The YouTube

Hello All, I've decided that this is the year I not only pick up the slack here on my Carf Outdoors blog, but also my YouTube Channel.  It'll be a hodgepodge of content, because, I truly enjoy making videos about anything and everything.

Please do me a favor and Subscribe to my channel, like the video if you do like it, but leave a comment on how many times you see me in the video.  I had some fun with it, and there may or may not be a few hidden clones of myself.

Please visit the link below

- It's A New Year - CHANNEL REVAMP! - 

Thank you!

Wisconsin Driftless Trout Opener 2020: Part 2

Aaron has been found, but he's been acting weird.  I found him down by the river fishing which is nothing unusual, but he was hooked in to a fish when I saw him...that's highly unusual!  He's literally the worst at fishing.

There was a lot of fishing the rest of the day.  No catching, but a lot of fishing.  When you're in company the catching doesn't matter much.  After seeing a few posts from others about the Wisconsin Inland Trout Opener, it was a slow day for all in the Driftless.

Bobby Nachos keeping a low profile.

Area Man watching Bobby Nachos work a streamer through some riffles.

Brown Trout and Bridge Beers Podcast.

Dirty Harry hero shot with a brown.  Love this reel case!

My Brown Trout and Bridge Beers Podcast sticker box always makes it out to the river when I'm fishing for trout, and so does my Vedavoo Dirty Harry patched Reel Case.

Area Man searching for the right used fly.

Area Man found it.

All in all, it was a solid first outing of the new year.  A fish was caught, Area Man was abducted then found, and I got out of the house and away from my computer.  Cheers and Happy New Year to all of you out there!  I hope 2020 brings you all the awesome!

Area Man working an area.

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Fly Tying Season

Snow is now on the ground, and based on the future forecast, it's not going anywhere.  Enter fly tying season...and half assed ice fishing season. I'll most likely spend more time tying flies than sitting on the ice.  I'm really good at catching trees during the warmer months, so, I need to get those boxes filled back up.

Vedavoo Fly Tying Wallet keeping all of my tools organized. 

My Bench Basin is always near my vise ready for scraps and whatever else I toss in it.

My fly tying gear you see in the 2 photos above.

1. Vedavoo Bench Basin - Perfect if you go to open fly tying events, trips, friends houses, or other parts of your home.  Also works great for an on the go dog bowl.
2. Vedavoo Fly Tying Wallet - Great for keeping all of your tools organized at home or on the go.
3. Vedavoo Pinch Pouch - Another great piece of gear for organization.  Perfect for keeping all kinds of small things together while you're on the go.
4. Rite Bobbin Half Hitch - My favorite bobbin to use for all of my trout, bass, and similar sized flies....I even use this for my pike and smaller musky flies.
5. Rising Stellar Scissors - Hands down my favorite pair of scissors out there.  I've been using them for years, and have several pairs of them.

I probably sound like a broken record, but I'm definitely not giving up on this blogging thing.  I really need to contact the Google and figure out why I cannot "reply" to comments in the comment section.  It's not recognizing my Google account name/log in information.  Maybe it's because I've been neglecting the blog.  More to come.

Glass Is Not Dead

#glassisnotdead - The Fiberglass Manifesto

Picked up a new/used Cabelas CGR fiberglass rod (5'9" - 3 wt) at a recent gear swap at Bob Mitchell's Fly Shop.  It had a broken tip, but that was an easy fix.  My homie Drew was building himself a new rod, and he was putting together an order, so, I had him add a new tip top guide to shopping list.  The new tip top fit like a glove, and my new glass rod had a new life.

Perfect for the #icatchsmallfishtour

Since I already own a 3 wt rod set up I got years ago, I didn't need to purchase a new line or reel for the glass rod.  I'll just use the reel for both rods, and that is A-okay with me.  It actually fits the rod perfectly, and I was able to take it out right away to test it out on a local lake before all of the heavy weeds grew in.

So many bluegill were caught.

Bunch of crappie this size.

Rod bends in to the evening.

It was a fun time out there with this rod, and I'm looking forward to using it more and more this summer.  It's crazy how much bend there is!  It's the perfect rod for the #icatchsmallfishtour

TenCARFa

We're getting to have a Spring here in Minnesota, and I have been able to get out and enjoy it.  Other than the trout in the State Parks of Minnesota, the only fish I am able to get out and target are currently panfish.  With it being Spring and all, I went out for a walk around a local lake, and decided to bring my Tenkara rod.

With a beaded San Juan Worm tied on the end of my Tenkara USA Hane rod recommended to me by The Tenkara Master Blaster himself, Troutrageous (Tenkara Angler Magazine), I went out and dominated the sunfish!

#icatchsmallfishtour

During the walk I stopped at the Como Park Zoo & Conservatory.  Within the conservatory there was a Japanese garden and there were so many Bonsai Trees.  I was thoroughly impressed, because, I have never seen one in person.  Since FOREVER I thought a Bonsai Tree was a specific species, but I was completely wrong.  I had no idea that it was an actual art form of growing much larger trees, but stunting them to be mini.  I was amazed, and conducted 30 minutes of research when I got home, and purchased a Bonsai Tree seed kit for Colorado Blue Spruces.  Soon, I will be a master of Bonsai.

I hope I possess the skills to Bonsai.

Also, I must give a shot out to Cheech of Fly Fish Food, because, he dubbed my style of Tenkara as TenCARFa, and I think it's RAD.  Thanks!

All the cool kids are raving about TenCARFa.

VIMEO

YOUTUBE

Vedavoo Torchbearer Spotlight

Hello all of you beautiful people out there who still visit.  I am still alive, and I assure you that I have no intentions of ever throwing in the towel here.  Like Stella, I just need to get my groove back.  While I haven't been writing/sharing over here, I have been writing/sharing.  I had a short Q&A session with Matthew over at Vedavoo not long ago, and the interview has been posted.

Click on the link to be brought over to the Vedavoo Workshop Journal to read the interview.

>>>>>  VEDAVOO TORCHBEARER SPOTLIGHT <<<<<

BOW & ARROW BROOK TROUT

One of my friends saw that I was on the Carf #icatchsmallfishtour2018 and invited me along to go fish some of his favorite brook trout waters.  In typical CARF fashion I forgot the reels to my 3 and 5 wt rods, so, I had to borrow Cody's spare 5 wt reel.  It seems I'm always forgetting things.  This one time my friend Jim flew up from Chicago for work a day early to fish, and when I picked him up from the airport we immediately went to the trout streams.  I told Jim not to bring anything but his waders and boots.  Well, I should have told him to bring his fly box, because, I forgot all of my flies at home on my desk.  Ha!

Enjoy the short video, and be on the look out for a longer version of the video by subscribing to my Youtube channel.

LINK - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2tl6hO4GM4

Let me know what you think of the video in the comments on the Youtube page, and don't forget to give it a "thumbs up" because it really does help in letting me know if it was good or not.

BASS POPPER ADV STEP BY STEP

It's warm water season, and the bass are going to want to eat some bigger bugs off the surface.  Top water bass fishing is no doubt my favorite type of fishing.  5 - 7 wt rods with a floating line while fishing lakes or rivers.  It's a blast!

Below you'll find some advanced instructions on how to achieve a popper that will get the job done, and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask in the comment sections or shoot me a message.

Step 1 - Take your Partridge of Redditch popper hook and place it in your vise.

Step 2 - Tie in a clump of Lund's Fly Shop Misfit Wampa Hair for a tail.

Step 3 - Tie in a small amount of flash over the top of the Wampa Hair.

Step 4 - Tie in 2 small hackles from your Whitings Farms bugger pack.

Step 5 - Tie in your Polar Chenille to make a hot spot in the middle of the fly.

Step 6 - Put some superglue down on the thread that the body will be pushed on, and push on the body.

Step 7 (optional) - Poke through some rubber legs on the side to add some extra wiggle.

Step 8 - Super glue some eye on the popper body.

***Some of the below links are Amazon Affiliate Links***

Body
Flymen Fishing Double Barrel Popper Body - Medium Sized - https://amzn.to/2skN38d

Hook
Partridge of Redditch Popper Hook - Size 2 for the Medium body - https://amzn.to/2sfpeiU

Tail
Lund's Fly Shop Misfit Fly Wampa Hair - http://www.lundsflyshop.com/Wampa_Hair_p/mwh.htm

Flash
Crystal Flash - https://amzn.to/2xo3qGL

Feathers
Whiting Farms Bugger Pack - https://amzn.to/2IZVVY1

Hot Spot
Hareline Polar Chenille - https://amzn.to/2Jas42t

Eyes
Hareline Eyes - 4 mm eyes for the Medium popper body - https://amzn.to/2shbRi1

PIKE FOR LUNCH

The snow and ice have melted, and I've awoken from a bit of blogging hibernation.  There is so much to catch up on around here, and especially out there with all of my fellow bloggers.  Yesterday (May 15th) during lunch I opted to not eat - what a lie! I never eat during my lunch time.  There's more important things to do with my time like fish, edit photos/video, or nap.  (I just eat while I'm working.  I mean who doesn't!?!)

So, during lunch yesterday, I stopped by a spot really close to work.  I didn't have any fly rods set up and I wanted to maximize my time fishing, so, I grabbed my casting rod and tossed a swim jig with a paddle tail trailer.  I was sure to have a steel leader on, because, I know there are gators present.

Stirred up quite a few of these during lunch, it must have been the new gator hat from 720 Fly.  I even managed to cast my rod and reel into the water!  Hilarious!  It wasn't hard to retrieve out of the water, so, that's a plus.  It is full of dirt and sand, so, I'll definitely have to clean it up.  I have it on video, so, be on the look out for that sometime in the very near future.

After work, I decided to head over to the same spot with my fly rod.  I hooked several trees and thought I was going to break my fly line each time I was trying to rip my fly line out of them.  I managed to hook up with one gator, and I'm pretty sure it was one I had hooked earlier with the swim jig.  It's great to be fishing in short sleeve again.  Shorts were needed.  It was too damn hot out for my jeans.

Hat - 720 Fly

Net - Rising Fish

***Below are Amazon Affiliate Links***

Camera - https://amzn.to/2L48Idj

Camera Lens - https://amzn.to/2KvIJdR

Favorite Lens - https://amzn.to/2Ipr5aR

GoPro 5 Black - https://amzn.to/2Ipxk2r

GoPro 6 Black - https://amzn.to/2GmyINu

 Favorite Mini Tripod - https://amzn.to/2GotoJl

PIG FARM INK: IRON FLY TWIN CITIES

PIG FARM INK: IRON FLY

TWIN CITIES

Saint Paul/Minneapolis

When:

Friday - March 16th

7:30 P.M. - Bitchin' (Close at Midnight)

Where:

Blackstack Brewing

755 Prior Ave N.

Saint Paul, MN 55104

BIG THANKS TO OUR FRIENDS/SUPPORTERS

Pig Farm Ink

Costa

Simms

Blackstack Brewing

Bob Mitchell's Fly Shop

Mend Provisions

Jake Keeler

Post Fly

Harmonic Goods

Rising

Whistle Pig

Wish 4 Fish

Vedavoo

Also, my homie Brooks Miller with the Minnesota Twins will be there with a few pairs of Twins tickets to give away, so, this is definitely an event you'll not want to miss!  So come on out to hang, chill, participate, learn, or whatever.  This is open to all skill levels and we HIGHLY encourage people that have never fly fished or tied a fly before to come out and join in on the fun.

POUND THE BOTTOM

Fishing trips are the best with some fun friends.  Before the Minnesota bass, pike, and walleye season closed on February 25th, my homie Ed drove up from Chicagoland to go ice fishing with me and Troy.  The chosen destination was Leech Lake and we were staying at Trappers Landing.

Of course I caught a small fish.  It's what I do.

The fishing was slow, but the beer and laughs were plentiful.  I made a short video of the weekend trip.  Check it out below, and don't forget to subscribe to the new channel.

MY GEAR Camera - http://amzn.to/2hnMwkD Lens #1 - http://amzn.to/2hhdHJS Lens #2 - http://amzn.to/2CLhwQZ Lens #3 - http://amzn.to/2EoB27q GoPro - http://amzn.to/2FGHKFc Microphone - http://amzn.to/2oGSMEq Laptop - http://amzn.to/2CYjRHa Memory Card Case - http://amzn.to/2CYRWXU **The above links are Amazon Associate links**

THE HUB PODCAST

Do you like fly fishing? ...Yes.

Do you like podcasts about fly fishing? ...Yes.

Do you like to continuously be let down? ...Yes/No/Maybe/I don't know.

Are you in the market for a new podcast? ...Yes.

This guy did not win $1,000...He just discovered The Hub Podcast by the Fish Porn Crew.

Then The Hub Podcast brought to you by the Fish Porn crew of Jeff and Josh for you!  As their number one listener, I can honestly say, that these guys have no fucking idea what they're doing, but I absolutely love it, and so will you!  I'm kidding.  They only have a partial idea of what they're doing.  Love you dudes!

Episode 9 - Brought to you by the state of Missouri and NASCAR featuring yours truly.  I must forewarn you, drinking some hoppy goodness will enhance the show immensely.

Now I know what you're thinking, CARF you're famous now!  I know, and you're welcome.  That doesn't make sense, but I don't care, because, this is my blog and I can write what I want.  I'm kind of a big deal now.  Excelsior!

THE HUB PODCAST

by the Fish Porn Crew

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM

WEBSITE

Call the Fish Porn Hotline and leave them a tasty voicemail.

(970) 834-FISH

MONSTERS THROUGH THE ICE

Lightfield BBQ and I were back on the ice and exploring new hard water.  I don't know what I would do without the phone app Navionics.  It's seriously the best $10 I've spent in a long long time.  Without it, I would have no idea the depth I am fishing in my raft, kayak, or when I am out ice fishing.

Is your Navionics working??

On this day, we were on the hunt for anything.  Having only caught 1 fish in our previous outing "WALLY WALLY - WHERE YA AT" we decided that we would set out with the goal of just catching fish.  Any fish.  So we targeted some shallower water.

How Swiss Cheese is made.

After popping a popping some holes and contributing to making this lake look like Swiss cheese, we set up shop, and got our flashers in the holes and were immediately marking fish.  Time to get our jigs down there and see who wants to play.

Hubbin'

Red illumination coming from the heater is a very welcomed sight when the temperature is in the single digits.  Lights on the flashers are even more welcome, and get the adrenaline going so that you can temporarily forget about the cold.

The game of lights.

We both were making so many fish.  I literally had my face in the hole as I was watching the fish take turns swipe at my jig.  I spotted a few sizable fish with my eyeballs, but the small ones were the only willing participants.  I changed jigs a few times to bigger sizes, but still nada.

Monsters Exist.

Lightfield and I had some fun none the less, hooking up with a plethora of small perch and 2 sunnies.  Nothing worthy to keep, but still a lot better than just sitting there wonder if I was ever going to see my rod bend.

The long arm technique to make catches look bigger.

The release back into the ice hole.

This ice fishing sport is quickly growing on me, and I'm looking forward to getting out on the ice a lot more, and hopefully experiencing what it's like to hook into much bigger fish.  My first fish of the 2018 year was this 10 pound perch (pictured below).  I couldn't believe the gut on this one.  It looked as if it had eaten a bowling ball.

10 pound perch.

Some advice for all fisher-people, regardless of time of year, fly fishing, gear fishing, and ice fishing.  Don't forget to close up your tackle boxes before bumping your ass into them.  That is of course, if you're not in training to be the best at the game pick up sticks.

Gear all over the place is my favorite.

Instagram - @JUSTINCARF

MY GEAR

Camera - http://amzn.to/2hnMwkD

Lens - http://amzn.to/2hhdHJS

Lens #2 - http://amzn.to/2CLhwQZ

Boots - http://amzn.to/2CIGHUc

Yaktrax - http://amzn.to/2DbWDPG

Flasher - http://amzn.to/2CJ9iZx

LIGHTFIELD'S GEAR

Auger - http://amzn.to/2CGVjDl

Hub - http://amzn.to/2CXAeYY

Flasher - http://amzn.to/2Fik4HE

Heater - http://amzn.to/2CKHtjg

Rod Holder - http://amzn.to/2DcNoPr

Bucket - http://amzn.to/2CLcnYP

**The above links are Amazon Associate links**

WALLY WALLY...WHERE YA AT

This was my first fishing outing of the new year, and we were on the hard water in search of anything...but mostly walleyes and crappie.

Lightfield clearing some snow for the hub.

We pulled up to the lake we were going to fish, and there were quite a few vehicles and ice shelters already out.  It was a good sign to my homie, but to me, it just added to the fear of being on the ice.

Poppin' holes.

A gas powered auger is a luxury...need to get one for myself.

After drilling some holes, setting up the hub, we were inside sitting pretty.  I have never had such luxuries in the few times I have been out ice fishing.  A gas auger, 4 person hub, propane heater, and camping chairs...I felt like I was in the Presidential Suite.  I could get used to this...

The Presidential Suite.

We each had 2 rods rigged up.  One setup to dead stick a minnow, and the other we were jigging with.  The fishing was really slow.  We were fishing in about 26 feet of water near some drop offs, with hopes there were be fish hanging around the edges.  We also chose our spot, because, there were a bunch of other ice shelters around. :)

Working it.

I could get used to this.

Waiting for some action on the flasher.

Late in the afternoon, just as I was about to go out to the truck for something, I had glanced down at my flasher, there were some extra lights.  Finally some action!  I slowly jigged my lure and then my rod bent.  I set the hook and began to quickly reel, but the fish came undone after 2 seconds.  Bummer!  It felt like a good one, too.

Shortly after my failed attempt to bring a fish in, my buddy Lightfield marked a few more fish and he was then hooked up.  This fish put a solid bend in his rod.

Lightfield hooked up on his custom FSA Custom Rods ice rod.

Lightfield found Wally.  It was the only fish that we caught, and it was a good one.  Would have been nice to hook up with a few more, but I was just happy to be out fishing.  Looking forward to getting back out on the hard water.  Just need to get some ice fishing gear of my own.

Lightfield and Wally.

INSTAGRAM - @JUSTINCARF

MY GEAR

Camera - http://amzn.to/2hnMwkD

Lens - http://amzn.to/2hhdHJS

Lens #2 - http://amzn.to/2CLhwQZ

Boots - http://amzn.to/2CIGHUc

Yaktrax - http://amzn.to/2DbWDPG

Flasher - http://amzn.to/2CJ9iZx

LIGHTFIELD'S GEAR

Auger - http://amzn.to/2CGVjDl

Hub - http://amzn.to/2CXAeYY

Flasher - http://amzn.to/2Fik4HE

Heater - http://amzn.to/2CKHtjg

Rod Holder - http://amzn.to/2DcNoPr

Bucket - http://amzn.to/2CLcnYP

**The above links are Amazon Associate links**