So many reels, so little line. Fly line is expensive. Many times I want a sinking version of a similar floating weight I already have. The problem is this line will be used one or two times a year. I'd love to buy $70 Rio line every time I needed it but I can't justify that. The shop Discount Fishing Denver sells Scientific Anglers seconds. This allows anyone to get various types of line and not spend a fortune. Each line is around $10 and it doesn't matter if the line is floating, sinking, weight forwarded or double tapered. The fly line isn't shipped with any factory packaging. Usually it arrives like this.
My cat really wanted to be a part of this post.
The shop is nice enough to tag the end of the fly line that attaches to your backing. Every time I've called the shop their service has been great. If you're in the market for a fly line I highly recommend trying these out.
I've seen the crittermite fly before but never tried tying it. I was not convinced the tails made a difference when it comes to catching fish. I read a post recently on forum I follow where an angler caught some decent smallies. Sure enough the fly in the fishes mouth was a version of the crittermite.
I tried tying the same version but with a small twist. Instead of dumbbell eyes I'm trying tungsten heads. I think they give the fly a good look.
The flies are a work in progress and I'm still experimenting. In my eyes the flies look great but it's what the fish think that matters.
My 5wt reel had an issue where the spool came off from time to time when I stripped line. At first it only happened once or twice a fishing trip. More recently it was happening every 10 casts. I couldn't stand it anymore and decided to retire it. While looking for a replacement I didn't want to spend a ton, because usually the fish I catch on my 5wt rod don't require a good reel. I rarely fight fish on the reel itself.
I found the Piscifun Reel on Amazon. I don't normally look for fly fishing gear on Amazon and the name of this reel sounded stupid. What kept my attention was the design of the reel and the reviews. The majority of the reviews gave it 5 stars. For $35 I decided to try it out.
This reel definitely looks fancy out of the box. The finish is like most machined designs. The drag system is basic about what I expected. The reel is very light and the action when reeling line is fluid. The reel should handle a few drops but if you stumbled and fell with your weight on it I think it could bend.
When I used the reel a few times I found it doesn't like dirt. You're going to need to make sure you keep your line clean. This reel will definitely require more service than the one I had before. Even with the cons this reel is better than the previous one and it's a great replacement. It would be a nice spare reel to leave in you car. Just in case you hit the river and forget something.
I've been on the lookout for a new 8wt for quite some time. I really just needed the rod and didn't want to spend over $150. While surfing different deals I kept coming back to Allen Fly Fishing. I tried a couple Allen rods at the last fly fishing show. To be honest I didn't really think they were that special but the price point of their 8wt combo package was too good to pass up. I decided to pull the trigger and give the combo a shot. The Prelude combo included a 8wt reel lined with backing and fly line. With a $150 price tag I didn't expect much but when the rod arrived I was impressed by the case alone. It was very nice and seems like it could handle a lot of punishment. The reel came in a neoprene case and the quality of the rod was fantastic.
The blanks have a beautiful finish. they look black at first glance but as your turn them in the light they have a green sheen to them.
The reel is very light weight and the drag seems very smooth. I've used it a few times and I'm very happy with it. The line seems to be decent. I'm not sure what kind it is but I'd compare it to Scientific Anglers.
When I'm fishing from my kayak I need a rod that can cast big flies effortlessly. This combo fits that solution perfectly. I can cast poppers or large heavy flies with ease. I was using the rod when I caught a decent bass in this video. It's the footage around minute 3 and at the end of the video when you just see me casting. You can tell from the video that it's not taking me much effort to cast near the weeds. If you're looking for a great value in a rod combo I definitely recommend checking out Allen Fly Fishing. Their customer service is very good as well.
Allen is having another great deal right now. If you buy $250 of Exterus Apparel you can get a Allen Heritage or Alluvian rod free. A $209 value.
A few club members and I did a float trip on the Dan River last weekend. We hired a guide and for many of us this was our first experience with one. The guides main background was with conventional tackle and he was up front about that before hand. What I suspected was that his knowledge of the river is really what we were paying for. The guides name was Gary from Froggy Waters Outdoors. he seemed to know the river like the back of his hand. Whenever he said "usually fish hold around here" someone in our group caught something. We all kind of questioned Gary's comment to our group before the float about us catching over 80 fish. It didn't take long before we realized we were going to make that mark and do even better. Of course it's not all about the catching and we made sure to enjoy the river and take in its scenery.
It was a gorgeous day and even though the water was low the clarity was perfect. The river had various sections. Some were dead and silty with hardly any features. Others were rocky with ledges and looked similar to rivers you'd find at higher elevations.
The fish did cooperate and I had some luck with a new fly. I have been hearing a lot lately about a fly called the Kreelex Fly. It's supposed to be good for smallies and trout that are keying in on bait. This is what I tied up for the trip.
The flies worked pretty well. I wasn't sure if it was the fly or just the flash that was getting the fishes attention.
Most of the fish were caught with the kreelex flies or crayfish patterns. The rest were caught using spinning gear. Mainly beetlespins.
Everyone had an awesome time and it was one of the best float trips I've ever been on.
Gary definitely gave us plenty of time on the water. He was very patient and always made sure we were having a good time while also keeping us safe.
I'm not sure how the day could have been any better. The weather and water were perfect and everyone caught fish. We are already talking about scheduling the next trip to this river.
Here is a video I made. I'm not really in love with the helmet cam view.
Some people are just lucky bastards. I've fished with Brian a few times and he is a really fun guy to be around. He lives a pretty exciting life and as of right now he's traveling the world and documenting his experiences. This is a pic that he took yesterday while swimming with humpback whales.
Check out his blog and see what he's doing next. There's one thing for sure it won't be dull.
I spent a little time tonight tying bait patterns. These were tied with EP Fibers. I tried different profiles. A bluegill type profile and a thicker and thinner minnow type. I'm still learning how much material is needed for each pattern. A little goes along way.
