From an American Sportfishing Association press release:
Without evidence that lead fishing tackle is posing a threat to loon populations, a proposed ban in Washington State is completely unwarranted!

Please send a letter to the Washington State Fish and Wildlife Commission demanding that they reject a proposed rule that would ban the use of lead fishing tackle. The proposal is based on the assumptions that lead fishing tackle poses a threat to loon populations and that many alternatives to lead are widely available for approximately the same price – neither of which is true. . . .

A study of common loons by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife found “no evidence of a declining population or a substantial change in distribution” in the state, and loon populations are stable or increasing throughout their range. Advocates for the proposed ban are using as evidence a finding that says over the past 13 years, nine loons are found to have died from ingesting lead fishing tackle.  [ Read Full Post ]

Fresh, hot biscuits, anyone? It’s hard for me to imagine a meal in any fishing or hunting camp without some of these tender, flaky morsels soaking up melted butter or swabbing a plate clean of that last bit of gravy. There have been days--and this might be one--when I’d kill for a good biscuit.

Biscuits are easy to make, yet require a deft touch so they don’t get tough and lumpy. Lard or shortening must be cold as it is crumbled through the flour so things don’t get mushy. When milk is added, don’t beat the dough to death or you’ll toughen it. And the oven must be very hot when the biscuits go in or they won’t rise properly.

The kind of flour makes a difference, too. So-called “soft” flours common in the South such as White Lily or Martha  White have fewer gluten-forming proteins than Northern flours and thus rise better in the oven and become flakier. The distinction is so noticeable that I buy southern White Lily flour by mail order for our own use here at home. That company’s website also includes some excellent recipes in case... [ Read Full Post ]

It's the middle of November... It gets dark by 4:30, lakes have started to freeze over, ice forms on your guides now at 2pm, and any sign of decent sized dry flies is way gone. Come another couple months you'll be jonesing for any kind of serious fly fishing entertainment, no matter the flavor...

Enter The 2010 Fly fishing film tour. This year the tour officially kicks off in January and hard and firm dates will be posted on their site December 1st of this year. 

There will be upward of 40 stops in major cities and 50 other independent promoters of the tour in smaller cities, put on by fly shops and groups like TU for all you folks who don't live near near the regular tour towns... Everyone who shows up will get a free fishpond hat ($20 value) and tickets can be bought online for $14 or $12 dollars at your local fly shop.

Official selections haven't been made, but it's a good bet there will be films by RA Beattie, World Angling, Confluence Films and the previously unreleased...

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From an AP story via myCentralJersey.com:
Coast Guard boats, planes and helicopters searched the roiling ocean off Cape May on Thursday for three commercial fishermen whose boat sank, and colleagues of the missing men prayed for a miracle. . . .

The Coast Guard has recovered an empty life raft, but had not found any signs of survivors as of Thursday morning as weather conditions continued to worsen, due in part to the remnants of Tropical Storm Ida, which was churning the sea from North Carolina to Long Island, N.Y.. [ Read Full Post ]

Let's start the week by sprinkling some hot sauce... Simple question: Is it fair game or dirty pool to take a grip-'n-grin photograph with a fish you landed, but was foul-hooked?

I ask because it actually came up as an issue on a guide trip this summer. "Joe" was guiding "Bob" when Bob hooked into the biggest rainbow trout he could remember.  Problem was, he hooked it in the pectoral fin.  He did a nice job and landed the fish quickly (perhaps even a more impressive fighting and landing job than if the fish were mouth-hooked)... Good work, Bob.  Next thing I noticed, Joe was grabbing for the camera... "let's get a photo of this!"

I'm thinking whoa, whoa, whoa... get a photo of what, an accident?  If you hit a buck with your car, do you jump out and mug for the camera then also? Let's call it like it is... Bob didn't catch that fish, Joe.  He snagged that fish.  It happens to everyone (good fly fishers less than bad ones)... but that doesn't count.  Does it? And besides, that exhausted fish (more tired than if it were mouth-hooked) should be put in the water, now. Photographing a snagged, whipped, beat-up fish... [ Read Full Post ]

Our friend Marshall Cutchin broaches an interesting topic over at midcurrent.com today regarding the state of the nationwide drought that has devastated both farming and fisheries over the last decade. One that I hadn't thought of in quite some time.

A USAToday piece quoted in his report states that, "Last week, about 75% of the country showed no drought, the largest since the U.S. Drought Monitor was created in 1999. At the drought's peak in July 2002, about 72% of the country was in drought, according to the Drought Monitor."

Here in Colorado, 2002 was horrendous with the hayman fire and many rivers feeling the effects of multiple years of low water. This continued on and off until about three years ago, when things got back to normal and in most cases way above normal.

Curious, what's it like in your part of the country? Is the drought over for you or are you still feeling the effects today? 

Speaking of fish and drought, I thought this video by RA Beattie was...

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Some years back I wrote a Fishing Column in our print edition about fishing with Barbie rods just to see what was possible with kiddie-style spincast outfits. Since then, I’ve heard of 20-pound catfish caught with this dinky gear, and even a 50-pound black drum. But nothing tops this latest Barbie news.

An angler fishing during a recent shark tournament off Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, caught a 100-pound blue shark on a Barbie-style rig. Yes, really! Here’s the video to prove it.

Okay, I know that blue sharks aren’t the toughest fighters on the end of a line. If this had been a hard-running, high-leaping mako shark, Barbie’s proverbial goose would have been cooked but good. But still, a 100-pound fish is a 100-pound fish, and I give the angler lots of credit for trying in the first place and for pulling it off.

In case you’re wondering about Barbie’s muscles, I once dead-lifted a 16-pound weight with a Barbie rod without breaking it. So there’s plenty of pull available. And I dare say this angler replaced the chintzy mono that comes on... [ Read Full Post ]

Every baitcaster gets a backlash once in while. Untangling the line can be a real pain, and many resort to a knife or scissors to cut away the tangle in frustration. No more. This quick video tip for clearing backlash snarls will help.

Reeling forward slightly while pressing on the tangled line with your thumb smooths the snarl and pushes those overlapping line loops free. It’s not a new idea. I first heard of this in an article by bass pro Shaw Grigsby maybe 10 years ago. But the video here by Maryland bass-blogger Kevin Scarselli is the first live demonstration I’ve seen.

Yes, it works. At least it works most of the time. The main thing in clearing a backlash by this or any other method is ... [ Read Full Post ]

Now about those sex ads. You know, the ads in the back of our print edition that tout various male-enhancement products. Some people complain about them. Others just smirk. But what if some of those things turned out to be great fishing products?

Here’s an example. Suppose you’re fishing a headwater creek for little brook trout and keep a few for dinner. The minimum legal size is 6 inches, but you’ve inadvertently kept a 5-incher. Uh-oh, here comes the game warden. Quick! Slip that little brookie into the pocket-size vacuum device and with a few fast pumps you’ve turned that trout into a legal fish!

The potential here is just wonderful. Need some bigger plastic worms or maybe a few larger dry flies? No problem. There are some pills that supposedly increase the size of certain things. So maybe you could dissolve a couple of tablets in water and then soak your size 14 Light Cahills overnight. By morning, they’d be size 12s or maybe even 10s!
Other products have a different application. There’s an aftershave lotion that  supposedly will make females more affectionate. Well, hey....my steelhead flies could use a little more love. There are lots of female steelhead in the river,... [ Read Full Post ]

Big day on Saturday. I tie the knot. So first and foremost, I just wanted to let everyone know not to expect to hear from me for a while. As of Tuesday, I'll be in Turks & Caicos for my honeymoon. I really look forward to romantic sunset strolls, frosty pina coladas, snorkeling, and...let me see...what else? Oh yeah. Bonefish. Lots and lots of bonefish.

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So I’ve recently become a pick-up truck owner. I've only had SUVs in the past, but given the nature of my hobbies, I finally decided that a pick-up was more practical in many ways. I only had one problem: I couldn’t stand laying rods in the bed with them hanging over the tailgate. I’ve just seen too many sticks get snapped or lose guides that way. So I began to tinker.

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I'm on my way to the Everglades for a few days of high adventure, camping, kayaking and hopefully catching some snook, redfish, and/or tarpon.  Every time I go saltwater fishing, however, I bring a baitcaster along.  I'd rather catch a fish on a pinfish in dirty water, than get stuck with just a fly rod when the fly thing isn't happening.  And sometimes it doesn't happen.  

Now... in trout fishing, I actually believe that a fly floated the right way is deadlier than any old lure... and I'm just not going to bait fish for trout, no matter what.  I haven't fished garden hackle in years, and I simply can't and won't go there.

But I can turn into a downright bait-chucking, heavy metal-chucking monster in the salt, in a relative hurry.

Is this wrong?  Should I just man up and stick to the "fly or die" ideal, even in the saltwater?  Or is fishing about catching, and all is fair game?

Not that you'll change my attitude (or actions) in the next few days... but I am interested in your opinions.

Deeter  [ Read Full Post ]