Weight – 27lb 0oz (13lb - silvers)
Catch – 8 Roach, 5 Bream, 5 Perch, 3 Carp, 2 Chub, 1 F1
Weather – Bright & calm, later rain
Match – Open - 4th overall (2nd silvers)
Mike Nicholls bless him is obviously getting senile in his retirement years, with far too much time on his hands. As a consequence he finds found fault with most things in life, therefore turning into a proper grumpy old man. The silverfox added a comment to my blog last week saying he didn’t know there were opens on Monday & Tuesday, I assume in reference to the date I add my blog entries. If I had as much time on my hands as Mr Nicholls, then I to could update my blog the same day as I fished. Alternatively it was just a poor attempt at sarcasm.
Today saw me on peg 19, which I haven’t drawn for about 4 or 5 years. Recent form suggested it was worth a few fish, although now the out & out flyer it used to be.
Only 9 anglers turned up so at least there would be plenty of room, which can present its own problems on a cold & clear lake. With so much space, I decided to positively feed in front of peg 18 at 14.5m, with 3mm pellet by catapult. My other swims where fed more conservatively, starting with 20 casters at the bottom of the far shelf and a pinch of green swim stim & micros at 14.5m at 11o'clock.
I started on corn, fishing to my right where I hadn’t fed and 10 minutes later a foulhooked carp was safely landed. With no further bites, I spent the next hour concentrating on the bottom of the far shelf fishing caster, but I had to rotate with maggot and pinkie to keep bites coming. A quick look on top of the shelf produced a run of perch & a chub, but the swim quickly died due to water clarity.
With my caster swim dying, time to try my groundbait/pellet swim and I eventually managed a ½lb skimmer on 4mm pellet. At the ½ way stage I felt I was doing OK, but everyone was fishing for 2nd, because Garry on peg 7 got off to a flyer and probably had 40lb in the first 2 hours. Mike on peg 24 also started getting amongst some proper perch fishing tight to the tree.
As for me, I had to keep rotating swims and the grounbait/pellet swim became the strongest swim, with skimmers up to 1½lb and a carp, all on pellet. My positive swim in peg 18 produced a few liners, but no fish. I tried dumping caster & maggot in front of the pallet on peg 18, but this only produced a few silvers.
As expected Garry won with 63lb. 2nd was Alan Oram from the in form peg 11 with 33lb, but he had to wait 1¾ hours before he got his first bite. 3rd was Mike with 32lb, which included 17lb of mostly perch, plus 4 carp.
I was left a bit frustrated that I couldn’t keep my caster swim going, however I was pleased I was able to catch a few skimmers in less than ideal conditions, so hopefully I have began to get to grips with them.
Monday, December 7, 2009
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Thought for the Day..........
A SMALL change in the weather can make a BIG change in the fishing conditions.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
JRFFA Exploration
Thursday Jamie, Chris and I set out on an exploration of some new trout fisheries. What we found was an amazing wild rainbow fishery about 3 hours away. It is a beautiful walk-wade or drift fishery. The fish are some of the most beautiful rainbows I have caught. All super strong healthy bows. It was below freezing almost the whole time of our trip. We had ice in the guides the entire time. We had a blast taking turns drifting from the canoe and wading shoals. We covered about 5 miles of river in two days. The Lodging was nice and right on a private section of river. It is blue ribbon trout water and a must do for winter fun. It is a free flowing stream, so you don't have to worry about "high water". If you are interested in finding out more about the fishery and want to go, feel free to ask.
Friday, December 4, 2009
Fly-fishing pioneer Ad Gilbert a memorable mentor
I've had a few mentors in my life when it comes to fly fishing.
The first who comes to mind is the late Addison Gilbert, a native Floridian who grew up fly fishing for bass on the St. Johns River.
Gilbert, a graduate of Florida State University, came to Sarasota County in the 1950s and may have been one of the earliest fly anglers in the area. He began his career as a teacher and retired as the county's Director of Secondary Education.
I first met Gilbert while sitting in the old Shell City, a bar and lounge located at the corner of Bee Ridge and Shade in Sarasota. Gilbert loved to talk fly fishing while sipping Wild Turkey. We caught many a fish in that gin joint.
I didn't get to fish with Gilbert until the early 1990s when he invited Ed Hurst and me to go tarpon fishing in the inshore Gulf of Mexico off Venice. Hurst and I showed up with spinning rods in hand.
Gilbert had other ideas.
"What bait do you like for tarpon?" said Gilbert.
"Pinfish," I said.
"Then we'll take a few pins," he said. "And we'll take a few crabs."
At the time, Gilbert was running Fisherman's Wharf Bait and Tackle, a bait shop/tackle shop/fly shop located on the Intracoastal Waterway in Venice. He kept his Hewes Bonefisher tied up at a dock behind the shop.
We boarded the boat, then headed for the Venice Inlet. I noticed when we were going through the inlet toward the Gulf of Mexico that the spinning rods had been put away. The only rod out was a G.Loomis 12-weight fly rod.
"Oh, great," I thought. "I don't want to do this."
It wasn't as if I'd never fly-fished. It was that I perceived fly fishing for tarpon, bonefish, permit and other glamor species as an activity for only the highest-skilled fly anglers. And I didn't think of myself like that.
I'd been fly fishing for 20 years, but mostly in fresh water -- for bluegill and bass.
Tarpon, I thought, most certainly were out of my league.
We slowly motored south and when we neared the Venice Pier, Gilbert eased back on the throttle and said, "I want to see you cast."
I grabbed the rod, stepped up onto the bow casting platform and pulled line from the reel. I began casting. I made a couple of false casts, then sent the fly out about 70 feet.
"You'll have no trouble catching a tarpon," said Gilbert.
"Yeah, right," I thought.
About five minutes later, Gilbert spotted a school of tarpon a little southwest of the pier.
"I'll let you know when we get in range," he said. "Cast a little in front of them, let the fly sink,, then begin stripping it it. When you get a hit, it will feel like your fly has snagged a big log.
"If you do everything just right, you won't even see the fish jump. You'll need to clear your line first."
A couple of minutes later, we were about 100 feet from the school and getting closer. My knees really were shaking. And my heart was pounding.
"Cast when you're ready," Gilbert said softly.
I took a deep breath, raised the rod and began false casting. After two false casts, I sent the fly out in front of the school.
I let it sink, then began working the fly back by stripping the line in with my left hand.
Suddenly the fly stopped and the line went tight.
I had an effing tarpon on the line! On my first cast! Holy crap!
I began setting the hook by sweeping the rod to my left. No "trout sets" here, thank you. You had to really pour the coals to a tarpon. This fish was hefty, about 80 pounds.
The tarpon took off and I began "clearing" the line. When you're fly fishing, line piles up at your feet as you pull the fly through the water. And that line suddenly begins to fly off the deck as the tarpon speeds off. You clear the line by letting it flow through a circle made by the index finger and thumb on your stripping hand. Once you've cleared the line and you're "on the reel," the fight is on.
When I was on the reel, the silver tarpon made its first jump. And when it did, it threw the hook.
I lost the fish.
"Don't stand there feeling sorry for yourself," said Gilbert. "Pick the line up and cast back into the school."
I looked up and saw the school still within a cast.
I sent the fly out in front the school, let it sink and began the retrieve.
It happened once again. The line went taut and I was into another fish.
This time, everything went according to script. I set the hook, cleared the line and fought the fish.
Forty-five minutes and eight jumps later, I had the tarpon, a 75-pounder, to the side of the boat.
Gilbert grabbed the leader and unhooked the fish.
I still couldn't believe I did it.
I had joined an elite fraternity.
Now, it was Hurst's turn. Hurst, a native of Kentucky who grew up in Sarasota, is a great angler. But he had never touched a fly rod. However, he knew "instinctively" what to do. He had grasped enough to be functional.
Gilbert found another school of tarpon and Hurst stepped to the bow. He was only able to get the fly out about 35 feet, but it was enough. He hooked a tarpon on his first cast, but lost it on the jump. He made another cast, hooked another fish and landed it three hours later.
Final scoreboard for the neophyte fly angers: Four casts, four tarpon jumped, two landed.
It was time for lunch. We headed for the Rum Bay Restaurant at Palm Island and celebrated our good fortune with grouper sandwiches and draft beer.
Grouper and beer never tasted better.
The first who comes to mind is the late Addison Gilbert, a native Floridian who grew up fly fishing for bass on the St. Johns River.
Gilbert, a graduate of Florida State University, came to Sarasota County in the 1950s and may have been one of the earliest fly anglers in the area. He began his career as a teacher and retired as the county's Director of Secondary Education.
I first met Gilbert while sitting in the old Shell City, a bar and lounge located at the corner of Bee Ridge and Shade in Sarasota. Gilbert loved to talk fly fishing while sipping Wild Turkey. We caught many a fish in that gin joint.
I didn't get to fish with Gilbert until the early 1990s when he invited Ed Hurst and me to go tarpon fishing in the inshore Gulf of Mexico off Venice. Hurst and I showed up with spinning rods in hand.
Gilbert had other ideas.
"What bait do you like for tarpon?" said Gilbert.
"Pinfish," I said.
"Then we'll take a few pins," he said. "And we'll take a few crabs."
At the time, Gilbert was running Fisherman's Wharf Bait and Tackle, a bait shop/tackle shop/fly shop located on the Intracoastal Waterway in Venice. He kept his Hewes Bonefisher tied up at a dock behind the shop.
We boarded the boat, then headed for the Venice Inlet. I noticed when we were going through the inlet toward the Gulf of Mexico that the spinning rods had been put away. The only rod out was a G.Loomis 12-weight fly rod.
"Oh, great," I thought. "I don't want to do this."
It wasn't as if I'd never fly-fished. It was that I perceived fly fishing for tarpon, bonefish, permit and other glamor species as an activity for only the highest-skilled fly anglers. And I didn't think of myself like that.
I'd been fly fishing for 20 years, but mostly in fresh water -- for bluegill and bass.
Tarpon, I thought, most certainly were out of my league.
We slowly motored south and when we neared the Venice Pier, Gilbert eased back on the throttle and said, "I want to see you cast."
I grabbed the rod, stepped up onto the bow casting platform and pulled line from the reel. I began casting. I made a couple of false casts, then sent the fly out about 70 feet.
"You'll have no trouble catching a tarpon," said Gilbert.
"Yeah, right," I thought.
About five minutes later, Gilbert spotted a school of tarpon a little southwest of the pier.
"I'll let you know when we get in range," he said. "Cast a little in front of them, let the fly sink,, then begin stripping it it. When you get a hit, it will feel like your fly has snagged a big log.
"If you do everything just right, you won't even see the fish jump. You'll need to clear your line first."
A couple of minutes later, we were about 100 feet from the school and getting closer. My knees really were shaking. And my heart was pounding.
"Cast when you're ready," Gilbert said softly.
I took a deep breath, raised the rod and began false casting. After two false casts, I sent the fly out in front of the school.
I let it sink, then began working the fly back by stripping the line in with my left hand.
Suddenly the fly stopped and the line went tight.
I had an effing tarpon on the line! On my first cast! Holy crap!
I began setting the hook by sweeping the rod to my left. No "trout sets" here, thank you. You had to really pour the coals to a tarpon. This fish was hefty, about 80 pounds.
The tarpon took off and I began "clearing" the line. When you're fly fishing, line piles up at your feet as you pull the fly through the water. And that line suddenly begins to fly off the deck as the tarpon speeds off. You clear the line by letting it flow through a circle made by the index finger and thumb on your stripping hand. Once you've cleared the line and you're "on the reel," the fight is on.
When I was on the reel, the silver tarpon made its first jump. And when it did, it threw the hook.
I lost the fish.
"Don't stand there feeling sorry for yourself," said Gilbert. "Pick the line up and cast back into the school."
I looked up and saw the school still within a cast.
I sent the fly out in front the school, let it sink and began the retrieve.
It happened once again. The line went taut and I was into another fish.
This time, everything went according to script. I set the hook, cleared the line and fought the fish.
Forty-five minutes and eight jumps later, I had the tarpon, a 75-pounder, to the side of the boat.
Gilbert grabbed the leader and unhooked the fish.
I still couldn't believe I did it.
I had joined an elite fraternity.
Now, it was Hurst's turn. Hurst, a native of Kentucky who grew up in Sarasota, is a great angler. But he had never touched a fly rod. However, he knew "instinctively" what to do. He had grasped enough to be functional.
Gilbert found another school of tarpon and Hurst stepped to the bow. He was only able to get the fly out about 35 feet, but it was enough. He hooked a tarpon on his first cast, but lost it on the jump. He made another cast, hooked another fish and landed it three hours later.
Final scoreboard for the neophyte fly angers: Four casts, four tarpon jumped, two landed.
It was time for lunch. We headed for the Rum Bay Restaurant at Palm Island and celebrated our good fortune with grouper sandwiches and draft beer.
Grouper and beer never tasted better.
Native's Ultimate 14.5 is the ultimate for me
It's no secret that I'm a big fan of Native Watercraft's Ultimate 14.5 fishing machine.
For those of you who might not know what I'm talking about, the Ultimate is a kayak. It just might be the best fishing kayak on the market. I say this with reasonable certainty I've paddled just about every fishing kayak out there.
And I'm not easy to please.
Sure, I'm sponsored by Native, but you've got to understand that it wouldn't mean a thing if I didn't love the product. Why would I want the sponsorship if Native was inferior?
Truth is the Native is on top of the world when it comes to fishing kayaks.
Here are my reasons:
1. Roomiest kayak you can get. You can tote a whole lot of gear and more. On full-day charters, I carry a 36-quart cooler in the bow. And it's full of ice, food and drinks.
2. It tracks extremely straight; you rarely have to make a paddle correction.
3. No other kayak offers the stability without add-ons such as pontoons. I can stand up and pole my boat. I can stand up and fly cast. I cant stand up and battle a hefty snook or redfish.
4. It's as fast as any other boat in its class -- maybe even a little faster.
5. It drifts slowly.
This is an area that most kayak anglers don't even think about. A couple of years ago, I was fishing with Capt. Al White down in The Everglades. I was in my Native and White was in another brand of kayak. We were fishing a long canal just off Alligator Alley. I was slowly fishing along while White was 100 yards down the canal.
"I thought you were anchored," said White.
No, I was just leisurely drifting along. The slow drift makes for easy fishing -- especially when you're using a fly rod.
Believe me, I've tried to find out what flaws the Ultimate might have. The only thing I can find is that it will take on water because it's not your traditional "sit-on-top" (SIT) kayak. There are no scupper holes through which water can exit.
So, I carry a hand bilge pump -- just in case. I've never had to use it, but I have it.
Another kayak manufacturer claims its boat offers "hands-free fishing." Big deal. I've got hands-free fishing in my Ultimate. I can drift along, cast and make direction changes without taking my hands off my fly rod. With the paddle sitting across my lap, I can dip a blade in the water and manipulate it with my elbow and never interrupt my fishing.
Anyway, if you really are a fan of peddling, Native offers a peddle version. They even offer a model with a trolling motor.
I'm not saying the Ultimate is for everyone. That would be about far-fetched. I believe it is, but it's ill conceived that all anglers think alike. That's why there are so many manufacturers offering so many models.
I like to stand up and fish. I like to stand up and paddle my boat. Sight-fishing always has been a big part of my world.
The Native Watercraft Ultimate 14.5 allows me to do what I love.
Expensive Deer Hunting Trip......
It was too windy and cold to sit in our stands on thursday afternoon, so we sat out of the wind near the top of a draw overlooking a creek valley. Had a good time, enjoyed the tranquility and serenity of being outdoors and headed in about 5 pm. On our way back to our trucks at the top of the field we scared all the deer which werent in the woods, back into the woods. Somehow as we carefully sneaked into the woods about 2 pm, they must have snuck out of the woods. Then after spending the afternoon hanging out by our trucks, they simply headed back into the woods as we headed out. It was almost like we were hunting with Elmer Fudd back in the day! Anyhow as I am writing this, I realize I gave way too much credit to the intelligence of the deer earlier. In hindsight I now realize there is just simply something about my truck that deer are attracted to! On my way home from deer hunting I was traveling down the road about 55 mph (the speed limit just in case my insurance adjustor reads my blog) and out from the field an 8 point buck comes running across the road right out in front of my manly F250. Had I not been just finishing up a conversation about our hunting expedition on my cell phone with my brother, I probably would have seen the deer coming, but nonetheless I hit the deer dead on! I only had enough time to hit the brakes less than one second before impact, but oddly enough only really remember sizing up the antlers and being disappointed the moment before the crash….
Look closely under the ford emblem and you will see the nice pile of crap the deer was so kind enough to squirt out.
Truck was still driveable after bending the bumper back up a bit, but still pretty busted up.
Truck was still driveable after bending the bumper back up a bit, but still pretty busted up.
We finished gutting the deer on the side of the road and are going to turn him into jerky. Also we are going to put his head on the wall too. Not because of the size of his antlers, but just merely for decoration and a nice conversation piece... Mainly though because Justin is finishing up taxidermy school this winter and needs some regular bucks to practice on before mounting our monster deer from next season!!!
Tractors, Turkey Shopping, and Construction
Well not much happening in the fish world lately, but there seems to be quite a bit happening in the real world! I have been building houses for my dad and brother most days and taking care of all our pond stuff and online shipments every spare moment. Also been working on lowering our 33 acre lake for the winter.
We also did a great job at spending all of our extra summer money already and some. We are the very proud new owners of a 2002 caterpiller skid steer and a 2006 kubota kx 121 excavator. We are not only building our own hatchery ponds, but will be building several forage fish ponds for clients as well!
So then Thanksgiving comes around and I eat my usual whole pecan pie and leftover turkey and potatoes for the next few days! And also I do get up at 3 am on black friday and buy a ton of stuff. We buy gifts for my dad's company christmas party every year on this day. He has 26 employees that we buy apprx $200 gifts for each of them for their party. Since we dont provide alcohol, we have to have some incentive to get the guys to show up!! This year we got GPS's, Netbooks, Lithium Power Tools, TV's, Nintendo Wii's, Ice Fishing Shanty, and a few other miscellaneous items. My mom, Justin, and Katy camped out at Walmart all night, fought the hoards of people at the 5 am mad dash and got everything on their list! My dad and Dave waited in line at Sams Club and got served coffee and Breakfast and also got everything on their list.
Lee and I waited in our truck at Sears at 4 am and when they started letting the line of people go in running and grabbing, we just slip in at the end of the line and go straight to the computer on the left side of the store. While everyone is scooping up the doorbusters and waiting in a checkout line that wraps around the store after 3 minutes, We just have the sales associate ring up our item numbers from the catalog, pay $900, and let merchandise pick up fellas load up our loot. At 4:20 am we are done and headed to the breakfast diner- We have the system nailed down to a tee!!! After a hearty breakfast we meet up with my dad and dave for the made dash at Home Depot at 6 am! We got everything on our list at Home Depot and had $5000 spent by 6:30 am!
Noah decided to run out of our apartment the other day and by the time I looked out he was on top of the minivan! Instead of grab him right away I took my time grabbing the camera and took this pic. By the time I was done, he was so cold that I dont think he will head outside without much clothes on anymore. Sometimes I can be considered a tad bit cruel, but there really is no better way for a kid to learn stuff than on his own.
So the real cold weather is about to set in. Ice is starting to form just a tad bit. One more weekend of deer hunting and then hopefully we can be icefishing before Christmas.
So then Thanksgiving comes around and I eat my usual whole pecan pie and leftover turkey and potatoes for the next few days! And also I do get up at 3 am on black friday and buy a ton of stuff. We buy gifts for my dad's company christmas party every year on this day. He has 26 employees that we buy apprx $200 gifts for each of them for their party. Since we dont provide alcohol, we have to have some incentive to get the guys to show up!! This year we got GPS's, Netbooks, Lithium Power Tools, TV's, Nintendo Wii's, Ice Fishing Shanty, and a few other miscellaneous items. My mom, Justin, and Katy camped out at Walmart all night, fought the hoards of people at the 5 am mad dash and got everything on their list! My dad and Dave waited in line at Sams Club and got served coffee and Breakfast and also got everything on their list.
Lee and I waited in our truck at Sears at 4 am and when they started letting the line of people go in running and grabbing, we just slip in at the end of the line and go straight to the computer on the left side of the store. While everyone is scooping up the doorbusters and waiting in a checkout line that wraps around the store after 3 minutes, We just have the sales associate ring up our item numbers from the catalog, pay $900, and let merchandise pick up fellas load up our loot. At 4:20 am we are done and headed to the breakfast diner- We have the system nailed down to a tee!!! After a hearty breakfast we meet up with my dad and dave for the made dash at Home Depot at 6 am! We got everything on our list at Home Depot and had $5000 spent by 6:30 am!
Noah decided to run out of our apartment the other day and by the time I looked out he was on top of the minivan! Instead of grab him right away I took my time grabbing the camera and took this pic. By the time I was done, he was so cold that I dont think he will head outside without much clothes on anymore. Sometimes I can be considered a tad bit cruel, but there really is no better way for a kid to learn stuff than on his own.
So the real cold weather is about to set in. Ice is starting to form just a tad bit. One more weekend of deer hunting and then hopefully we can be icefishing before Christmas.
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