All the other stuff

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20
Apr 12

And the assist goes to…

I’m always really grateful to have a stellar boat-mate when the merde hits the fan and I was lucky enough to have that be true when I hooked up with the big tarpon down in Cuba.

Jim Klug (from Yellow Dog Fly Fishing Adventures) has been there before, many times, and it was invaluable to have him in the boat to help coach me through things and to help me keep my cool.

I think most of my instincts were right when it came to actually fighting the fish, but when it comes to hooking a tarpon, it is a different set of actions than anything else I’ve done in fly fishing.  Basically, set hard and keep setting hard until the fish jumps (of course then you bow to the king).

Jim was a calming presence, letting me know I was doing things right and giving little suggestions.  He could even tell me what was about to happen, which kept the surprises to a minimum.

When you get through a moment like that with that kind of support, you come out the other side a bit wiser. Hopefully the next time I connect with a tarpon like that my IQ will only drop 5-10 points and not the 50 or so it was dropping before.

I think back to my trip to Belize in 2010 with Shane.  Kind of the same story. He had so much wisdom to drop that I certainly emerged a better angler. These days, sometimes I’m going to be the better angler in the boat and when that is true I try to give as much advice as I can (hopefully not too much, that’s annoying).  Sometimes I’m going to be the lesser angler and in those situations I’m going to listen hard.

Life is about learning and there are so many people to learn from.

Any of you guys/gals have a fishing friend that has been particularly helpful to your growth?

Jim, always looking for the best shot

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19
Apr 12

Jose Wejebe, Godspeed

I didn’t know Jose Wejebe, but I certainly knew of him.  When he passed away I was in Cuba and one of the folks on the trip did know him and vouched for his solidness.  Thought I’d put a post out the pay homage.

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15
Apr 12

Some thoughts on Cuba

I didn’t see much of Cuba. On the way out to Jardines de la Reina it was dark and I was passed out. On the boat, we just saw the staff and the boat and the miles and miles of pristine habitat. On the way back to Havana at the end of the trip I got to see Cuba in the daylight. I wanted to share some of my thoughts from this very brief glimpse at a country most of us haven’t been to.

  • At night the city of Havana is about 1/20th as bright as other big cities. They just don’t have the power or light bulbs to sparkle.
  • Cuba must have the most rocking chairs per capita of any country out there. It seemed every little house in the little towns had a rocking chair on the front patio, usually with someone in it.
  • It is a good thing Cuba is built on the land, else it might fall into the sea. There is a sense of general disrepair. The highways are rough and sometimes way too narrow. You have to slow down for bikes and horse-drawn carts and this is done within inches.
  • You will see a lot of people walking around to get to point B.
  • There are the old American cars like you’ve heard, but there are also newer cars. I saw an Audi A4 and a Benz suv, to name a couple.
  • Some of the shacks out in the countryside are simply that. Tiny, wooden and lived in.
  • In Havana there are places that are just waiting to fall over or fall in. It is like certain floors or buildings passed through some very selective apocalypse.
  • Everyone seems to have something to sell or some racket to pitch.
  • The colors of the buildings is pretty cool.
  • The old American cars spew black exhaust. This is not a place for asthmatics.
  • The architecture of Havana is really cool, but it all looks at risk.
  • Everyone seems to smoke, even the well dressed women at the nice place for dinner.
  • There isn’t as much propaganda as I thought there would be.
  • No one wants to talk politics.
  • Things in Havana are way more expensive than it seems like they should. You can have a $50 dinner, while the average official salary for a Cuban is something like $20/month.
  • The economy seems to be mostly black-market. Everything has a cost and everyone is selling. It seems to be the way they make things work .
  • Going through the country side you really get a sense of a very agricultural economy at work. Horses and cows seemed to be everywhere outside the towns (and in some cases in them).
  • Saw a little boy on a horse that looked straight out of Montana or Wyoming or old-time Mexico.

Cuba seems to be coming to a crossroads. What I saw looked pretty unsustainable. The buildings are old, the roads are old, the railroad is old and nothing seems to be getting fixed or built. It seems to be a slow burn to some finality.

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03
Apr 12

Fidgety

It is getting close to Go Time. Functionally, I have one more day before I’m on my way.  Wednesday is chock full of non-packing related activities, culminating with me not even being home on Wednesday night.  So… Tuesday is the last night to put stuff in my bag.

Now is when I start to get a little fidgety.

Have I tied enough of the right flies?  Are my leaders what I need? What am I forgetting?

An unease sets in. A worry.  I won’t be fully relaxed now until my toes are in warm saltwater and I have a rod in my hand.

The countdown is getting down to pretty trivial numbers and I am getting to the point that I really can’t wait.

Singular focus

 

PS – the bag is getting really, really full. Going to be close.

yeah... I need to get more into this bag

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28
Mar 12

Thoughts about the Cuba Trip

I’m a very lucky guy. I’m thinking about this Cuba trip that I’m about to embark on and I can’t help but think about the last big trip I had to Andros last year. There are some parallels.

  • It was almost at the exact same time of year.
  • It was a dream destination that I had no idea  how I would ever get to.
  • I was getting over a cold (then, I actually had one on the plane on the way there).
  • It was an opportunity that came to me through the blog and people that I genuinely like.

There were a couple of differences.

At the time of that trip I had a sense that my marriage was on really, really thin ice. It was when I got back from that trip that things fell apart. Literally the day after I landed. That was pretty horrible, but it wasn’t totally out of the blue. I’m pretty sure I told one or two people in Andros that I suspected my marriage was about to end. In fact, the story I wrote for Pulp Fly is a fictional story about a guy going through a divorce who went to Grand Bahama to try and get his mind of things. I wrote that a good 5 months before le merde hit le fan. Something in me had a feeling about things.

I was right.

As the Cuba trip comes into clear focus that old relationship is in the dustbin of history, save for a 5 year old connection we still have in the form of a wonderful little girl who loves cobras and wants to fly fish in the Bahamas with her old man.

I have a new relationship and one that is going to be around for a long time.  She’s happy I’m going to Cuba. She’s happy FOR me. That’s a pretty important attribute.

So, the tale of 365 days and two trips and two different me’s. I find that the trips I take like this sever as markers to remind me of where my life was at at any given time.  This trip, most likely, will mark the beginning of a new life.  I’ll say “Oh, that was the year I went to Cuba when all that wonderfulness happened with Renee (that’s her name).”

This year, with this trip, the future looks pretty bright. I’m full of optimism and hope.

Do your trips mark times in your life like this, or is that just me?

Yeah, this year is shaping up nicely.

 

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25
Mar 12

Tory does some casting

Pointed out by Davin at Flatswalker… Knowledge.

Of course, Tory is a guide at Andros South. I know that beach. The Slack Tide bar is about 40 feet to the right of the camera. Love that place.

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23
Mar 12

Fishing Jones interviews Mr. Deneki

His name actually is Andrew Bennett, but he’s the guy behind Deneki Outdoor. Here’s a cool interview that Fishing Jones did.

Here’s a sample question asked…

You’re Ivy League; shouldn’t you be launching a tech start-up or bundling subprime mortgages?

Check out the interview to see the answer.

Fishing Jones, is, of course, Pete McDonald, who is part of the Pulp Fly writing project. A great number of the writers for the project came out of FIBFest (Bruce Smithhammer, Pete McDonald, Michael Gracie and myself). A lot of good things have happened there at Andros South. Good job Andrew.

 

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10
Mar 12

Le Mouching kind of day

For you francophiles out there, you should check out the leading French language fly fishing blog… Le Mouching.

My little girl appears to be a fan (although the only French she’s really heard is when I curse in French).

le yumm.

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07
Mar 12

March Madness… Cheeky Style

It’s that time again.  I understand there is something happening with basketball, which I haven’t watched since Jordan retired (the first time). There is another March Madness happening and that is happening over at Cheeky Fly Fishing.

This has the brackets you might expect, but instead of Stanford or Cal or Sonoma State (holla) there are fish.  The first one in the first bracket is… of course… BONEFISH.

This event benefits the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust.

There are a ton of prizes on hand from great sponsors like Patagonia, Yellow Dog Fly Fishing Adventures, The Fly Shop, Fishpond, Teeny and Thomas & Thomas.

It costs you $5 and that goes to help bonefish and tarpon.

Great job Cheeky.  Hope it is a great success.

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26
Feb 12

At the Fly Fishing Show

I went to the Fly Fishing Show in Pleasanton yesterday.  It was a good time. Brought the girlfriend along (it was a test and she passed with flying colors) and the little sidekick.  Saw old friends, saw some new gear, had some good conversations and generally enjoyed myself.  The show even kicked down a “Media” pass for me, which made me feel a tiny bit legit.

The main highlight, however, was my little girl tying a fly.  They had volunteers ready and willing and able and my little girl was FOCUSED.

Thanks for that good people at the Fly Fishing Show.

Awesome.

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