The Northern California Fly Fishing Board

The past few years as many of you know I have been chaseing
the Steelhead with jigs and a float rod, lately I have been
feeling a bit nostalgic so I have been tieing classic and
traditional fly patterns such as the Stimulator and some
of the hair and feather winged streamers as well as dries
though tied with some modern materials....all still classic
patterns that have survived the test of time !
When I first started fly fishing I used a glass rod that
a friend gave me,an automatic reel and line that didn't
match the rod. I knew nothing about casting or tieing or
even why that Trout ate the fly with reckless abandon but
one thing I was sure of is I liked it and I persited through
a few frustrating seasons while learning more and more about
my new found sport.It has been a proggresion over the past
thirty five years with rods now made of graghite, reels
with a drag system and knoledge to the point of actually
over thinking the sport so here I am now getting back to
the basics and trying my best to not over think the sport.

A glass rod,a Stimulator and a classic dry fly caught fish
after watching it rise in the same place taking bugs on the
surface for several minutes...a few well placed casts and
the reason I continue with this sport !!

Mark....nice looking fish. Will be up in your neighborhood @Indian Creek Lodge with a friend. We doing 2 days with one of the local guides. We might fish Monday night (Apr 16th). I'll call you.

John

Sweet looking fish, Mark. Nicely done!

Mark,

That is a great looking fresh fish.

Yes Yes Yes...I am still surprized to see these fish this late I really only
figured I'd find down streamers or yearlings !

I have heard that in a totally natural environment there would be a pre-run of fish, the main run, and a post run of fish, this would insure if there was some catastophic event that at least a portion of the spawn would survive. Maybe all the work on the Trinity is starting to pay dividends.

from voiceing my oppinion about the devast..err restoration work
I can say I have landed bright fresh run Steelhead every month of
the year up here.

A couple of years ago Herb Burton told me the same thing there are fish in the river all year, just the number of fish go up in the Fall and Winter.

The work/devastation does change the view. I hope the biologists have it right, I am an optimist, and there is another run like 2007.

up untill a couple years back I had never got one in June but that
changed one day while chaseing Browns with Pappy..I called it a
"Gift from God"

Amen, Brother Mark, Amen.