Back to Even Keel -

If you remember, a couple of rod/reels got stolen out of the back of my truck this past summer while we were staying at the Mayport RV Park. It just so happened that one of the rods was a custom built 6 weight flyrod that I considered to be one of the finest of all fish catching tools built by man. I have been slowly replacing the pieces of equipment that got stolen - and yesterday, one of the last items came in the mail - the Abel Super 5N. This replacement is even better than the one that got stolen - it has a 'click out' that my other one didn't. Now I can get that sweet sound when a fish is taking line... I posted on this earlier, but I bought a kit to build out the same blank that got stolen. The Epic 686 is such an awesome rod - you can feel the cast with the slower taper, but it still has the power to handle big wrestlers - the best of both worlds. I've got a couple of 6 weight lines from Orvis that I will meet up with in Hawaii - looking forward to casting and fishing this setup and getting "back on even keel"

More Rod Casting

I brought the Kabuto out again to get a better feel for it. I also brought out a Steffen 7'6" 3/4wt 3 piece by Matt Leiderman. Both these rods cast smoothly with a WF4 line. Awesome rods!!! It is so fulfilling to cast a loop and watch it unfurl and gently place the fly 20-30 feet out. I had some good wrestling matches with a whole mess of bluegill (translation - a whole mess is more than 25), some big green sunfish and one large mouth bass. I saw a bunch of LMB, and I would get them to follow, but the one in the pictures is the only one that took. If I haven't said it before - "I love fiberglass fly rods!". There were huge schools of gizzard shad stacking up near the outfall - love is in the air (water)... I can't wait for the water temps to start warming up and the spring blitz turns on!!! Just around the corner!

First Catches of February - Yes, 4 Mile Run AGAIN

But when all the other water around is hard, you gotta do what you gotta do... I brought out the Barclay Glass 7'2" 3 wt with a RIO Perception line and had a BLAST!!! I was at a point where I was having just as much fun casting as I was with catching fish. Owning this rod has forced me to improve my casting - but the payoff is nice loops sailing through on both forward and back casts and the smooth, progressive feeling of the rod loading and unloading. Casting the Barclay has taught me a lot - that I sucked casting before I got this rod; that the joy in flyfishing is not the fishing; and that there is a lot I have to learn still. I never understood this with graphite. I probably still suck, but I am getting better. It has taken me a while to refine my casting to enjoy this rod - but man was it worth it!!! I looked up the reports of some of the other guys in the area who had to wet a line - the guys fishing further downstream of where I was were able to hook up some giant goldfish (google Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders, 4MR). I might just have to go back AGAIN...

Seele Rods

Mike McFarland was at the show displaying his new line of rods. OH MY.... That 7'9" 4 wt was something special... These will be out in the March time frame. The fiberglass reel seat spacer will be an option - I'd get it if I were you... Keep your eyes open and your ear to the ground for these in the very near future. This is a new company that Mike and a partner are standing up. If you are in the market for a new fiberglass fly rod, these are worth waiting for.

How Much Happiness Can You Get For $21.95???

Oh yes I did stoop down this low... but after casting this rod at the Fiberglass Casting Roundup a couple of weekends back, my whole perspective on what constitutes a rod that I would purchase and fish has completely changed. THIS ROD IS A BLAST TO CAST - plain and simple. I've got a Scientific Anglers Supra DT6F spooled up on the Orvis BBSIII waiting for some light wind, sunny days to slow down and cast away. Oh - did I mention this rod was $21.95??? Stay tuned for the first casts and I'll show how far $20 will go...

Fiberglass Fly Rod Sampler

Here is the DC/Northern Virginia/Maryland area, there is a webgroup called the Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders. There is a forum where you can get information on places to fish, what is being caught, what equipment is out there, what flies are working and who is out there fishing. Recently, there has been a few people trying to line up a casting session where you bring what fiberglass equipment you have and you get to try what everyone else brings. Despite the really cold temperatures this morning (12 degree F), four of us on the forum got together to cast. I brought the D. Lewis Performance Rods 6'6" 3/4wt 3 piece, the C. Barclay Glass 3wt 3 piece, and the Orvis Superfine Glass 7'0" 3wt. Lucky for me I am not a person concerned with my image and I am very receptive to constructive criticism - I heard "SLOW DOWN, THIS AIN'T GRAPHITE" more than a few times during the shared casting - but when I did slow down, did I get a huge smile on my face as the rods started throwing controlled tight loops. There were Fenwicks (the 7'6" 4wt that Bruce brought was a gem), a half-built McFarland (wonderful rod that Carl Z was still building), a sibling rod to my D. Lewis 6'6" - a 7'0" Lamiglas S Glass 3/4wt (Art seems to think there were not many of these - I just know the 6'6" is the sweetest rod I own because it likes my casting cadence), an Eagle Claw Featherlight 5/6wt that I found casts a DT6 as sweet as silk, a tiny Lamiflex that Bruce had yet to fix the reel seat he stripped off of it years ago - but that rod could cast a line and pull wide smiles from me, and many more. And last but certainly not least, Carl brought out some fly rods built out of spinning rod blanks that made me look like a casting god (at least I like to think so) - tadpoles!!! I can't remember the last time I was that cold - a few hours of casting and I had frozen sinuses and locked fingers, but the experience was invaluable - in getting more experience with different rods, learning for more seasoned casters on how to improve my own casting, and meeting some cool new people. I thought about pulling the waders on and trying to catch my first fish of the year - but I didn't want to risk a skunk with the temps so cold, or reduce the effectiveness of my casting muscles and miss out on casting the different rods. Definitely time well spent!

Fishing the Christmas Present

We slept in late and hung out at the house for a while - nice and relaxing. But after knocking out the errands, walking around the neighborhood and eating leftovers, the thought of casting the new flyline (RIO Gold WF3) and anointing the Barclay Glass 3wt and Abel Creek 1 Large Arbor that La and the kids got me (allowed me to procure) for Christmas entered my head. We were going to hit the bookstore anyways, so I got the crew to load the van and off we went to the one sure fire place I can go in winter to catch fish. I must say - casting fiberglass is a truly wonderful feeling. Sure - if it's windy out, or you are trying to hit a dinner plate 75' away, graphite would be your choice. Heck, if you are casting bigger chunky pieces of feathery simulated meat, grab that graphite rod. And if you just want to go with the flow, cast away o' graphite laser pointer... But if you want your casting to have soul, if you want to be able to feel the line loops as you cast them, and if you want to have the ability to make a small green sunfish feel like leviathan trying to drag you to the bottom of Davey Jone's locker, trust me that a fiberglass 3wt can delivery in spades. The tide was more than a little too high - but I did manage to avoid the skunk and get the rod/reel/line combo properly anointed by winning the tug-o-war match with this leviathan, I mean green sunfish. Another great Christmas!!!

"It's the LAST _______ I'll ever buy..."

The world's most pitiful plee. At least from me.About every six months or so, I end up telling (asking) La that I'm about to get something new that I haven't saved up for. In the past this has included a prone paddleboard, a kitesurfing kite, and various other items to produce stoke. I usually start the plea with "I have found the end all be all (put appropriate piece of equipment/toy here), and it will be the last one I ever get". That last part is just pitiful - but it comes out every time. As you can probably tell from the flavor of the blog posts I've been making since I have been involuntarily dry docked (i.e., the Navy stationed me away from surf again), my latest diversion has been flyfishing. Well - I told La again that a rare opportunity came up in the form of a Performance Fly Rods Small Stream Trout Rod by Dave Lewis. A 6'6" 3 piece 3/4 weight highly acclaimed fiberglass casting device that is nearing perfection. Dave passed a few years back, but the fiberglass fly rodders fondly remember his exquisite work. I pulled out the credit card and this will be in my hands in a few days....I can tell I have reached a state of lunacy and irrational behavior when I break out the "last time" plea... I need help (or at least the patience of a loving/forgiving wife), or at the very least a much better "I'm about to use the credit card" line.