Question:

Hi  Sam, If you have a full size pickup, you can load the boat into the back of it pretty easily. Right side up and transom against the cab. A rack on top of most vehicles is pretty good too if you have two healthy people to load and unload it. A small trailer is the easiest way to get a small boat around locally. You will use the boat more if it is easy to deal with. A 14′ x 48" (bottom width) Jon boat on a trailer is very nice for 2 anglers. Most 12′ Jon boats are only 32" wide at the bottom and are pretty tippy? — Bill Kiene Kiene’s Fly Shop Sacramento, CA, USA www.kiene.com

Hello there folks.

I’m pretty much a novice at fishing but I have – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – been getting into it lately, and I’m at the point where I would like to go beyond fishing from land, its just too limiting.  It would be great to explore local lakes and rivers with a fishing boat.  Since I’m really not an expert fisherman I just need something that will suffice.  My two primary goals are two find something thats inexpensive and highly portable, and can fit two people, since I often fish with a friend.  I did check out a boat today, it was a Voyager series 4700 Jon boat, 12′ length.  The base price was $680, then when you factor in cost of electric motor, battery, oars, etc, it comes out to $1,100.  I can live with that price, but the thing that turned me off was that transporting the boat would be no easy task, and storing it might be a little challenging.  Are there any other options in this price range that would offer many of the same features that this boat has, but would be easier to transport and store?  Many thanks for any ideas you would have. –sam

Response:

You don’t say what part of the country you’re in. If you have room for a 12 footer on a trailer, that is definitely the way to go. Otherwise, a 12 foot johnboat will usually travel well in the bed of a full sized pickup truck. I used to have a 12 footer that I carried on the roof, and that worked OK, too. It was even a piece of cake to get it up there, as long as I had maneuvering room. I had receiver type hitch mounted on my little pickup, and instead of a hitch ball, it had a piece of tubing about 4 feet tall mounted on the hitch. Atop the tubing was an upside down trolling motor transom mount. I even had a little wheel that mounted right on the point of the bow. I could flip the boat over, pick it up by the stern and walk it anywhere with that little wheel rolling along. Then it was just a matter of picking up the stern, dropping the transom into the mounting bracket on top of the pole and tightening up the clamps. Then pick up the bow, walk it around to the front of the truck and set it on the roof rack. After I got the gear, battery and electric out of the boat, I could load it on top of the truck in about 2 or 3 minutes. As far as cost, I would wait till winter and look for a used one. You should be able to get into a 3 or 4 year old 12 to 14 footer with an electric for less than 500 bucks used. RichZ

Question:

I mean yes of course there are words in Cosmo. <ahem! Sorry, but I don’t believe you.  I’m going to the bathroom and check…. Tie string to the kitchen handle first just incase you get lost or your eyesight fails.

No worries, I have a cane and a map.  :)

Response:

Uh, oh! he’s read Cosmo.  the jig’s up, gals!

Read???  You mean there’s words in that?

Response:

he’s read Cosmo.  the jig’s up, gals! Read???  You mean there’s words in that? Is there??? I mean yes of course there are words in Cosmo. <ahem!

Sorry, but I don’t believe you.  I’m going to the bathroom and check….

Response:

She appears squeaky clean and innocent, and yet you and I know it’s all a front. That girl is trouble. Oh, no– you’ve seen through my diabolically clever disguise! I’ve got your number…I know what you apparently innocent women are like. I don’t fall for that sweetness and light, heart and flowers routine. I’m a man of the world, I’ve seen naughty pictures in clothing catalogues and read Cosmopolitan.

Uh, oh! he’s read Cosmo.  the jig’s up, gals! Erminia

Response:

Oh, I love twister. When I was young I played it very often. The last time I played it with my wife, she got pregnant.

from playing twister? Daniel — Teilhard

– Computers in the future may weight no more than 1.5 tons.     -Popular Mechanics, forecasting the relentless march of science, 1949

Response:

I also want to play, you know?

 hi teilhard, my my aren’t you lookin’ mighty fine this morning! jean – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – — Teilhard The Extraterrestrial

Response:

I also want to play, you know? It’s called ‘Fishing for Alan’ I swear it was Philippa’s fault. She appears squeaky clean and innocent, and yet you and I know it’s all a front. That girl is trouble.

*laughing this has been my sneaking suspicion all along.  same with mary beth.  That wholesome good natured witty thing is just a trick…said the spider to the fly… (but whatta way to go!) jean – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – (hi Philippa

Response:

I also want to play, you know? It’s called ‘Fishing for Alan’

I swear it was Philippa’s fault. — Teilhard The Extraterrestrial

Response:

I also want to play, you know? I have twister, Mary Beth

Oh, I love twister. When I was young I played it very often. The last time I played it with my wife, she got pregnant. Oh, I love twister. — Teilhard The Extraterrestrial

Response:

I also want to play, you know? — Teilhard The Extraterrestrial

Response:

I also want to play, you know?

I have twister, Mary Beth

Response:

Will you talk to me now??????? Nope.

If I told you that I never meant to piss you off, would you talk to me? Remember, life shouldn’t have to be like credit report, huh? One week, one day, 5 hours, 39 minutes and 35 seconds. 205 cigarettes not smoked, saving $31.91. Life saved: 17 hours, 5 minutes. — Teilhard The Extraterrestrial

Response:

Will you talk to me now???????

Nope. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -Not if you keep testing me. Bruce.

Response:

Will you talk to me now???????

Not if you keep testing me. Bruce.

Response:

Will you talk to me now??????? Not if you keep testing me.

I already tested you and you passed with honours. I haven’t seen much people as positive as you, man, seriously. So, I won’t keep testing you, will you talk to me now? One week, one day, 5 hours, 0 minutes and 37 seconds. 205 cigarettes not smoked, saving $31.81. Life saved: 17 hours, 5 minutes. — Teilhard The Extraterrestrial

Response:

i  would have before so why not now, i just never saw you before today. Oh, thanks. How is your toe? it kinda hurts, i dropped a glass on it.

Ouch!! You must be careful with the tableware!! I mean, do not go around breaking glasses, huh?? LOL. No, seriously, that must hurt quite a bit. Hope you didn’t cut, did you? Now, what is it that kicks up blood circulation? Hot water or warm water? I would go for warm water, feels nicer. Do you have someone to rub your toe? I’d be glad to do it, but I am far away. Anyway, hope it doesn’t hurt much anymore. not that you;re talking to me. Oh, yes, I was, definitely. yeah right! :p

Way, of course! – One week, one day, 4 hours, 40 minutes and 29 seconds. 204 cigarettes not smoked, saving $31.75. Life saved: 17 hours, 0 minutes. – Teilhard The Extraterrestrial

Response:

fuck … ignore me – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – i  would have before so why not now, i just never saw you before today. Oh, thanks. How is your toe? it kinda hurts, i dropped a glass on it. not that you;re talking to me. Oh, yes, I was, definitely. yeah right! :p One week, one day, 2 hours, 53 minutes and 44 seconds. 203 cigarettes not smoked, saving $31.47. Life saved: 16 hours, 55 minutes.

Response:

Will you talk to me now??????? — Teilhard The Extraterrestrial

Response:

i  would have before so why not now, i just never saw you before today.

Oh, thanks. How is your toe? not that you;re talking to me.

Oh, yes, I was, definitely. One week, one day, 2 hours, 53 minutes and 44 seconds. 203 cigarettes not smoked, saving $31.47. Life saved: 16 hours, 55 minutes. — Teilhard The Extraterrestrial

Response:

Question:

Sure there’s a better way, but to all those who replied to my post. Many thanks I will follow it up. Mike…. Why not propitious?  ROFF? Where else did you see it? Ian So many questions, so little knowledge!!!

Response:

What do you plan on doing with the bottom and top? Never seen a cane wading staff before…. like to se it when you done john

Actually the old US 10th Division WWII ski poles are made of split cane, like a kind of hell-for-stout cane rod. I’ve got a couple around and have been considering coverting one. Mike — Michael McGuire                     Hewlett Packard Laboratories Phone: (650)-857-5491               Palo Alto, CA 94303-0971          

Response:

Sure there’s a better way, but to all those who replied to my post. Many thanks I will follow it up. Mike…. Why not propitious?  ROFF? Where else did you see it? Ian So many questions, so little knowledge!!!

Too complex to explain the remark on the relative propitiousness of your question I am afraid, it would waste too much space, and probably not make much sense.  I believe I saw the post on one of the UK groups first. Probably uk.rec.fishing.game. ROFF is,  rec.outdoors.fishing.fly, and is an international group, although dominated by Americans.  You posted individually to the groups concerned, and so I realised it was not a troll etc, before I saw it on ROFF.  I replied to your e-mail because I was not certain which groups you read regularly, if at all, and you obviously really did want some info. TL MC

Response:

Hi I’m trying to build some cane and wonder if anyone can help. I’m using the triangular formar method. The info I have is old so need to know what glues are best to use to a) hold the cane to the formar i.e it has to release with heat and b) to glue the cane. Having split the cane it has  side to side bows. i.e it zig zags. Should I straighten this and if so how or just cut oversize and plane straight thereby cutting across the grain more. My father used to build his own rods and I have acquired his cane and formars. I’m only doing it for interest and will only make a wading staff. Cheers  Ian

Response:

Hi I’m trying to build some cane and wonder if anyone can help.

<SNIP Just as well I saw your post elsewhere before it arrived on ROFF.  Not exactly a propitious time to be asking about cane on here.  No way you could know that of course. You will find all you need here; http://www.teleport.com/~gord/canelink.shtml TL MC

Response:

What do you plan on doing with the bottom and top? Never seen a cane wading staff before…. like to se it when you done john

Response:

Hi I’m trying to build some cane and wonder if anyone can help.

<snip I’m only doing it for interest and will only make a wading staff.

Ian In my opinion, seems like a lot of trouble to go through just to make a wading staff (hell, for that matter, it’s a lot of trouble to go through to make a fishing pole )  It sounds like you already have the major tools that you need.  Go ahead and make yourself a rod.  It’s not that hard. Mike Connor already listed a very good reference link.  Let me recommend another.  The Rodmakers’ site has a wealth of information on building cane rods.  You might want to subscribe to the mailing list and pose some of your questions there.  I would recommend searching the rather extensive list archives first, however, since a lot of your questions may have already been asked and answered.  Here’s a link to the site: http://www.canerod.com/rodmakers/ As far a straitening goes, most people today use an electric heat gun to gently warm the bamboo.  This softens it and allows you to straighten it by hand or in a vise.  This is a fairly tedious and time consuming process. Regarding glues, the choices are too many to discuss here.  You will find many suggestions on the Rodmaker’s site. Good luck and have fun! Keith

Response:

I’d highly recommend the  rodmakers mailing list. I did when building my first rod and got a lot of help from some very knowledgeable rod builders. Paul

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi I’m trying to build some cane and wonder if anyone can help. <snip I’m only doing it for interest and will only make a wading staff. Ian In my opinion, seems like a lot of trouble to go through just to make a wading staff (hell, for that matter, it’s a lot of trouble to go through to make a fishing pole )  It sounds like you already have the major tools that you need.  Go ahead and make yourself a rod.  It’s not that hard. Mike Connor already listed a very good reference link.  Let me recommend another.  The Rodmakers’ site has a wealth of information on building cane rods.  You might want to subscribe to the mailing list and pose some of your questions there.  I would recommend searching the rather extensive list archives first, however, since a lot of your questions may have already been asked and answered.  Here’s a link to the site: http://www.canerod.com/rodmakers/ As far a straitening goes, most people today use an electric heat gun to gently warm the bamboo.  This softens it and allows you to straighten it by hand or in a vise.  This is a fairly tedious and time consuming process. Regarding glues, the choices are too many to discuss here.  You will find many suggestions on the Rodmaker’s site. Good luck and have fun! Keith

Response:

Question:

Great report Steve! I envy you…three years ago I had to spend two weeks staight in Colorado for my new job and a guy in my training class wanted to take me fly fishing (this was before I ever had even held a fly rod).  Since I knew nothing about it, and my friend was not from around there either, I fugured we would spend a whole Saturday just trying to find a place to fish so I declined.  He talked a nice looking young Blonde woman in our class into going (seems she was an expert) and they had the time of their lives. Sometimes I could just kick my own ass!! Tim

Response:

(snip)

 so I declined.  He talked a nice looking young Blonde woman in our class into going (seems she was an expert) and they had the time of their lives. Sometimes I could just kick my own ass!! Tim

David

Response:

I was in Colorado Springs this last week on business, and finding out beforehand that my hotel would be just over an hour from some very nice trout waters, I brought along a couple of fly rods, chest waders, and boots. As it turned out, although I didn’t have much time to fish, the extra baggage was well worth it. I’m writing this post as I sit in the airplane on the flight home. After finishing up my work on Monday evening, I sped off to the nearest fly shop–Angler’s Covey (www.anglerscovey.com)–and bought a three-day license and a few flies. Angler’s Covey is a great little place and the folks were very helpful. They showed me maps of the area and told me that most of the fishing in the surrounding reservoirs and rivers is done with nymphs and streamers. Despite not having done any wet-fly fishing to speak of, I concluded that I’d give it a try, but I bought a few dries to use when I (inevitably) got tired of not catching anything. While I was looking around in the fly shop, I saw that they had Bucks Bag pontoon-style float tubes on sale. I’ve looked for these at home (Raleigh, NC area) and have found that they are either in short supply or are way over-priced. So, I closed my eyes, squeezed the trigger, and bought one. As I sit here, it dawns on me that sometime before this plane lands I’m going to have to figure out how I’m going to hide this latest impulse purchase from my wife. Anyway, by the time I had everything, it was too late to get to any trout waters before dark, so I set my sites on a community lake in the middle of town. I’m told that Quail Lake contains a wide variety of fish–bluegill, bass, catfish, pike, gar, and even trout–but I can only confirm that it contains bluegill. I caught a mighty two-incher on a size 18 mosquito in about an hour of fishing. From what I could tell as I looked across the pond at the handful of bait-fishermen along the opposite shore, I was the only one who caught anything. Under normal circumstances, I would have religiously killed and eaten such a prize fish, but not having so much as a toaster in my hotel room, I had to reluctantly release the fish to its most assured death. Despite my lack of success, I had a great time practicing my roll cast and deepening my relationship with my newest reel (the Bougle I bought from Walt Winter, www.ezflyfish.com). I’ll admit I got a few grins and chuckles from some of the other people at the lake ("what on earth is a fly fisherman doing in a place like this?") but most everyone left me alone. Everyone, that is, except for the old codger who approached me and said "just what the hell are you trying to catch?" To which I responded, "I have absolutely no idea. You tell me." Too bad he wasn’t there to see me haul in that two-inch beauty!! Tuesday night my work ended earlier, so I headed west from Colorado Springs, past Pike’s Peak and along Highway 24 to Eleven-Mile Canyon. Some may say that religion doesn’t play a role in a discussion of fly fishing, and that may well be true, but there are places on earth that reaffirm a man’s faith that a Supreme Being had a hand in the creation of the world. Eleven-Mile Canyon is such a place. It is a narrow canyon formed of ancient running waters, with a mixture of high-mountain meadows and granite rock formations that one must see to believe. Were it not for the beauty of the South Platte river that flows from the canyon, I might have completely forgotten that I had come to fish, and focused my attention instead on the unbelievable boulders and cliffs and mountain air that left me both literally and figuratively breathless. I saw few other people as I drove along the dirt road that follows the path of the river, and indeed it seemed as though I had the canyon all to myself. Rather than descending in altitude at a constant rate as it travels down the canyon, the river (not often more than ten feet wide or more than four feet deep) alternates between whitewater rapids and meandering stream. Regardless, at every turn the water appeared to me to be entirely fishable and I could hardly wait to pull over and make the first anxious casts. Following the advice I’d been given by a nice gentleman at the entrance to the canyon, I drove about five miles up the road and began to fish some of the pools in the faster water with a San Juan Worm and a Woolly Bugger. Earlier in the day I had felt a bit of a fool for bringing along my long-sleeved shirt, heavy hip waders and felt-soled boots, especially with the weather as warm as it has been in Raleigh as of late, but I was glad I had them with me. The water was deliciously cold and the air was crisp. (Indeed, at 8:00pm I observed that the air temperature was 55F.) I worked my way up the stream, flailing away with my strike indicator and nymph, without so much as a clue what I was doing, but having a blast the whole way. But after about an hour of climbing in and out of pools and over rocks without so much as a strike, I began to get a bit intimidated by the speed of the water and my lack of nymphing knowledge, so I decided to head back down the canyon. About two miles down, I came to a meadow I had passed earlier where the water slows and softens, and noticing I only had a few moments of daylight left, I was overcome by the need to make a few final casts. After spending the previous hour amid the loud gurgle of rapid water, I was startled at how quiet the canyon had become. I quickly tied on a dry fly and tried my luck again. My moving-water fly presentation leaves much to be desired–indeed it could be said without too much exaggeration that the length of my drag-free drift is often no longer than my arm–but at least I could see the fly and I could see fish rising to take flies in the twilight. Within a few minutes I had several near-misses and soon thereafter caught a very nice rainbow trout. After a respectable battle, I let the fish go, and upon inspecting my fly noticed that it was pretty beat-up. By the time I replaced the fly (I’m trying to be more deliberate in the way I tie the clinch knot these days), dusk had turned to dark and it was time to go. It would have been nice to catch more than one fish, but as I made the 75 minute treck back to the hotel, my spirits were soaring. I had caught a trout in Colorado on a dry fly amidst the back drop of some of the best scenery this world has to offer. Later that evening, I chatted with George Gerke and told him of my trip. He used to live in Colorado, and he gave me the phone number of an old friend of his who lives in Colorado Springs and told me to call him. Actually, he did more than that. He went so far as to call his friend and upon receiving no answer called his friend’s son. Say what you will about George Gerke, but he has his heart in the right place even if his foot sometimes finds itself where it doesn’t belong. George, if you’re reading this… even though I wasn’t able to make contact with Phil (he was out of town as you know), I sincerely appreciated your gesture and consider you a friend. It showed me a side of you that doesn’t always make its way into your newsgroup posts. Thank you. Wednesday evening I went back up to Eleven-Mile canyon and, arriving later than I had the previous night, went straight to the meandering-water section of the river and fished almost exclusively with dry flies. (I tried a San Juan Worm when I first got there–I would like to get good at nymphing–but as soon as fish started rising I switched over to dries.) I caught two frisky 10" brown trout– both of which after being hooked spent more time in the air than in the water–and I observed that the fish seemed to care much less about what fly I presented than how I presented it. I’m looking forward to the Fall Ball as it will hopefully give me the chance to watch a few of you and learn a few things. As it turned out, Wednesday was my last opportunity to fish and although I’m disappointed that I was only able to spend about five hours fishing during the week, I had an absolutely wonderful time. I caught fish, I soaked in the beauty of God’s creation, and my company paid for the whole trip. Sometimes life is good. Tailing Loops, Steve Zimmerman PS. I’m back home now. My new float tube is still in the trunk. I’m still trying to figure out how to explain it to Julie and how to hide it in my expense report.

Response:

Great story Steve……hmmm float tube eh…. could be those bass down in Cary are in fer a wee bit of trouble. –Walt – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I was in Colorado Springs this last week on business, and finding out beforehand that my hotel would be just over an hour from some very nice trout waters, I brought along a couple of fly rods, chest waders, and boots. As it turned out, although I didn’t have much time to fish, the extra baggage was well worth it. I’m writing this post as I sit in the airplane on the flight home. After finishing up my work on Monday evening, I sped off to the nearest fly shop–Angler’s Covey (www.anglerscovey.com)–and bought a three-day license and a few flies. Angler’s Covey is a great little place and the folks were very helpful. They showed me maps of the area and told me that most of the fishing in the surrounding reservoirs and rivers is done with nymphs and streamers. Despite not having done any wet-fly fishing to speak of, I concluded that I’d give it a try, but I bought a few dries to use when I (inevitably) got tired of not catching anything. While I was looking around in the fly shop, I saw that they had Bucks Bag pontoon-style float tubes on sale. I’ve looked for these at home (Raleigh, NC area) and have found that they are either in short supply or are way over-priced. So, I closed my eyes, squeezed the trigger, and bought one. As I sit here, it dawns on me that sometime before this plane lands I’m going to have to figure out how I’m going to hide this latest impulse purchase from my wife. Anyway, by the time I had everything, it was too late to get to any trout waters before dark, so I set my sites on a community lake in the middle of town. I’m told that Quail Lake contains a wide variety of fish–bluegill, bass, catfish, pike, gar, and even trout–but I can only confirm that it contains bluegill. I caught a mighty two-incher on a size 18 mosquito in about an hour of fishing. From what I could tell as I looked across the pond at the handful of bait-fishermen along the opposite shore, I was the only one who caught anything. Under normal circumstances, I would have religiously killed and eaten such a prize fish, but not having so much as a toaster in my hotel room, I had to reluctantly release the fish to its most assured death. Despite my lack of success, I had a great time practicing my roll cast and deepening my relationship with my newest reel (the Bougle I bought from Walt Winter, www.ezflyfish.com). I’ll admit I got a few grins and chuckles from some of the other people at the lake ("what on earth is a fly fisherman doing in a place like this?") but most everyone left me alone. Everyone, that is, except for the old codger who approached me and said "just what the hell are you trying to catch?" To which I responded, "I have absolutely no idea. You tell me." Too bad he wasn’t there to see me haul in that two-inch beauty!! Tuesday night my work ended earlier, so I headed west from Colorado Springs, past Pike’s Peak and along Highway 24 to Eleven-Mile Canyon. Some may say that religion doesn’t play a role in a discussion of fly fishing, and that may well be true, but there are places on earth that reaffirm a man’s faith that a Supreme Being had a hand in the creation of the world. Eleven-Mile Canyon is such a place. It is a narrow canyon formed of ancient running waters, with a mixture of high-mountain meadows and granite rock formations that one must see to believe. Were it not for the beauty of the South Platte river that flows from the canyon, I might have completely forgotten that I had come to fish, and focused my attention instead on the unbelievable boulders and cliffs and mountain air that left me both literally and figuratively breathless. I saw few other people as I drove along the dirt road that follows the path of the river, and indeed it seemed as though I had the canyon all to myself. Rather than descending in altitude at a constant rate as it travels down the canyon, the river (not often more than ten feet wide or more than four feet deep) alternates between whitewater rapids and meandering stream. Regardless, at every turn the water appeared to me to be entirely fishable and I could hardly wait to pull over and make the first anxious casts. Following the advice I’d been given by a nice gentleman at the entrance to the canyon, I drove about five miles up the road and began to fish some of the pools in the faster water with a San Juan Worm and a Woolly Bugger. Earlier in the day I had felt a bit of a fool for bringing along my long-sleeved shirt, heavy hip waders and felt-soled boots, especially with the weather as warm as it has been in Raleigh as of late, but I was glad I had them with me. The water was deliciously cold and the air was crisp. (Indeed, at 8:00pm I observed that the air temperature was 55F.) I worked my way up the stream, flailing away with my strike indicator and nymph, without so much as a clue what I was doing, but having a blast the whole way. But after about an hour of climbing in and out of pools and over rocks without so much as a strike, I began to get a bit intimidated by the speed of the water and my lack of nymphing knowledge, so I decided to head back down the canyon. About two miles down, I came to a meadow I had passed earlier where the water slows and softens, and noticing I only had a few moments of daylight left, I was overcome by the need to make a few final casts. After spending the previous hour amid the loud gurgle of rapid water, I was startled at how quiet the canyon had become. I quickly tied on a dry fly and tried my luck again. My moving-water fly presentation leaves much to be desired–indeed it could be said without too much exaggeration that the length of my drag-free drift is often no longer than my arm–but at least I could see the fly and I could see fish rising to take flies in the twilight. Within a few minutes I had several near-misses and soon thereafter caught a very nice rainbow trout. After a respectable battle, I let the fish go, and upon inspecting my fly noticed that it was pretty beat-up. By the time I replaced the fly (I’m trying to be more deliberate in the way I tie the clinch knot these days), dusk had turned to dark and it was time to go. It would have been nice to catch more than one fish, but as I made the 75 minute treck back to the hotel, my spirits were soaring. I had caught a trout in Colorado on a dry fly amidst the back drop of some of the best scenery this world has to offer. Later that evening, I chatted with George Gerke and told him of my trip. He used to live in Colorado, and he gave me the phone number of an old friend of his who lives in Colorado Springs and told me to call him. Actually, he did more than that. He went so far as to call his friend and upon receiving no answer called his friend’s son. Say what you will about George Gerke, but he has his heart in the right place even if his foot sometimes finds itself where it doesn’t belong. George, if you’re reading this… even though I wasn’t able to make contact with Phil (he was out of town as you know), I sincerely appreciated your gesture and consider you a friend. It showed me a side of you that doesn’t always make its way into your newsgroup posts. Thank you. Wednesday evening I went back up to Eleven-Mile canyon and, arriving later than I had the previous night, went straight to the meandering-water section of the river and fished almost exclusively with dry flies. (I tried a San Juan Worm when I first got there–I would like to get good at nymphing–but as soon as fish started rising I switched over to dries.) I caught two frisky 10" brown trout– both of which after being hooked spent more time in the air than in the water–and I observed that the fish seemed to care much less about what fly I presented than how I presented it. I’m looking forward to the Fall Ball as it will hopefully give me the chance to watch a few of you and learn a few things. As it turned out, Wednesday was my last opportunity to fish and although I’m disappointed that I was only able to spend about five hours fishing during the week, I had an absolutely wonderful time. I caught fish, I soaked in the beauty of God’s creation, and my company paid for the whole trip. Sometimes life is good. Tailing Loops, Steve Zimmerman PS. I’m back home now. My new float tube is still in the trunk. I’m still trying to figure out how to explain it to Julie and how to hide it in my expense report.

– Ezflyfish.com http://www.ezflyfish.com BRBG http://www.abebooks.com/home/BLUEBOOKS P.O. Box 5112  Banner Elk, NC 28604 (828)963-5001

Response:

I was in Colorado Springs this last week on business, and finding out beforehand that my hotel would be just over an hour from some very nice trout waters, I brought along a couple of fly rods, chest waders, and boots. As it turned out, although I didn’t have much time to fish, the extra baggage was well worth it. I’m writing this post as I sit in the airplane on the flight home. After finishing up my work on Monday evening, I sped off to the nearest fly shop–Angler’s Covey (www.anglerscovey.com)–and bought a three-day license and a few flies. Angler’s Covey is a great little place and the folks were very helpful. They showed me maps of the area and told me that most of the fishing in the surrounding reservoirs and rivers is done with nymphs and streamers. Despite not having done any wet-fly fishing to speak of, I concluded that I’d give it a try, but I bought a few dries to use when I (inevitably) got tired of not catching anything. While I was looking around in the fly shop, I saw that they had Bucks Bag pontoon-style float tubes on sale. I’ve looked for these at home (Raleigh, NC area) and have found that they are either in short supply or are way over-priced. So, I closed my eyes, squeezed the trigger, and bought one. As I sit here, it dawns on me that sometime before this plane lands I’m going to have to figure out how I’m going to hide this latest impulse purchase from my wife.

_______  Tell her you bought her this neat new style pillow for the waterbed? Anyway, by the time I had everything, it was too late to get to any trout waters before dark, so I set my sites on a community lake in the middle of town. I’m told that Quail Lake contains a wide variety of fish–bluegill, bass, catfish, pike, gar, and even trout–but I can only confirm that it contains bluegill. I caught a mighty two-incher on a size 18 mosquito in about an hour of fishing. From what I could tell as I looked across the pond at the handful of bait-fishermen along the opposite shore, I was the only one who caught anything. Under normal circumstances, I would have religiously killed and eaten such a prize fish, but not having so much as a toaster in my hotel room, I had to reluctantly release the fish to its most assured death.

Ha!  Love it.  Perhaps you took a picture/release?  Is that C & PR? Despite my lack of success, I had a great time practicing my roll cast and deepening my relationship with my newest reel (the Bougle I bought from Walt Winter, www.ezflyfish.com). I’ll admit I got a few grins and chuckles from some of the other people at the lake ("what on earth is a fly fisherman doing in a place like this?")

_______  Didn’t they notice ‘that desperate look?’ but most everyone left me alone. Everyone, that is, except for the old codger who approached me and said "just what the hell are you trying to catch?" To which I responded, "I have absolutely no idea. You tell me." Too bad he wasn’t there to see me haul in that two-inch beauty!! Tuesday night my work ended earlier, so I headed west from Colorado Springs, past Pike’s Peak and along Highway 24 to Eleven-Mile Canyon. Some may say that religion doesn’t play a role in a discussion of fly fishing, and that may well be true, but there are places on earth that reaffirm a man’s faith that a Supreme Being had a hand in the creation of the world. Eleven-Mile Canyon is such a place. It is a narrow canyon formed of ancient running waters, with a mixture of high-mountain meadows and granite rock formations that one must see to believe. Were it not for the beauty of the South Platte river that flows from the canyon, I might have completely forgotten that I had come to fish, and focused my attention instead on the unbelievable boulders and cliffs and mountain air that left me both literally and figuratively breathless. I saw few other people as I drove along the dirt road that follows the path of the river, and indeed it seemed as though I had the canyon all to myself. Rather than descending in altitude at a constant rate as it travels down the canyon, the river (not often more than ten feet wide or more than four feet deep) alternates between whitewater rapids and meandering stream. Regardless, at every turn the water appeared to me to be entirely fishable and I could hardly wait to pull over and make the first anxious casts. Following the advice I’d been given by a nice gentleman at the entrance to the canyon, I drove about five miles up the road and began to fish some of the pools in the faster water with a San Juan Worm and a Woolly Bugger.

Earlier in the day I had felt a bit of a fool for bringing along my long-sleeved shirt, heavy hip waders and felt-soled boots, especially with the weather as warm as it has been in Raleigh as of late, but I was glad I had them with me. The water was deliciously cold and the air was crisp. (Indeed, at 8:00pm I observed that the air temperature was 55F.) I worked my way up the stream, flailing away with my strike indicator and nymph,

without so much as a clue what I was doing, but having a blast the whole way. But after about an hour of climbing in and out of pools and over rocks without so much as a strike, I began to get a bit intimidated by the speed of the water and my lack of nymphing knowledge, so I decided to head back down the canyon. About two miles down, I came to a meadow I had passed earlier where the water slows and softens, and noticing I only had a few moments of daylight left, I was overcome by the need to make a few final casts. After spending the previous hour amid the loud gurgle of rapid water, I was startled at how quiet the canyon had become. I quickly tied on a dry fly and tried my luck again. My moving-water fly presentation leaves much to be desired–indeed it could be said without too much exaggeration that the length of my drag-free drift is often no longer than my arm–but at least I could see the fly and I could see fish rising to take flies in the twilight. Within a few minutes I had several near-misses and soon thereafter caught a very nice rainbow trout. After a respectable battle, I let the fish go, and upon inspecting my fly noticed that it was pretty beat-up. By the time I replaced the fly (I’m trying to be more deliberate in the way I tie the clinch knot these days), dusk had turned to dark and it was time to go. It would have been nice to catch more than one fish, but as I made the 75 minute treck back to the hotel, my spirits were soaring. I had caught a trout in Colorado on a dry fly amidst the back drop of some of the best scenery this world has to offer.

______  You were in my back yard CodeGuy.  I know exactly where you were.  Every pool, every riffle.  I wish I was there for you. Later that evening, I chatted with George Gerke and told him of my trip. He used to live in Colorado, and he gave me the phone number of an old friend of his who lives in Colorado Springs and told me to call him. Actually, he did more than that. He went so far as to call his friend and upon receiving no answer called his friend’s son. Say what you will about George Gerke, but he has his heart in the right place even if his foot sometimes finds itself where it doesn’t belong. George, if you’re reading this… even though I wasn’t able to make contact with Phil (he was out of town as you know), I sincerely appreciated your gesture and consider you a friend. It showed me a side of you that doesn’t always make its way into your newsgroup posts. Thank you.

_______ Awe shucks CodeGuy, I lost my head.  I’m a sucker for the newborn but your enthusiasm is so dang contagious!!! Wednesday evening I went back up to Eleven-Mile canyon and, arriving later than I had the previous night, went straight to the meandering-water section of the river and fished almost exclusively with dry flies. (I tried a San Juan Worm when I first got there–I would like to get good at nymphing–but as soon as fish started rising I switched over to dries.) I caught two frisky 10" brown trout– both of which after being hooked spent more time in the air than in the water–and I observed that the fish seemed to care much less about what fly I presented than how I presented it. I’m looking forward to the Fall Ball as it will hopefully give me the chance to watch a few of you and learn a few things. As it turned out, Wednesday was my last opportunity to fish and although I’m disappointed that I was only able to spend about five hours fishing during the week, I had an absolutely wonderful time. I caught fish, I soaked in the beauty of God’s creation, and my company paid for the whole trip. Sometimes life is good. Tailing Loops, Steve Zimmerman PS. I’m back home now. My new float tube is still in the trunk. I’m still trying to figure out how to explain it to Julie and how to hide it in my expense report.

your bed.  Go to the front room and wait.  When you hear a blood curdling scream, she found it!  Calmly walk in and ask, "Did you call honey?" Seriously Steve, Great report.  You took me back home.  I would love to take you fishing like you’ve never seen it in your life.  Just drop by. I will show you all the things you’ve always wanted to know. When it comes to fly fishing I can guarantee it.  You have the main ingredient.  You have the passion.  Nothing else matters with me. Again, thanks for sharing.  I absolutely loved every word. — Mr. G.   http://www.gink.com/html  Fly Fisherman’s Chat Site   "Flyfisherman’s Camp Fires Burning" http://www.gink.com http://www.rodbuilding.com http://www.xink.com

Question:

On Fri, 14 Mar 1997 03:27:25 GMT, jl…@knox.mindspring.com wrote: ~…@bi.org (Lucas Aarons) wrote:

~ Can I dig my foot out of my mouth now…..? I aplogize profusely…. I have been having a REALLY bad day and I VERY inappropriately took it out on you……. I will try to be less of an asshole next time. Please accept as my apology a more appropriate response: ~can someone tell me what the child support percentage is in SC for 3 ~children?  also, is there any restriction on visitation (such as ~children cannot stay overnight with a parent if they are living with ~someone they are not married to)?  if  the divorce order is in one ~state and the parent moves to another does the original order stay in ~effect or can the parent get the it changed to the new state? I do not know the percentages in SC. It doubt VERY highly if there are any restrictions on visitation other than those outlined in any decree. Divorce decrees can not be moved as far as I know…. ~ ~please respond by e-mail as i haven’t been able to pick up these ~groups on a regular basis.   I am sending this to you in Email and also publicly apologizing to you in the newsgroup. I would like to ask that it be chalked up to a shitty day and let it slide. I will endeavor to never let my fingers hit the keyboard in here until my brain is in gear and my attitude is supportive no matter the question. Please, once again, accept my humble apologies. You were the victim of severe spillover. I’M SORRY! Lucas -DCS———————————————————– Any unsolicited COMMERCIAL Email, (SPAM), sent to any of my addresses will be charged $85 per hour, with a TWO hour minimum, for reading, replying, and time it takes to format messages to all of the uplinks to have the offenders internet service terminated. Sending of said unsolicited COMMERCIAL Email constitutes acceptance of these terms. —————————————————————

Response:

>can someone tell me what the child support percentage is in SC for 3 children?  

Sorry, I don’t know about that. In my state, it’s a formula combined with whatever expenses the custodial parent dreams up, which are never questioned.   >> also, is there any restriction on visitation (such as children cannot stay overnight with a parent if they are living with someone they are not married to)?<<

I truly can’t fathom this.  I would think that this would be something that has to be put in the decree at the request of a parent at the time of the final hearing, but this is my guess.  My husband and I lived with each other before getting married and his ex-wife is living with someone.  It’s probably the only thing we haven’t tried to hang each other over! >> if  the divorce order is in one state and the parent moves to another does the original order stay in effect or can the parent get the it changed to the new state?<<

It hinges on which state the children are residents of in Colorado.  If we had custody and moved out of state, we could petition the courts to change the case to the new district we were in after we had established residency there.  However, if we move without the children (non-custodial), then the court with jurisdiction remains the same.   There is a group on the net called alt.support.child-support (I think that’s close).  Although they spend alot of time just griping, they can be of some help on occasion.  I’d post your question to them.   One other thing, my husband and I had to go back to court when Cheri (Jeff’s ex) was thinking about moving out of state with his kids.  Bottom line:  if it isn’t prohibited in the orginal orders (or subsequent orders), we can’t stop her.  We finally negotiated a truce which forbids her from taking them out permanently, but it wasn’t easy or cheap.   >please respond by e-mail as i haven’t been able to pick up these groups on a regular basis.  >

I’ll post and email. Good luck, Lynn

Response:

d…@bi.org (Lucas Aarons) wrote:

—>Can I dig my foot out of my mouth now…..? —>I aplogize profusely…. I have been having a REALLY bad day and I VERY —>inappropriately took it out on you……. —>I will try to be less of an asshole next time. —>Please accept as my apology a more appropriate response: thanks lucas.  apology accepted.  :)

Response:

I missed the original post (as sometimes happens with my list, too) because for some reason my reader ALSO refuses to let me in for several days at a time.  Believe me, I try to read at least once a day.  You can tell by how verbose I am. Anyway, you are welcome here.  The response you got was not typical. Lucas, what got up your butt?  I know you’re opinionated, but you usually aren’t nasty! Best wishes.  Hope you get over that bug, Lucas. Pam For the info of all newsgroup readers, a good site with discussion groups (including one for steps) as well as a legal database of state by state info is at: <http://www.divorcenet.com> (add /board6.html for the step discussions)

Response:

can someone tell me what the child support percentage is in SC for 3 children?  also, is there any restriction on visitation (such as children cannot stay overnight with a parent if they are living with someone they are not married to)?  if  the divorce order is in one state and the parent moves to another does the original order stay in effect or can the parent get the it changed to the new state? please respond by e-mail as i haven’t been able to pick up these groups on a regular basis.   thanks! jl…@mindspring.com

Response:

On Thu, 13 Mar 1997 19:01:14 GMT, jl…@knox.mindspring.com wrote:

~can someone tell me what the child support percentage is in SC for 3 ~children?  also, is there any restriction on visitation (such as ~children cannot stay overnight with a parent if they are living with ~someone they are not married to)?  if  the divorce order is in one ~state and the parent moves to another does the original order stay in ~effect or can the parent get the it changed to the new state? First, we are not lawyers…. It sounds alot like you are fishing for a way to slap an ex…. Second, since you deserve the advice you get, here goes: (two face mask on) for 3 children the percentage is 50% of your income for the life of the children. This means that the amount you have earned since they were born, you divide into a monthly income and 50% of that is child-support…. As for restrictions on visitation: it depends on whether the other party is also living with someone. The children automatically become wards of the person who has another adult in the house with them. Especially if the other person is of the same sex. If your ex now has a live-in lover, you will need to either find a lover of your own sex, or hand over the children immediately. If it is you that now has the lover, demand immediate custody. Oh, of course, the divorce decree can be moved to any jurisdiction you wish. Even if you do not live there. We had our decree moved to mexico, because we found a judge who could be bribed to increase the bastards child support from a measly $105 per month to $1050 per month. I would strongly suggest moving to Japan if you are the non custodial parent. They dont believe in child support. ~please respond by e-mail as i haven’t been able to pick up these ~groups on a regular basis.   If you are unable to pick up this newsgroup on a regular basis, it is because you are too busy to bother. This is an alt.support group, not an alt.free.legal.advice group. ~thanks! You are NOT welcome…. ~jl…@mindspring.com If you want some support as a step-parent, drop in and see us sometime. Ask your lawyer for the legal advice. ~ -DCS———————————————————– Any unsolicited COMMERCIAL Email, (SPAM), sent to any of my addresses will be charged $85 per hour, with a TWO hour minimum, for reading, replying, and time it takes to format messages to all of the uplinks to have the offenders internet service terminated. Sending of said unsolicited COMMERCIAL Email constitutes acceptance of these terms. —————————————————————

Response:

d…@bi.org (Lucas Aarons) wrote:

—>First, we are not lawyers…. It sounds alot like you are fishing for a way —>to slap an ex…. i never said anyone here was.   but i figured that step-parents might have some insight into cs and visitation.   —>Second, since you deserve the advice you get, here goes: (two face mask on) and i never asked for legal advice.  i asked for information.  i never take anything  i read in any newsgroups as carved in stone fact. and it’s obvious from the "advice" you offered you don’t have the information. —>If you are unable to pick up this newsgroup on a regular basis, it is —>because you are too busy to bother. This is an alt.support group, not an —>alt.free.legal.advice group. no…  it is because i seem to have a problem with my reader when it tries to pull in groups that have large message bases.  so i don’t always get all messages.  so e-mail seems to work a bit better when i am asking for information. and again, i did NOT ask for advice. —>~thanks! —>You are NOT welcome…. what is your problem?  i asked for simple information  and i get treated rudely.  is that the way you treat everyone here?  or is it strictly reserved for newcomers???   —>If you want some support as a step-parent, drop in and see us sometime. i will be becoming a step-parent soon.  but if you are any indication of the type of step-parent that is a frequenter of this news group i am GLAD that i have problems pulling the group! —>Ask your lawyer for the legal advice. exactly what we do! my apoligies to anyone out there i annoyed with my simple request.  i never dreamed that it would receive this type of reception.

Response:

d…@bi.org (Lucas Aarons) wrote:

—>First, we are not lawyers…. It sounds alot like you are fishing for a way —>to slap an ex…. I don’t know about the rest of you.  YOU are not only apparently not a lawyer, you are not deserving of participation in a group that includes the word support.  What kind of an idiot responds to a simple request for information as if it were a personal insult?  Or do you have nothing better to do than shoot off your mouth? As it happens, this woman you have taken upon yourself to police is about to become a step-parent.  Her step-children are about to be taken by my ex-wife to South Carolina.  She is asking for information that anyone in South Carolina could easily look up in a public library. Most any idiot could recognize the difference between this and legal advice, but you appear to not be just any idiot.  You must be an especially depraved idiot, too sucked up in some kind of bitterness to notice. We could look up the information ourselves, except that we’re not IN South Carolina.  One would think that a newsgroup with a name like alt.support.step-parents would be a place to get support from other step-parents. I think a reasonable person would assume that.  Oh, but I forget, you don’t act like a reasonable person, you act like a self-evidenced depraved idiot. I suppose YOU would not wonder how your own situation might change as a result of the decisions that other people make.  You would just pony up whatever demands were placed on you.  Or else you would fly across the country and look up the information yourself.  But then, you seem to be an idiot, so I wouldn’t be surprised.  Only an idiot would attempt to read an entire set of motivations out of one posting of less than 15 lines.  Or perhaps you are psychic!  Let’s see, from your post…. —>If you are unable to pick up this newsgroup on a regular basis, it is —>because you are too busy to bother. ….you are able to tell the reason she doesn’t get the newsgroup regularly.  How amazing!  Except, you blithering idiot, that her ISP tends to time out before she can download all the postings, and so she tends to lose a lot of them. And this one takes a little more reading between the lines, but there seems to be a pattern: —>They dont believe in child support. So, Mr. or Ms. or Mx. Psychic, you probably are assuming that this is someone trying to get out of paying child support.  Couldn’t POSSIBLY be, could it, that this is someone who is trying to help BUDGET for something that she is not forced into?  No, that would be too human, something that a depraved idiot is in no position to understand. It is assholes like you who give the Internet a bad name.  If the newsgroup is for support, then be supportive or go somewhere that welcomes people who have nothing better to do with their feeble lives than flame. My thanks to you who actually provided support. You would seem more representative of this group than this one waste of space on the planet. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could actually support each other? And I apologize for taking up bandwidth.  A public slander deserves a public reply, however.

Response:

Question:

Many rivers still high, but they are dropping as fast as they went up.   Extremely hot weather melted a lot of snow(still a lot to melt, though).   Big Hole is dropping 10-15% per day.  2′ viz at Melrose yesterday, and salmon flies are showing up down near the "Notch".  River is fishing fairly well with nymphs.  Madison is beginning to drop, too, and traditionally the Montana Power Company drops the Madison flows around the 3rd week of June and begins to fill Hebgen Lake.  Gallatin and Yellowstone are still a mess.  Yellowstone has done some serious damage to  DePuy’s and Armstrong’s Spring Creeks, but NOONE knows for sure how much until the river goes done.  I guess I am the eternal optimist, and I figure this flood is like the YNP fires of 1988.  It will be temporarily inconvenient for us humans, but I expect this event will be beneficial.   Talked to Bob Auger, DePuy’s riverkeeper, yesterday, and he is poised to begin work to rebuild the dam as quickly as the water comes down.  I hope there will be fishing in DePuy’s again by mid-July(will take small bets on this!).  Beaverhead and Big Horn are very good.  Smith River is excellent.  Firehole and Henry’s  Fork are good, too.  Firehole has caddis and PMD’s and the Henry’s Fork is getting ready for green and brown drakes.  High water as this time of year is normal.  Remember, we have been in a decade long drought cycle here, and the recollections of many fishermen are of LOW water years.  Things will look fairly good by first week of July.   Dave Kumlien, Montana Troutfitters,Bozeman html

Response:

Hi Dave, Thanks for the Montana report.  It’s obvious to me you spend a lot of time on it (and for our benefit) and I wanted you to know it’s appreciated. Tight Lines Al Beatty BT’s Fly Fishing Products Bozeman, MT (96 catalog)

Response:

Al Beatty writes: Hi Dave, Thanks for the Montana report.  It’s obvious to me you spend a lot of time on it (and for our benefit) and I wanted you to know it’s appreciated.

I second that. -Ande Rychter

Response:

David, Thanks for the information.  It sure is helpful for those of us who live in the city (ie, Dallas, TX) who plan on traveling to Montana in the near term. I was wondering, do you not receive info on the North Blackfoot (from around North Fork down to either Scotty Browns bridge or Clear Creek), as well as Rock Creek? If you or anyone else could provide info on these areas (such as water conditions, hatch & pattern info, whether I should consider wading or floating, etc.) and what I might expect from around July 10 through July 14, I would appreciate it. Thanks again! – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -Many rivers still high, but they are dropping as fast as they went up.   Extremely hot weather melted a lot of snow(still a lot to melt, though).   Big Hole is dropping 10-15% per day.  2′ viz at Melrose yesterday, and salmon flies are showing up down near the "Notch".  River is fishing fairly well with nymphs.  Madison is beginning to drop, too, and traditionally the Montana Power Company drops the Madison flows around the 3rd week of June and begins to fill Hebgen Lake.  Gallatin and Yellowstone are still a mess.  Yellowstone has done some serious damage to  DePuy’s and Armstrong’s Spring Creeks, but NOONE knows for sure how much until the river goes done.  I guess I am the eternal optimist, and I figure this flood is like the YNP fires of 1988.  It will be temporarily inconvenient for us humans, but I expect this event will be beneficial.   Talked to Bob Auger, DePuy’s riverkeeper, yesterday, and he is poised to begin work to rebuild the dam as quickly as the water comes down.  I hope there will be fishing in DePuy’s again by mid-July(will take small bets on this!).  Beaverhead and Big Horn are very good.  Smith River is excellent.  Firehole and Henry’s  Fork are good, too.  Firehole has caddis and PMD’s and the Henry’s Fork is getting ready for green and brown drakes.  High water as this time of year is normal.  Remember, we have been in a decade long drought cycle here, and the recollections of many fishermen are of LOW water years.  Things will look fairly good by first week of July.   Dave Kumlien, Montana Troutfitters,Bozeman html

Steve Ginn 2nd VP – Consulting Group

Response:

Question:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -All I Need T Know About Life I learned From Fishing * There is no such thing as too much equipment. *  When in doubt, exaggerate. * If it feels good, it’s fishing. * Everyone has a story about the one that got away. * It’s good to be at the top of the food chain. * Even the best lines get weak after they’ve been used a few times. *  Sometimes you’ve really got to squirm to get off the hook. * Cast everything in the best light possible. * Keep one eye on your bobber at all times. * Get reel! * Life is a stream of conciousness thing. * Take time to smell the fishes. * I fish, therefore I am. * The way to a fisherman’s heart is through his fly. * A fishing line has a hook at one end and an optimist at the other. * Fish always start to grow after they get away. * Life is a can of worms. * The fishing is always better on the other side of the lake. Good things come to those who wade. * When the going gets tough, the tough go fishing. My mom picked this list up for me at Fred Meyers for $6. It has a matte, and I’m working on getting it framed to hang in the bedroom. Just thought you’d all enjoy it, I know I did.

how about…happiness is a wet pole that smells like fish? sorry, couldn’t help it.<g stev – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Arklier Firsty is the best!

Response:

All I Need T Know About Life I learned From Fishing * There is no such thing as too much equipment. *  When in doubt, exaggerate. * If it feels good, it’s fishing. * Everyone has a story about the one that got away. * It’s good to be at the top of the food chain. * Even the best lines get weak after they’ve been used a few times. *  Sometimes you’ve really got to squirm to get off the hook. * Cast everything in the best light possible. * Keep one eye on your bobber at all times. * Get reel! * Life is a stream of conciousness thing. * Take time to smell the fishes. * I fish, therefore I am. * The way to a fisherman’s heart is through his fly. * A fishing line has a hook at one end and an optimist at the other. * Fish always start to grow after they get away. * Life is a can of worms. * The fishing is always better on the other side of the lake. Good things come to those who wade. * When the going gets tough, the tough go fishing. My mom picked this list up for me at Fred Meyers for $6. It has a matte, and I’m working on getting it framed to hang in the bedroom. Just thought you’d all enjoy it, I know I did. Arklier Firsty is the best!

Response:

Question:

Fly Rod Wanted. I would like to purchase a used Sage SP in 3-6 wt. best price. This is not a commercial thing, I love fly fishing and want to have a nice rod (s). Thank you very much. Russ

Response:

: Fly Rod Wanted. I would like to purchase a used Sage SP in 3-6 wt. : best price. This is not a commercial thing, I love fly fishing and want : to have a nice rod (s). Thank you very much. Russ  The Sage company, and others like it in the flyfishing industry, have a pricing strategy in place that prevents price wars on their products. To carrry thier products, you have to agree on the manufacturors set price. To answer your question, the only thing anybody will save you money on, is shipping

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Question:

keen english fly fisher visiting san francisco third week febuary enjoy both fresh and salt water need advice      please re — |                                          |

Response:

A countryman of yours runs a shop on Geary St. out around 10th Avenue, I think its called SF Flyfishers Exchange.  Very nice guy, and I’m sure he’d be of great assistance.  The Flyfishing stretch of Putah Creek is open, just below the Lake Berryessa Dam, about 1 hour north of SF.  Steelhead may be good in the north coast streams, Russian River, Smith, Gualala, Eel, but that will really depend on the weather.  Call shop when you get here, and check out the No Cal Report on this news group.–Crashjibe

Shop in question is SF Flyfishers Supply, located on Clement St. between 25th and 26th Ave. (1 Block north (?) of Geary St). Stephen Haggard/Doug Matteo owners (Haggard is the one from England) you can call them at (415) 668-3597

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Before I begin this trip report I would like to thank the following folks who provided much useful information via e-mail that helped me to plan Jeff Bryson, Nic Lyons, Lyle Nichols, Kief Hillsbery, Tim Medley, Ed Zalta, Keith Price.  I would also like to thank the park rangers, but I can’t, because what little information they provided was either badly out of date or just plain wrong.   Day 1:  Arrival Loaded the VW in a cold drizzle in San Francisco.  Fortunately, this was the most weather we would see the entire trip.  Arrived at South Lake at 4:30 pm and stashed the bike.  Got to North Lake trailhead parking at 5:00. Had shocking realization that I had left all coffee apparattus at home.   Searched the car and came up with one cotton sock, slightly used.  It would have to do.  Hit trail and hiked for 1 hour to Lower Lamarck Lake.  Made camp in a luxurious site on the east shore.  From campsite we thought we could see Lamarck Col, our next day’s destination.  Fortunately, we were way wrong as we were looking up at the very steep snow field on the north face of Mt. Lamarck.  Went to sleep beneath billions and billions of stars.  (Who needs a tent in the Sierra?)  Everything went fine until the brightest goddamned moon I have ever seen came out and rioted around the lake.  Maybe a tent would have been a good idea after all. Finally fashioned eye shades and nodded off. to be continued… -Matt Spitzer

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Day 2 (Monday, September 6):  Darwin Canyon via Lamarck Col Awoke very early to get morning reflection shots of Mt. Lamarck on the lake. Then I made my first attempt to make coffee using my sock/drip maker.  It wasn’t very successful, as the sock tended to soak up all the boiling water and scald my fingers.  Off to a fine Alpine start (10:00 am) we headed up the trail to the upper Lamarck Lake and then  took the made, but unmarked trail up to the Col.  About 4 miles (I’m guessing) and 2,000 ft later we arrived at the foot of the Col, a little winded (yeah, right).  We hadn’t known what to expect, so we had brought along ice axes.  As it turned out, the snowfield on the Col was so rutted out by people’s foot tracks that there was a waist high wall on the downhill side to prevent us from falling.  At the top (12,900) we had great views of the Piute Crags and the lovely town of Bishop to the North and Glacier encrusted Darwin Peak and the gorgeous (literally) Darwin Canyon to the South and West.  After a brief break Minio shot head first down the slope into Darwin Canyon.  I followed behind, enjoying an occaisional plunge step in some loose stuff.  We arrived at the highest lake and then it was a simple walk, much of it over boulders ranging in size from a tv sets to VW buses, down to the lowest lake where we made camp, exhausted. Fishing in the lake was poor for golden trout to 8", but scenery was excellent. Scenery became even more intese at sunset when alpenglow lit the back wall of the canyon and everything glowed orange.  That night many billions of stars, some shooting, and several sattelites came out to play, until the friggin’ moon came out and drove them off. Day 3:  Darwin Canyon to Evolution Basin This morning I devised an improvement to the coffee maker.  I propped open the end of the sock with two crossed twigs and suspended the whole thing from a string tied to the twigs.  Using my new Hane’s drip maker I was (theoretically) able to make my morning cup of Guatemalan love juice without losing any layers of skin from the fingers.  However, the water goes through the sock much too quickly, resulting in an underextracted brew.  This was remedied by soaking sock in cup like a tea bag, but final squeeze scalds fingers again.  Packed up camp and countoured through Darwin Bench and around west slope of ridge extending from Darwin Peak.  From this slope we get excellent panoramic vista stretching from Evolution Valley to Evolution Basin including many snow packed peaks.  Minio and I reach consensus that Evolution Valley has been much over-hyped, as it is a rather unimpressive low stretch of bear country, lined by rather unimpressive walls. Evolution Basin, and the peaks to the south and east, by contrast, is glorious.  The slope we are traversing is itself a thing of beauty, covered with blooms of columbine, shooting star and numerous other flowers including some kind of onion-thing.  Eventually we work our way down toward Evolution Lake, but come to an impass where we have to do a little free climbing (50 ft of 5.4 at most) and then we are home free.  On our way to the lake we observe that if we had just gone up once more we could have waltzed down to our present position without any climbing at all.  By the shores of the stunningly beautiful Evolution Lake we join the John Muir trail and soon come across a trail crew, busily filling in the old trail and planting shrubs along its course. The new trail they have built for us is a work of art, a veritable super highway through the High Sierra. After a brief foot-soaking break by the lake’s edge we are off.  Leaving the lake we hike beside a small cascading stream up to Saphire Lake where we make camp.  In faithful observance of Labor Day Minio breaks out his copy of International Trotskyist and begins reading.  I head back down the stream that connects the two lakes and begin fishing at 4 pm.  By 6:30 I have fished my way back to our campsite in failing light, having caught and released 72 golden trout ranging from embarrasingly small to 10 inches on dry flies. A note about small goldens:  they are incredibly stupid.  About the only thing I could do to disuade them from hitting was to badly drag the fly against the current.  They never seemed to mind the fact that I fished right through a hatch of small brown mayflies with a #10 Cream Wulff.  That evening we slept out of the fairly stiff wind in a rock shelter that Minio built by the North shore of the Lake while I fished.  The whiskey bottle is already getting dangerously empty. to be continued… -Matt Spitzer

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