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

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MERRY CHRISTMAS 2018

"Ain't that somethin'?  She falls down a well, her eyes go cross.  She gets kicked by a mule.  They go back.  I don't know." - Cousin Eddie

What a fun time of year to see all of the creative and fun flies around on social media for all of the Christmas fly tying contests.  I've just entered one with my homies at the Fish Porn podcast who recently invited me to be a guest on their show.  Check out episode 9 to hear the guys and myself bullshit, tell bad jokes, and drink beer.

My entry for the contest is a mop fly Christmas tree.  This is a fun fly to tie.  It's super simple and according to +Mel Moore of The Bluegill Bug on Facebook, it's super effective.  I could also see trout eating these, because, it sort of resembles a big cased caddis, too.

What do you think??

To all of you out there that read this, I would like to wish you and your families a very Merry Christmas, and I hope you all get some time off of work.

Side note:  I posted this with the year 2018 in the title and was called out by the man, the myth, John Sherlock.  I will not update the title of this post, I sincerely hope you all have a very Merry Christmas in 2018. :)

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Bench Basin - http://amzn.to/2BSCHAL

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Muddy Explorations

The Chicago Bears weren't looking pretty, and it was seemingly nice outside, so, I took the dogs for a walk, and then venture over to the area of Poplar Creek that I had never fished before. Click here for the previous post - Local Exploring.

Armed with my 3 wt, a sweater, and the bare necessities packed in my Vedavoo Utility Belt, and Hip Pack, I set out with zero expectations.

Gray skies, bare trees, and muddy banks.

It sure was nice to get out and wet a line in some unfamiliar water.  Although, I was not able to entice anything.  Looking forward to fishing this stretch in the summer months.  I have a feeling it's a happening place for fun sized smallies and panfish.

Minimum Cowbell.

A bass pattern I've been tying that's inspired by Nick Granato's pattern Maximum Cowbell.

Change Up

Earlier this week, I swapped out the hooks on my tying desk from the big 8/0 hooks I use for musky and pike, for size a size 14. I love to tie a variety of flies. I would go crazy if I had to tie the same pattern 100 times in a row, so, the change was good.

I don't know what you would call these, but it's basically a Copper John with a pheasant tail, with no legs. I left out 2 steps. Much more enjoyable for me to tie than the traditional Copper John, and the people I have tied this for have had equal amount of success.

Pheasant Tail Copper John Clone?

Materials

Size 14 Hook

Pheasant Tail

Medium Copper Wire

Peacock Hearl

Gold Bead (Copper or Gold)

Change of mind

I had all the materials out on the desk ready to tie a bunch of size 14 / 16 flies. Before opening up any of the materials, I stared at my vise for a few moments, and a certain fish that has eluded me crossed my mind.

Musky.

The big hooks in my hook storage were just calling to me it seemed. So, I packed up all of the materials I had already placed neatly on my desk, and begun to pull out some 5/0 hooks, foam, buck tail, flash, and grizzly hackle.

The end result.

This should attract some bass, pike, and hopefully, musky.

This is the year.

Game Changer

Received my materials for Blane Chocklett's "Game Changer" last week. I was able to tie only one so far. Let me just say, changing the game takes forever! haha. I'm sure as I tie more of them, the time per fly will decrease. The most time consuming part of this tie is shaping the fibers. I am still not happy with the shape of it, and I am still trimming the fly every once in awhile. Unfortunalty, the I've been too busy to get this fly wet. I am hopeful that I will get to toss it sometime this week. Fingers croseed that it moves like it's supposed to, and attracts the big bass I am looking for.

Materials:
Fish Skull Fish Spine
CCT Body Fur
CCG Monster Eyes
2/0 Allen Fly Fishing Hook
Trailer Hook

Game Changer complete with a trailer hook in the tail.

Not a game changer, but it's made with a 55mm fish skull articulated shank. Here's the meat!

Material List:

Fish Skull Articulated Shank - 55mm

2/0 Allen Fly Fishing Hook

Trailer hook

EP fibers Red & Black

CCG Solar Flare Eyes

This will be looking for northern pike & musky.

Driftless...I'll be back!

Took a day trip to the Blue River in Wisconsin's Driftless Area.

The Plan 
Arrive at 5 AM and fish the morning. Mid day find a lake or hit the Wisconsin River for bass. Then return to the Blue River in the evening to finish out the day.

What Happened
I hit the snooze button, and woke up later than planned. I ended up stepping foot in the water at 7 AM, and I immediatly lost my first trout. After that I missed a few more, and caught 4 creek chubs. 5 hours later I was sitting on a rock in the middle of the small river. I tied on a new fly and let the current take it while I ate a quick snack. Right after the first bite of my cliff bar, my rod bends and I have a fish on, and I saw the flash of a trout. I just broke out in laughter. It was quite a moment, and I thought it was hilarious that my first trout of the day came from me taking a break. 

On the wade back I managed 1 more brown. I also managed to step in a deep hole, and didn't realize that the water made it's way into one of my pockets....that my phone was in. So, I was in for a disappointing surprise at the car when I discovered that my phone was dripping water. Drove to the nearest town for a bag of rice, and just hoped for the best.

I decided to just end my trip and head on home soon after that.

...Hoping to return before the end of the season, and toss some hoppers.

The hoppers were starting to come out, but I saw zero surface activity. Soon.....

Orvis Guide Sling Pack

Hello...my name is, Justin, and I'm a fly fishing gear junkie.

I've been using the Orvis Magnum Sling pack since it came out. I loved the functionality that the sling pack offers. A few months go by and then they release the Orvis Guide Sling Pack. (I am in love with the digi camo.) and I waited on buying it. I eventually gave in...

So, after using it on all of my unsuccessful outings this year. I must say that this pack is great. Being an over packer - I absolutely love all of the extra space that this pack offers. It allows me to take even more stuff that I will most likely not use on each and every outing! It also, has a designated place to hold a water bottle. This is crucial for times when you're out on the water dying of thirst. Also, The tippet spool holder is included! Did I already mention the digi camo?

I usually attach my nippers to my belt when in use. That's not the usual place for them.

Spring is near!

I am pretty excited to see that the 10 day forecast calls for consistent 40 degree weather, and Spring is just around the corner. I cannot wait until these lakes in the Chicagoland area to be ice free.

This short video by Catch Magazine always gets me pumped up for bass fishing. Check it out, and I'm sure it'll have the same affect on you.

CARP

Chum an area of a lake with corn, put a few kernels on a hook,  and wait. Growing up, that's how I was taught to catch these lake behemoths. It's probably been a good 20 years since I've actually targeted a carp, until now.

One of my goals this upcoming fishing season here in the Chicagoland area is to hook up with some carp on the fly. I have read, and talked with people about how much fun it is. Fly fishing has rejoiced my childhood love of catching bluegill, and I can only imagine what hooking into a 10+ pound carp will do.

Stumbled upon this online magazine today, and it has only fueled my fire to catch a carp on the fly. Unfortunately, that fire I am experiencing does not melt away the snow and/or ice that we have here. So, I will just have to wait....

Please feel free to share any tips you might have!

One thing that I do know is, that I will be tying and trying out this pattern I heard about from a blog you should check out. BrookfieldAngler - The Backstabber

Here is the digital magazine - CarpPro

Driftless Area of Wisconsin

This past September, I took a day trip to the Driftless Area that is southwest Wisconsin to do some trout fishing. The weather was looking ugly all the way up there, but once I reached my destination the rain stopped, the wind calmed down, and the sun came out. I couldn't have asked for better weather. 

I've always read, and heard about how spooked the trout get, but you don't really have an idea until you see them scatter with your own eyes, while you're still 10-20+ feet away from the edge of the stream/creek. 

I caught rainbow trout 2 months before this trip, but this time I was after brown and brook trout. I managed to catch my first brown. I caught a total of 3 brown trout for the day. They were all caught using a grasshopper. I also lost a total of 11 browns, and 3 of them were big! One of them I almost had in the net before he kindly unhooked himself. It was one of those look to the sky and yell "no!" moments, like in the movies, but I kept my cool, and opted for a quick "MF" bomb.  

Another cool part of my trip was, I got to see a wild barred owl fly. I think it caught something because it was on the ground. I got to see him take off into the trees. Pretty damn cool! 

If you haven't been to the Driftless Area, I highly recommend it! I plan on making more than one trip there next year. It's a beautiful place with excellent fishing opportunities.

Clear Cure Goo

I recently jumped aboard the Clear Cure Goo drift boat. I ordered the starter kit, 2 packs of eyes, and 2 stickers.  I was excited when I saw my package had arrived, and even more excited to find out they added a few more stickers (I like stickers..I mean who doesn’t!), and CCG has some really awesome stickers! The Steve Zissou sticker is funny,  Pat Cohen’s Wolf Fish is my favorite sticker from the bunch.

Warning: Looking deep into CCG eyes may cause you to fall in love with them, and cause you to completely forget about the eyes you used to use.

That is the disclaimer that should be on every label of the CCG eyes, because, it holds true. I completely forgot about the eyes I used to use. In fact, I completely forgot what brand they were, too.

As for the “Goo” itself, it is a very cool and interesting product. It’s definitely not like any glue/epoxy I have ever used, because, it’s “goo.” Seriously, who has fun applying glue/epoxy to flies? CCG has made finishing my flies fun. Apply the goo, and then hit it with the special UV flashlight, and bam....the fly is finished. There is no waiting around for it to dry. Pretty damn awesome if you ask me.

The Goo Is The Poo!

Here is an illusion of a baitfish I tied, modeled by the Kris Angel Magic box set.