DREW & EDDIE

This is Drew.  He likes to tie flies and fish for trout.

Drew admiring a musky fly.

Drew is also a big fan of playing with my camera while I'm using it.

Drew using my camera while I was trying to use my camera.

Drew also likes to play with my camera when I'm not using it, and sneak close up pictures of peoples faces or behinds.

Drew in search of Eddie Rivards best side.

This is Eddie Rivard.  He likes to fish, tie flies, and share his stories on his blog Eddie Rivard Fly Fishing.

Eddie showing off some bucktails with the Chicago Bears colors.

...and here is the product of Drew sneaking up on Eddie Rivard with my camera.

Possible caption contest photograph for the future??

Big Trout Flies

Since moving to Minnesota, I have been trout fishing more in the past 3 months than I have the past 4 years when I lived back in Illinois.  I have also learned that trout don't shy away from big flies, either.  Usually, the big trout flies are streamers of some sort, and tied by Aaron Przybylski of Scavenger Fly or Matt Ebbers.  I've decided to mix it up and tie up some very effective small flies, bigger.... 

What do you think?

Don't forget the little caption contest I'm hosting - CAPTION CONTEST.  The winner will be chosen tomorrow afternoon.

Tenkara Angler - Spring Edition

The Spring Edition of Tenkara Angler is out, and if you haven't yet, I suggest you check it out.  Whether you're a Tenkara angler or not, you will most certainly enjoy the articles in this magazine, and maybe, just maybe you'll find yourself wanting to pick up a Tenkara rod, and giving it a shot.  I know I want one, and definitely see one in my future. 

The articles/essays I enjoyed.

Brookies & Beer

The World in Black & White

Matching Nature

Tenkara Abroad

Click on the link below to view the eMagazine

TENKARA ANGLER

North 40 Fly Shop eMag: Spring Edition

Bored at work, and need something to pass the time?  The North 40 Fly Shop eMag is out.  There are some great articles in there, and my favorite would have to be Shucking Prawns and Skating Bulls.  Clink on the link below to check it out.

CLICK HERE

CARF's Renegade

I've been working on a new fly pattern, and trying to come up with a name for it.  I have finally decided.  

I present to you, CARF's Renegade.  An articulated streamer that will surly get the attention of both large and smallmouth bass, meat eating trout, and bluegill with big cahones.

River Falls Fly Fishing Expo: PART TWO

Part Two of the River Falls Fly Fishing Expo.

I would just like to start off by saying, it was really great meeting and talking with everyone at the show, and I really wish there was more time to shoot the chit and chat all things fly fishing.

Erik Thue of Catch and Capture.  It was great meeting Erik.  I've been following his stuff on Instagram and Facebook for awhile now, and he ties some great flies, and has some great photography skills.

I've met James Durbin of Big Pike Flies a Way of Life has been around for awhile.  I've met him once before a few years ago at a Chicago Musky Expo.  He's a great fly tyer and has perfected his patterns for pike and musky.  Oh, and James definitely had thee most impressive mustache at the expo.

Ike of Chasing Fins Guide Service tying up some predator goodness for the St. Croix River.

Kevin @redbeard.flyfishing on Instagram is a great young fly tyer.  It was great meeting you, and I hope those flies catch you a lot of fish!!

redbeard.flies@gmail.com

Andy Selvig had one of the simplest displays, but it was surely the coolest one of them all.  It was a really awesome old milk crate/box.  Andy had 2 seminars throughout the day, one for intruder style flies, and another for deer hair divers.  He's a great fly tyer and his flies really show his skill.  I wish I would have taken a close up picture.

Didn't get a chance to talk with them, because, they were packing up, but I must say that Luke Swanson of Livin' the Dream Guide Service has some serious chops at the vise.  A few of the musky patterns that he still had out on his table really blew me away.  Keep up the impressive work!!

livinthedream365gs@gmail.com

Photo taken from the Livin' the Dream Guide Service Facebook.

I didn't make many purchases at the expo, but I did purchase some much needed trout flies from a few fly tiers, one of those purchases coming from Phil's Phly Shop.  I picked up some random small dry flies.  Phil had a huge selection to choose from, so, I had him and his lovely wife pick them out for me.  Phil is a Navy Vet, and his wife is Filipino...My father was in the Navy, as well, and I am 1/2 Filipino, so, I had to give them some support!

Phil is teamed up with his friend Dan, and not only do they tie all of the flies shown above,  but they do some fantastic custom rod work.  They had some beautiful rods on display, and the custom cork work is stellar!  They don't have a website, but I'll leave the information from their cards below.  It was great talking and meeting all of you!

Phil's Phly Shop

Quality Phlys and Rods

Located on the South Fork of the Kinni

River Falls, Wisconsin

715-426-0118

Dan Rach

Custom Fly Rods - Custom Flies - Rod Building Instruction - Fly Tying Lessons - Fly Casting

danthefishinman@aol.com

262-271-5915

For everyone else that I met, but don't have any pictures of, it was great meeting all of you, especially, those of you that I follow on social media.  It's great putting a face to a screen name!

Matt Ebbers -  Matt has some exceptional skills at the vise whipping up streamers and trout flies.  Check out his instagram - @ebbsforce1

Joel Ebbers - Brother of Matt has some of the same skills, and visits Chicago often.  Maybe we'll get to wet a line one of these days when you're in town! Instagram - @ebbs81

Aaron Przybylski - I mentioned Aaron in my Film Tour night post.  He ties some really cool small streamers that I'm looking forward to sinking into some fish face!  He grew up in my area, and visits sometimes.  One of these days when he's in town, we'll definitely wet a line and catch some local bass.  Check out his instagram - @stcroixpeezworth

Eddie Rivard was at the show, but we did not know that either of us would be there until it was all over with.  Would have been great to meet you.  Eddie owns the blog Eddie Rivard Fly Fishing.

Grant Meyer - Great meeting you, dude!  A fellow Fig Parmer.  Check out his instagram - @meyer.grant.d

Exciting News!

I have been added to the Partridge family!

No, not that Partridge family, although, I do think I have the singing chops to join them.

I am very excited to announce that I have been added to the Pro Team of Partridge of Redditch.  I have been using their hooks for quite some time, and all of my predator flies would not have the same quality if it weren't for their high quality steel, so, accepting their invitation was a no brainer,  To have my name added to a group that includes Bob Clouser, Greg Senyo, Richard Strolis, Pat Cohen, Dave Hosler, Ad Swier, and Andreas Andersson...just to name a few....is a real honor, and I'm looking forward to representing Partridge of Redditch and creating some new and interesting patterns.

Driftless Winter 2016: Part Two

Day Two

When I walked out of the hotel to my car, I noticed that we got some rain overnight.  One of the streams we were planning on fishing is known to get cloudy fast after some rain.  Throw all of the melting snow and ice in the mix, and our plans changed.

We decided to hit a stream that I have only spot fished in one of the few times I had been up here.  In the summer this stream is extremely difficult to fish, because, of all of the overgrowth.  Lucky for us, it was Winter, and the banks were somewhat open.

With this being much smaller water, I opted for my FSA custom 3 wt.  The weather throughout the day was great.  The temperature dipped a few times, but nothing outrageous.  It definitely did not feel like January.

Adam continued to work a hopper dropper, and I casted small streamers and occassionally drifted some nymphs. Adam was the first to garner the attention of a few brook trout, but none were fully committed to showing face.

One of the small streamers I was tossing was a tiny woolly bugger...I forget the size, because, I didn't tie it, but my guess was a size 8.  Well, I casted at the front of a nice pool I was approaching, and a trout came completely out of the water to hit it, but wiffed, and never came back. 

The after a few more drifts a trout came out from right in front of me and hit the bugger, I lifted the rod, felt the weight, and then it went slack.  After some silent F bombs, I made a few more casts, and then checked my fly, and to my surprise, the hook had broken off.  I could not believe it!  Has this ever happened to anyone??

What really sucked was it was my last small black streamer.  I scarified a few to the shrub gods.  I'd also, like to give a little shout out to, Brad of Tippets and Tales, for giving me the tip on small black leech type patterns, and Tim Lobello, for his report on the area the day before we went up.  Much appreciated Gents!

Tossed pretty much everything.  Don't mind my sinking leaders.  The stuff I was using was stashed behind them.  Ha

On the walk back, we decided to take the road.  We looked down on the stream in the parts we had waded and fished and we could see schools of trout shooting around and stopping at this one pool.  Outrageous.  We drifted some flies towards them, but no dice.  They were really not having what we were selling.

Skunked, but we didn't care.  It was a great weekend to get out and explore some of the endless amount of water that flows through some beautiful country.

The Driftless.

Driftless Winter 2016: Part One

Day One

My friend Adam and I have been trying to get out and fish this winter.  We were thinking steelhead in Michigan or Wisconsin, and that just never happened, because, we've both been busy.  Things always work out in the end, because, it just so happened that we both had a free weekend at the end of January.

We decided, we're going to fish.

Our destination, the Driftless Area of Southwest Wisconsin.

You just couldn't beat the scenery.

I haven't been to the Driftless Area of Southern Wisconsin since May 2013.  The last time I attempted to go was in September of 2013, a few days before the season is set to close for the year.  I never made it, because, my car was totaled. Click here to see that old post - Sitting Duck.

We left early around 4 AM on a Saturday morning and as I made the last turn onto a gravel road we we greeted by a bald eagle.  Always a beautiful sight.  Adam has never been up here, and he recently got into fly fishing, so, I was looking forward to showing him the very few spots I know in the Driftless.

Frozen guides did not stop us.

The morning started off cold.  Our guides were iced every 5 minutes, but that's okay, we weren't miserable, because, we were thrilled to be out of the house and wetting a line surrounded by such beautiful scenery.  Adam brought along some liquid heat to help warm him up from the inside out.

Adam sippin' on some liquid heat.

What to use...dries? nymphs? streamers?

What size should we use...10? 14? 16? ...20??

After changing flies quite a few times, I ended up getting some attention from red beadhead leech I tied on a size 6 egg hook.  Adam went with the hopper dropper technique.  A technique I rarely use, but probably should use more often.

Not wanting to spook any of the fish with my walking, and how I slip and fall in the snow, I was attempting to make hero casts, so, I can fish an area before I was near enough to spook the fish.

Streamer Eater.

Casting the leech to the tail end of some riffles, I got a strike, but missed.  3 casts later, my rod bent, and as I lowered my net, a beautiful brown was scooped up.

Release.

As the day went on, it got warmer.  Our guides were iced, no more.  I was actually breaking a sweat, because, I was so warm in the 4 layers I was wearing.  The rise in temperature gave us hope that the fishing was going to turn for the better, but it didn't.  It stayed stagnant.  We couldn't figure out what they wanted.

Long stealthy casts.  One of the keys to fishing the Driftless.

The lack of fish didn't affect us at all.  One look around and it was all good.  These streams are very special, and they just get prettier when the snow reveals lush green grass, and the trees begin to become full of life, again.  The trip wasn't done, and we were already looking forward to returning when jackets and winter gear were not needed.

Minimum Cowbell

Ah...feels good to have dug up some motivation, and with that I sat down at the vise and tied up one of my favorite streamers.  A fly I have named "Minimum Cowbell."  It's a play on another streamer pattern named "Maximum Cowbell" created by Nick Granato.  Nick's pattern is articulated with 2 hooks, and mine has only 1...do you get the name for mine now?

White meat.  Dark meat.  All will be carved.

Ready to hunt for bass, trout, and whatever else is lurking.

What's a trout or panfish fly box without some San Juan Worms.  A fly that everyone has in their box and loves, but doesn't admit it.  These flies simply catch fish.  These ones are for my personal stash.  I also fancied up the black bead head SJW with some black ice dubbing behind the bead. (size 14)

Peak Vise Upgrades

At the beginning of the year, I decided that I wasn't a fan of exclusively using the C clamp for my Peak vise.  I then ordered the pedestal base.  When it arrived, I was extremely surprised at how much it weight.  This was a quality base, and once I put my vice on it, I tried my best to see how unstable it could be, and it passed every test with fly tying colors.  Now I don't have to worry if my C clamp will fit on certain surfaces, or if I will need some folded up cardboard to fill in the gaps. Needless to say, I was very happy with my purchase.

Soon after I purchased the pedestal base.  I ordered the riser, as you see pictured above.  It's the copper/gold colored piece on the base. 

The extra height that the rise gave my vise was a game changer!  When I sit at my desk or anywhere, I like to be high up, and the riser allows my vise to be right where I want it to be...up high!

My Peak vise was the first vise that I have purchased a few years ago, and I have been extremely happy with it.  It's construction is solid, and you can really feel the quality when using it.  It's held every hook that I've put in it's jaws from size 8/0 musky hooks to size 22 midge hooks.  Now with the upgrades that I have made this year, it feels like I have a brand new vise.

What vise do all of you use and do any of you out there have multiple?

Fly Tying Season

When I leave work during the week, I have about a 1.5 hours of day light, and that flat out sucks.

Enter Fly Tying Season.

I haven't had the chance to sit down at the vise to put in an extended amount of time in for quite a while.  I'll begin filling my own personal boxes and taking care of any orders that may come in.  One of my goals this fly tying season, is to come up with something new and different or a revised version of another pattern out there.

Now that Wisconsin has extended their trout season, I think I'll be able to find enough time to make it to Southwest Wisconsin, in the Driftless area for an outing.  I haven't made the drive that way in 2 years, since I totaled my car on the expressway, because, of some deer frolicking on the highway at 4 AM.

Clousers are a staple in any bass fly fishermans box.  These simple patterns do nothing but catch fish.  Here are some reds and blues.  My favorite are chartreuse over white, not pictured here.

..and as cabin fever sets in during mid winter, this is probably what I'll look like, as I start to lose my mind.

If anyone is interested in a decal, please shoot me an email at carfoutdoors@gmail.com or book face message, and I will gladly send you one.

I forgot how to count.

Needing to fill an order for a dozen Zebra Midges. I grabbed my size 22 hooks, beads, wire, and my newly acquired half hitch Rite Bobbin (Review to come after extensive use). I thought I had counted out 12, but when I was finished, I only had 11 flies, and of course I had already put everything away....I've been trying to keep my desk as organized as possible.

My last Bells Hop Slam. Sad face.

Maybe a few too many of these led to me miscounting the flies.