New Gear

I have been meaning to write about my new fly rod for a while now.  I replaced my broken Cabela's rod with an Echo Solo 9' 5wt 4 piece rod and reel combo from The Fly Fishers.  The rod comes in a soft pouch that fits into a hard carry case, and The Fly Fishers fits the reel with backing and Airflow standard line.  The rod comes with a lifetime warranty too, at less than $130.00, this is a great deal!  I haven't really done a lot of long casting with it because I've only been fishing tiny trout streams with it so far.  I have done some really nice roll casting though.

I also picked up a new fly box.  I had been cramming all my favorite flies into one box, and bringing a larger box with dividers with me whenever I went out, so I could return and replenish my dwindling stock.  My new box opens on each side and holds quite a few flies. I seriously need to tie more flies to fill my boxes now.

Nymphs and wet flies on this side

Dry flies on the other

My old streamer box that I used to pile everything into

One more piece of equipment I won in a giveaway from GET EM WET.  It's a wrist lanyard that you attach your nippers to.

I'd use it all the time, if I could get it away from my Little Cleo.

Girls Love A Guitar Player

My baby girl is ten months old today!  She loves fishing with daddy, and she loves playing music.  This is our first band rehearsal from Sunday night, our band is called Woolly Goat.

I play guitar, daddy.
You play drums.

I show you

This is how you play

I'm a good guitar player

I wonder how long before she catches her first bluegill.

On another note, I made a trip to The Fly Fishers and talked rods.  I made my choice as soon as I get the money.

Looking for a New Rod

I think I found a rod to replace my broken rod.  My funds are short, but I think I found one that's a step up at a good price.  An Echo Solo 4 piece 5 weight rod and reel combo is what I'm looking at.  Does anyone have anything to say about Echo fly rods?  They come with a lifetime warranty and sound like decent rods.

I guess this is my offseason...

I haven't fished in a few weeks.  I just got a third shift seasonal job at one of those big box stores--not Walmart, but a big box nonetheless.  And I also have a job interview for a phlebotomy position tomorrow.  It sure would be nice to get a job in my field, maybe I could afford a nicer fly rod!

I have certain things that I do when I'd like to be fishing.  I am currently playing through Final Fantasy VII (again) and reading a lot more.  I normally read science fiction or fantasy, but after reading through Isaac Asimov's entire Robot series and Empire series, I'm taking a Hemingway break before getting into the Foundation series again.  I read "In Our Time," and loved it.  Great short stories for trout fishermen.  Reading the Big Two-Hearted River stories made me miss living in Michigan.  I just started reading The Old Man and the Sea yesterday.  I'm about 1/2 way through and it's already one of my favorite stories.

"'Fish,' he said softly, aloud, 'I'll stay with you until I am dead.'
He'll stay with me too, I suppose, the old man thought and he waited for it to be light."

I'm so upset I never read Hemingway before.

It's a Three Piece Now!

Tragedy

While walking along the concrete bank of the Menomonee, I slipped and fell.  I didn't hurt myself at all, so I dusted myself off and continued walking.  Then I noticed a small twig entangled in my leader.  I reached to untangle it, then I noticed that it wasn't a twig at all, it was the tip of someone else's fly rod that had been tangled in my line, how strange!  It's really not too surprising, there are pieces of broken rods all over down there.  Then I had that sick feeling in my viscera, I looked up at the tip of my rod to find my suspicion correct, the tip hanging from the leader was in fact, mine.  It's not even a nice fly rod, it's just all I have!  I turn around and head home, fighting back tears.

Comedy

The next day, I start dreaming of having unlimited gil, and start looking at rods online.  I am mostly just talking to myself, but my wife knows how upset I am, so she's trying to care about my hobby.  I'm showing her which rods I wish I could afford and which ones I'll probably have to settle for.  I said something about wanting another two piece, but maybe a four piece would fit in the trunk better.  My wife says "I thought you had a three piece."  I respond "It's a three piece now!"  My wife bursts into hysterical laughter, I chuckle a little myself.  You have to laugh in these situations to keep from crying.

My rod was a Cabela's 8'6" 5wt Wind River With a Three Forks 4/5/6 reel.  I caught a lot of fish with it.  Mostly smallmouth bass, but plenty of trout too, and some pretty big salmon.  I think it's time to save up for a big boy rod now.

Mastering the Shadow Cast

Easy to follow instructions for one of the most useful fly casting techniques.

Why does fly fishing have to be so serious?

Where Do I Even Begin? (part III)

Okay, so you don’t know anyone with a man cave full of fishing stuff and you don’t have the patience to summon your inner tonberry and haggle your way through a flea market.  You do, however, have some money that you’ve been saving.  Now we are going to talk about the quickest way to dissolve your funds and get you elbow deep in fish slime.

Buying brand new fishing gear is so much fun!  With all the fishing I do, I can only recall three times when I actually went out and picked out a new rod and reel.  When you decide to get new gear, there are some things to keep in mind.  Big box stores may have great selections and even better prices, but a lot of the time the people behind the counter can’t tell you anything about the gear, and a lot of stuff on display is broken.  You are better off going to a smaller fishing shop where the prices may be a little higher, but the staff is very helpful.  They can help you pick out a good rod, and even give you tips about where to fish and what to use.  And if you support a smaller shop, you know where the money is going.

Ultimately, like a wand from Ollivander’s, the rod chooses the angler, but the staff will help it find you!  There are many different choices for handles, length, action (flexibility), reels, guides (eyes), and the number of pieces the rod breaks into.  Most rods are two-pieces.  Two-piece rods break down small enough to pack and carry without sacrificing a lot of strength. One-piece rods will always be stronger, but harder to store away, or put in the trunk of your car, so there is a trade off.  A good starter rod would probably be a 6’6” medium action two-piece rod with an open face reel.  Long and heavy enough to catch some big fish, but delicate enough to feel the smallest trout strike your bait while still being easy to transport and store.  Later on if you feel the need, you can worry about rods for specific fish, such as an ultralight rod for panfish and a heavy action rod for catfish.

A great rod for fishermen of any skill level is the Ugly Stik, made by Shakespeare.  Ugly Stiks are made in the USA, quite affordable, and among the most durable rods made.  You will not find a better rod for the price.  Most Ugly Stik rod and reel combos range in price from $20.00 to $50.00.  As testimony to the reliability of an Ugly Stik, they have a seven year warranty against defect, but if you break it when you run into a tree while off road biking from one fishing spot to another (as I have), you’re just going to have to try to repair it on your own. 

My medium action 6'6" Ugly Stik strung with 6 pound
 test line caught this 32" chinook salmon out of Lake
Michigan in downtown Milwaukee after a 45 minute fight.

If you are looking for a brand new fly rod, there is a lot more to a fly rod setup than just the rod, reel and the line.  There is the thick braided line that is tied to the reel, this is called the backing line, or, just “the backing.”  The backing is tied to the fly line, which is the portion that is cast.  The end of the fly line is then finished off with the tapered leader which is usually about 9’ in length.  Your fly can be tied to the leader, but as the flies break off, or are cut off and changed, your leader will get shorter and thicker.  To add this length back, you need to tie on a very fine section of line, called the tippet. There are some good starter kits that have most, or all of these things.  My first fly rod was a two-piece Scientific angler 5/6 weight 9’ rod.  It came with the rod, reel, backing, fly line, and leader.  The kit also came with instructions on how to tie all the correct knots for each of the different types of line, because it needed to be assembled.  What I like about this is that you will get firsthand knowledge of how to put it all together.  I don’t think they make that exact kit anymore; the one I see on the shelves at Gander Mountain and other places is a four-piece rod with everything assembled and ready to go. It also comes with some flies and an instructional DVD.  This kit costs about $110.00.  Cabela’s makes a good affordable fly rod under the name “Three Forks,” you can pick up a rod with all the line on the reel for $74.99 on the website.  My current fly rod is a two-piece 8’ 6” Three Forks 5 weight rod and reel combo.  Three Forks is an all around great rod for most occasions if you don’t have pockets overflowing with gil.  If you do, go somewhere that specializes in fly fishing.  They all have at least one high quality rod with the beginner in mind.  A local shop in Milwaukee, called The Fly Fishers, has some really nice fly rod and reel combos for around $300.00, and they sell used gear!

Once you have gotten a rod, there are still some other things you will need before you are really ready to get out on the water. If you get a rod at a thrift store or from dad’s man cave, you can assume the line needs to be replaced.  Even the line on a brand new rod may need to be replaced rather quickly.  There are also tackle boxes, hooks, lures, floats, sinkers, and all kinds of fun stuff yet.  We will talk about these things in a later post, until then!

Where Do I Even Begin? (part II)

In my previous entry, possible scenarios to help in acquiring some free fishing gear were discussed.  Getting free gear is good, however, most people will probably take a different route.  If you don’t care how old your equipment is, yard sales (or in Milwaukee, rummage sales) and thrift stores are  good places to start, and there is probably some good gear out there if you're persistent.

You may find good gear at a yard sale, especially in a town known for fishing.  Guys upgrade their gear and just need to make room.  Look for an Ugly Stik brand.  Ugly Stiks can take just about any punishment you can give them.  You may even find a tackle box full of lures for around $5.00, buy it!  Even if the lures aren’t new or current looking, they can be fun to experiment with.  Some of those old wooden lures are collectors items!  My dad probably still has wooden musky lures he inherited from his grandpa.  These things had teeth marks in them from musky and pike striking them!  Now, just about everything is plastic; nothing tells the history of the life of a lure like teeth marks in balsa.

Time to make room for new gear.

Thrift stores such as Goodwill will sometimes have many rods.  So many in fact, that it may be overwhelming trying to find one worth buying.  They must get nice rods in occasionally, but they probably go quick, be persistent.

A good fishing rod is probably expected to outlive the original owner, so an estate sale rod could be an amazing find!  

Another good place to look for gear is at a flea market.  Haggling is expected, the price they put on the label is just a suggestion. Offer half the price, compromise at 3/4.  If there are two rods for $7.00 each, offer $10.00 for both. Tell them you liked another one you saw for less money several aisles down. Never pay what the tag says at a flea market.  You probably shouldn’t pay much more than $5.00 for a Goodwill/rummage/flea market rod, especially if it doesn’t come with a reel. And my personal opinion, never use a spincasting reel, sometimes called a closed face reel.  If it is a Zebco brand, pass it up.

Pass

If you’re looking for a fly rod, things are a little different. These things are considerably more expensive, even for a cheap one.  So if you come across a fly rod that seems to be intact with a reel for $50.00, go ahead and try to haggle down to $40.00.  If the seller won’t budge, it’s your call, buy it or walk.  My suggestion is to pay close attention to the reel. If it looks like it is metal, it is probably a rather expensive reel. Consider buying the rod.  Plastic reels are of course, cheaper, so you might pass on it.  

In the Cabela’s near Milwaukee, they have the “Bargain Cave,” so I assume they all do.  There is always tons of fishing gear in there, but most of it is broken.  However, I’m pretty sure that a person who is persistent enough could come out of there with a nice year old rod with hardly a scratch.  The carry case for my fly rod came out of the bargain cave, and I use it all the time.  It has even been used as a weapon once to fend off some idiots in a van.

These are just some examples of practical ways to get cheap gear.  There are online options too.  You could come across good gear on Ebay or Craigslist, and if a brand or model is given, do a google search and read user reviews to learn more about what you're looking at.  That way you aren’t just making a shot in the dark when picking one rod out of a million at the local Salvation Army. Good luck out there!

Back to Basics

It’s not like I’m a bass pro or anything, but I have been fishing for as long as I can remember.  I’m serious about it, but mostly, I just want to have fun and enjoy being out in nature.  I usually practice catch and release, fish artificial bait as much as possible and I like to keep it cheap.  It is very easy to spend a lot of money on gear, but in my opinion, it’s more rewarding when you can fish effectively on minimum (or improvised) tackle.

A little introduction:  My wife is from Minnesota and I’m from Michigan, but we currently reside in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  We just had a little girl, who I cannot wait to take fishing with me.  Maybe I can even get my wife to take an interest if our little one does!  We love music.  She is a piano player who has a degree in music, and I taught myself to play guitar.  I am studying to be a phlebotomist and am almost finished with school.

I used to have a lot of gear, but I was careless a few years ago and I left my stuff in the back of my truck after a fishing trip and it was all stolen!  Probably close to a thousand dollars in gear.  Several rod and reel combos, including a fly rod, several tackle boxes full of gear; one box I had just gotten that Christmas from my Dad.  A lot of the tackle was brand new and unused.  

Replacing so much lost gear was just unrealistic, but lost gear couldn’t deter me from getting back out on the lakes and streams.  I think I was out the next weekend.  When I replaced my fly rod I upgraded to a slightly better model because my first one was a beginner model.  I was given another rod and reel combo that I used until I destroyed the rod beyond repair.  So, I’m back to using my backup rod again (the only one that wasn’t in the truck) when I’m not fly fishing. It has been broken and repaired a few times.  It was the rod I was using when I caught the biggest fish of my life; a 38” 25 pound chinook (I’m sure I’ll tell the story in a later blog).  I never replaced the boxes, so I usually just limit my tackle to what I can carry in a smaller tackle box with the little dividers (also, not in my truck when the robbery occurred) in an over the shoulder army surplus bag.  If I choose to take all of my gear, I can fit it in my backpack.

All of my fishing gear.

It really hurt to have lost so much equipment, but in a way, it’s good to be back to basics.  I have a few favorite lures that work under most conditions, and others that seem best in very specific conditions.  In this blog, I will share fishing stories from my past and present, how to fish effectively even in less than ideal situations, and how to make your own lures and flies that will catch fish.