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What a weekend it was! 

3/22/2016

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As I sit here typing this I have just finished one of those marathon weekends of fun. Why is it as hard as we try when planing things everything seems to end up crammed into a span of 3 or 4 days? Well, that is what happened to me this past weekend. On Thursday I was at the South Jersey Coastal Fly Anglers monthly meeting. I was there to give my presentation "Shad Fishing 101". As soon as I got there I got an appreciation for what a cool town Ocean City NJ is. Driving around this quaint little town for a  minute you would never know that Atlantic City is just minutes up the road. From the clubhouse to the members of the SJCFA this club is top notch and Joe does a fantastic job keeping everything running smoothly. Of all of the clubs and all of the presentations I have given, this is only the second club that did the "Pledge of Allegiance" before the meeting. I gotta say...that is pretty damn cool! 

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How is this for a clubhouse!
The meeting was well attended with about 40 people there. Based on the conversations and the emails after the meeting, I think the members enjoyed it. 

I would like to thank Joe and all of the members of the South Jersey Coastal Fly Anglers for having me out last Thursday, I hope you enjoyed the evening as much as I did. I hope we can do it again real soon. 

So, you want to fish central PA do ya...
​

I heard a smart man say not too long ago "why do you want to go to Montana to Trout fish?" "We have some fine fishing right in our back yard." The person who said that was Eric Stroup and the back yard he was speaking of is one of the premier limestone rivers in central Pennsylvania, the Little Juniata. The Little "J" as known by the locals is a beautiful river full, and I mean full, of Wild Brown Trout. I didn't get home, Thursday night from the presentation, until almost midnight. I was glad when Eric said there was really no need to be there first thing in the morning. The time change had the fish active later in the day. This allowed me to get at least a few hours of sleep. I met up with my buddy "One Boot" Ed at 7:00 and we began the 3 hour drive North West to Eric's lodge.  
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This lodge is awesome!
We didn't waste much time and before long we were on the river looking for Trout. It wasn't 10 minutes into the first run and Ed knocked the skunk out of the boat with a solid fish! 
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We continued having steady action throughout the first day. I don't know how many fish we landed, nor do I care. It was a great day on the water with great friends, to me that is what fly fishing is all about! 
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Look at the width of the tail. No wonder they pull so hard!
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look at the color on the caudal fin!
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Watching the master at work...I was actually video taping this.
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A great ending to a perfect day.
I didn't know Ed had taken this picture. It is kinda funny he would click the shudder at this moment. This was a fairly serious discussion about the industry and some heartfelt suggestions from Eric to me about the direction of Irish Flies. This one is going in a frame! 
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Day 2, more of the same...or is it? 


​After a good night sleep and a trip to the local diner for breakfast (if you go to Diner 22 I would recommend the Diner 22 mess, a cool Breakfast meal with a little bit of everything) we were back at the lodge pondering the plan for the day. I will tell you this...it wan MUCH colder the second day! I actually changed clothes twice before we left. A full set of long johns, and a set of fleece over top of that. Trust me, I was glad I had it! 

It didn't take long for the action to start on the second day as I think on the third drift I was tight to a feisty little Brown. We fished our way through three runs netting about a dozen fish. The highlight of the morning was the hooking of a solid 20" fish. Ed stuck the brute on the dropper and before he even had time to react the big ole boy had snapped him off. It was literally less than a second! The only way we know what he was is he came out of the water as he was leaving almost as if to say "I win this one." What size tippet you ask...4X. It was a great morning, better than I thought it would be with 40 degree air and water temps. 
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After lunch we went to a spot that Eric said we are gonna do a little "Donkey Huntin" We parked in the lot and walked about a half hour up to the spot. Apparently people don't fish this spot often because of the walk. "It is funny, people will drive three hours to get here, but they wont walk 10 minutes." A very true statement. We set up in the same run, me at the top and Ed at the bottom. Ed's rod was as hot as the hinges of hell... I don't know how many fish he landed, well over a dozen. I do know every time I looked down his rod was doubled over. It was pretty cool to see my buddy having a banner day.   
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A big one just came unbuttoned at the net! This is my self imposed time out...
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We were hooking up two at a time.
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The fish of the trip. Ed's shouldered up 20 inch tank. It isn't often you see your backing on your Trout rig. We saw it today!
Well, there you have it, a 3 day marathon of fly fishing. If you are in the Ocean City NJ area and think you might want to chase some salt water fish with fly gear check out the SJCFA HERE. If you would like to check out some of the best fishing central PA has to offer check out my buddy Eric Stroup HERE, or contact me to book a trip. Both of these organizations are first class. Check em out, you will be glad you did! Till next time...

                                                                                                                       Tight Lines
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Fishing the Little J

9/30/2015

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Last weekend I had the pleasure of spending a day on the Little Juniata, or "Little J" as said by the locals chasing wild Trout. I have been looking forward to this trip for some time as I was to be spending the day with my buddy Eric Stroup. Eric is the owner of Stroup Fly Fishing, a full service guiding operation located in the quaint little town of Troy, Pennsylvania. The plan was for me to leave my house early Saturday morning and make the 3 & 1/2 hour drive North West and meet Eric at his Gorge View Lodge. We would meet and fish the day, I would spend the night in the lodge and drive home Sunday morning. The ride out was uneventful as it was dark the entire way (I left my house at 3:45 am) and the only sounds were the songs coming out of my I-Pod and the occasional prompt from Siri telling me which route to follow. 

I arrived at the lodge at about 7:45 after a stop at one of the coolest little diners I have ever been in. It was about 5:45 in the morning and I was ready for breakfast. I decided to stop at the next place I saw where I could get something to eat. Well, it turns out that place was Yetters Restaurant. At quarter of six in the morning the parking lot was full. I figured this must be a good place so I pulled in. The place was full of older gentleman, all with camouflage hats and work clothes on. Obviously these guys must meet here every day, because they all knew each other and the conversations moved from table to table. Everything from the Pirates are playing good ball (it took me a minute to realize I was closer to Pittsburgh than Philly) to politics, to what was going on this weekend. Each time somebody walked in it was like the scene from the TV show "Cheers" when the character played by George Went walked in the bar and everybody would yell "Norm" Everybody knows everybody and it was fun to be a part of their group if only for 20 minutes. 

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A way cool place, and a HUGE plate of Biscuits and Gravy for 6 bucks!
As mentioned I got to the lodge at about 7:45 and had a little time to look around. The lodge is absolutely beautiful! Rustic on the outside with a view of the mountains in the distance. Crab Apple and Pear trees in the front yard make for good Deer snacks as there were several in the yard later that night and when I got up the next morning. As cool as the outside looks the inside is even better. 10 beds, 2 full kitchens, 2 bathrooms, a huge deck, washer / dryer, fly tying station and just the right amount of fishing decor to make you feel at home. I wish I had remembered to take pictures of the inside. I will make it a point to to take some the next time I am there, and trust me, there will be a next time.  
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The ClakaCraft Headhunter is used for Smallmouth trips on the Big "J"
This trip was for me to work on my "Tight Line" nymphing techniques. I wanted to get polished up, shoot some video and get ready for the Irish Flies Nymph Fishing Seminar. We met up at around 8:00, talked for a bit and after a tour of the lodge we headed out to the river. 

​The Little "J"

The Little J is a tributary of the Juniata River in the Susquehanna River basin. Classified as Class "A", the Little J holds a healthy population of Wild Brown Trout. The regulations on the 14+ mile section we were fishing are all tackle, catch and release only. Similar in size to the main stem of our White Clay. A true Central Pennsylvania limestone river, the rivers beauty is matched only by its diverse bug activity. I fished Penn's earlier in the Spring and the Little J in the fall. I can absolutely see why true Trout nut's relocate to this area! 
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If you are gonna fish the little J you better get used to trains, a lot of trains, trains with LOUD air horns!
We fished the morning with Eric doing as much instruction as I did fishing. We didn't have much success as far as fish go, but I learned more in that first 3 hours than I have learned on a river in a long time. I think people sometime get lost in the "numbers" of our sport and don't realize guided fishing trips are not only about how many fish you catch, but how much your guide can teach you so you can catch fish EVERY day thereafter.

We had worked a ton of pocket water hard without moving a fish, it was around 11:30, the biscuits and gravy I had for breakfast was working overtime in my gut, so when Eric said "lets get the hell outta here and get some lunch" he didn't get any objections from me!

After lunch we headed to a different section of river. I asked Eric to take a rod with him in the afternoon as I wanted to watch him fish. Artistry on the water is the only way I can describe it. I stood behind him for about 10 minutes and watched Eric systematically tight line a run. No fish were hooked, but to see how it is supposed to be done really hit home with me. Every seam, pocket, and current line was giving at least two drifts. No movement was wasted as I watched him stalk through the run. One thing that really surprised me was the accuracy of the casting. Eric spent a while showing me his version of the Tuck Cast, the secret of good Nymphing. It took me a little while, but by the end I think I was getting it. We were 1/2 way through the afternoon when the first fish was landed, an absolutely beautiful 13" wild brown. Ever the optimist (a quality all guides must have IMO) Eric kept saying "we are gonna find em, sooner or later we are gonna find em"

​Well... 
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He was right! The quality of fish in this river is amazing! As you spend more time on the water certain days or trips stand out in our memories. The day I got my first brown over 20", the day my brother got the big rainbow up at the camp, the day we flipped the canoe in the Brandywine. All of these trips stand out for one reason or another. I am sure in time this trip will carve out a spot in my mind. It was an awesome day and I was very fortunate that everything came together! 

October Bronze & Brown

Throughout the day Eric was telling me about a promotion he was working on for the month of October. Bronze & Brown is a special for 2 anglers consisting of a day fishing the little J for trout, a day in the drift boat on the big J for Smallmouth and one night Lodging in the Gorge View lodge. Streamside lunch and all tackle are provided. This is a great way to cash in on two of this areas best fishing opportunities. If you would like to book a trip feel free to contact me at [email protected] or contact Eric directly at [email protected] or call (814)505-4568. If you have ever thought about fishing this area check Eric's operation out, you will be glad you did!   
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Another great little J Brown!
If you want to expand your knowledge about Nymph fishing click here and register for the Irish Flies Nymph Fishing Seminar. If you want to expand your horizons and fish some of Central Pennsylvania's fabled Limestone rivers click here and check out Eric Stroup Flyfishing. You can't go wrong ether way. Till Next time...

​                                                                                                                               Tight lines
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A few days on the White Clay

12/28/2014

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Well, here we are a couple of days past Christmas. I hope everybody has had a safe, fun Christmas Holiday and that everyone received all of the fly fishing gifts from Santa they were looking for. My Christmas was great and the best "fishing" gift for me came from my son Tyler. The Fishpond Nomad net will be out to good use, trust me. Thanks buddy for a great, and needed, present. With the hustle and bustle of Christmas not what it used to be for my wife and I (our kids are 21 and 19) and being SEVERAL years away from grandchildren the holidays, for us, are a simpler time. After the big day I got to spend a little time the White Clay on Friday and Saturday. I was hopeing to take advantage of the Holiday Stocking that the White Clay Fly Fishers have been doing the past several years. Things were done a little differently this year. In the past the club would do one stocking of several hundred to sometimes over a thousand fish typically right before Christmas. This year the river will be stocked three times; once in October, December, and February. Knowing the river was full of fish had me rigged and on the water by 11:30. 


I have been playing with a winter time rig that I learned from my buddy Eric Stroup www.ericstroupflyfishing.com in fact during his last Face Time Fly Fishing show he spent a little time discussing this very subject. During the winter take 3 flies (the maximum number allowed by the state DNR) and place them fairly close together. The Idea is to grab the fishes attention with a smorgasbord of food in close proximity to each other. A single Zebra Midge needs to bump them in the nose sometimes before they will eat it. Certainly they will move no more than a few inches, maybe a foot, to eat such a small meal. That is why you need to be extra diligent to be sure you have covered 100% of the hole you are fishing before moving on. On the other hand a fish is more apt to move several feet if it knows it has the opportunity to fill his gut. I usually will fish a big attractor like a Walt's Worm or a PFN and trail a small Nymph and a Midge, or 2 Midges of different color. This technique has worked quite well for me in the past, especially on stocked fish. One word of caution, be sure to cast an open loop or you will have a mess of tangled spaghetti in short order and be sure to use barbless or de-barb all of your hooks. With 3 flies no more than 18" apart the opportunity to hook the body of the fish with one of the other flies is heightened. 


I hit the river solo on Friday and fished from about 11:30 till they shut off at about 4:15. Water temp was 36 degrees and at the warmest part of the day there was a pretty steady Midge hatch coming off. Steady enough for me to switch to a dry and stick a couple before the bugs shut off causing the fish to follow suit. With the water at 36 degrees I decided to fish the deeper pools and cover the water thoroughly before moving on. I pre-tied two rigs, the first had a #14 PFN on point with a #20 Black Mercury Midge and a #22 olive Al's Rat as trailers. The second rig was a #10 Walt's Worm on point with a #18 Flashback PT and a #20 Frostbite Midge as trailers. I have done well with all of these flies on the Clay in the past ant Friday waI no different as I landed fish on all 6 flies.       

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This guy ate the PFN
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That is the Mercury Midge in his jaw
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Swimming away to be caught again
The highlight of the day came at around 3:30 when several fish started to rise on the far bank from where I was fishing. It stopped as fast as it started, lasting only about 20 minutes. I had just enough time to switch my leader to a dry on 6X. I chose what is quickly becoming my favorite Midge dry, the CDC Puff. This is my buddy Rick's pattern and it is as effective to fish as it is easy to tie. A hook, thread and 2 materials. 
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That is a size 22 Puff in his mouth
Saturday was to be much different than Friday. First off I was fishing with 2 good friends. Jim Stephens whom has been taking private tying lessons for some time now and has become a good friend and my partner in crime Ed "one boot" Hays. We met at around 11:30 and quickly realized there were MANY more people fishing today, the weather was beautiful, the temp was in the 50's and everybody had the same idea. Ed had a few new streamer patterns he wanted to fish so he decided to fish down. Jim and I were Nymphing and fished up. I had already decided to spend the bulk of the day in the area I had the most luck the day before...stake my claim if you will. I don't normally like to do that, but I knew there were fish there and if I was not fishing over them somebody or many somebody's would be. I started with the same rig I had the most success with the day before. In the beginning I actually spent more time talking as several of my old customers that were on the water. Conversations with Dennis, Ray, Bill, Rob, and Adam were a good way to rest the fish in "my" hole and it was nice to catch up with these guys. The fishing was tough and I was having no success with any of the flies that worked the day before. At one point I watched a fish move 6 inches to his left as my rig drifted past him. When the rig was safely past him he moved 6 inches to his right back to his preferred lie. I sent a text to Ed to ask how he was doing and received this picture in return.   
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At this point I had been fishing for 3 hours and only had one fish landed and another LDR (long distance release). I have switched flies to every combo imaginable and just couldn't get the same results as yesterday. Finally as a last ditch effort as I blankly starred in to my nymph box I decided to do something I NEVER do. I picked a single fly, one I rarely if ever fish, tied the single fly under the indicator and cast it out. 
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Second row from the bottom, second fly from the right. There is only one in the entire Nymph box!
On the first cast I was tight to a good Brown. I had just enough time to fish my way up through the run one more time, which I did landing 3 more fish. Who would have thought, fishing technical all day and the Green Weenie was the top producing fly! 
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At the end of the day we all compared notes and it turned out to be not too bad of a day. When you are on the water with good friends is it ever a bad day? Off to tie Weenies. Till next time


                                                                                                                         Tight lines...
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