gaskets, heavy-duty handles and Cliff's durable blue slit foam. Something that is overlooked (and I rarely hear mentioned) is that there is more clearance in these boxes than any others I've ever used. This means that when you close a full box, your deer hair bugs and hard-head poppers don't smash each other all to hell. I've opened other boxes many times to find a Porky's Pet that now looks more like a Merkin Crab because it lost a fight with a big balsa popper. You can stand on the things no problem or, as Jon at Chicago Fly Fishing Outfitters said, "fend off a bear or deflect gunshots." A hundred bucks for a fly box seems absolutely nuts, but when you're housing over a thousand bucks worth of flies that have taken years to assemble, it's well worth the price. Think of it as a cheap insurance policy. If you carry musky flies or bass flies, check these out here... they're well worth the price.

oh, the joys of cyberspace

2011-02-08T19:02:00.004-06:00

One of the things I enjoy about this little blog is the comments that are left. I appreciate all of them; fishing reports, tackle reports, constructive criticism or just a simple "hey, what's up?". It's apparent that I've become the target of a group of spamming/hacking a%$holes that have been leaving links to their blogs (which may very well lead to viruses and other fun stuff) and trying to solicit stuff that has nothing to do with fly fishing, conventional fishing or even the outdoors. Please leave comments if you feel so inclined, I enjoy hearing from you all. Just don't be worried if they don't show up right away. I'm going to have to "approve" all comments before they go live. I'll try to get to this every day or so.

finally...

2011-02-07T13:23:00.004-06:00

A slight break in the weather allowed the Tight Lines crew to make it out for a few hours to swing flies. Water levels are typical for this time of the year (low) and the water temp is cold, obviously. Unfortunately, the only open water is the shallow, faster water that is not great holding water for February. It is, however, great to make it out and brush up on the casting and spend some time with great guys on a great river. We need a handful of days with above average temps to get the fish active and looking to feed again. Nonetheless, it was sweet to be out and not worrying about frostbite.

you bet

2011-02-06T21:45:00.005-06:00

The heart and soul of Vince Lombardi will always live and reign in Wisconsin... And now his trophy is coming home, to where it belongs... in Green Bay.

a milestone

2011-02-01T09:36:00.005-06:00

As of today, Tight Lines Fly Fishing Company has had it's doors open for ten years. Two store locations and thousands of guide trips later, we're still going strong. Thank you (and Congratulations) to Tim and Sarah for taking a long shot and opening a fly shop in NE Wisconsin a decade ago. We've seen customers and friends come and go, trends explode and fade, conservation take a precedence over killing and a new generation of fly anglers making their mark on the sport. The devotion it takes to run a successful shop reminds me of that part in traditional wedding vows.... "in sickness and in health, in good times and bad, in times of failure and in times of triumph." To Tight Lines employees and guides, past and present; Let's keep this thing going! To our customers; Thank you for your continued support and allegiance. Without you, we'd just be another fly shop that opened and closed, struggling amongst the big box stores and online markets. Believe me when I say that we appreciate it. Raise a pint tonight for Tight Lines Fly Fishing Company. Cheers!

counting down

2011-01-26T09:59:00.004-06:00

Here's to warm spring days and grabby steelhead...it's just around the corner. Cheers!

not fishing related...

2011-01-23T21:39:00.002-06:00

I know this has nothing to do with fishing, but I have to give props to the Green Bay Packers for their win over the Bears and their NFC Championship. It's been a long time since we've gotten to see the Pack in the Super Bowl, and there's no team I'd rather face than the Steelers. Both the AFC and NFC games turned into great contests, all four teams deserved to be there. Nice work GB, we're proud in WI!

deep freeze

2011-01-21T11:24:00.003-06:00

This was taken out of my back window this morning. Yikes. I had a great time last night with the Central Wisconsin Trout Unlimited group. I was lucky enough to be their instructor for their Masters Class. Dinner at the Fin 'n Feather was followed by roughly 2 1/2 hours of tying and instruction at the Winneconne High School. They have a great group of guys that possess a tremendous wealth of knowledge. Thank you to the nearly thirty members of the club that braved the arctic temps to come out and tie.

free tying clinics

2011-01-20T10:13:00.004-06:00

A fly angler has very few options when the high temps for the day are 15 degrees (today) and 8 degrees (tomorrow). Throw in a wind chill that would make a polar bear cringe and you can cut those options in half.... to one, maybe. Tying is how we fly fishermen immerse ourselves in the sport when it's too cold out to want to walk to the truck, let alone stand in a river and swing flies. If you're lucky enough to have a local fly shop that hosts tying events, even better. It's a great way to pick up a new technique, meet some people that share the same passion or just kill a day that would otherwise be spent staring at a t.v. or lounging around the house. Watching someone do something different often sparks a creative streak at the vise. Tight Lines (in De Pere, WI) has a great line-up of guest tyers on Saturdays. Click here for a list of dates, tyers and topics. These have been a huge hit for a long time and there are some great tyers still to come this winter. Saturday tying clinics are a free event. Just show up, take some notes, ask some questions and have a good time. Hey, what else can you do when the windchill is ten-below zero?

it's baaack

2011-01-17T10:37:00.005-06:00

Once again in 2011, Tight Lines Fly Fishing Company is proud to be a sponsor and a stop for the Costa Fly Fishing Film Tour. This has been a huge success in the past, filling the De Pere Cinema to the max the last two years. Tickets are available at Tight Lines Fly Fishing Company for $12. Get yours now...they'll go fast! The online price is $14 and, if there are any remaining, $15 at the door the night of the show. The Tight Lines crew will be featured in this year's show in R.A. Beattie's film, Off The Grid. R.A. himself is rumored to be making the trip to De Pere for the show, as is friend/filmmaker Rob Thompson, who also has a clip in the tour on fishing muskies right here in WI. This has been a blast the last couple years, but this year will be really rad with some Midwest representation in the tour. Come join us for a night of camaraderie, beer and some epic fly fishing films.

quo amplius eo amplius

2011-01-10T22:22:00.006-06:00

My buddy and I were reminiscing about memorable outings the other night and it seemed like the conversation may never end. I guess that's a good thing. I've had some epic trips for all types of fish, but I'd have to say that my most memorable day in recent history took place about four years ago.

It was a gorgeous April morning and the daytime high was forecasted to be well above the average for that time of the year. It was also the day of my good friend's bachelor party. His best man had planned on doing something in the morning for a few hours, followed by a party bus picking everyone up and making the rounds to the local watering holes. I couldn't pass up the break in the weather, I had to sneak out steelhead fishing for a few hours in the morning. After taking some hell over the phone for my plans (hey, I told him I'm be there later in the day), I threw a small pack, my 790 Sage XP, wader bag and thermos in the back of the truck and went to bed.

The alarm sounded off at about 4 a.m. and I rolled out of bed, resisting the urge to hit the snooze button and lay there a few more minutes. A Kwik Trip stop provided my coffee and a few candy bars for my hip pack, all the calories I'd need for the first few hours of the day. An hour later I was at the river, a gem of a tributary that sees a great spring run of a couple different strains of spring steelhead. In the fall, there's rarely enough water for fish to even get up the river. I was shocked that I was the only vehicle there, with it being a Saturday and unseasonably warm out. I threw my waders on and put my rod half-way together. When I have a long walk, I'll often only partially assemble my rod and wait to string it up until I get to where I want to fish. This gives me a chance to cool down and relax a bit while putting my rod together. It's also a lot easier to walk through the brush with a 4 and a-half-foot rod than it is a nine foot rod. I got to the run/pool that I wanted to fish and it was still a little too dark out. It seemed lighter at the parking area, but now I was deep in the woods and the cedars enveloped me in additional darkness. I took my time, assembled my rod and ate a candy bar. I love to swing flies, but this little stream is way too small to swing flies on. I threw on a fresh leader and added 18" of fluorocarbon tippet. A Mercer's Rag Hex went on, followed by another 12" of fluorocarbon and lastly an orange micro egg. Having fished this run a lot, I knew that I'd need a no. 1 shot and a no. 4 to get down to where I needed to be. An indicator completed the rig and I was ready to fish.

I dropped my pack on the bank and stepped into the river. Stripping off about thirty feet of line, I started to roll cast my line out into the run. Once I had the length I needed, I sent a cast up into the head of the run. High hopes had my muscles taught with anticipation. Cast after cast and drift after drift went through the run with no result. Normally on this river, once the sun peaks over the tree line and hits the water, your day slows significantly. This day was different. Even though the water was low and relatively clear, the fish would soon show that they didn't mind. After switching fly combos more than I normally do, I noticed one fly that was out of place in my box, a traditional Skunk. For some odd reason, there were three Skunks in my nymph box. I don't know how they got there or where I got them from. I didn't tie them and I didn't remember buying them. Either way, I tied one on with a chartreuse egg trailing behind it, just for fun. A seriously odd combination that I would normally never think of. Two drifts later, my indicator jumped and I set low and hard. A giant buck surged and plowed up through the shallow riffle above the run, breaking ten pound fluorocarbon in a heartbeat. Shocked, I laughed to myself and backed myself over to the bank to re-tie. As my whole rig was gone, I had no way of knowing if the fish took the egg or the Skunk, so I re-tied exactly the same way. My gut told me that it was the egg that the fish took, but I wanted to be certain. Within six or seven casts, another fish took, this time a small hen of about four or five pounds. A short fight ensued and she was in my hands within sixty seconds. I couldn't believe it... she had eaten the Skunk! My laughter could have been heard a hundred yards away. I slid her back in the water and she kicked off unharmed. My watch told me that it was almost 9 a.m., about time to head back home. I told myself I'd fish another half-hour. Wrong. Over the next hour, I hooked almost ten more fish and landed four of them, nearly all on the Skunk!

To this day, I don't know if it was the profile, the red of the tail or the mojo of having a classic fly on, but it worked. I also have yet to try it again. I've brought a few Skunks with me since then, but I have yet to tie one on since that day. Part of me thinks that it was a fluke and won't work again. Part of me thinks that it could work again. Part of me wants to leave that memory alone. Days like that don't happen often, if ever, in an angler's lifetime. Besides, what fun would it be if I knew it would work and it did?

great tying tools

2011-01-10T09:36:00.009-06:00

I don't often "plug" tying materials or tools, but I have to give this little guy some love. I was at the shop the other day, perusing the tying materials and tools, and decided to pick up these weird little scissors that I've looked at a hundred times. I'm referring to the Dr. Slick Spring Scissors. I didn't know what I'd think of them and it took a few flies to get used to them. Once I did, I found them very easy to use. I don't tie with traditional scissors held in my right hand like some production tiers do, so I have to reach down and pick them up each time I need to cut something. With loop (traditional) scissors, you have to insert your fingers in the loops and make the cut. With the Spring Scissors, you just pick the things up. Easy and precise. The one thing that I noticed is that they're much better for trout-sized flies than they are bigger bass or steelhead flies. The jaws just don't open wide enough to snip big clumps of hair or flash. When it comes to trout flies, they're my new go-to scissor. If you have bigger hands, I'd also look at the Dr. Slick Twisted Loop Scissors. They just seem more comfortable in your hands and your fingers don't feel all contorted.

I often give reviews of rods, reels and lines, but I get just as many questions about tying tools and materials. Unfortunately, here in the upper Midwest, the actual fishing season can be relatively short. That means a lengthy time period for tying and researching new products. New tying tools aren't always necessary, but often times it's just fun to try something new and different.

imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

2011-01-06T17:31:00.005-06:00

So...I've been giving Tim (the owner of Tight Lines) crap for a few years now, telling him that he looks a lot like Aaron Rodgers (Packers QB). Well, things must have been a little slow in the fly shop this afternoon and bam, this little gem shows up in my email. My stomach still hurts...

night of the hex dvd

2011-01-04T10:07:00.007-06:00

Friend Rob Thompson (Third Year Fly Fisher) just released his first full-feature DVD, Night of the Hex. If you've ever fished a hex hatch (or want to someday), you have to check this movie out. It does a great job of portraying the ins and outs of the hunt for the hatch. Production run was 500 copies and they're moving fast. Get yours today at this link or at Tight Lines Fly Fishing Co. in De Pere, WI. Rob puts out some amazing stuff and will be featured in this years Fly Fishing Film Tour. Get one before they're gone...you won't be disappointed.

Hex fishing trailer from RT on Vimeo.

resolutions

2011-01-01T04:00:00.002-06:00

As we coast into 2011, millions of people around the world are making (and some already breaking) New Years resolutions. Now to be 100% honest, if you want to lose weight or learn Mandarin Chinese, that's your deal. What I want to know about is 2011 fishing resolutions. Maybe a goal, like, catch a steelhead on a dry or a musky on a popper. Maybe a change, such as donating more time to local TU projects. Maybe a trip to a destination that you've always wanted to go to. Whatever. I think that goals (call them resolutions if you wish) are a great thing for an angler to have. I have more than I can list or care to bother you with. The picture on the right may give you a bit of insight to one that I have for 2011....

speechless

2010-12-31T10:06:00.002-06:00

Have a great (and safe) New Years Eve. Just don't end up like these guys. The guy at 1:30 made me laugh. Hey, better on foot than in a car.

superfly

2010-12-30T11:33:00.004-06:00

Just finished tying two dozen of these guys. They never fail, year after year. Stellar in the winter/spring. Give me a Zebra Midge paired with something with some color, maybe a Pink Squirrel, orange scud or a small Copper John. Dyn-O-mite.

wishing i was here....

2010-12-29T08:04:00.000-06:00

Trinity River 2011 from Brannon on Vimeo.

warming up

2010-12-27T11:10:00.005-06:00

It looks like the end of the weeks may offer a small (and wet) window to get out and fish. Thursday is supposed to be in the upper-thirties and Friday even warmer. There is rain forecasted, but hey, it's going to be above freezing. These little winter warm-ups can offer great fishing. The volume of the river may increase or the water temp may increase a few degrees, just something to spark the interest and curiosity of the fish. I've had periods where we've fished for a month under the same conditions: cold, dry and cloudy. The fish seem nearly impossible to find, let alone get to strike. Then, one day, it's sunny and warm and it snows or rains a bit. Bam. The fish are rolling, eating and just active in general. I've caught fish on days like this with all types of flies, but for some reason, I'm always drawn towards something bright. Cerise, chartreuse, orange or bright blue. I just imagine an aggressive fish and that bright fly being lit up by the sun.

happy holidays!

2010-12-23T09:11:00.006-06:00

The report from the river (as of yesterday) is that it's cold. Yeah. Shelf ice is starting to creep out a little farther in spots and if you get too far down from the dams, you better have tip-ups. Winter fishing is something I look forward to all summer long, but it's got to warm up a bit. It was very nice out yesterday and the day before, but I had things going on and didn't make it to the river. Hopefully January will bring us a handful of days in the thirties. If not, hey, it is Wisconsin. We'll understand. Long stretches like this make the mind start to wander. Thoughts of sun-soaked days on the river, in shorts, casting long lines to trout and smallmouth. A cold beer on the river bank to end the day is just so much more enjoyable when it's not 22 degrees. Lastly, to everyone reading this... Have a great Holiday season and a stellar start to 2011! Let's make the most of this winter and look forward to another epic summer on the water!

idle

2010-12-16T16:52:00.002-06:00

This has got to be a December record for number of days below freezing... all of them. We haven't had one day that's crept over 32 degrees and it doesn't look like there's going to be one. Across the street from my house is an eight foot tall snowbank, the result of a two day snowstorm that came through this past weekend. In the words of Outkast, "it's cooler than a polar bear's toenails." I'm hoping the next few weeks will offer a little respite in the form of a couple days at least in the upper-twenties. Just so we can sneak out and throw a line. I love tying and I love the upper-Midwest, but this time of the year can be brutal. It's a tough adjustment to go from guiding seven days a week to fishing five days a week to nothing. There may be a late-winter/early-spring trip to Iowa for trout or lower-Michigan for steelhead in the works. The results from the last poll were pretty lopsided. Steelhead, musky and smallmouth dominated the voting. Trout were a distant fourth. Check out the new poll down on the right.

couch shopping

2010-12-13T17:54:00.003-06:00

Be sure to swing on over to Smallmouthflyshop.com and check out some of the new products. Tim has been hard at work adding tying materials, flies, shirts and gift ideas for the fly fisherman on your list. We have some unique flies found only on this site. The Mud Bug and the Bart-O are two of the best warmwater flies I've ever fished and we have them in stock.

12/10 report

2010-12-10T15:30:00.003-06:00

Well, after nearly two weeks I was finally able to sneak out and swing flies for a bit this afternoon. I had to get my new 6 weight Sage TCX switch rod out and throw some lines with it. I started with a 400 grain Skagit Extreme (Scientific Anglers) and a 60 grain tungsten sink tip and never felt the need to try a different head. I'd definitely call the rod more of a "7 weight", based on the total grain weight and the fact that it had no problem, even in the wind, throwing tight little loops with a weighted leech pattern. It's still amazing to me that they can make a rod that's so lightweight, yet casts a bulky head, tip and fly into the wind with ease. There's a ton of power in the 6119 and I was really hoping to hook a fish. No such luck. I also played with some new fly designs and decided that a couple of them need to be tweaked a bit before they're right on. I was shocked to see very little ice on the shorelines. Even the upper reaches of the river I fished (above two dams from where I was) were relatively ice-free. I was very surprised to see a frog and a turtle in the river. The frog was swimming, albeit very lethargically, but still swimming. He paused just long enough for me to take an underwater picture and then continued on (hopefully to someplace warmer). The turtle was less ambitious, just sitting on the bottom. Weird. Tomorrow is supposed to be in the low-thirties again, but we're also supposed to get anywhere from 6 to 12 inches of snow. After this snow-dumping front passes it's going to get cold...really cold. They're calling for highs in the upper-single digits to low-teens for the first part of next week. Ouch. It's supposed to warm up again towards the end of next week and hopefully we can sneak out a couple more times before Christmas. If not, the fly boxes will continue to fill.

stop what you're doing and check this out

2010-12-07T17:59:00.002-06:00

Yeah, it's that time of the year... Fishing reports may become more scarce and pictures of newly invented flies and fishing clips more prevalent. I came across this one today and you're crazy if you don't take a few minutes out of your day to enjoy it. One of the best little movies I've seen in a long time... Great casting, scenery, fish and even a skater shot.

still cold

2010-12-05T08:21:00.003-06:00

The only bright spot for the week looks to be Thursday and Friday, where the high temps are forecasted to reach the upper-twenties. The rest of the week will be a no-go for swinging flies. Bummer. Charlie and I had a great run of very nice Mondays (his day off) going, but with tomorrow's highs being in the upper-teens, that will end. Hopefully my 6119 TCX switch rod will be here by the end of the week and I can get it out and find some open water. Chris and Jerry spoke very highly of this series of rods and I'm looking forward to seeing how they cast.

There is one advantage to our local tributaries having dams: open water in the winter. We don't have strong influxes of spring water to regulate or river's temperatures. This means that without a dam (moving water), most of our tributaries would simply lock-up solid with ice in the winter. Some of our rivers will stay open for a mile or more downstream from it's dam and some only a hundred feet. It all depends on the size of the river and the amount of discharge they expel each day. This year we've had lots of water, so they've been releasing a lot of water from the dams. This is good for those of us that fish migratory browns/steelhead in the winter months.

The water may be damn cold (that wasn't meant to be a pun), but each year we manage to catch a good number of fish in December, January and February. And to be 100% honest, it's not about the catching this time of year. It's great to be out there with the snow falling and the little icebergs floating by. Walks on the bank to thaw out toes. Dashes back to the truck to a hot thermos of coffee. Frozen marabou tubes that look like they could never resemble what they started as, ever. All of this just to get out and cast and enjoy the river. And who knows, you just may be surprised by a fish.

one more...

2010-12-03T15:26:00.002-06:00

Here's another great little video from Spirit River Studios. If the eat at 2:58 doesn't get you going, check your pulse. You can actually see the fish check the fly just before she eats it. Makes me wish it wasn't so cold out. It looks like it may warm up towards the end of next week. Until then, lots of tying and Holiday activities.

worth the time to watch

2010-11-30T16:12:00.003-06:00

I saw this clip a couple years ago and just came across it again. It's pretty sweet. There are so many videos out there of guys fishing the big, open steelhead rivers. This is a little different and the viewer gets a better look at the water and the places they're looking for fish to be in. As a side note, this rain that we got yesterday and today isn't going to bode well for the stability of the river. It will bring in some more fish, but it could also make the river tough to access for a few days. We'll see...

chili season

2010-11-29T14:04:00.003-06:00

Charlie and I took advantage of the mid-40s today and swung flies for a few hours. Air temp=good, wind speed=bad. No grabs, no bumps. The last handful of days has really dropped the water temps. Fish may be looking to scoot out of the quicker, shallower runs and into slower, deeper lairs for the winter. That, by no stretch, doesn't mean that the fish won't eat. It just means that we're getting to that time where getting down deep is a necessity. The little bit of shelf ice that had formed was kicked away from the banks. Anything to prolong the season...

quick report

2010-11-22T22:18:00.005-06:00

Charlie and I got out and swung flies on one of the local tributaries this morning. How could we not take advantage of the unseasonably warm temps? The river was a little lower than last week with noticeably better visibility. Nothing at the first run. The second run gave up this nice buck, which ate a GFH Leech swung along s0me logs. Rain pushed us off the river a little after noon and towards a burger and warm, dry clothes. Have a great (and safe) Thanksgiving!

starting to roll

2010-11-17T09:14:00.006-06:00

Fishing on some of the WI tributaries is starting to improve. Most of the Chinook are done spawning and a good number of them have become food for other organisms in the river. There are still a handful of fresh Chinook around, but not many. Reports have been coming in of Cohos being caught with some consistency on some of the river systems. I was out yesterday and saw a handful that were occupying redds and fulfilling the terminus of their life cycles. Any rain from here on out could produce small runs of these fresh, feisty little salmon. The steelhead and browns have become more active recently with the cloudy weather and cooler temperatures. Rivers up and down the Lake Michigan Coastline range from incredibly low to unusually high. The browns, both here and in Michigan, seem to be a little behind schedule in regards to their spawning rituals. I've seen surprisingly few browns sitting on gravel thus far. The fish are definitely there, they're just a little slow to spawn this season. Most of the rivers are still warm enough that you can get away with covering the water fairly quickly. Once the rivers really cool down, you'll have to work slower and more diligently as fish will be less likely to come a long way to eat your fly. Lately, I've been taking a good three or four steps in between swings. In another month, I'll be taking one little step in between casts. Bob and I had a great day on Monday, landing one brown and losing a second fish that was very nice. Both fish ate Feenstra's GHL on the swing with little strips and twitches. Yesterday, I joined John on one of the more southern tributaries and had an awesome day. Eight fish were hooked and four came to hand. Three steelhead and one big, fresh Chinook. We each carried a switch rod and a single hander, with the single handers getting the majority of the use (and success). We both love to swing flies, but the flows were just low enough that swinging was very difficult. Nymphs and orange egg flies worked in the little "mini runs" along banks and logs proved to be effective. Most fish were hooked very near the bank or at the tail-outs of the larger runs. We did see a lot of Chinooks kicking around, most of which did not look like they had much left in them. Some smaller Cohos and browns were seen hanging out on gravel as well. It seems that things have started to heat up, just as the weather is cooling down. Most of the reports I've seen (or read) are calling for a pretty mild winter. If this is the case, we could have some of the best fishing of the season ahead of us and be relatively unhindered by ice and bone-chilling winds.

sad news for midwest fly fishing community

2010-11-14T16:29:00.002-06:00

Tom Helgeson, editor/ publisher of Midwest Fly Fishing Magazine and the brain behind the Great Waters Fly Fishing Expos, passed away Friday, November 12th. Tom will be greatly missed by friends, family and the entire fly fishing community. Between his magazine and his shows, his talents, hard work and dedication to the sport will forever be lost, but not forgotten. Goodbye Tom, we'll miss you.

just what we need

2010-11-12T08:43:00.002-06:00

On behalf of us steelhead and musky anglers...thank you. This weather may be just the spark we need to really get the fish active. The Northern WI tributaries still seem a bit behind schedule and the musky fishing has been very hit-and-miss (as it usually is). A little cloud cover and some nasty, cooler weather may be the perfect ignitor. Good luck to all the Brule anglers this weekend...last hurrah of 2010! Make it a good one.

november 9th report

2010-11-09T14:21:00.003-06:00

Having to get up an extra hour early since the DST change is brutal. Tim and I met this morning super early to swing flies before the day got bright and sunny. Kevin Feenstra's Grapefruit Head Leech paid off with this nice brown, a fat, healthy female.