Intimidation

Some fisheries can be downright intimidating.  The current river we're camped on defines this for me.  Many fisheries are intimidating right off the bat just due to newness.  Figuring out where to fish is just the start.  When dealing with a large river you also may question your casting skills and think you must boom out spey casts to even stand a chance.

The best way to deal with this is just to head out and fish.  You may pick some crappy water and make some terrible casts but the only way to beat intimidation is to just get on the water.  A fish finally boiled on a muddler and came back to a smaller muddler about ten feet down the run.

With the pressure off the rest of the trip was spent at a relaxing pace checking out new runs and rivers.  No earth shattering fishing, but enough fish boiling at waked muddlers to keep me on my toes.

A great trip back to the Pacific Northwest.  The saltwater fishing may have been poorer than expected but the renewal of a love affair with summer steelhead made up for it.  We are already planning on coming back in 2015.

Next up I'll be trying to catch some warmwater species on our travels to Tennessee.

Back to the Bay

Life is a series of changes, and the last couple months have been a wild ride.  The wife and I packed up all of our belongings and now reside in a twenty five foot travel trailer with a few belongings locked far away in a storage unit.

We left Southwest Florida and pointed the wheel northwest.  The wife visited with her parents in Tennessee for a couple weeks while I drove to a place only a fisherman could love.  Neah Bay is a lovely place as long as you are on the water.  The gorgeous shoreline and offshore waters full of life have to be accessed through the hub of the Makah Nation.  The main reason the wife decided not to tag along was due to the fact that she saw enough of the depressing town during my final summer guiding there in 2005.  After spending a week there I can say that it has only gone downhill since 2005, especially after watching some of the local behavior at the only boat ramp in town.  Parking a pickup truck across the boat ramp and walking away does not attract tourism.  Neither does cursing and threatening someone who politely asks how long you are going to be blocking the ramp as you spool up a gill net.

For the first three days of fishing I was able to bum a boat ride with a couple strangers.  This was the first time I had ever met up with anglers from an internet fly fishing forum.  Luckily the meetup did not end with an interview with Chris Hansen. 

The first two days were spent inside the Strait and just offshore. The visibility was like putting your head in a grey plastic bag all day.  We fished all over the area north of Tatoosh Island but the only fish in the area were rockfish.  My hosts were thrilled with the action, but my thumb got shredded lipping fish and I couldn't help wonder where in the hell were the salmon?  This area is usually a slam dunk and with the large preseason forecast it was a bit concerning.

The third day we joined Tony (who I would be fishing with the rest of the week) to buddy boat out to Swiftsure Bank to find some fish.  Tony had been finding some decent fishing the previous couple days and after two days of just rockfish we had salmon on our minds.  After a long run in the fog we arrived on the bank and my first cast came tight to something heavy.  A few minutes later this nice chinook salmon was led into the waiting net.

For us that would be about all the fish we found that day.  We decided to leave a few fish to see if we could find the concentrations of salmon that just had to be offshore.  We found none.  Tony stayed put and found some scattered pods of salmon.  Someday I will learn the lesson to not leave fish to find fish.

I fished with Tony for another four days.  The fishing remained tough, but one day we found decent fishing.  The funniest part for me was that in the midst of really slow fishing, when we finally found some decent signs of salmon we both started fishing the least effective method, poppers.  I was able to catch one on a new pattern.  I tied a trailer hook version of the Zaggin Zook and it worked as well as my normal poppers (like the Kinky Banger).  Here's a video of the Zaggin Zook.

 

It was a great trip shared with great people.  Hopefully I will make my way back to the Northwest next summer and the fishing will be as good as it should be.  I hope the preseason forecasts end up being correct and the poor fishing was a result of the warmer, brown water we found offshore.

DamNation On Demand

For those who cannot make a film festival or show up to a showing at your local fly shop, click the link below to watch this great documentary at home. 

DamNation OnDemand - Vimeo

The Kinky Banger

I am not an innovative fly tyer by any means.  I steal ideas from great tying minds to fit what I am trying get a fly to look like.  I wrote a bit about this here.

The past couple years I have been trying to fix the one thing I dislike about the majority of poppers / sliders used for salmon in the Pacific Northwest.  These patterns work exceptionally well and myself and others have caught loads of salmon on this style of stinger hooked surface pattern.  The problem I have is that I just don't like the aesthetic of these phallically shaped flies.

I have been looking for a way to tie salmon popper patterns with a more realistic taper from head to  tail.  I was wasting time on the computer the other day and found a step-by-step guide for Jonny King's Kinky Muddler.  The way the body was constructed I knew that I had found an idea to fix a problem only I have.

I used a Dremel to create some space on the backside of the foam cylinder to allow a smooth transition from popper head to the SF Blend body and I think this will be a success when it comes to Neah Bay coho this August.

I present the Kinky Banger.

The One

I've been busy tying clousers getting ready for a visit to Neah Bay in August.  I needed another white bucktail after picking the one on my bench clean.  I reached into the bin of hair and pulled out one of the finest bucktails I have had the pleasure to work with.  Crinkly, long, and amazingly soft.

I returned to the vise and started tying.  I grabbed the new bucktail with scissors in hand and hesitated.  I looked at this bucktail and wondered if it was too nice to use for clousers.  Should I save it for something more deserving?  Maybe something larger than #2 clousers?  It seemed like a waste not to take advantage of its full length.

When I couldn't actually come up with an actual pattern I would tie with it I squeezed the scissors and cut the first pencil sized clump of hair off.

I believe clousers are good enough.

Rivers of a Lost Coast

Watched this fly fishing documentary awhile ago and it is worth watching.  I am in the process of watching it a second time.  Truly a great film about the loss of what seemed inexhaustible at the time.

Click the link below to watch it.

Rivers of a Lost Coast

The Fishing is Great... In My Head

Took the Bote board out the other morning to practice paddling.  The Gulf was calm and I was surprised with the clarity of the water after all of the wind the day before.

After about thirty minutes of paddling up and down the beach I noticed some bait jumping out of the water.  I paddled over to take a look.  I could see the bait and then I noticed a large mass of fish below.  It was a school of large jacks just cruising around the bait.  I stood motionless as the jacks swam circles underneath the board.  I could only watch as I did not have a fishing rod onboard.  I did imagine casting a clouser towards the school and watching the aggressive jacks fight to see which one could eat it first. 

Hopefully we will get some light winds over the next few days and I can try to create some real fishing memories.  I may flub my casts and miss shots at the next pod of jacks or cruising snook but it'll be better than just standing there watching.

The Lure

Ever since I sold my boat last summer before moving from Washington to Florida the siren song of owning another vessel has been a weight on my shoulders.  That is no longer the case.

Last weekend I had a three hour drive to a marathon on the East Coast of Florida and was hot to trot as I saw the boat of my dreams listed on craigslist.  It was within my price range and had the exact outboard I wanted (Honda).  Over the long stretches of pavement I kept thinking about the launching, storage, maintenance, and other associated issues of boat ownership.  These thoughts became a major buzz-kill to thoughts of the wind in my hair and being able to fish almost anywhere.  It was a heavyweight fight between the reality of ownership and the dream of boat ownership.

Reality won as thoughts from my past came flooding back.  I started remembering how much I enjoyed fishing from a kayak back in the Pacific Northwest.  I even wrote about the limitations of kayak fishing back in August of 2011 here.  I came to the decision that I was happiest when I was the horsepower.  I had already sold my kayak so I needed a new fishing platform.  There are differences between saltwater fly fishing in the Northwest and Florida so I decided on a Stand up Paddleboard.

My new boat is a Bote SUP and I cannot wait for the winds to die down a bit to test it out.  I have a ton of learning to do but I look forward to the higher casting position a SUP gives.

Here's to a summer of adventure and here's a little video of the board I just purchased.


BOTE HD 12'6" Stand-up Paddle Paddle Board from BOTE Board on Vimeo.

Even Less Of An Excuse....

To bucktail this summer.

Huge Columbia River Coho Run

Almost a million fish forecast to return to just the Columbia River.  These runs are the main driver for the Neah Bay coho fly fishery, and these numbers should offer amazing numbers of fish not only offshore but right at the entrance.

Bucktailing Isn't Flyfishing - Pt. 2

Awhile back I posted this article on trolling with a fly rod (bucktailing).  It has been a couple years and quite a few saltwater fishing trips since I wrote that.  My feelings have not changed and have only grown stronger.

What I am confused about is the total grip this method of fishing has on the Pacific Northwest fly fishing industry.  I am not talking about individual blogs or posts of fly fishing forums but fly shop blogs and videos and well known Northwest saltwater "fly fishing" destinations.

What is interesting is that bucktailing is not the go-to technique inside Puget Sound for the fly fishing industry.  With six million pinks and another large return of coho expected this summer there is no mention of trolling flies along the shorelines.  It is all about casting flies from the beaches and boats.

Why the disconnect out on the coast and in the Strait of Juan de Fuca?  Is it the lack of beach fishing?  Or is it that the vast majority of shop employees who talk about these fisheries have virtually zero experience fishing them?

My guess is that the latter is correct although decades of describing trolling as "fly fishing" has had a major influence in this discussion.  We have chapters in fly fishing books discussing this technique on equal footing with actual fly fishing techniques.  The worst is the "fly fishing" guides in destination fisheries that promote trolling as fly fishing.  They are straight up lying to their customers.  The other difference between the offshore and inshore fisheries is the numbers of anglers.  There is a long history of true fly fishing inside Puget Sound which makes it easier for new anglers to learn how to fish.  Our industry does the exact opposite offshore.  The lack of knowledge pushes them to promote gear fishing with a fly rod, not because you cannot fly fish offshore but they don't have a fucking clue how to find fish in a large expanse of water.

It is a huge disservice to our sport for bucktailing to be included as a "fly fishing" technique.

There is nothing wrong with enjoying bucktailing for what it is.  It can be a fun way to fish when you are on a boat with non-fly fishermen who are trolling.  It can be fun and is totally legal.  The only thing bucktailing cannot be is fly fishing.

The Worst Hatchery Program

WDFW Closes Portion of Sol Duc River

First, I have to rant that there seems to be no middle ground with WDFW.  Fisheries are either wide open or closed.  Couldn't they have just closed this section to chinook retention?  Selective gear?  Just lazy management for a non-native hatchery stock of fish.

Why is the Sol Duc Springer hatchery program one of the worst in the state?  First, winter steelhead get no break in fishing pressure (both sport and commercial) during May.  Nets targeting springers kill downstream winter steelhead, and I personally think that a repeat spawning steelhead is more valuable than a non-native hatchery chinook.

But the worst part is the impact this program has on other watersheds.  You might have heard that Olympic National Park closed all fishing in the Hoh River this summer to protect wild chinook in the Hoh.  The Park closed water even as the state has an open springer fishery with bait and barbs in the lower river.  Why is there a fishery on chinook in the Hoh?  Simple, to harvest the Sol Duc hatchery springers that stray into the Hoh.  Not only does this program close water on the Sol Duc but it screws up the management on other rivers too.

All the springer program seems to be good for is tribal netting, killing wild steelhead, guide welfare, and closing waters on two rivers... but they're good to eat.

The Last Neah Bay Trip

Swiftsure / Neah Bay Fly Fishing from Chris Bellows on Vimeo.

Or is it?  Got an invite for a king salmon gear fishing extravaganza...

Kudos

Kudos to Josh Mills, who writes the Chucking Line and Chasing Tail Blog, for working his tail off to raise $6500 for the Wild Steelhead Coalition.  Big props for being involved and making a major fucking difference.

Also, kudos to everyone who donated stuff to the auction and to everyone who showed up.  I don't spend much time in Eastern Washington, but we could use that amount of activism West of the Cascade Crest.

Great way to fight apathy in Spokane and making the rest of us want to do better.

The Elwha without Chambers Creeks Steelhead

Seattle Times article on Elwha Hatchery lawsuit

While not a total win for wild fish advocates, the fact that the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe will be stopping the planting of non-native winter steelhead is a win for wild steelhead in the Elwha River after the dams come down.

Thanks to all of the groups involved in fighting for wild fish in the Elwha.  To those who think nothing changes, here is another reason to fight the siren song of apathy when it comes to fisheries issues.  Small groups have made great changes.  Imagine what an active sportfishing community could do.

Cleaning up the Guide Industry in WA

Senate Bill 5786

For years people in the sport fishing community have been talking about the lack of basic requirements to become a fishing guide in Washington State.  The Legislature may finally be tackling this issue.

From the text of Bill 5786
"(2) An application submitted to the department under this chapter shall contain the name and address of the applicant and any other information required by the department or this title. An application for a food fish guide license under RCW 77.65.370 or game fish guide license under RCW 77.65.480 must include:
(a) The applicant's driver's license number or Washington identification card number issued under chapter 46.20 RCW;
(b) The applicant's unified business identifier number under a master license issued under RCW 19.02.070;
(c) Proof of current certification in first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation; and
(d) A certificate of insurance demonstrating that the applicant has general liability coverage of at least three hundred thousand dollars."

Seems pretty prudent to require basic First Aid & CPR, insurance, and actually have a business license.  Good step by the State.

There is time to send in comments or even testify on February 19th.

Click Here (Click on the green Comment on this Bill button) to send in comments supporting this step in cleaning up the guide industry in Washington State.  The State makes it easy to comment so I would suggest supporting them when they make good law.

Perfection

Lately it seems like we have entered a strange world where ideas to fix problems are not worthy of doing if they don't solve the problem entirely.  We live in an imperfect world and our solutions are going to be imperfect.

While listening to testimony at the WDFW Commission Meeting last Friday I was struck that this argument was being used against doing anything to stop the declining steelhead numbers.  Basically, we have reduced harvest from thirty a year to one a year, have created catch and release areas and numbers have still gone down or have not rebounded so this of course means that any other rule changes should wait because we cannot guarantee a magic bullet.

I refuse to believe that doing nothing is any kind of solution.  Experimenting with catch and release, no fishing from boats, bait bans, protecting resident rainbows, and wild steelhead management zones is the only way to go.  We have to keep trying new things as the science gets better and new problems crop up.  Twenty years ago there was no side-drifting, massive numbers of out of state guides, internet bulletin boards, or Puget Sound river closures.

Of course, we also need to look at ourselves when it comes to effective advocacy for wild fish.  This last rule change cycle in Washington State should be a wake-up call with the embarrassing amount of angler apathy here.  Here are some numbers.

22,000+ members on a popular Washington State fly fishing internet forum
10,200 members on a popular Olympic Peninsula internet fishing forum
102 comments on North Coast steelhead rule proposals
44 comments on making all rivers selective gear (no bait) from 2/1-4/30
9 comments on opening up the Quilcene River to sea-run cutthroat and resident trout harvest

These numbers and this amount of apathy are a wake-up call to me.  What about you?

Outlive the bastards

Essay by Edward Abbey "I Loved it...I Loved it All" from Ned Judge on Vimeo.

“One final paragraph of advice: do not burn yourselves out. Be as I am - a reluctant enthusiast....a part-time crusader, a half-hearted fanatic. Save the other half of yourselves and your lives for pleasure and adventure. It is not enough to fight for the land; it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it’s still here. So get out there and hunt and fish and mess around with your friends, ramble out yonder and explore the forests, climb the mountains, bag the peaks, run the rivers, breathe deep of that yet sweet and lucid air, sit quietly for a while and contemplate the precious stillness, the lovely, mysterious, and awesome space. Enjoy yourselves, keep your brain in your head and your head firmly attached to the body, the body active and alive, and I promise you this much; I promise you this one sweet victory over our enemies, over those desk-bound men and women with their hearts in a safe deposit box, and their eyes hypnotized by desk calculators. I promise you this; You will outlive the bastards.”

Last Day

The sun finally broke for the last day of skiing before heading back to the Pacific Northwest.  Today did not suck.

First Day

Couldn't have picked a better day for the first turns of the year.

Tomorrow

Tomorrow is looking good.