Reel Adventures of Fly Fishing
Our friends at Blanco Honky were kind enough to include a pic of the finfollower rig. While not the top-of-the line way-too-expensive vehicle you were probably expecting, this vee-dub with over 100k miles drives over snow, sand, rocks and mud to deliver us to a number of destinations.
This weekend I’m heading to Penns Creek with my friend Patrick for 3 days of fishing.
Since it is a 5-6 hour drive into the middle of rural Pennsylvania, I’m planning on packing the following items for the stream: rods, reels, boots, waders, hat with built-in light, sunglasses, magnifiers, vest, an assortment of flies, tippet, extra leaders, strike indicators, split shot, pliers, nippers, floatant, cameras, bug repellent and sunblock.
We were able to find an inexpensive cabin in Coburn, so no camping gear for this trip. I’m packing extra clothes, sleeping bag, towel, toiletries, beverages, trash bags, paper towels, coffee, water and power bars.
What do you take on your out-of-town trips?
Today I had a chance to put a few of the CBBs to work. They did quite well. Here’s some video.
If you want to see how I make them, click here.
A few weeks ago I came across an article on coffee bean beetles. I am not a fly tyer by any stretch of the imagination but this intrigued me, primarily because it didn’t really involve tying at all. Instead it relies on the ability to use a magic marker and some glue – skills that are regularly employed by 5-year olds across the country without incident.
I wandered over to the kitchen cabinet and found a bag of coffee beans. Poured some into a bowl and picked out the largest round beans that I could find. Took them down to my basement workbench and, using a small file, created a small straight recess on the bottom of the bean for the hook to rest.
Next I used the black magic marker and colored the bottom of the bean. Set the hook in the recess and epoxied it to the bottom of the bean. On a couple of the beetles I cut up monofilament (old leader) to make legs.
Once the epoxy dried I turned the beetle over and, using an orange magic marker, colored the back of the bean. I also left some in the natural bean color as well.
Finally I covered most of the beetle in clear nail polish. Not only does it add a certain shine, it will help protect the beetle from cracking and water damage.
Done! Now let’s see how they do. Check this out
Building a fly rod is an interesting project, and easier than you might think. This winter I am building a 6′ 6″ 4-5 wt fiberglass fly rod that will be used for kayak fishing.
The video below kicks off a blog series on rodmaking. This first segment covers the components that will be attached to the fly rod blank.
Any questions? Let me know, I’ll be glad to answer.
To see Parts 2 and 3, click the links below. Enjoy!
