Caddis Chronicles

Well folks, when I started this post I thought I had the energy to do a write-up on this latest and greatest, deep caddis pupa imitation. I first used it last summer on my trip to Northern Calif., and the rainbows there took it like candy. It worked quite well here after my return to the hallowed waters of the east coast..

Work has me in court all day tomorrow, so look for the story on this one in a day or two.

Later........

So, this kid at the FF show this weekend comes up to me and starts talking to me about how he "fly fishes" for trout all the time in New Jersey. Seems like a nice kid, clowning around a little, laughing at his own jokes, and a little more friendly than most kids that age. After a few minutes though, I began to get one of those internal pauses you get when someone just seems a few sardines short of a can.

Sure enough he starts telling me about how he likes to go to the Pequest and fish the hatchery outflow for those BIG FRIGGIN' TROUT that hang there. He boasts about how adept he is at hooking them, although he doesn't always land them because they swim so hard. He says he breaks them off a lot.

I say, "Oh, yeah, I hear that pool gets pounded. What do you use to take them?"

He says, "I use woolley-buggers that have lead eyes. They are killer."

"Lead-eyed buggers, huh? I figured those fish have seen every bugger known to man." I said to him in more of a question than a statement.

He says in kind of guilty whisper, "It doesn't matter. All you have to do is cast it past them and wait until one swims over it and then lift it fast and you hook them."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah, my dad says it's okay because you are using a fly and everybody does it because those fish won't take a fly. He does it all the time." He says confidently.

"You think that's sporting?"

"Why not. They can swim much better when you hook them in the tail and they are hard to land." The kid is serious.

I told him that wasn't fishing and if I saw him doing that I would report him. "You must know that's not legal, come on." I say with not an ounce of sympathy and a dose of venom.

He walks away, but before he does, he tells me his dad says people like me should be shot.

Great......I guess the clown doesn't fall far from the tree.

So, if you see a 15-ish Y.O. kid, 5' 9" with black punk hair, a uni-brow, and XXL, with his dad at the hatchery outflow, keep and eye on them and nail them if you see them practicing their clown act.

Before we work on artificial intelligence why don't we do something about natural stupidity? ~S. Polyak

.......and BAD parenting.

Yes, that's right, the Blue Bitch.....

No, we're not talking about a sad dog, we're talking about a great winter-time streamer - a blue, woolley-bugger style deal, that's killer in the cold months. It has all the qualities of a good streamer fly - easy to tie, durable, bulky, shimmery, lively and ugly. It pushes water when stripped.

There it is, in all its glory.............the Blue Bitch, the best bitch you'll ever meet and fish with. The recipe:

Thread: Black

Hook: Size 2 - 8 3XL Streamer

Bead: Gold - size to match hook

Weight: Lead wire

Tail: Royal blue marabou

Body: Royal blue SLF - twist in a loop and then wrap up shank to gold bead.

Let 'er rip. Fish it dead-drift, swing it, strip it.

Have fun, and protect those eyes!

The other big show is this weekend - January 25-27 - in Somerset, NJ, exit 10 off of Route 287 at the Garden State Exhibit Center/DoubleTree Hotel.

Hours are: Friday 10-6, Saturday 8:30-6, and Sunday 9-4:30

I'll be doing a presentation all three days, "NJ Trout Streams Tactics and Strategies", and signing my new book, "Fly Fishing NJ Trout Streams", immediately after each presentation.

The presentations are in the DoubleTree, and the authors booth is in the Exhibit Center.

My presentation schedule is: Friday 1:00pm, Saturday 12 noon, and Sunday at noon.

More info at: http://www.flyfishingshow.com/

Hope to see you there.

Yes, the Patriots won again, and they will be matched against our NY Giants in the big game. Or so the rags and zines and boob tube tell us. The big game may just have been last night's win for the Giants in the ice bowl.

The HYPE has already started, by the time we get to the game I'll be so sick of hearing about it and everything surrounding the game (no don't expect any intelligent words about the game itself) I won't even want to watch it.

That's it. It's too damn cold to go fishing, so what do you expect? I just started this thing, too, so give me a little while to get my sea legs.