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I had a wonderful time speaking again at the Connecticut Fly Fisherman's Association. Although I'm a proud member, I rarely have time to attend meetings. Yet, I'm happy to give back with periodic talks. I fly fish, almost, exclusively on cold moving water. The complexities of trout habitat has me returning again and again all year round. I can't get enough, and I love to share my thoughts and experience. My talk offered a fresh approach on classic upstream fly fishing. I defined and discussed common problems of moving water, presentation and fly selection. I then discussed possible solutions to these problems, and a reasonable approach to an upstream presentation of all life stages of aquatic insects, in all water columns. I concluded with a discussion of best practices when tying, modifying and selecting fly patterns to fish.  Hook: TMC 300, #8
Thread: Red UNI-Thread, 8/0 Tail: Peacock Swords Tag: Flat Gold Tinsel Body: Orange Silk and Peacock Herl Underwing: Orange Silk Wing: Woodchuck Hackle: Grizzly, Wet  Completed in 2024, this 8’6" 6wt is 100% shop-made and weighs 4.45 oz.. The butt and tip are hollow built and flamed. The reel seat insert and grip are made from flor grade cork stock imported from Portugal. The Olive silk wraps are accented by the silk tipping in Mustard, seamlessly transitioning to the cane. The fabricated, green agate stone is encased in a soldered silver bezel and stainless steel hoop, and compliments both the cane and wrap colorings. The ferrules are machined from silicon aluminum bronze 642 bar stock, snake guides fabricated from stainless steel wire, and the tip tops fabricated from stainless steel wire and nickel silver bar stock. All metal on the rod is blued, with the exception of the bright nickel silver ferrule plug, holding a hand tapered flor grade cork cone.  This rod was designed to wrangle in bass and to efficiently deliver larger flies to their intended destinations. Sufficiently capable of handling both warm and cold water species, the swelled butt and hollowing throughout pair nicely to allow a crisp recovery along with fighting power. I had the wonderful opportunity to speak to The Hartford Sportsmen’s Club about bamboo fly rod history in Connecticut. The innovation and ingenuity that occurred in Connecticut with respect to the bamboo fly rod is remarkable. I'm enthusiastic about telling the story, as I believe it should never be forgotten. Many praise modern epoxies for both their strength and longevity in widely diverse temperatures and conditions. While there is truth to such advances, it is critical that careful attention is given to both surfaces contacting the epoxy and the space between such surfaces. After initially turning my ferrule stations (cane blank area that will be affixed to the ferrule), I make sure that there is adequate space between the ferrule and cane surfaces, thereby allowing the epoxy to expand. Another critical step for success is to make sure that the internal portion of the ferrules is “roughed up” with an abrasive, such as sandpaper. Similarly, I make sure the ferrule station cane is also sufficiently rough. With two roughed surfaces, the epoxy will adhere better as it expands and hardens into all crevices. All surfaces that will come in contact with epoxy are cleaned with denatured alcohol. This will removed grease, dust and other chemicals. These areas are allowed to sufficiently dry. Thereafter, the epoxy is prepared. It is imperative that the epoxy sufficiently covers the entire ferrule station and the metal inside the ferrule. This is accomplished by not only slathering epoxy on the ferrule stations but also using a toothpick or other tool to coat the inside of the ferrule that will come in contact with the cane. With so much epoxy, it will need a way to escape when the ferrule station is pressed into the ferrule. This is accomplished by etching a shallow line down the length of the ferrule station with the edge of a small file. What is the relationship between cane and caddis in Connecticut? Connecticut was home to two of the greatest minds in cane rod building and caddis fly pattern development, E.W. Edwards and Gary LaFontaine, respectively. On a recent outing, I channeled a connection with Edwards and LaFontaine. I fished one of my cane rods that was built with multiple techniques developed by Edwards. At the end of my rod was LaFontaine’s Deep Sparkle Pupa caddis pattern. The Edwards-LaFontaine connection worked, and I was rewarded. Book Review: Tying and Fishing the Fuzzy Nymphs by Ernest "Polly" Rosborough…Innovator of Simplicity9/9/2024
 Pencil sketch by Michael D. Day Just as Frank Sawyer’s skill, observation and artistry brought about the pheasant tail nymph, Polly Rosborough provided the world with the Casual Dress, the Near Enough, among many others. Sawyer was able to see what few anglers saw, the essence of a swimming nymph from the perspective of a trout, and Rosborough has done the same. Rosborough, like Sawyer, was a reductionists, thereby capturing the essence of aquatic life. Tying flies with two to three materials, Rosborough’s flies demonstrated “life,” and life is a trigger for trout. Today Rosborough’s Casual Dress has been further modified by Dave Hughes with the use of spun squirrel hair, and these patterns in rust, olive and tan/brown/gray, can solve problems on the river when other flies fall short.  Pencil sketch by Michael D. Day This is a wonderful book, providing the reader with not only Rosborough’s fly patterns, but his suggested best practices in terms of presentation. I’ve presented his fly patterns in all directions on small streams and larger rivers, and fooled trout when nothing else seemed to work.
 The locations I like to fish are far removed from anglers. These locations often require a bit more effort to reach, are not terribly well known, but visits are often rewarding. On a recent summer evening, I ventured out to one such spot. Virtually inaccessible by hiking paths, it required a fair amount of wading. As night descended on the river, navigating dark pocket water became exceedingly more difficult, but it was all worth it. Moving selective brown trout to take an artificial fly, requires all parts of the fly fishing puzzle to fit together snugly.  Completed in 2024, this 7’3" 3-4wt is 100% shop-made and weighs 2.6 oz.. The butt and tip are hollow built and deeply flamed. The reel seat insert and grip are made from flor grade cork stock imported from Portugal. The Avocado silk wraps are accented by the silk tipping in Mustard and Seaweed. The fabricated, green agate stone is encased in a soldered silver bezel and stainless steel hoop, and compliments both the cane and wrap colorings. The ferrules were machined from silicon aluminum bronze 642 bar stock, snake guides fabricated from stainless steel wire, and the tip tops fabricated from stainless steel wire and nickel silver bar stock. All metal on the rod is blued, with the exception of the bright nickel silver ferrule plug, holding a hand tapered flor grade cork cone.  This is a small stream rod, capable of handling wild native trout on mountain streams and in low gradient woodland and meadow streams. At 7'3" this 3-4wt rod has reach and can deliver bushy flies and cut through unexpected wind gusts with relative ease. A buttery smooth cast is complimented by a gently swelled butt, providing crisp hook sets. |
