The guys over at Skinny Water Culture are killing it. Fantastic stuff.
Gear
24
Dec 12
Just a blowing (off) in the wind
Ever lost your had on a boat ride out to a flat?
I have. Kind of humiliating and funny at the same time.
Deneki had a funny post about this very subject.
If you’re running in a boat and your hat gets blown off, upon retrieval of said hat, you need to scoop water with it and put it immediately back on your head. This is your penalty for not keeping track of your hat.
I think this blew off once in Andros, actually.
17
Dec 12
Getting sorted out – Line Edition
I got my Umpqua line scale a while back, but I finally got around to using it this last weekend.
I don’t know why I do this, but after some trips I’ve stripped lines off loaner reels and not recorded exactly what those lines were. Once off a reel and home from a trip an 8 wt. line looks very much like a 9 weight or 10 weight line, or 7 or 6 or god knows what. Over the past few years I’ve had a few lines pile up and the mystery has deepened and multiplied.
Why do I do this?
Well… enter the scale and all your questions are solved. You take the first 30 feet and measure that and presto… I know know that my mystery line is for a 7 weight.
Ah… so that’s what it is.
Let’s label this a little more clearly…
That’s better.
It even works for sinking lines.
All is clear.
Good stuff. Now I know what I have and don’t have. It’s good stuff to know as I look at filling out lines for reels and rods. Nice.
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14
Dec 12
The Ten
Christmas came early. My first re-married Christmas is off to a fine, fine start. This is my gift from the Mrs., a 10 weight. Just what I wanted.
I went back and forth between a 10 and 11, but in the end I settled on the 10.
I’m excited to find something to throw this at. I got a Redington to stay true to my “cheap is good” beliefs. I think this is a fine stick and I look forward to feeling something big and nasty pulling on the other end.
My new rod. Happy to welcome it to the family.
This is not the first Predator I’ve had my hands on. I caught my big (for me, anyway) Cuba tarpon on a Predator 11 and I cast a 9 in Hawaii (unsuccessfully) back a year ago. So, we have some history. This stick is workman like. It is not overly fancy (although it is blue and my daughter loves blue), but it is just a good, honest rod at a pretty decent price. This rod will be with me for a long time and that is good value:money.
11
Dec 12
New Players
I don’t know what the total number of rods sold a year is, but I’m guessing it isn’t a mind-staggering number. I’d think that gear making is a tough business to be in and you are either high margin (like, say, Winston) or low margin, high volume (the Albright model). Still there are new players entering the fray. I find it amazing people are still looking to enter the game. Entrepreneurship is still alive and well.
Here are a few companies that are pretty new, trying to capture a piece of the pie for their very own.
Rise Fishing Company – Not totally new, so the Sophmores of the group. Rise makes fishing rods inspired by the North East fishing culture. I have one of their early 8 weights and fished it in Andros in 2011. I liked it.
Blue Halo – These guys are very much out of the gate. They have fiberglass blanks (TFM is happy about that) and they have reels, including a higher end reel called the Lola, which, they tell me, is suited for the salt.
Colton – New or just new to me? I’m not really sure. Have not heard of them before. When looking for my new 10 wt. I had a couple people suggest the Colton Leviathan. I didn’t go that way, but it did make me want to learn more about them.
Cheeky – They make reels and reels. They have a distinctive look that some love and others hate, but their gear seems to hold up.
Are there other new gear companies that you are excited about?
27
Nov 12
The Non-Slip Loop
Before I started fishing in the salt, I had never tied a fly with a loop. It never seemed like something I needed to do. I didn’t really fish streamers and I tied my steelhead flies on with a simple clinch.
Then, I got to the salt and had to figure some new stuff out… like a non-slip loop knot.
I like that about switching up your game. You need to learn new stuff and in doing, you really start rounding out your game in other ways too. Now, if I’m throwing a streamer, I’ll use this same knot. Progress.
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26
Nov 12
Gifts under $50 for the bonefish angler
It is Cyber Monday, right? I have no financial stake in any of this, but I thought I would put out a list of good gift items under $50. Check it.
Form Game Rod by Redington – This is the practice rod re-envisioned with an actual fly line. You can double haul this thing and work on your timing and even play some games they’ve come up with too. A good deal at $40.
Sage One Humidor – If you enjoy a Cuban while in Cuba, this might be a good thing to have along. $50.
Jack Crevelle shirt from Skinny Water Culture – I’m a sucker for Jacks and think they are one of the most underrated gamefish swimming the salt. This is a cool shirt for $24.
Seasons on the Flats – A book about fishing the Keys through the seasons. Written by Bill Horn, illustrated by Bob White. $25.
Tarponist from Skinny Water Culture – A cool shirt for chasers of the Silver Kings. $25.
Keep Calm and Don’t Trout-Set shirt – Because it can’t hurt to have that running in the back of your mind. $21.
Badass Bonefish shirt from Deneki – It’s a bonefish, it is awesome and it is from Deneki Outdoors (the fine people who bring you Andros South). $25.
12 WT. Sun Gloves – Will Benson, a very fishy guy, is behind these sun gloves because, really, who needs skin cancer? 29$
Connect by Confluence Films – A beautiful film shot in beautiful places (including Cuba, where I fished). I have this movie. $26.
Geofish Volume 1 – What a journey these guys have been on. Great looking film. $29.
Bonefloss Micro shirt from Skinny Water Culture – Who wants skin cancer? Not it. A great technical shirt for the flats. I actually have a couple of these. $38.
Wonder Cloth from Rio – I know I could stand to clean my lines. $5.
Agent X line cleaner from Rio – Again… I could use this. $11.
BTT Hat – Because the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust is awesome. I liked the black underside of the bill. I had this hat and had it stolen from my car (bastards). $18.
Fly Fishing for Bonefish, by Dick Brown – Beautifully written and very informative book. I own this. $40.
Fly Fisherman’s Guide to Saltwater Prey, by Dr. Aaron Adams – A great resource for the fly tier that shows you what the fly is actually imitating. I own this. $27.
Bonefish Fly Patterns, by Dick Brown – A book I have and a great resource for fly tiers. $32.
Tosh Brown Calendar – because his stuff is awesome and this is only $12.
26
Oct 12
Holiday Gift Guide
I did this a couple years back, but last year I didn’t get around to it. I’ve put together a bonefishing holiday gift guide. The price range runs from $5 to $3.5M (an island in Belize anyone?). So, check it out. This is stuff I either want, have or think is cool.
Here are a few items from the list:
Tarponist from Skinny Water Culture – A cool shirt for chasers of the Silver Kings. $25.
Keep Calm and Don’t Trout-Set shirt – Because it can’t hurt to have that running in the back of your mind. $21.
Badass Bonefish shirt from Deneki – It’s a bonefish, it is awesome and it is from Deneki Outdoors (the fine people who bring you Andros South). $25.
12 WT. Sun Gloves – Will Benson, a very fishy guy, is behind these sun gloves because, really, who needs skin cancer? 29$
19
Oct 12
Best Underwater Camera
I’ve struggled with this for a long time. I’ve owned a total of 6 underwater digital cameras. Three of those, if you can believe it, actually got lost or stolen. One leaked and died and I still own two. I have had 2 Olympus cameras that I pretty much hated. I had three Pentax cameras that I liked very much until they evaporated into the ether. Now, I have a new Nikon (AW 100) that I’m pleased with (for the moment).
One of my major gripes with most underwater cameras is that there is a huge lag time between pressing the button and the picture actually being taken. That means you end up missing the shot. My Olympus also has this really great thing where when you turn on the camera and take a picture that setting results in a blurry picture. So, to make it take anything decent you have to turn in on and then change the picture mode.
The Nikon, for me, is pretty sweet. Very little lag time and very little delay from when you turn the camera on to when you can take your first picture. I like all of that.
I was excited to read a post over at The Trout Underground pointing to a Waterproof Shootout. This should answer some questions for ya! That link has people who actually know cameras doing a more comprehensive job of it. Worth looking at for usre.
My camera (and my beer).
Side note on the Nikon AW100… you can’t charge this thing with the USB. You have to have the wall mounted charger. I grabbed a charger that had “Nikon” on it and thought that would work. It won’t. Takes a different Nikon charger, which I have at home, but not with me now. Means I won’t have many pictures this weekend.
16
Oct 12
I’ll admit it. I want one.
I have a practice rod, but this looks like something I kind of want. This Redington game rod takes the yarn practice rod concept and pumps it up a few notches. I’m intrigued.
I saw these at the show in Reno, but I also saw it over at TFM (who is pretty much setting the standard for the blogosphere right now).
