By Tim Romano & Kirk Deeter

I never quite bought those made-for television flyfishing competitions.

Fly casting … I can see that as a competitive sport, in as much as darts or bowling are sports.  But flyfishing is a pastime, not a sport.  The threshold should be:  If you can smoke and drink beer during said activity, it should not be considered a sport.  Well, okay, pole dancing might count.
          
And golf gets an exemption because people will pay money to watch golfers do their thing. So does pro bass fishing. 

But when it comes to flyfishing for trout in the same river, there are good runs and bad ones, and drawing fishing beats is nothing more than a lottery. If we’re hell-bent on making flyfishing a competitive sport, we should judge it qualitatively, not quantitatively.  Have all the competitors work the same 200 yards of river, with a panel of five judges on bleachers watching every move. 

I can see it now: “Here comes Chet … ooh a nice roll cast right into the run there, on the left side of the river, that’s going to impress.  He’s really tuned in here with that Green Drake.  Whoops, he slipped and stirred the... [ Read Full Post ]

By Tim Romano & Kirk Deeter

Fishing is still steady, even after the "Heat Wave". Most afternoons have been getting clouds and some rain. On the South Fork, the Canyon stretch has been fishing well for me. Big Grand Hoppers 2-4s, with droppers or Quigleys PMDs if seeing a hatch. Will work riffles alittle, fish still eating PMDs. Section 4, still working good for me as well, Para-hoppers on the grassy banks, getting good browns and cutthroats.

The Snake in Wyoming is good. Just went through a 3-4 day blow out and now new daily releases from Jackson Lake. If coming fishing look at waterdata.usgs.gov/wy/nwis/rt to see waterflows. Fishing mostly variations of red, purple and yellow Wing-Thing Ants and Para-hoppers with either Para-Adams, Purple Haze or red Copper Johns or bigger size Flashback Pheasant Tails. Some days the banks fish and other days the drop offs, really only one way to find out. Mostly fishing in the Grand Teton National Park. Whitewater stretch also fishing well for me.

The Aug. 1 opener of Flat Creek was interesting. If you got out early and frothed the water w/big black streamers you probably did well. If you came... [ Read Full Post ]

By Tim Romano & Kirk Deeter

Montana rogue Rusty Vorous once told me about a scientifically proven way for judging the intelligence levels of guide trip clients at the onset of your trips: The larger the brim on a client's recently-purchased shiny white Stetson cowboy hat, the lower the client's IQ.

Once it passes toilet seat proportions, you can bet it will indeed be a very long day on the river.

Rusty was accurate, by my calculations, to within 1/8 inch.

--KD [ Read Full Post ]

By Tim Romano & Kirk Deeter

Two days ago one of the first factory prototypes of a new rod from Orvis mysteriously arrived in the mail. It was an 8-1/2-foot 5-weight. There was no note with it. No press release. No logo on the rod. It didn’t even have a name. Just an implication: “Fish this bad-boy…”

For context, understand that in the flyfishing world, August is the season of hype and promises. That’s because the industry trade show is just around the corner, and all the companies get pumped up with their own propaganda of how they’re going to rock our lives with rods that virtually cast themselves. By December, we realize we’ve been sold more graphite sticks, just painted different colors. So I was skeptical.

Then I took the rod out on the water.

This rod is unlike anything else I have cast before. It’s exceptionally light (with 25% blank reduction and a much lighter reel seat) and very responsive. I could feel the tip action all the way down in the grip, but it wasn’t “noodly” or flimsy. It turns line over with ease on roll casts, and packs tight loops together so you can... [ Read Full Post ]

By Tim Romano & Kirk Deeter

ITS ON! AND IN A BIG WAY OFF THE SAN DIEGO COST.

50 MAKOS HOOKED AND RELEASED ON THE FLY THIS MONTH WITH 23 THIS WEEK. FISH UP TO 200 LBS WITH THE AVERAGE IN THE 80 LB RANGE.

ALBIES HAVE COOLED OFF AFTER A GOOD RUN AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MONTH.

BLUEFIN ARE SHOWING ( BUT DON'T KID YOURSELF, THEY ARE HARD TO GET)

WWW.BOWMANBLUEWATER.COM FOR MOR INFO [ Read Full Post ]

By Tim Romano & Kirk Deeter

Given the fact that almost every behemoth trout reported, photographed, or otherwise posted on the Internet triggers an upwelling of emotional responses (some downright disturbing) on the “real-ness” and viability of farm-raised, planted salmonids, I felt a holy obligation to meditate on the issue and weigh in with an opinion.

So yesterday (after we stocked the river) I waded into the current, sat on a boulder, and thought.  And thought.  Then drank a beer, squinted my eyes, pursed my lips, and thought harder.  In a moment of rare subconscious enlightenment, the answer seeped into my mind like a purple blob dropping through a lava lamp.  Two words: breast implants. 

Granted … they’re not real.  But they’re definitely not a foul.  There’s something to be said for aesthetic appeal.  Otherwise, there wouldn’t be droves of middle-aged men lining up and shelling out the dough for the opportunity to have their photographs taken in close proximity to them. 

Stocked trout, that is.   

--Kirk Deeter [ Read Full Post ]