New Polls are up

And I'm not talking about high sticking folks!...

Just pointing out the latest set of polls running on the side bar. You can vote more than once but use yer head and don't get carried away.

The Missing 200r

Has just been found!...

I heard a hook hit the floor a week or so ago and I crawled around down there with a magnet for longer than I care to admit...

I didn't find it and figured it took a bad hop to a heat vent or something. With three cats and two dogs living in the house. I'll spend a little extra time looking for a hook on the floor...

Well just about 7 days later... I felt the infamous, annoying sock string snagging my toenail... gave a tiny pull on the end of the sock and heard a "click"...

It makes a clicking sound when a razor sharp 200r comes free from being barb deep in the tip of a big toe... Just so ya know..

And it looks like this when you peel it all back...

New Fishing Polls

Ohh common!!
Ya don't really think I'm talking fishing poles do you?

"Bigger fish" is to "Bigerrfish" as "Polls is to Poles"

Nope"... First of all, it's not a pole, never was and will never be. It's a rod.

Polls on the right side bar of my site have expired and are now closed. I will leave the results up for visitors to review. I will then post the results titled "Poll Results" and my twisted thoughts on them as well. A day or two later, new polls with new questions, will be up and running. I have some great ideas for this go around!

First Fish of Twenty12

Family fishing day for New Years day...

We broke in the new bag and bagged a couple of fish with tiny bugs. Temps were tolerable but not comfortable. We stayed and we all played.

Repost- Check this out

click the link below to view a contest.

http://chasintrout.blogspot.com/2011/12/check-this-out_20.html

Like Jagger

You know those days when you feel like you got the moOOoooves!...
Saturday was a day like that when fishing conditions were tough, the weather was rough, the water was cold.

Fish were there... Easy to see, not so easy to feed. After fiddling with my rig and changing bugs a bunch, the began to come.
In Numbers!

Found a groove and caught em...

Like Jagger!

All the other kids..... ok ok enough's enough... Here is a little video to clear things up...

New Issue of Kype Magazine

Here is the latest issue of Kype Magazine. You can find it on the side bar of this blog all the time for free.

A Cold 12-07-11

Wednesday December 7Th...
Low temp for the day was 9 degrees and the high was a balmy 21.7 degrees...

I would be fishing on this Wednesday regardless of the temperature, I have been backed-up for lack of a better term and I need to fish at least one day a week even though two doesn't feel like near enough.

The brown above was my first fish of the day which I dedicate to my friend as it was his birthday.
I worked hard to pull 6 or 7 fish in the nasty cold...

But some were perfect!

Small flies, including micro nymphs and midge larva... They ate on the leggy hares ear in a size 18 and a 24 JC pupa.

Go Make Babies

As another year aproaches its end, I must reflect back on what I have learned and how I have grown in the sport.

This year had a real impact on me in such a way, it that can only be described by saying that the more appriciation of the creature one has the more they catch.

Some are small, some are big, they all make babies at some point in thier lives, they must have water to do it, a creature that we all call fish.

This is my photo submission for the GreenFish and Outdoor Blogger Network Photo Contest

Gummy Pig Stickers

I've been playing in the sandbox... Goofing with thread and metal...

This is an easy tie as it's just two colors of thread and some bead stretch material that gives it a segmented look and a gummy feel.

The boys in Utah get the credit for getting this pattern started in my box and the name really says it all..

Blog roll Malfunction

But its fixed... Just need you to tell me if your not on there and you feel like you should be...

Thanks to all who run my blog on their sidebar!

I Already Skinned This Cow Dad

{Famous words that will stay with me forever}

We had to get out for an hour or two on Wednesday evening and find a tug.

My son Dylan Beat me dressed and had his boots good and tight...

Jumping in the river like it's where he wants to be, Rod in hand and sure feet, He un-hangs his flies from the guides, throws some fly line from the reel to the water.

He stands and stares at the riffle before him... With confidence in the flies and all of life's troubles in the review mirror.

Tiny flies are presented to a fish by a boy in hopes of catching it. Catching against its own will, with his own.

Early that morning I was sitting at the bench making up some small worm larva like flies... Dylan comes in and sits down to look at the flies scattered ac cross a magnetic pad... After fondling a few he holds one up, looks at me, pauses, then says "Dad you know what we need"... "What's that bud?" I reply. He says to me, "I think we need some bright green ones with a blue line in the thorax area...
Three of those hit the magnet!...

We fished them...

And they work!

After hooking up with 5 fish and landing three of those... The boys hands were cold and he passes the rod... I made about a dozen casts with one short hook up with a good rainbow. It took the fly near my body made a splash and that was that... Three more casts with no strikes and I tried to give back the rod... With a snicker in his voice, Dylan says,, "Nope!.. you catch a fish"... For the first time I felt pressure and wound up flustered, got a tangle or two and wasn't hooking up... With a 10 year old boy watching over my shoulder I could hardly cast or mend... After missing a strike a look back and he just gives a slow shake of his head much like I have done to him... Frustrated even more I make two more casts... Stick my flies in a tree on one and tangle the leader on the next... I look back to see if I'm getting another head shake or a shoulder shrug. But...

He's gone... He's down stream with the other rod... Bare handed even and mine are so cold they are past starting to hurt...
He hooks up with two more fish. Then tells me that we are ready to go... I walk down to him and throw my flies in the seam that he is now finished with... "what ya doin Dad?" he says... "well I have a little more weight on than you, wanna see if there is anything hiding down there" He replay's back to me with, "I ALREADY SKINNED THIS COW"

I followed him out just like I followed him in...

Who's teaching who?

It got Cold

But the fish are happy and ate today!


Had a great day on the water harassing the browns and making the rainbows fly...


I felt the seasons change today in my home town and I think its time to tie some little junks... Say a poison tung or a lazy boy... perhaps the green things need beefed up... as well as some of those, that and these...

The water will remain skinny for a while and the sneaky angler will prosper.

Try to Imagine

Driving in the dark, in a nasty Colorado snow storm, for four hours... Fly fishing one of the most beautiful rivers in the state, for no longer than six solid hours... Turning back the way you came from, then driving back down that four hour trail to get home... All the while...
An early, angry, Colorado winter storm sets in and Snow falls with the intention of covering the ground...

A static filled radio station, a warm cup of coffee and a truck full of fly rods was all I had, and all I needed.

The long morning started with heavy snow as I climbed the first of three passes. Slowing me to a dangerous 35 miles per hour, on a deer infested highway, I plug along until I reach the last town before my fishing destination...

I Whipped in to a Micky D's with a coupon for a Mcmuffin but an appetite for trout.
As the door shut behind me, I sensed something in the air... I slow my walk to the order line, like a dog with it's nose in the air.
With a felling of resent against winter conditions, my face wears a look of disgust. My head, full of wishes it was the middle of summer again and every part of me, not willing to welcome the pretty white stuff on the ground...

I'm gladly standing in line after sitting for more than three hours, the same time giving the McDonald's menu that silly stare, like I had been given the road as snow flakes whizzed in and out of the headlights...

As I continue to investigate that "something in the air" I realize that it's simply the people in the room giving off joy!
Joy of the seasons changing... The feeling of the first snow sitting in their own front yards. The welcoming sounds of boots being stomped and mittens being slapped together. Every face had a smile and every group was deep in winter conversation and laughter...

In one corner you have three old guys adamantly arguing about what the farmers almanac says about this year and predicting spring already... In the other corner you have three young lady's on their way to school, wearing scarfs and boots with the fur, warming up with a cup of cocoa while giggling on the web with their i somethin's. On the back wall you have some tourists that have on more clothes than I will wear fishing and all new stuff. They are planning their snowy activities and destinations reminding anyone who can overhear that they are not from around her and not used to it... Hey! that's what search and rescue is for right?

As I breath this "stuff in the air" I begin to feel the welcoming of winter upon myself. I felt this overwhelming power of befriending the cold like those around me.

I grabbed my small sack with a sandwich and a napkin inside and turned toward the door... One last breath as I opened it and walked into the storm. Head to the wind I let the snow blast me in the face as I approached the truck I took a look in the back, to view the items that will be participating in the winter activities. Climbed in the drivers seat and put focus the task at hand...

With less than an hour left to drive I had a serious attitude change at Mickey D's and really wanted to get on the water...


I jumped out of the pickup and grabbed an arm load of gear and stuffed it in to the cab, hopped back in and got geared up. My fishing partner was there soon after and we went for the fish with a one dollar bet on the first fish, which I lost...

The snow fell hard all day long and the fishing was far better than expected. We both caught more brown trout than we could count and had everything in the book happen to us from large fish leaping and shaking the hook to three dinks in three casts... They wouldn't eat just anything and didn't want everything so we had to change flies from time to time to stay productive...

I fished small flies and Nate fished larger, we worked the water well and stayed focused on fishing while the weather did its progressing from bad to worse...

Over 10 inches of snow fell that day... Fell on the shoulders of a man who wanted to catch a fish.

Then, headed back where I came from.

Can you Imagine it?

Wednesday Tuggin

Wednesday is the best afternoon for My son Dylan and I to get out and giver a go...

With a little bit of miscommunication with the school bus driver, we got to the river about 3:30 and fished till sun down.

Dylan caught this juvie brown and contacted with four other fish.

One of those, believed by me to be, the same fish in his photo. It took his fly on the turnaround at the tail end of the drift, where I don't want them hooked.

I have taught my son that this is farming, it is not correct from a purest standpoint. I feel as though this is luring fish. I would like the hook set just as the flies come taught for the last time as they pass the indicator. Any amount of time spent with the flies dragging behind is treated like a foul hook... In my book.

Another contact of a fish that stood out was a brightly colored rainbow that hit him at the tail end of the drift before it went to farming... Frustration was getting the better of angler as we all know much too well... The mends just weren't working for him and a breeze would come by and puff each time the line was lifted in the air. Lines became tangled and time was lost. This is when you have to keep it cool. As I stated, frustration was clearly getting the better of the angler and just as he dropped his shoulders, looked to the sky and gave a shake of his head, a big bright rainbow rolled on the fly... Slack in the line and the loss of focus cost a fish. What is that worth to you?..

I explained that you must keep it together, especially when it gets "like this"..

As we all know, after an instance like this, a fisherman will go through a rapid period of intense evolution, where nothing but focus and concentration exist. As Dylan experienced this and made a good clean cast back to the pool... A large brown trout rolled up and munched his indicator...

I placed my hand on his shoulder and said "let that be a lesson to you".... A look of confusion from the boy as I elaborated with "you blew it on the last one, and this one blew you". Eye for and eye!

Frustration won over the kid and he just wanted to do kid stuff... Ya know, like making a jack hammer out of a piece of drift wood and then using it as a pry bar to bust off chucks of a down tree... Which, by the way, is a bit annoying when your tryin to get a fish on the line before it gets dark on a school night, when the water your fishing has been hit with the frustration wand, and when the boy's little demolition project is going on behind me, right at the end of my line on my back cast.

Frustration and distraction won't get the best of me... I worked the water until I pulled a fish..

A healthy migrant rainbow that slipped through the canyon wall.

Summary: We set out to practice quiet, agreeing to work the water thoroughly. Set out to walk not run, to whisper not yell, to learn and better ourselves as boys, to be fly fisherman, not fish catchers. Results were... Goal's met...

We were quiet when we weren't being loud. We worked the water thoroughly alright, three loud hours of it. We bettered our selves as fishermen but that came in the long conversation on the ride home, which we finished in the driveway upon our arrival. The look he gave me when our talk was over, made me forget all about the wooden jackhammer.

Fat High Mountain Trout

9,000 feet is the elevation of this little stream. It's a free stone river that flows from the San Juan mountains, which stretch to over 13,000. It's nearly impossible to enter this mountain range and not hear the sounds of water flowing from rock to rock.
I took advantage of the chance to fish up in the high country and managed to pull some fish that beat my record in size. Although I did not find that large September brown at 9,000 ft I did find one dink to prove that they are still there.

The rainbows were fat and full, hanging in fast water runs they are getting fatter by the minute...
The winters are very winter for these trout as there will be 8 ft of snow sitting on the river by mid winter and its not all that unlikely for it to snow a foot tonight up there.

I make a point to visit the high country at least once a year an usually in the fall season... This was my second outing up here this year and the weather says its probably the last.

The day was ended by the frustration of leaves on my lines and leaders on every drift. As the wind picked up it only got worse...

Seen an elk on the hill while walking back to the pickup...
Wondering how many saw me fishing?

Big ol September Browns

Matt and I fished a 12 hour day on the boat.. The big fish were out today and we had our fill.

After floating through a nice run I whipped the boat to the bank and walked back up there... It was a tough wade but I made it all the way across and up river... I got three casts in there before the big brownie wanted to take me back down to the boat... Held the rod high and went for the ride where Matt was anxiously waiting with the big red net. It smashed the Rick Takahashi Go2 Prince in the color purple, size 16.

Each September kicks me in the behind, all right around the 20Th it's like I can barely breath. Fishing gets on my mind heavier than any other time and I drop all my problems on the floor of the garage and switch them for new ones. Load up too much stuff, add one more thing that I have no use for and row a heavy boat down the river in search of fish that don't like people..
What a problem huh?

By the end of the day we had nearly seen it all... fish flying out of the water, but missing the fly, twice. Two of us walking a flat and targeting specific rising trout, Monster browns willing to eat right on a re-cast.. ohhh "ya blew it"...
The net got wet...


We fished three rods and shared them all.. One rigged with Nymphs, fishing 6 to 8 feet deep... A dry fly rig, and the curtain climber sat in the bottom and wasn't needed.
Matt's best fish of the day was taken on one of CJ's worms


This is the third year in a row that I have seen a massive toad hatch on the sandy beaches of the river..
I threw a few of them out for a swim and watched as they didn't make it past the riffles before getting Kablooshed!

It was a perfect day for me and the photo below may show where my mind is and how I feel at the moment.

Fishing With Clyde

My buddy Clyde whom I met 15 years ago, Returned from a long business trip to Alaska.. He was home for two days when I stole him from his family and put a fishing rod in his hand...


We floated on big blue and pulled a fair number of fish during a really long day... So long that I actually heard the words "bro, I'm about feeshed out" So Clyde took the oars and I took the stand.

Monster Trout Living Thier Lives

This is what it looks like when were not there...

I watched these trout for longer than I care to admit. The most interesting part of it is the way that they use each other to direct food to their mouths. Like moving rocks, these fish were switching places like a flock of geese heading south and using the other ones position to gain energy and create tiny drifts of food. Pretty wild stuff.

This was during a trip to the cold spot in Colorado with a good friend and blogger ColoradoAngler
Why I was marveling at the big trout by a rock.. Ron was on the other side doing the right thing.





Last Minute Plans Kick Ass!

Fishing Photos On Canvas

I got a chance to meet the guy over at EASY CANVAS PRINTS.COM... After a small group of emails and some searching through the archives of fish pics, I settled on a recent one of me. Fishing solo on my only 30Th birthday... The texture of the print is almost freaky! It looks and feels like a fish.
I landed this rainbow with my 10 ft stick and after learning that I was fresh out of 6x and only had 12 inches of 5x I built my whole leader out of 7x... I remember standing on river left and hooking this fish just up stream from me, up tight to the bank on my side... The fish made an aggressive run and headed down for a rock where it wrapped me up and stuck me good... I made quick work out of getting the line free without loosing the fish. when the fish hit the net the fly was detached from my rig with a 4 inch piece of 7x still tied to the eye... Telling me that the rock cut nearly through it but the soft tip on the nymph stick saved the show. It wasn't a monster but it did have some shoulders...

If you get a chance head on over to Easy Canvas Prints and see about getting your Photos On Canvas.

Be watching your dashboard for the next few days, I'll be throwing up pretty neat video of some truly big trout in their natural realm.