Question:

There are some part 135 operators making pretty good bucks flying the mail up in Alaska. Apparently the US govt is paying buuckoo bucks for operators to fly the mail and appareantly anyone can mail anything anywhere in Alaska (like their groceries) and the govt picks up the bill. So you have a lottta operators makin money flyin the mail up there, paying off their big buck turbines. Another route would be to get a government flying job with the Mounties, Fish and Wildlife or some such. Those guys get paid descent wages to fly descent planes and have reasonable schedules. It’s not the majors and both are govt jobs, which kinda suck, but those are the sort of options ya got up there other than a flyin’ bum in the bush leagues, which is loads of fun but suck on pay. Anyway ya do it, eventually you are gonna to have to get an IFR ticket, I mean ya just aint an aviator without one! O – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I am a commercial  bush pilot living in Canada, I fly floats in the summer and wheel/skis in the winter.  I  do all of my fueling, cleaning, loading, basically im a one man show. I love the float season, i love flying into little lakes, beaching on a island, dumping my passengers off and then swimming or fishing for a while if I have time before my next flight. My problem is this;  I know that if I want to make any money I will probibaly have to move into the multi ifr stuff in the next couple of years before i get too old (im 26).  And the problem with that is I have done the ifr ground school twice (3-day cram fest in Vancouver for $200) and have not completed it either time.  I am bored shitless and cant concentrate!  I just cant get into it and I’m not sure why? For you comm pilots out there flying ifr all the time; does it suck?  are you bored most of the time?  I go up to the cockpit on air canada A320 sometimes and visit the pilots and they dont seem to have much to do….or see. Any float drivers turned ifr drivers out there who can give me some encouragement?   Are there any fun ifr jobs where i dont have to dawn a shirt with those prissy gold bars?  Am I doomed to choose between a job I hate for the money or a job I love and poverty? Help, jon Sounds to me that you should direct your energies toward finding a way to make more money doing what you love. Enough creative thought can make you happy *and* rich. Talk to your clients in-depth and find out what they would like to see you do better and listen for hints about what services you can provide that will help them enjoy the experience more. Become upscale and charge higher prices. People are willing to pay a premium for quality and service, trust me. Regardless, if you are happy doing what you are doing, you are luckier than most. As you get older you will find that happiness is more valuable and harder to come by than any amount of money. Good luck and fly safe. — Jeff ‘The Wizard of Draws’ Bucchino http://www.wizardofdraws.com

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shirt with those prissy gold bars?  Am I doomed to choose between a job I hate for the money or a job I love and poverty?

It sounds like you’re already doing exactly what you should be doing… BTW, congratulations tim PP-ASEL

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– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I am a commercial  bush pilot living in Canada, I fly floats in the summer and wheel/skis in the winter.  I  do all of my fueling, cleaning, loading, basically im a one man show. I love the float season, i love flying into little lakes, beaching on a island, dumping my passengers off and then swimming or fishing for a while if I have time before my next flight. My problem is this;  I know that if I want to make any money I will probibaly have to move into the multi ifr stuff in the next couple of years before i get too old (im 26).  And the problem with that is I have done the ifr ground school twice (3-day cram fest in Vancouver for $200) and have not completed it either time.  I am bored shitless and cant concentrate!  I just cant get into it and I’m not sure why? For you comm pilots out there flying ifr all the time; does it suck?  are you bored most of the time?  I go up to the cockpit on air canada A320 sometimes and visit the pilots and they dont seem to have much to do….or see. Any float drivers turned ifr drivers out there who can give me some encouragement?   Are there any fun ifr jobs where i dont have to dawn a shirt with those prissy gold bars?  Am I doomed to choose between a job I hate for the money or a job I love and poverty? Help, jon

Sounds to me that you should direct your energies toward finding a way to make more money doing what you love. Enough creative thought can make you happy *and* rich. Talk to your clients in-depth and find out what they would like to see you do better and listen for hints about what services you can provide that will help them enjoy the experience more. Become upscale and charge higher prices. People are willing to pay a premium for quality and service, trust me. Regardless, if you are happy doing what you are doing, you are luckier than most. As you get older you will find that happiness is more valuable and harder to come by than any amount of money. Good luck and fly safe. — Jeff ‘The Wizard of Draws’ Bucchino http://www.wizardofdraws.com

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I am a commercial  bush pilot living in Canada, I fly floats in the summer and wheel/skis in the winter.  I  do all of my fueling, cleaning, loading, basically im a one man show.   I love the float season, i love flying into little lakes, beaching on a island, dumping my passengers off and then swimming or fishing for a while if I have time before my next flight.   My problem is this;  I know that if I want to make any money I will probibaly have to move into the multi ifr stuff in the next couple of years before i get too old (im 26).  And the problem with that is I have done the ifr ground school twice (3-day cram fest in Vancouver for $200) and have not completed it either time.  I am bored shitless and cant concentrate!  I just cant get into it and I’m not sure why?  For you comm pilots out there flying ifr all the time; does it suck?  are you bored most of the time?  I go up to the cockpit on air canada A320 sometimes and visit the pilots and they dont seem to have much to do….or see. Any float drivers turned ifr drivers out there who can give me some encouragement?   Are there any fun ifr jobs where i dont have to dawn a shirt with those prissy gold bars?  Am I doomed to choose between a job I hate for the money or a job I love and poverty? Help, jon

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Question:

…..weights and ways, which would overload  an ass….

On our trip to the Rockies last summer, I proved to my own satisfaction (and Becky’s) that I STILL know how to overload an ass.         Wolfgang happy new year to one and all

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Hours and days, and weeks and months, and even years, go drifting by, suddenly one is old, and knows not when or how it happened, or even why. The hopes and dreams of youth have faded, replaced by practical considerations, some things are less easy than they were, must be left to younger generations. Wisdom, and some circumspection, have hopefully replaced blind action, one now looks, before one leaps, unless one wants to land in traction. Heart and muscles, once untiring, and seemingly eternal in reliance, warn now and then, that this was only temporary, punish now defiance. Knees and backs, once subject to weights and ways, which would overload  an ass, when asked to do so now, protest oft mightily, and one is forced at last to pass. The ten foot rod, once fished all day, with heavy flies and lines,  in heavy water, stands mostly unused in the corner now, perhaps to be passed on, to son or daughter. Tiny flies, once fished with confidence, and eyesight, which would have shamed a hawk, ousted now by flies on larger hooks, thicker lines, which sometimes cause a fish to baulk, Once perfect vision, coupled well with youthful drive,  and perfect hand coordination, now replaced by skill and long experience, which suffices yet,  in nearly every situation. How long though? Should one perhaps sit long and hard, and tie a multitude of flies? afraid that soon, some things will not be possible, with old and tired and rheumy eyes? Chest waders, hanging in their rightful place, mostly now  unused upon the cellar wall, aggressive wading is no longer quite the thing to do, it would be dangerous to fall. Many seasons, many fish,  blur at last, to strings of often fading, but still happy recollection, red letter days stand out of course, of special fish, and special flies, from ones collection. Watching enviously, as some spry youth then springs from rock to rock, or leaps the stream, things one did without a second thought, but of which one now, can only reminisce or dream. Wasted?  Oh I think not, for what would one have, to recall with such enduring pleasure, had one not fished at all, and had some other thing instead to spend ones leisure? Perhaps tis true, that youth is wasted on the young, and after all, life often is unfair, still and all, despite enough regrets, I would not change it, it was beyond compare. Friends, met on various waters through the years, some gone now, some still living, gentlemen and anglers, great and small, all enriched ones life, were great at giving, experience, advice, flies and leaders, and a multitude of other things, given with joy, no thought of selfishness within them, generous and kind, that others might enjoy. Some years yet, I hope I may still fish, grant that God, or providence, fulfil my dreams, wander still, enchanted lands, through woodlands, mountains, rivers, lakes, and streams. Meet new friends, tie flies, drink toasts, catch fish, perhaps at last invent the perfect fly? Sorrows? Yes some, but few of them to do with fishing, I will be happy, when at last I die. Hopefully some anglers will then think as well of me, and so ensure that I am not forgotten, that I may take my place among the cavalcade of sportsmen, like Walton, Skues or Cotton, mistake me not, I wish not for fame or recognition, perchance a thought, perhaps a prayer. that I may rest in peace, an honest angler, and an honest man, who, to men and fish, was fair. TL MC — "Where fishing is concerned, most anglers are basically manic excessives" http://www.mikeconnor.de

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Question:

Looking for a  good campsite on a lake or river for fly fishing for trout in Denali,AK.  Will backpack a short distance to campsite.  Are there any cabins on lakes or rivers in or close by Denali that offer good fly fishing?  Thanks for your help!    

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Try Every stream you come to you and you are sure to find some good fishing…. I was never dissapointed in Alaska..

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Question:

We have set up a free site where flyfishermen can find other flyfishermen who have services to offer (Financial Planners, Business Consultants, Landscapers, etc.). We also offer links to sites we like as well as reviews of products or destinations we enjoy. Fly Shops can list free if they offer discounts to our viewers. We will accept products or invitations to destinations but will only offer reviews if we like them. Stop by and take a look. http://www.outofchaos.com/flyfishing.html Tight Lines, Dave Fischbach Charlie Levin

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Where is the best place on the net to get fishing magazine subscriptions?

Try: http://nbaf.com/USsubscriptions.html They cover most topics and have all the popular stuff. Tim

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Question:

 10.  Your hook is on backwards. Anglerboy Any ideas to finish?

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 10.  Your hook is on backwards. Anglerboy Any ideas to finish?

9. Your fly is stuck on the fern 20 feet behind you.      - Ken — Ken Janik Oregon State University Dept of Electrical and Computer Engineering

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9. Your line is dry. — Dennis C. Aron Independent Representative #13921 Champion Fishing Co., Ltd e-mail for income opportunity – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text –  10.  Your hook is on backwards. Anglerboy Any ideas to finish?

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10.  Your hook is on backwards.

Two words.. "Fez Hat" email hacked to foil spammers

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 10.  Your hook is on backwards. Anglerboy Any ideas to finish? 9. Your fly is stuck on the fern 20 feet behind you.     – Ken

8. You have been fishing for ten minutes without realizing you lost your fly. David

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- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text –  10.  Your hook is on backwards. Anglerboy Any ideas to finish? 9. Your fly is stuck on the fern 20 feet behind you.     – Ken 8. You have been fishing for ten minutes without realizing you lost your fly. David

7) Your rod is so light you cast 16 times before you realized you left the rod on the river bank.

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 10.  Your hook is on backwards. Anglerboy Any ideas to finish?

1. You are fishing with me after telling me stories for years about how you never get skunked.

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– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – 9. Your line is dry. — Dennis C. Aron Independent Representative #13921 Champion Fishing Co., Ltd e-mail for income opportunity  10.  Your hook is on backwards. Anglerboy Any ideas to finish? youre sitting at home surfing the net

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10.  Your hook is on backwards. Anglerboy Any ideas to finish?

I have been casting the last hour without a fly? Why don’t we stop false casting? Someone drained your swimming pool? Bill Kiene Kiene’s Fly Shop Sacramento,CA,USA 800/4000FLY

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  9.  You’re too busy deleting all of the cheesy filler this list generates, to ever make it out the door : Anglerboy : Any ideas to finish? — gp

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    9.  You’re too busy deleting all of the cheesy filler this list   generates, to ever make it out the door 8.  Some carnsarned kid caught ‘em all. 7.  With a cane pole she cut, using worms. Anglerboy

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….your fly fishing, should of used live bait!! marco

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8. You have been fishing for ten minutes without realizing you lost your fly. David

        Actually, you didn’t lose your fly– you just lost the bend and point of the hook.  The fly still looks beautiful! — Tight Threads,         Charley Renn         Corvallis, OR

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10.  Your hook is on backwards. Anglerboy Any ideas to finish?

9. You just pissed in the stream and the fish know! 8. Your dog just pissed in the stream. 7. You’re wading in the same same smelly sneakers as two seasons ago. 6. You snapped the nymph off your tippet six  casts ago. 5. You’re tying up your flies with the same fingers you use to take a pinch of chewing tobacco 4. Your dry fly is not getting "down to where the fish are." 3. Your nymph is not skating across the film like it ought to. 2. Got drunk and missed the hatch. And the number one reason you’re not catching fish. . . The wife wants you to finish putting up the shelves in the pantry.

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You’ve been breathing too much head cement.

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10.  Your hook is on backwards. Two words.. "Fez Hat" email hacked to foil spammers

You’re spending all your fishing time on ROFF

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Question:

1. What significance does water color/clarity have for fishing strategy?   Also, is water level important on a particular stream?

Changes in colour/clarity may be more important than default colour/clarity.  Usual folklore is that FF success declines when a spate river is growing muddy and improves as it gets clearer.  But fish are adapted to the default environment (and can live all the time in permanently clouded water, as you find in clay/limestone regions.) Similarly, rising or falling water levels probably matter more than default levels.  The changes are important since they enlarge or reduce living space for both fish and their prey. The simplest tactic is to fish upstream as far as possible, to reduce the chances of the trout’s seeing you first. — |  Donald Phillipson, 4180 Boundary Road, Carlsbad Springs,  | |        Ontario, Canada, K0A 1K0, tel. 613 822 0734         |

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Dear Anglers: I’m a newbie to the sport and I have enjoyed it very much so far.  Haven’t caught anything yet, but my casting is improving tremendously with regular practice (though I have to admit that it’s a hell of a lot more fun practicing on the water than in the grass at the park like everyone recommends).  Now, I have a couple of questions for the experts: 1. What significance does water color/clarity have for fishing strategy?   Also, is water level important on a particular stream?

Hi Anthony Usually water clarity & level does affect fishing.  What you need to decide is what the norm is and go from there.  Water that is dirty after a storm may put the fishing off.  On the other hand if the fish have been suffering from water that is shallow and too warm, raising off colored water may very well improve fishing. Another very important consideration is water temperature in relation to the species of fish you are interested in.  Trout like cooler water than bass as an example. 2. I’ve read of fly fishers using Clouser minnows or streamers in the riffles, and other dry flies and such in slow moving/calm water.  Do you change your fly every few minutes as you are fishing your way down a stream or do you hit the riffles and then come back for the eddys and slow spots?

I do not change my fly every few minutes but instead decide what I want to fish — streamer, dry, or nymph — and do so.  I base my decision on what seems to be happening on the water at any given time.  If the fish are actively feeding I determine what they are eating and try to match that.  I often fish two flies when fish are feeding on or near the surface — a dry and an emerger of whatever species is hatching.   If nothing is happening on the water I usually fish nymphs or a nymph/streamer combination.  To fish the combo I tie a nymph on my tippet,then tie an additional piece of tippet to the bend of the nymph’s hook and tie on a streamer.  This rig will look like a small fish chasing a nymph and can be real effective.  Cast it quartering up-stream and let it dead drift as long as the current will allow.  Then let it swing accross current until it is downstream from you. Then repeat the process. Tight Lines Al Beatty BT’s Fly Fishing Products Bozeman, MT (96 catalog)

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I’m a newbie to the sport … 1. What significance does water color/clarity have for fishing strategy? Also, is water level important on a particular stream?

Colour/clarity is siginificant, as is water level.  The impact and degree of these varies widely.  A normally clear stream which is suddenly high and muddy after a big rain will be mostly unfishable, until it starts to clear.  It can still be FFed, though with a big weighted nymph or wet fly.  (The fish still need to eat.) 2. I’ve read of fly fishers using Clouser minnows or streamers in the riffles, and other dry flies and such in slow moving/calm water.  Do you change your fly every few minutes as you are fishing your way down a stream or do you hit the riffles and then come back for the eddys and slow spots?

Basically, NO.  That is, don’t complicate things.  If you want to use a dry fly, then use a dry fly.  If you want to use a streamer (such as Clouser minnow), then do that.  For starters, use a big nymph, or maybe an attractor wet fly.  Cast across and let the fly swing downstream.  When it gets straight down below you, strip in line, a few inches at a time, and repeat.  The areas that you want to concentrate on are the seams (where the fast water makes a noticable line against the slower stuff) and around visible structure like rocks.  You can do the same with an attractor dry fly.  I know it’s BIG HERESY, but you can cast across, and let the fly swing down in the current.  Try to minimize, and eventually eliminate drag (the wake produced by the fly being pulled across the water by the line/leader).  Again, concentrate on the seams and visible structure. Don’t worry about big long casts.  Unless you fish some huge river like the Missouri, most of your casts will probably be less than 30 or 40 feet.  Focus on not slapping the line, not dropping your backcast too low, and such. When you get comfortable with this basic stuff, then you might try "strategies" like fishing nymphs downstream, and working your way down the river for several hundred yards, then coming back up with a dry, this time casting in the "proper" upstream method. Then there’s matching the hatch and all that, which will eventually come. To answer your basic question, most of us DO NOT do as you pictured: dry fly this yard and a half of water, wet fly that, nymph another couple of feet, streamer across there, back to a dry, then another streamer.  We pretty much focus on one strategy/concept/idea/dream and K.I.S.S. Hope that helps, see you OUT THERE. — Bob Lundy IWFFC Mississauga, ON, Canada **new**     http://home.ican.net/~rlundy/

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[rip !] 1. What significance does water color/clarity have for fishing strategy? Also, is water level important on a particular stream?

I love it when the water goes off color.   I whip out my big flies and my 3X.  I am a bit of a heretic because I relish the highest, muddiest part of runoff.  No people and I nail big trout my friend.  I do not seek perfect conditions ever in my fishing, I simply try to see that perfection which is always there.   2. I’ve read of fly fishers using Clouser minnows or streamers in the riffles, and other dry flies and such in slow moving/calm water.  Do you change your fly every few minutes as you are fishing your way down a stream or do you hit the riffles and then come back for the eddys and slow spots?

Good question.  The answer is, only if one or the other is not producing.   If you’re catchin’ ‘em in the tail outs or riffles, you ain’t be movin’ down to the pockets, will ya ? TimW

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Dear Anglers: I’m a newbie to the sport and I have enjoyed it very much so far.  Haven’t caught anything yet, but my casting is improving tremendously with regular practice (though I have to admit that it’s a hell of a lot more fun practicing on the water than in the grass at the park like everyone recommends).  Now, I have a couple of questions for the experts: 1. What significance does water color/clarity have for fishing strategy?   Also, is water level important on a particular stream? 2. I’ve read of fly fishers using Clouser minnows or streamers in the riffles, and other dry flies and such in slow moving/calm water.  Do you change your fly every few minutes as you are fishing your way down a stream or do you hit the riffles and then come back for the eddys and slow spots? Thanks in advance, — Anthony J. Petrella University of Pittsburgh Department of Mechanical Engineering

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: runoff.  No people and I nail big trout my friend.  I do not seek : perfect conditions ever in my fishing, I simply try to see that perfection : which is always there.   Tim Walker, demonstrating that he is actually the roff Buddha. — Rick T. Rick Fletcher   –   http://www.chem.uidaho.edu/~fletcher/ Associate professor of chemistry  |  That’s Idaho, not Iowa.    | ad hominem University of Idaho               |  Upper Left Hand Corner.    | ad hominem Moscow, ID 83844-2343             |  No, I don’t grow potatoes. | ad hominem

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*SNIP* The worst caster in the world is going to catch more fish then (boy, is this going to cause a rumpus) an olympic gold medal caster (if there was one) if they can make their fly float more naturally while it’s on the water.

Only true if the worst caster in the world can get it to land delicately on target.  If you can’t get your fly to the target, everything else is a moot point.   But, you’re right, it doesn’t have to look pretty it just has to work. The thing you  may find out is that it’s a lot easier to consistently put the fly on the  target if your casting is good. I agree totally with your comment on drift.  In real estate it’s "location, location, location"  IMO in fly fishing it’s "presentation, presentation, presentation".                                                            Dan Dan Gracia                                                               Orvis West Coast Fly Fishing Schools If you kill that big fish you can’t catch ‘em again.  So what if they eat other fish?  If you kill the big ones there will only be little ones left (funny how that works!).

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I’m no expert, but have caught a few trout over the years, so I can only tell you what I’m most comfortable with and what works for me. And, I’ll just be addressing dry flies. 1- if the water is very high fast and dirty I don’t bother. If it’s high fast and clear, well…. I’ll get to that in a sec. 2- I fish mostly attractors, and, worry about matching a hatch only if we’re in the middle of a major hatch period. Of course I’ll give a hopper or some such a chance later in the season. 3- I fish and travel UP and cross stream, fishing ahead of myself and letting the fly float down past me. 4- a good cast is all very well and good, and looks impressive as hell to somebody watching from the shore, but, the fish could care less about a cast as long as the fly dosn’t slam down on the water and you don’t lay your line right over the fish. The worst caster in the world is going to catch more fish then (boy, is this going to cause a rumpus) an olympic gold medal caster (if there was one) if they can make their fly float more naturally while it’s on the water. Lolo Mt.

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Question:

I’m planning a trip to the Portland, Oregon area the first week of October.  Can anybody provide advice on rivers, lakes, oceans, etc. for fishing, including spin and bait fishing for sturgeon, walleyes, steelhead, etc.  I will also need a guide for one day.  Can anyone personally recommend someone? Thanks for your help, Mike

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I’m planning a trip to the Portland, Oregon area the first week of October.  Can anybody provide advice on rivers, lakes, oceans, etc. for

                                                        ^^^^^^ I’d suggest the Pacific, just for ease of access. — Derek R. Larson           Indiana University        Dept. of History                 "Nothing interesting occurred today…"         -Meriwether Lewis at Ft. Clatsop, Oregon, Jan.4th, 1806

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writes: I’m planning a trip to the Portland, Oregon area the first week of October.  Can anybody provide advice on rivers, lakes, oceans, etc. for fishing, including spin and bait fishing for sturgeon, walleyes, steelhead, etc.  I will also need a guide for one day.  Can anyone personally recommend someone?

    In that time slot, I’d try the Upper Clackamas for late summer steelhead and/or the Wilson for searun cutthroats, both pretty close to town.  Glenn Young of Beaverton OR is a very good guide for ffing in the Tillamook Bay area, but I can’t find his phone number –perhaps another ROFFer can supply it. –Roger, Portland

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- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – writes: I’m planning a trip to the Portland, Oregon area the first week of October.  Can anybody provide advice on rivers, lakes, oceans, etc. for fishing, including spin and bait fishing for sturgeon, walleyes, steelhead, etc.  I will also need a guide for one day.  Can anyone personally recommend someone?    In that time slot, I’d try the Upper Clackamas for late summer steelhead and/or the Wilson for searun cutthroats, both pretty close to town.  Glenn Young of Beaverton OR is a very good guide for ffing in the Tillamook Bay area, but I can’t find his phone number –perhaps another ROFFer can supply it. –Roger, Portland

I show that the number is 503-642-4570 for Glenn Young. Don Chen Mid-Willamette Fly Fishers (Corvallis, Oregon)

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- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – writes: I’m planning a trip to the Portland, Oregon area the first week of October.  Can anybody provide advice on rivers, lakes, oceans, etc. for fishing, including spin and bait fishing for sturgeon, walleyes, steelhead, etc.  I will also need a guide for one day.  Can anyone personally recommend someone?     In that time slot, I’d try the Upper Clackamas for late summer steelhead and/or the Wilson for searun cutthroats, both pretty close to town.  Glenn Young of Beaverton OR is a very good guide for ffing in the Tillamook Bay area, but I can’t find his phone number –perhaps another ROFFer can supply it. –Roger, Portland

You can contact Glenn at (503) 642-4570.  I’ve fished with Glenn a number of times and he is top notch and his rates are very reasonable. Be SURE to try the searun cutthroat–best fly rod fish in the state!! Paul

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That’s a pretty good time of year to try sight fishing to steelhead in the "skinny water" high up on any of the coastal rivers.   Greg in Albany – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – writes: I’m planning a trip to the Portland, Oregon area the first week of October.  Can anybody provide advice on rivers, lakes, oceans, etc. for fishing, including spin and bait fishing for sturgeon, walleyes, steelhead, etc.  I will also need a guide for one day.  Can anyone personally recommend someone?    In that time slot, I’d try the Upper Clackamas for late summer steelhead and/or the Wilson for searun cutthroats, both pretty close to town.  Glenn Young of Beaverton OR is a very good guide for ffing in the Tillamook Bay area, but I can’t find his phone number –perhaps another ROFFer can supply it. –Roger, Portland

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   In that time slot, I’d try the Upper Clackamas for late summer steelhead and/or the Wilson for searun cutthroats, both pretty close to town.  Glenn Young of Beaverton OR is a very good guide for ffing in the Tillamook Bay area, but I can’t find his phone number –perhaps another ROFFer can supply it. –Roger, Portland

Glenn Young’s number: Hackle and Hide Glenn Young  (503)642-4570

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Question:

I am headed down to Bend, Oregon this weekend and wanted to do a little fly fishing.  I know only portions of the Deschutes are open at this time (Bend north to Lake Billy Chinook) and was wondering if anyone had any advice on where to go and what to use.  Email me directly…and thanks in advance. Kevin Curry Linfield College

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I am headed down to Bend, Oregon this weekend and wanted to do a little fly fishing.  I know only portions of the Deschutes are open at this time (Bend north to Lake Billy Chinook) and was wondering if anyone had any advice on where to go and what to use.  Email me directly…and thanks in advance. Kevin Curry Linfield College

Kevin and other Deschutes flyfishers: Check out the Online Gillie section at Flyfishers Online.  A long-time guide on the river has begun writing monthly articles as well as contributing condition reports for the river. Online Gillie is at: http://www.flyfishers.com:80/flyfishers-online/flyfishers-gillie.html Condition Reports are at: http://www.flyfishers.com:80/flyfishers-online/flyfishers-reports.html Cy Happy, a guide and partner at Ray’s River Dories (also at Flyfishers Online) floated Trout Creek to Maupin a week ago and reported that the high water flow had changed the bank topography quite considerably. For instance, at the favorite island lunch stop just south of North Junction he reported that the water had swept a good number of the bankside trees away, leaving the channel quite navigable; a change, indeed, from the past few years. Hope this helps. Best, Peter Yoakum, Editor Flyfishers Online

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Question:

Enjoy your reports.  Keep them up.  April 4 particularly important:  I was scheduled to fish out of Miami but had to cancel because I couldn’t get down there; rescheduled to June.  Interested in June 26, 27, or 29 with you; are those dates open?  If so, what’s the rate, what’s the likely target, and can my buddy spin fish? Dave Motes Oakton, Virginia

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Enjoy your reports.  Keep them up.  April 4 particularly important:  I was scheduled to fish out of Miami but had to cancel because I couldn’t get down there; rescheduled to June.  Interested in June 26, 27, or 29 with you; are those dates open?  If so, what’s the rate, what’s the likely target, and can my buddy spin fish? Dave Motes Oakton, Virginia

Dave, I don’t have any time open in the foreseeable future.  E-mail me at Thanks. Marshall

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Today promised to be a great day but turned out to be so-so because of the lack of fish.  We fished west of Key West on the oceanside flats during the morning and had four or five good shots at feeding permit that were mudding and tailing.  It was a good thing they were so active because the water was very silted up.  In fact a couple of fish never seemed to see the fly even though it was put right in front of them.  We did get three fish to tail on the fly but did not hook any of them. Because of the dirty water I went to the gulfside around midday but there was way too much water up on the flats there.  Between noon and 2 PM we saw one fish.  Fitz C. hooked and lost a cobia following a ray. Then we lost our visibility to high cloud cover.  We decided to go look for tarpon because the wind dropped, but couldn’t find any. Finally, we cast to some "floater" permit that were mooning and nymphing in a channel.  We got some follows but no takers. Marshall Cutchin

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Question:

-40F temperatures

(Bud Kuenzli) writes: No no non! I straightened the boy out and reminded him how miserable it is here in winter. Another posting like that and I’ll look this guy up in the phone book and….ah hell, I’d probably end up buying him a beer and chuckling. Damn!

Yeah, you musta found that eating place. Yeah keep reminding people about the cold. In cyberspace after you get where you’re going you still don’t know where you are.

Yep.  Phone system too.

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vacation, stick with Hawai -that’s what Alaskans do!

True, true, but when you live in Paradise, you must get Outside occasionally, and what better place to visit than Hawaii (aside from Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan 8^)? I still say miserable is in the eye of the beholder… Dave

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vacation, stick with Hawaii -that’s what Alaskans do!

Yeah what’s what some of my friends do: go ski Mauna Kea.

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It was a great trip!

It was a tourist trip.  Not representative of life there (the sampling bias included summer, near the ocean, etc.).  Small details. However…. While it is a nice place to visit, I myself wouldn’t want to live there. From what I saw, my conclusion was this: To live in Alaska, a person should       (1) be nearly independently wealthy

Not necessary. and/or (2) be a rugged self-sufficient individualist.

The Alaskan women’s lament:         The odds are good, the goods are odd. It came at some distress to me that a couple of my male friends might be guilty of some of the abuse one hears about up there (not all just a couple).  Not an easy picture. Living in or near a major city (Anchorage, Fairbanks, or Juneau) wouldn’t

"Lost Anchorage != Alaska"         [Not my words, merely a quote from friends in Fairbanks.] I don’t have any climate records handy but heard about winter temps that can be as low as -20 and -40 degrees F.

This is highly dependent upon ocean proxmity.  Interior temperatures get much colder and have other interesting consequences. Don’t allow my pessimistic statements detour you from your dreams. However, I STRONGLY advise you to VISIT Alaska BEFORE moving there.  

You aren’t pessimistic, in fact, your notes were on the tame side. You can read books, looks at pictures, and tabulate statistics, but there is no substitute for the actual experience.           Bingo. Go and spend a month traveling around the cities and rural areas.   Most cities/towns have some sort of Chamber of commerce, or a visitors information center.  Get to know the local people;

Panel 26: alt.culture.alaska.

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It was a great trip! It was a tourist trip.  Not representative of life there (the sampling bias included summer, near the ocean, etc.).  Small details.

Alaska is nowhere. Don’t bother going there. It’s cold, dark and miserable in winter. In summer the prices are jacked up for the tourists and the people are rude and the roads are lousy. It rains in the south and there’s nothing to see around Fairbanks at all. Talk about a crummy place – I’d just drive right through that place! But Anchorage is pretty with the Mountains and ocean. It’s a nice spot that’s worth spending time at. (hi, Eugene   ) — Bud Kuenzli WL7CIK XLTRMK In cyberspace after you get where you’re going you still don’t know where you are.

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Suitably warned! (Bud Kuenzli) writes: Alaska is nowhere. Don’t bother going there. It’s cold, dark and miserable in winter. In summer the prices are jacked up for the tourists and the people are rude and the roads are lousy. It rains in the south and there’s nothing to see around Fairbanks at all. Talk about a crummy place – I’d just drive right through that place! But Anchorage is pretty with the Mountains and ocean. It’s a nice spot that’s worth spending time at.

You left out infested with killer, blood thirsty, man-eating mosquitos (female). Then there’s winter stagnent air which hangs over Fairbanks….. Square tires. We need to introduce you to the high religion of Vail.  R.s.a. has started moving to the fine are of selective editing. (hi, Eugene   )

Hi Bud!  You must have found the crab place 8^).

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: Alaska is nowhere. Don’t bother going there. It’s cold, dark and miserable : in winter. In summer the prices are jacked up for the tourists and the : people are rude and the roads are lousy. It rains in the south and there’s : nothing to see around Fairbanks at all. Talk about a crummy place – I’d : just drive right through that place! But Anchorage is pretty with the : Mountains and ocean. It’s a nice spot that’s worth spending time at. Bud, I guess there are some things you can control and others that you can’t. No sense complaining about the weather but… You forgot to mention how nice Vail is. Vail.  That’s the ticket. Dave Mann           | "It is impossible, or not easy, to do                     |  noble acts without the proper equipment."

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– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – says… I would suggest to visit in the not so pleasent Winter also before moving up here. Winter. Winter is quite pleasant. 8^) I agree… fewer tourists, more relaxed pace, less crowded and, winter colors are wonderful…

NONSENSE ! Winter in Alaska is MISERABLE. It’s COLD, it’s DARK, there’s NOTHING to do. NOBODY would enjoy it unless they are masochists. If you want a good winter vacation, stick with Hawai -that’s what Alaskans do! — Bud Kuenzli WL7CIK XLTRMK In cyberspace after you get where you’re going you still don’t know where you are.

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(Fuminous Bandersnatch) writes: …Beautiful sunrises of pinks and purples and fluorescent oranges. Also,  sun dogs, air pockets that refract light commensurate with their varied temperatures.  It’s not unusual to have ground level -40 and 100ft straight up a temperature of +20.  The differences in air density can produce "double vision" i.e., two suns.

Keep those -40F temperatures coming. Continue injecting some of that reality! Where else can such meterological oddities be seen???

South Pole, Antarctica, Siberia, Greenland, NWT, Yukon. Ref: Rainbows, Halos, and Glories by Greenly. and nifty people, too.  Yep… winter’s OK by me… for a month.

Yep.

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(Fuminous Bandersnatch) writes: …Beautiful sunrises of pinks and purples and fluorescent oranges. Also,  sun dogs, air pockets that refract light commensurate with their varied temperatures.  It’s not unusual to have ground level -40 and 100ft straight up a temperature of +20.  The differences in air density can produce "double vision" i.e., two suns. Keep those -40F temperatures coming. Continue injecting some of that reality!

No no non! I straightened the boy out and reminded him how miserable it is here in winter. Another posting like that and I’ll look this guy up in the phone book and….ah hell, I’d probably end up buying him a beer and chuckling. Damn! — Bud Kuenzli WL7CIK XLTRMK In cyberspace after you get where you’re going you still don’t know where you are.

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I would suggest to visit in the not so pleasent Winter also before moving up here.

Winter. Winter is quite pleasant. 8^)

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says… I would suggest to visit in the not so pleasent Winter also before moving up here. Winter. Winter is quite pleasant. 8^)

I agree… fewer tourists, more relaxed pace, less crowded and, winter colors are wonderful…Beautiful sunrises of pinks and purples and fluorescent oranges.  There is/was an ice cream bar, I think called "sidewalk sundae" that’s vanilla ice cream covered with orange sherbert.  Those are the colors but with pastel grape and hot pink bubble gum thrown in.  Sunsets aren’t from the pastel palette rather, hunter orange, a narrow band of turquoise blending to an ever darkening grape jello.   It’s hard to look at.  The orange so bright and the jello so dark, contrast is beyond what my eyes can comfortably accommodate. But, because sun set/rises occur slowly (at this latitude), there is a point that viewing is possible- provided ice fog will allow.  "Icebows"- like a rainbow but from ice occur too…  Really neat.  Also,  sun dogs, air pockets that refract light commensurate with their varied temperatures.   It’s not unusual to have ground level -40 and 100ft straight up a temperature of +20.  The differences in air density cane produce "double vision" i.e., two suns.  Where else can such meterological oddities be seen???  and nifty people, too.  Yep… winter’s OK by me… for a month.

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I would suggest to visit in the not so pleasent Winter also before moving up here.  I and my family love it but it is not for everyone.  That’s one of the reasons I love it.  It will take a long time before the "Californacators" get up here.  You won’t how-ever find a more friendly, caring and energetic bunch of people anywhere. Ace in Two Rivers, Ak

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Am interested in moving to Alaska.  Would like to visit first.  Anyone here been there?  Please share as much information as you wish concerning topics related to weather, jobs, favorite spots, village life, etc. Thanks to all.

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Am interested in moving to Alaska.  Would like to visit first.  Anyone here been there?  Please share as much information as you wish concerning topics related to weather, jobs, favorite spots, village life, etc. Thanks to all. I went to Alaska for six weeks in 1984. It is, without question, beautiful all over. I was in anchorage for a couple days, then off to Fairbanks. We spent a week on the Tanana river, two weeks mountain climbing at Black Rapids (Gunnysack Mountain), and a week up at the Glacier in Denali. The other week was spent goofing off. We got there the last week of July; spent all of August there, and then a week of September. There was 24 hours of daylight at first, and by the end of the trip, it was snowing. Contrast. Big contrast. I noticed that everyone I talked to Loved Alaska. I thought, well, that makes sense. But then I got talking to this old lady taxi driver, and she made a profound observation. It was Summer, and all of the people who had spent the last winter there, and realized what the winter’s were all about, had left Alaska for somewhere else. Probably left during the last winter. She said people usually stay a season, and if they’re cut out for it, they stay. If they can’t they leave. Alaska just isn’t a wishy washy kind of place.  I kept noticing how healthy everything was. Everything from bugs to bears are like the top of the line. There isn’t much polution (yet), and living things just flourish. I Loved Alaska. There’s a piece of me still up there, and like the Grand Canyon, I would recommend anyone with even the vaguest of opportunities go! Go without question. But then, I haven’t wintered there. It’s a significant consideration. db

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Am interested in moving to Alaska.  Would like to visit first.  Anyone here been there?  Please share as much information as you wish concerning topics related to weather, jobs, favorite spots, village life, etc.  Thanks to all.

Joyce –  I just spent 16 days (Aug 23 – Sept 7) in Alaska.  It was a package tour; traveled by bus, train, boat and foot.  Visited Anchorage, Valdez, Denali National Park, Fairbanks, Delta Junction, Tok, Chicken, Eagle, and then followed the Yukon River into Canada, visiting Dawson City and Whitehorse. We continued south back into Alaska and went to Skagway, Juneau, Glacier Bay National Park, Sitka, and finally flew out of Vancouver. (Whew!) Scenery was/is spectacular; mountains, meadows, rivers, islands and glaciers. It was Autumn up there during that time; the Popular trees were golden yellow. Weather was mild; temps = 40s to 60s F.  Saw much wildlife; bears (Grizzly, Black, Brown), caribou, moose, Bald Eagles, Daw-(spelling?)-Sheep (mountain goats), swans, seals, whales, salmon, etc.  We spent time in all the major cities as well as some of the rural outback towns.  Talked to permanent residents, part-time (summer) residents and the native (Indian) peoples. It was a great trip! However…. While it is a nice place to visit, I myself wouldn’t want to live there. From what I saw, my conclusion was this: To live in Alaska, a person should        (1) be nearly independently wealthy and/or (2) be a rugged self-sufficient individualist. The cost of living is rather high. Due to the remoteness of the entire state, most everything has to be shipped-in from the ‘Lower-48′ (generally out of Seattle).  This transportation by boat/plane/train can raise the price of an item anywhere from 30% to 80% (my rough estimate).  95% of all food has to be imported (fact).  I would guess similar percentages would apply to clothing, hardware, building supplies, etc.  Houses that would sell for 100K here in Tucson, cost 250K in Alaska.  Building over permafrost can add significant costs to a house.  Most sources of employment are dependent on the major industry which is tourism (running neck and neck with industrial fishing and logging). All of these are seasonal.   Tourism season runs from May through Sept; a five month window to earn an annual salary.  Some people I talked to had one job in Alaska during the summer then spent the winter working at another job somewhere else, someplace warm. Living in or near a major city (Anchorage, Fairbanks, or Juneau) wouldn’t be too difficult.  But those who live in the rural ‘outback’ areas have to deal with some unique logistical problems.  Most of these towns have no (or very limited) grocery/hardware stores.  Getting something a simple as food or a tool can be a major project.  In the town of Eagle we were told that all groceries were ordered out of a catalog and delivered once every two weeks.  Eagle has a dirt road to it. Many towns do not have roads connecting them to the world; bush-planes are the only way in/out.   In these places, food and other supplies arrive about once a month or so.   Less often during the winter.  If a person has a medical problem and it is necessary to be flown to a major city, the transportation bill alone can run several thousands of dollars.  Many medical plans do not cover transportation costs. I don’t have any climate records handy but heard about winter temps that can be as low as -20 and -40 degrees F.   Any good local public or university library near you should have historical records from the National Weather Service.  While there you might also find some books on living in Alaska.  Please do some research to verify or disprove my impressions. Don’t allow my pessimistic statements detour you from your dreams. However, I STRONGLY advise you to VISIT Alaska BEFORE moving there.   You can read books, looks at pictures, and tabulate statistics, but there is no substitute for the actual experience.   Go and spend a month traveling around the cities and rural areas.   Most cities/towns have some sort of Chamber of commerce, or a visitors information center.  Get to know the local people; find out about the costs and living conditions/problems.   Best of luck to you on your journey.  |  Bruce Russell  : AZMET Lab = (520) 621-9742 : FAX = (520) 621-9796    |  |  Soil, Water Science Dept., 429 Shantz Bldg #38, Univ of AZ,           |  |  Tucson, AZ  85721                    http://ag.arizona.edu/~brussell  |

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snip…chuckle chuckle I don’t have any climate records handy but heard about winter temps that can be as low as -20 and -40 degrees F.

You must have got a good laugh at those balmy temperatures. 8^) -75F (where our thermometer bottomed out – might have been a bit chillier) is our house’s record.  :) We keep a portable generator on-hand  in case we would have a power failure when it is cold. We need power to run the oil-furnace, but we have two fireplaces (not efficient) to help out when needed. I live outside Fairbanks. It gets fairly chilly at times.

While it is interesting visiting friends, there’s the little touches which make life there more bearable like the plugs for block heaters at every decent parking spot.  I had a chance to see the new elementary school (I should have taken a look at your high school while I was there). It is every things which I think most people are clueless about (you have running water at your house? none of my friends do).  First time I ever met some one with a Clivus at home (it was fun, as opposed to certain public places). I might be back toward the end of Feb. or early March to go climbing. Depends what happens winter 97-98. So did you get all-you-eat king crab?  Or have the owners folded and head South? 8^)

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snip…chuckle chuckle I don’t have any climate records handy but heard about winter temps that can be as low as -20 and -40 degrees F.   Any good local public or university library near you should have historical records from the National Weather Service.  While there you might also find some books on living in Alaska.  Please do some research to verify or disprove my impressions.

  There have been days when -40F seemed like a heat wave and that’s no exageration.  -75F (where our thermometer bottomed out – might have been a bit chillier) is our house’s record. We cut holes in our walls to let the air in the room get to the pipes in the walls so they wouldn’t freeze. We’ve just placed those sections back and take them out as needed – not often.  :)  :) We keep a portable generator on-hand  in case we would have a power failure when it is cold. We need power to run the oil-furnace, but we have two fireplaces (not efficient) to help out when needed. I live outside Fairbanks. It gets fairly chilly at times. — Bud Kuenzli WL7CIK XLTRMK In cyberspace after you get where you’re going you still don’t know where you are.

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Wood – Tikchik State Park Kayaks are an enjoyable means of water- based transportation.  One need not be a seasoned kayaker to learn how to paddle effectively.  Our guides, all of whom are experienced paddlers, have a flare for teaching the various techniques. Come paddle with us through the nation