A Featherlight In Exmouth Gulf

I am amazed with the abuse that the Eagle Claw Featherlight fly rods can take and these photos from Adam Maskew of the work that his 6'6" 4/5 weight are further proof of this fact.  It's also good to see that there are others willing to push the envelope on what glass can and can not do with great success.

Adam wrote...  "I thought I'd drop you another quick line on the journey and enjoyment of the Eagle Claw Featherlight 4/5 weight fly rod I got from you.  My eight  year old son Tom wanted to go on a fishing trip for the April school holidays so I organized a posse to go to a spot at the back of Exmouth Gulf for seven days of fishing.  The aim was to show the kids a good time and get them to catch lots of fish and hopefully some big ones.  It was mission accomplished as the boys caught lots of fish including Golden Trevally, Bludger Trevally, Giant Trevally, Longtail Tuna, Mackeral, Estuary Cod, Mangrove Jack, Bream, Queenies and heaps of others.

I was along as number one guide and deckie with the intention of just watching my sons skills improve and enjoy the captures.  Well, I also got to have a cast of the wand, as did my son.  He caught some fish including several on a fly he tied while we were on site.

I found my hand skipping the big guns and picking up the fibreglass by choice more often than not.  The first afternoon we fished some big bust ups and the Featherlight accounted for some good Golden Trevally and Queenfish.  My only concern is that the hero measure at eighteen inches (45cm) was a tad small as I got several Queenfish in the 80-100cm mark and some Golden Trevally that were slightly smaller.

For the rest of the trip it tackled more appropriately sized fish such as cod, bream and mangrove jacks.  The rod has been a great fun stick and I've racked up an impressive tally of species and will be using it to target some Barramundi later in the year.

Not quite what the rod was designed for but it performed great!"

Damn, that looks like fun.  GLASS IS NOT DEAD.

T.F.M. Spotting - On The Shit'er

I get all kinds of T.F.M. Spotting Photo Contest submissions but Bob Hallowell's photo from last month has to be one of the more unusual.

Bob wrote...  "I'm changing flies on the Potter County crapper on Cross Forks Creek, a tributary of Kettle Creek, in Potter county Pennsylvania.  The "Shit'er" sits in the middle of the woods on the stream bank.  This Palomino was a product of this day."

Digging that Palomino. I've never caught one of those before.

Glass Rod Expo Weekend Wrap Up

As many of you already know, I spent the better part of this past weekend at the Glass Rod Expo which was held at the Catskill Fly Fishing Center & Museum in Livingston Manor, New York.

The event was a very good time with quite a few in attendance from fiberglass fly rod builders, to collectors, to glass geeks that just wanted to check out and cast everything that was brought along to the expo.


Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

(These photo can also be viewed on the Flickr website.)

The two day event was a mix of presentations, lawn casting, checking out the museum, and some of us even  snuck away for a few hours of fly fishing as well.  There were fiberglass fly rods of all sorts from rarely seen vintage fly rods, contemporary glass or all sorts, and even a few "secret" project prototypes as well.  

The highlights from the Glass Rod Expo for me were meeting everyone that attended, the presentations, seeing a few old friends, and casting quite a few fly rods that I've only read about online.  Of note in my book were the rare and vintage Shakespeare Dr. Howard Purist and the Studio Thin Line 7' 3/4 weight were both very special.   

A special thanks to Dr. Todd Larson and Mike McFarland for organizing this event and inviting me to be a part of it.  I can only imagine that if this event begins happening on a yearly basis that it will continue to grow.  I'll be there if it does.

Custom Fly Rod Crafters - Epic Blanks

There has been quite a bit of deserved praise and interest in the Swift Fly Fishing Epic fiberglass blanks and I want to pass along that Custom Fly Rod Crafters is now stocking these blanks in all colors, lengths, and line weights.

Included with each Epic blank purchase is a cloth rod bag and the choice to purchase a discounted metal rod tube as well.

Check out the Custom Fly Rod Crafters website for more information or to place an order.

Cityscapes To Trout Places

I am sitting at the airport ready to fly home from a long weekend in New York City and the Catskills to attend the International Glass Rod Expo in Livingston Manor.  The last five days have gone by all too quickly.

This trip was one part exploring a city I had never been to and then one part checking out the Catskills as well.  As much as I enjoyed New York City, I have to admit that it was nice to arrive in Roscoe on Friday evening with time to walk to the Beaverkill River picking off a couple brown trout on mayflies before dark. 

Cityscapes.

Trout places.

P. H. Kellner's Bluegill Artwork

A few weeks ago I came across the artwork of P.H. Kellner and was delighted to find that he had three pieces on his website that fit right in for the Year of the Bluegill.

Click on the images to see in larger resolution.

The Rio Grande Cichlid is a bonus print and really has nothing to do with bluegill other than being on my personal bucket list.  Someday I'll put a fly in the mouth of one.

Check out the P.H. Kellner website for more information on his artwork.

Pursuit Flies - Ghost Pimpy Shrimp

Have I mentioned before that I dig Instagram?  This photo posted by Pursuit Flies of their Ghost Pimpy Shrimp pattern is another good reason why.  What a cool step by step tutorial, all in one image, on how to tie this pattern that will certainly find it's way into my redfish box.

If you want to tie a few yourself here's how...

STEP ONE - Tie on small lead eyes toward the front of the hook and make sure to leave room for deer hair between the eye of the hook.

STEP TWO - Tie a loop of 20 lb mono off the back of the hook so that the tail won't foul.

STEP THREE - Add a clump of  tan craft fur for the tail and Barr the tail with a brown sharpie or other marker.

STEP FOUR - Then, tie in and wrap pink ice chenille halfway to the lead eyes.

STEP FIVE - Take two strands of sili legs and tie them in on top of the chenille, doubling them over so that there are four legs hanging off the back.

STEP SIX - From then on, spin white deer up towards the eye of the hook.

STEP SEVEN - Trim the head down leaving a little collar and you are ready to fish!

Check out the Pursuit Flies website to purchase this fly or others and follow along on Facebook and Instagram as well.