A Taste of the Michigan Summer

Every summer, a couple days before our arrival to the lake house, my mom will call and tease me about whether or not I'll be expecting rhubarb crunch while we're here.  The answer is always an emphatic "Yes!".  This Midwest Yankee has a real soft spot for all things made with the bitter stalk named rhubarb. 

This evening my mom baked up a large pan of rhubarb crunch that after everyone has enjoyed a heaping bowl is already half gone.

We're here until Monday...I wonder if I can get her to make another one?

The Watery Rave

Costa seems to be everywhere these days.  Besides making some of the most impressive polarized glasses out there, they are also very active in social media with Facebook and Twitter pages, a highly interactive website, and now a new blog called The Watery Rave.  Costa is using The Watery Rave to promote their conservation efforts and to highlight fisheries and anglers. 

Also, between now and August 13th Costa is looking for anglers to submit their big fish photos for a chance to win a fishing trip at a yet to be announced location with Chris Fischer of "Expedition Great White Shark" which has been airing on NatGeoTV.

I wonder if my big brown trout from last year's hex fishing would win?  Unlikely.

On The Road To Michigan

We're on the long overnight drive up to Michigan. Mrs. Manifesto and I are taking turns at the wheel while the children sleep. We should be arriving at the lake house in a few more hours.

I am looking forward to a week of spending time with family and chasing fins in the kayak on the lake.


I'll be putting up a couple lake dispatches along with some planned T.F.M. posts as well.

YAWN... It's been a long night.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

An Epic Night of the Hex

I spent last night packing up the Element for our annual July 4th trip home to Michigan.  As I was putting the fly gear together I was reminded of a quick trip on last year's trip to the upper Manistee River that ended up turning out nothing short of epic.  I am a little sad that there won't be time for a return visit this summer but looking over these photos are a good reminder a night well spent.

Somehow I was able to sneak away from the lake house on a Sunday afternoon leaving behind Mrs. Manifesto and the children with my family.  I made a couple pimento cheese sandwiches for the road and headed north to Grayling.

While on my way I traded text messages with Spencer on where we should meet and called ahead to the Old AuSable Fly Shop to make sure they would be open still when I arrived.  The fellow at the shop said that they were about to lock the doors and since I was a good hour away he took my information over the phone and had a dozen flies hidden outside the shop waiting for me to pick up.  (I know the shop has changed names and hands over the past few years but there is good karma in that building and the people that work there.  I've always been impressed.)
 

Spencer and I met on the river a couple hours before the sky went black and waited out the night together.  We had to fight temptation not to cast flies to the smaller fish that were rising all around us.  With the hex game it seems like you go big and wait for the big bugs to show at dark...or if they don't show, and there is a good chance they won't for whatever reason, you've just spent three or four hours waiting for nothing.

At least the scenery during the wait is stunning.  There are few rivers as beautiful as those in northern Michigan.  I learned to fly fish on the Manistee River and Au Sable River and these sweet tea colored waters still flow through my veins.

As evening was fading into night I tied on a classic Michigan hexagenia pattern which I hoped with tempt a gulper  As the last light of the evening was fading we began to see large mayflies in the air and within minutes could hear the loud riseforms of several worthy trout across the river from where we were waiting them out.  As they rose time after time it sounded like someone was tossing billiard balls into the water there was such a flush.

Since Spencer had been fishing all week he allowed me first try and I quietly waded into the middle of the river to cast to the large rising fish.  First take was an eighteen plus inch brown that came unbuttoned early into the fight but not before several deep head shakes and leaving the water.  We saw his body arc in the air in the light from our headlamps.  Minutes later this twenty-two inch beast made my night and put a very serious bend in the McFarland seven weight glass rod that I was fishing.

What all this madness is about...the Hex.  The waves of hex in the air ended about two hours after it began.  I drove the three hours back to the lake house tired but completely satisfied.

W.J. "Pro Staff" Package Arrives

About a month ago I tipped off the T.F.M. readership that I had been asked to join William Joseph's newly formed "Pro Staff" as an Ambassador.  Part of being an Ambassador means testing and evaluating current and prototype pieces of William Joseph gear which is a responsibility that I can handle.  

Last week I received a box which contained bags from a couple different lines, the stripping basket, and a set of the River Tools.  It's great to get hands on a couple more pieces of the Old School line with the Fanny Pack and Satchel.  The Fanny Pack is going to be my go to warmwater pack for the rest of the summer.  The MAG Series Current pack is well thought out and is as comfortable slung to the side as it is wearing on your chest.

I've had the MAG Series Conduit Gear Bag for a couple months now and finding it great in the back of the Element on fly fishing trips, in the kayak for river and pond trips, and then excellent for storage in the ever dwindling gear space in the closet I share with Mrs. Manifesto.

Look for future reviews of these gear items and others as the year goes along.  I'm  hoping to have a pair of the next generation William Joseph waders and clothing items before the year is out.   

If you have comments or suggestions on the use or wear of William Joseph gear please feel free to send along an email to thefiberglassmanifesto@gmail.com.  I'd like to hear about your experience.

T.F.M. Spotting - Shawn Likes Glass

Simple Sunday post.  Shawn lives in New York.  Shawn has a thing for Scott fly rods.   Shawn likes glass.  Shawn has a Fibertouch and a Fiberhammer.  Shawn has a cool dog named Maggie.  Shawn fishes big streamers.  Shawn catches big browns.  Shawn is in the T.FM. Spotting Photo Contest.

The Eagle Claw Featherlight Series

When I started fly fishing my first fly rod was a seven foot Eagle Claw Featherlight coupled with a simple Martin fly reel and a level line.  I would have never expected that bright yellow stick to become so ingrained into my fly fishing DNA but nearly twenty years later I am as geeked about getting my hands on the new generation of Featherlights' as I have with fly rods costing ten times as much.

I've always liked the Featherlight line up and at first impression it seems Eagle Claw has taken a historically good idea and made them even better.  Granted, there is a little graphite in them now but they actually cast pretty well.  The slightly faster action should help shed the bad rap of being a "floopy" and a poor casting rod.

I am really surprised at the hardware and cherry wood insert that is used.  It's pretty nice for a $30 fly rod.  Granted the epoxy work on the wraps is a bit rough but you really can't expect perfection in a fly rod at this price point.

I am very glad to see the gold mylar wraps were kept and Eagle Claw didn't try to over modernize the series.  The two tone cork grips, wood insert, and hardware are enough "new school" and the black tipped guide wraps and mylar keep it strikingly "old school".

I commend Eagle Claw for not cutting costs and wrapping the Featherlight series in single foot guides.  I've always thought that they make fly rods look like spinning rods.  These are fly rods through and through.

One thing that I'll pass along from casting all three of these rods is that the rods seem to like the top end of the line weight designation for each rod.  The 3/4 weight 6'6" likes a four weight and even a five weight fly line, the 5/6 weight 7' casts with authority with a 6WF line, and the 5/6 eight foot Featherlight feels more like a 6/7 weight.  I've been using a 7WF Bass Taper line on it and it casts bass flies like a cannon.

Though my review on the Eagle Claw Featherlight series is just beginning I'll mention a few final points about these rods.  In my mind the Featherlight series of fly rods are all about fun.  They are unapologeticly bright yellow and come off a little gaudy.  I like that.  They aren't expensive.  The ruler down the blank is pretty cool.  You'll enjoy this fly rod and won't worry about your kid trashing the water with it either.  These rods beg to go fishing or at the very least tossed in the back of the car always ready for an impromptu fly fishing trip.

T.F.M. Spotting - Michael in New Mexico

Michael Clayton recently sent along a few photos from a New Mexico trout trip including a "cowboy-esque" T.F.M. Spotting Photo Contest entry.  Looks like a pretty neat creek to me.  

I thought I would send pictures of my latest fishing trip to the site of an ancient super volcano, Valles Caldera, near Los Alamos in Northern NM.  It is an old crater over thirty miles wide with ongoing geothermal activity and several creeks that originate there.

Legislation has been initiated to add it to the National Parks Service.  Fishing is tough with twenty to thirty mile per hour winds common and stealth is essential.  This is crawl on all fours or approach on your knees country, and you know the experienced fisherman by who shows up in the parking lot with knee pads.
  

In this huge basin, if you are more than thirty-six inches tall the trout see you and scoot.  These photos are of the East Fork of the Jemez River.  In many places, it is eighteen to twenty-four inches wide and over three feet deep.
  

It contains trout up to eighteen inches.  Add in the wind and you have a real challenge.  I managed to catch a couple during a recent trip with the Steffen Brothers eight foot 3/4 wt rod I built from a blank.  It worked surprisingly well in the wind with Sage Quiet Taper four weight double taper line.

One by One Gets Their Weave On!

The boys at One by One Custom Rods recently donated a Steffen Brothers fiberglass blank build to the Yellow Creek Fly Fishing Classic and their expert wrap work caught my eye.  Looking around their website I found quite a few really impressive weave jobs which I thought would be neat to highlight on T.F.M.

Check out the One By One Custom Rods website and blog to see more of their excellent work.

T.F.M. Spotting - Roadtrip Edition

Last night I came across this photograph that Rich Schaaff of East Fork Fly Photography took on a cross country road trip last fall.  I don't know why I have posted this sooner but it seems fitting as the summer travel season is upon us.

Is there anything more excellent than a good book along for the ride?  I'll be heading home to Michigan next week and more than likely be taking Robert Traver and Ernest Hemingway along with me.  I am also hoping to find the new issue of The Drake before the trip.  (I'm thinking I just need to order up a subscription instead of trip after trip to the bookstore waiting for new issues to hit the shelf.) 

What are you reading this summer?  Old favorites, new titles, magazines, what?

Z-REELS WINNING GAME

The other day I was looking around online and checked out the updated Z-REELS website in Germany.  Along with a few new items on the website, they are also running a promotion called the "Z-REELS WINNING GAME" for the rest of the year to give away one of their reels to a fortunate angler.  Looks like the lucky winner will get to chose which reel he/she wants from the Natural and Revolution series in sizes five through eight. All you need to do is submit your information and click submit.  Thirty seconds of  your time for a chance to win one of these stunning reels.

This past week I took a few photographs of my Natural 5, extra spool, and leather case.  These reels have an amazing purr when line is leaving the reel and the leather pad will slow a running fish down when lightly pressed against the spool.

The leather case is a little over the top I know, but what a neat "home" for this reel and extra spool.  They fit perfectly inside and it's great for both storage and travel.

For anglers in the U.S. that are interested in a Z-REELS, they can be purchased through K&T Equip, LLC.  They are still showing introductory prices which make these reels reasonable in price for what they are.

Like the custom rod builders that I try to represent here on T.F.M., I wish Z-REELS much success since they are building reels that function every bit as good as they look.

T.F.M. Spotting - Nutman on the "D"

Recently Mike Nutto, of the Scandalous Fly Fishing Brothers blog, and a couple friends did a float down the Dechutes River.  They barely got out with their lives.

This lone trip photo surfaced of Mike Nutto tight on a large whitefish while wearing his T.F.M. t-shirt.

Check out the interesting Scandalous Fly Fishing Brothers blog to read Part 1 and then look forward to the upcoming Part 2 post of this harrowing tale and lessons learned.

Korkers Guide Boots

For a couple years now I've wanted to try a pair of Korkers wading boots since the ability to switch out soles seemed like a very thought forward idea, especially for those of us that routinely mix a few miles into backcountry water as part of the day away.

When the opportunity to get a pair of Guide Wading Boots from Korkers came my way I asked if I could get a couple different soles as well to not only give the boots a through testing but also form an opinion of felt vs. rubber vs. rubber studded.  Korkers also sent along a set of mossy rock lug soles with wicked spikes that I may even be able to climb trees with...if I cared to try.

I haven't worn felt for over ten years so this will be interesting to see if I've been missing something since I moved to the various rubber sole options.  

First opinion out of the box is the Guide Wading Boots look great and feel very solidly constructed.  The boots are lightweight and offer great ankle support.  Above all of that the Boa Lacing System is impressive and works with ease.  The heavy duty plastic turn dial wheels the metal cord laces tight.  With a simple pull on the dial the tension on the laces is released and your feet are out of the boots in an instant.

So...look for a series of reviews as I punish these boots on waters in the southeast and to the west this summer and fall.  Also, Korkers is linking up with T.F.M. to give away a free pair of wading boots next month so look out for that as well.

A Father's Day Reflection

It's Sunday morning and Father's Day.  The kitchen is a buzz of breakfast making.  Coffee is brewed.  Coldplay is humming through the iPod.  Melissa and Hadley are making whipped cream and I am about to start making crepes once the pan warms.  Finn is tearing through the drawers and bumming tastes of the whipped cream from the mixer bowl from the girls.  I could be fly fishing on the pond right now...but I'd rather be here.

Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there in the T.F.M. readership.  It's going to be a great day.  Get outside on the water if you can...but most of all enjoy your family.   

T.F.M. Spotting - Redhorse House Party

When Mike Fitzgerald isn't tangling with steelhead or carp, he's looking for new species for him on the fly.  Looks like he can check redhorse sucker off the list and puts himself in running for the T.F.M. Spotting Photo Contest in the process...

Fly fishing the first dam aptly named "The Number One Dam" of Ontario's Trent River today, and hooked into something that completely blew me away.  Originally we were looking for gar, muskie, and walleye but due to recent rainfall they had opened up the dam and began releasing the water which made our usual fishing areas unfishable and down right unsafe. Walking across the dam we noticed a school of redhorse suckers in very shallow water, tails sticking out as they fed on insects and crayfish. Always having a rod rigged and ready for a chance at a carp, I dropped everything and got into position to intercept the school. Out goes the fly, in come the fish, and finally I got my first redhorse sucker on the fly.

People underestimate these fish a lot.  This thing (while using my nine weight) took well over 100 foot of line out and put me into the backing more than three times.  It jumped, ran, rolled, and fought right to my feet.  You gotta use pretty small heavy weight nymphs it seems, but if you get that fly in the zone at the right time, magic happens.  I think if more people just gave them a chance, did a little homework about it, and understand that "Yeah man...we're out here fishing suckers on the fly and proud of it!"  It would open up a world of new opportunities for many fly fishermen all over the place!

Anyways, I've got redhorse fever now and there's not much else to say.  I was just looking back on the photos of the trip and realized what shirt I was wearing.  I thought I'd fire along some photos of what it looks like downstream from the dam as well.  It's actually one hell of a river.  In spring, you've got walleye, freshwater drum, carp, redhorse sucker, white sucker, muskie, northern pike, steelhead, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, giant channel catfish, and long-nosed gar which run the river in the thousands!
 
Summer rolls around and the bass, carp, redhorse, and muskie hang around as well as a few long-nosed gar.  Then like a dream come true, fall comes walking in, and once again the walleye and muskie action picks up, but mixed in with them are whitefish, chinook salmon, migratory brown trout and steelhead!  What more could a guy ask for?  Tarpon and stripers?

A Morning On The Family Pond

Yesterday morning I was able to slide the kayak into the family pond for a couple hours of fly fishing and testing out the recent modifications that I have made to the Native Ultimate.  I am really happy with how everything is laid out and it's nice having the fly rods off the deck of the boat and in rod holders.   

Admittedly I got to the pond a couple hours to late for the bass bite but it was still great to get out and paddle.

Got to represent.

This fly rose a good bass up against some submerged structure but I popped just he tried to slam it.  Complete miss and he was long gone.
 

This pond is really a special place...even if the fish aren't pushovers.

I fished the 7' and 8' 5/6 weight Eagle Claw Featherlight fly rods.  I am really impressed with these "economy" sticks.  They are perfect to use out of the kayak. 

As has been the case this spring it's been a bluegill that has saved me from a skunking. 

I left the pond as the temps were moving from hot to very hot.  We've seen several 100 degree days in a row which is always a pleasure coupled with the "Dirty South" humidity.

T.F.M. June Reminders

The T.F.M./Bug Slinger Facebook Contest is still going on and we're looking for more photos to be uploaded on the T.F.M. Facebook page.  Remember that there will be two winners for this contest for the most "hardcore" and then a randomly selected winner too. 

 So far we've seen trucks, SUV's, sedans, bikes, and boats...but we need to see more!

Backwater Paddle Company is offering 25% OFF all purchases through the end of the month for Father's Day.  These are a very handy paddle for use in kayaks and canoes and a chance to make a purchase at a great price.  Enter code "BPC01" to get the discount. 

You can follow Backwater Paddle Company on Facebook and Twitter for reviews and upcoming promotions.

The T.F.M. t-shirt order for June is going to wind down a little sooner than normal since I'll be out of town for a few days at the end of the month and Xdzines is going to print up this batch of T.F.M. t-shirts the week after next.  

Drop me an email if you are interested in purchasing a T.F.M. t-shirt.  Remember that you have to have a T.F.M. t-shirt to participate in the T.F.M. Spotting Photo Contest.  

Train Trouting

Chris Stewart, of the TenkaraBum website, sent along several iPhone photos from one of his many day trips out of the city to trout waters by transit and long walks. 
To leave the chaos of the big city behind and then find yourself wading a river in solitude is part of the experience that we all crave.

T.F.M. Spotting - The Family Brookie Trip

Dave Zielinski, of The Happy Trout Chronicles, sent along a email with a story and photos of a weekend trout trip with the family to find brook trout on their nearby Pennsylvania blue lines.  

Yesterday was a rain out.  Intermittent rain all day kinda put a damper on any outside fun.  This morning I woke up and asked the family if they wanted to "go for a ride."  They hate when I do this.  My wife doesn't know what to bring and the kids go nuts in the truck trying to guess.  As we headed south, it became clearer.  No one noticed the Scott Fibertouch tube and chest box in the back seat and I was surprised.  I told them to bring a towel, two pairs of shoes, and plan to get dirty. 

We headed for the Laurel Highlands of Pennsylvania Chestnut Ridge and the surrounding area.  Nearly every little blue line on the map holds brookies in this area.  We hit one of my "PA Top Five" streams, about thirty minutes from my front door.  

My kids are spoiled and every cast behind a decent sized boulder, even dragging ones, brought takes to small dry flies.  I made sure every one of them got a chance, the two older ones did well on their own, and I taught them the art of stealth.  Stay low, hide behind boulders, and keep your line off the water.  My youngest one did good too.  She could follow the fly on the water and with a little help from daddy, she managed the one trout that I sent a picture of. 

It certainly was a great time.  We are planning on going back on Wednesday to fish, play, picnic and take a hike.

Awkward Family Photo?  I think not.  Great to see a family getting outside, fishy, and dirty together.