Fly Tying

[Karl]

The best approach may to be to pack just enough to tie  emergency flies on the trip.

Although the last post to this topic was well over a year ago, I guess some topics never lose interest, but I'm kind of wondering just what constitutes 'emergency flies'? Henry Blake, MASH 4077th. never had a problem. He always wore a hat with a variety of flies stuck in it (and sometimes his head). Just what kind of emergency would you be referring to that he didn't face in Korea?  ;D

 

[Tom]

Hi Mike and welcome.

One of these days I'm going to buy a float boat. I've looked at them numerous times, but didn't yet take the plunge. The same thing happened when I procrastinated on buying a float tube for years. After I got it, I wondered why I hadn't bought one years earlier.

I use a 15" x 11" x 6" high Plano tackle box ro hold my fly tying materials and equipment when we travel. Include a couple of vices that break down to fit in the box. I've been tying flies for many years, but I'm not very good at it.

I fished a little when we were in Montana a few years ago, but access to a river like the Madison is all but impossible without using a guide service. I'd love to go back. I'm planning on fly fishing in Utah in a couple of months.

 

[Tom]

Karl,

'Emergency flies' might mean "Darn it, I brought the wrong flies". Alternatively, Mike might have been talking about 'emergent flies', i.e. what's just hatched, which often results in the same response.

 

[Karl]

Ah, so. Even the cricket can impart wisdom.  How about a sport for newly retired executives - Tie Flying?

 

[Tom]

Ah, so. Even the cricket can impart wisdom.

LOL Karl, took a while and several reads to figure that one out. You and Carl should form a comedy duet.

 

[Strikenmike]

I did not mean to cause such a fuss by using the term "emergency" when discussing flytying.  Did not realize this was going to be such a tough crowd.  To me emergency means trying to pack a "small" container of materials with the basic fur, chenille, hackle, hooks, etc. to match a hot hatch or simply to replace an old reliable fly that I have run out of.  I have a habit of leaving too many flies high in the trees along a stream.  I prefer to tie enough flies to get me through a given fishing trip.  Usually I do not have a problem, but if I am fortunate enough to make a few long trips out west or east, it is possible to run short and I do not want to buy what I need at the local shops at $1.50-$5.00 each....now that would create an emergency.

To Tom...I do not own a float tube or a float boat.  Like you I can be a procrastinator.  I am focussing on the float boat because it does better on moving water, i.e. streams and rivers.  However, I may be forced to consider a float tube simply to save space, in which case I would seek out good trout lakes for my entertainment.

 

[Tom]

I did not mean to cause such a fuss ...

Mike, you really didn't cause any fuss. Karl was just joshing with us.

Did not realize this was going to be such a tough crowd.

We're not, but apologies if we left that impression. Many folks here have known each other, either online or in person, for quite a few years, so we have a tendency to have a little fun with each other.

I am focussing on the float boat because it does better on moving water, i.e. streams and rivers.

I sure wouldn't want to take a tube on anything but a lake.

 

[Karl]

Mike,
That was only my attempt at humor. People who know me know that they must take everything I say with a grain (pound,ton) of salt!

 

[Strikenmike]

Karl as a life-long Packer fan I expect to be treated better.

Tom when I was young and much more bulletproof than I am now, I tried to fish the Wolf River in NE Wisconsin in an truck inner-tube.  Big mistake.  Got into some relatively serious rapids just north of the Mennominee Indian Reservation, flipped the tube, lost my glasses and a little gear.  Lucky I did not get into some serious trouble.

By the way if I ever solve my truck problem and actually purchase my TC and begin traveling, I also hope to make regular fishing trips pulling my boat.  I have kind of gotten into a routine of going to Kentucky in the Spring (Crappies) and Canada in the late summer, plus some local trips.  The TC seems to have some real possibilities in this regard.

TightLines,
Mike

 

[Tom]

Mike,

I wanted a truck camper for many years, so I could fish those places that would otherwise be inaccessible. Unfortunately, I've never been able to convince my other half to go along with the idea.

 

[Strikenmike]

Tom, I don't see myself going into the boondocks with a brand new TC and risk tearing up the roof, etc.  Probably stay in nearby parks.  Barkley Lake in Kentucky has a great campgrounds and the place we have been going in Ontario has cabins (which we have been using), but they also allow campers.

By the way, at this point, my wife (Linda) is encouraging me to take a few fishing/hunting trips a year by myself or with a friend or two (men I presume).  She hopes to make 4-6 special trips each year together to enjoy the many places in this country that neither of us have seen yet, such as Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Maine, Texas coast, Alaska, Gulf Coast, etc.

TightLines,
Mike

 

[Tom]

I don't see myself going into the boondocks with a brand new TC and risk tearing up the roof..

Definitely a consideration with any new RV. OTOH we have scratches and dings on our coach from places where a TC would have gone unscathed. And that's being very conservative; We don't even attempt to go many places I wouldn't worry about if we had a TC.

... at this point, my wife (Linda) is encouraging me to take a few fishing/hunting trips a year by yself..

Good for you both Mike. We take all our RVing, boating and fishing trips together, although I know Chris would encourage me if I said I wanted to on a trip alone. Without asking her, she'd pre-cook all my meals and load up the TC with enough food for an army.

 

[Ray D]

Strikenmike,

Tom, I don't see myself going into the boondocks with a brand new TC and risk tearing up the roof, etc.

I bought my first brand new off the showroom floor 4WD in 1978. It was to be a family vehicle and allow me to get further into deep forest before I had to start walking, to go hunting. It was a big deal, to me.

Two weeks later, a friend and I went up into the mountains in my shiney new 4WD. We got to where we planned to leave a logging road, and 4-wheel it - and I stopped. There were hazards there, particularly to the paint! Oh, my! 

My friend advised me that we should pick a different entry, not so overgrown. I hated the idea that my new paint was going to get scratched! 

I thought - "I got this for hunting, and I can't do it without scratching it. - - Someday, it will have scratches - and then I can use it for what I got it for." Dissappointment was setting in.    : :

Then a bit of sanity came back. I got it to go hunting, and this was the best place for our intentions. "I will scratch it, today, and never worry about that, again!"  ;D

I put it in 4WD-Low, and started moving. I heard a stiff branch start dragging on the right side, about 50 ft in. I thought, "Now, it's a hunting vehicle!" Only took a minute.  ;D

Have had no problem "christening" subsequent 4WD vehicles. Got into the habit of doing that, right away, and that has worked for me.  8)

Ray D  ;D

 

[Tom]

There were hazards there, particularly to the paint!

LOL Ray, just think of it as a dry truck & camper wash.

"I will scratch it, today, and never worry about that, again!"

That's one of the few ways to get past it psychologically. Another is when, despite all my care and attention, I get the first scratch or ding; When I'm done cussing at myself, I relax and realize I got the first one over with.

I struggled with this same issue when I bought my bass boat a few years ago. I'd been into boating for enough years to know what the maintenance and care isses were with fiberglass. One day a neighbor and I sea trialed an aluminum hull Bass Tracker. It took only a few minutes on the water to make the decision. I haven't given any thought about bumping into logs, being scraped by bankside trees, or getting ding'd by docks. It doesn't need the TLC a fiberglass boat does, and I don't notice the ding's I've put in it. The decals are a bit beat up, but when they get bad enough I'll either replace them or just remove them and do without. It also cost less than half the price of an equivalent fiberglass boat.

 

[Tom]

The best approach may to be to pack just enough to tie  emergency flies on the trip.  Most of the production tying would be done at home in advance of the trip.

That works too Mike. Even when I take all the gear and materials, I still find myself in the nearest fly fishing shop asking questions. Having (hopefully) received a lot of local knowledge and advice, I feel obligated to buy an assortment of "local" flies.

 

[threeful]

The only good thing about a Pennsylvania winter is it gives me time to tie flies for the spring and summer hatches for my favorite Central Pa streams.  My wife can't understand how I have the patience to tie #28/30 midges (winter hatches) but won't wait 15 mins for table at Cracker Barrel!!

She also comments when I slow down to check a road kill to see if the fur anything I need.  Easy way to get "buck tails" for streamers!!

 

[Tom]

....how I have the patience to tie #28/30 midges (winter hatches)...

That's beyond my capability. I don't believe I've fished with anything that small. Makes my #16-#20 look like a meat hook.

 

[Strikenmike]

Can't handle those midges!!!  To tell you the truth I  have very few hooks smaller than 18.  I think this is why I find myself doing more flyfishing for panfish .  I can tie 10's, 12's, more terrestrial stuff.  If I get in a tailwater or someplace real cold and real clear, and I need the small stuff, I just buy some at the local shop.  I did have cateract surgery last fall... maybe I should try again.

Tightlines,
Mike

 

[threeful]

I use a florescent lamp with a magnifier in the middle of the lamp.  That plus some 2.5x reading glasses give me the light and magnification I need.  My problem is threading the tippet through the hook eye in 40 degree weather and when I am lucky enough to do that,  trying to pick up the midge on the water is more difficult than tying it!!!

It sure is fun playing a 15-17" brownie with that size hook but more get away than landed!!   

 

[Tom]

Thanks for the light/magnifier tip. I hadn't thought of using one of them.

Can't imagine tying those midges on a tippet in any kind of weather. I recall tying larger flies on a tippet in the dark while wading up to my thighs, but that was many years ago. I don't go fishing in 40 degree weather, brrrr.