HOPPERS AND WHOPPERS !!

There once was a boy, who picked up a pole.

As soon as he held it, the story was told.

The hook it went deep and the barbs they were three.

For this is a thing that was just meant to be.

The bend of the rod, the rise of a trout.

The freedom to roam and to wonder about.

The sounds of the birds and the streams peaceful song.

The sound of leaping trout as the evening grows long.

The pools and riffles,"What's around the next bend?"

A time to enjoy with your family or a friend.

Somewhere to relax and reflect on the day.

A place to escape and to just get away.

The thrill of the chase, this can't be denied.

I will wonder these streams, even after I've died.

                                                                T.M.

Met this older gentleman while out exploring a new stream with my older bro.  Sat and talked fishing for about a half hour.  He was kind enough to tell me of a place he use to go and catch 25" Brook Trout.  I will be checking that out for sure :) 

Beautiful new water.  Crystal clear and the trout were scattering everywhere. 

A rooftop of St.Croix fly rods ready to bend.

Older bro bought some Hopper patterns from local fly shop.  Drifting them along the banks produced some fish.

A trouts breakfast scared onto the water by the very thing that was in search of it.  Me.

One of my bros Browns taken on a simple Hopper pattern.

We would end up spooking more fish than we caught, due to the crystal clear water and fishing at high noon like a bunch of Goof Balls.  We ended up fishing during the absolute hottest time of the day and ended up pretty tired out from the boiling hot sun.  The stream is wonderful and I look forward to fishing it on a more ideal day.  Preferably not from noon to 4:30p.m. :)




The next day I had a few hours and decided to take the kids out since the sun was starting to retreat.  They were both excited and so was I.  My son chose to use a hopper pattern and was happy just watching it float down through the rapids.  I fished a hopper for a little while, but couldn't resist a new Bomber pattern I came up with.  It was tail, hackle, peacock, hackle and then the Calf hair.( I hope that makes sense)  As soon as I tied it on, I started getting hits.  Thank you Bombers!!  Here are some pics of our adventure, I hope you enjoy!

This hopper was made from a broken Nerf foam sword.  The legs are made from old fly line.  It floated well.

Tied up this "Thunder Thighs" pattern using foam from the Nerf sword and silencers from my bow string.  It ended up being pretty easy pattern to tie.  Not the exact colors I was looking for but considering the circumstances not too bad. 

They were having a blast looking for rising fish.

The first rainbow caught was a healthy little fellow.  This is the farthest down on the stream I have seen them.

The next fish was another colorful Rainbow.  Love seeing all the Bows this far down.

Same fish as above.  These guys seem to be growing quite well each year. 

Top view of the last fish of the night.

Side view of the Rainbow. 

I have caught this beast once before.  It put up a great fight and I released it to swim another day.  I always make sure that the bigger fish that I release make a full recovery before I leave their side.  I always worry that after I leave for some reason they will go belly up.  I was super happy to see this fish again, and was just like hanging out with an old friend. :)

I am pretty sure in the pic I took with it the first time, I had about an equally goofy expression on my face.  Sorry about that :)

I caught this Rainbow on a size 14 Bomber pattern trailed about ten inches with a little gray nymph pattern.  The kids were ready to head home and it was about 9:00 p.m.  I had just lost a 13" Brown so I said to them, " Just One MOre Cast"  I tossed it in and said "Ssshhhhhhh, I have to hear if a fish takes the fly."  At this point the visibility was nill.  Then I heard something and raised my rod and sure enough this is what waited at the end of the line.  Of course I didn't have my net, and landing this thing in the dark was a little tricky.  The fish was caught, photographed and then safely released and I watched over it until it was full strength and back up stream he went.  A wonderful day with the kids.  They really are my good luck charms. 

Can you spot the 6" Crayfish deep down?

Until Next Time....Tight Lines to all !!!!!!

REVENGE IS........not......MINE !!! Chapter 2

Date: June 17th       Weather: Hot         Time: 7:00-10:oo a.m.


Location:  Southwest Wisconsin's Driftless Area Trout Streams

Tied up a few flies last night while me and the wifee were up late night.  I wanted to tie up a few new test flies and send them to my buddy to test out for me.  I had fishing on the mind late night and planned on getting out in the morning to see how things were looking.  It had been raining quite a bit this week and I was not sure what to expect.  Trout gorging on all kinds of things usually means that they will be a little less likely to be going after the random fly that floats by.  Of course as usual I was up for trying to coax a few out.  Below are a few of the flies that were in my head late night.

I woke up at about 5:30 a.m.  Now when I say woke up I mean went and took a shower and had a cup of coffee.  We actually pulled an all nighter and never quite got to sleep.  Oh well sleep will come and go where as hanging out with my wife late night not quite as often.  I saw the sun coming through the shades and the birds were singing their morning tunes, bringing the morning to life.  Coffee pressed, check.   Fried eggs a fryin, check.  Bagels buttered, check.  Grab my gear and one goodbye kiss later and I am on the road.  As I cruise down the road I can't help but notice the meadows to my left glowing in the early morning sunlight.  The dew is heavy from the mist of the meandering creek that follows along the road.  I spotted a pull off spot and came sliding to a gravelly stop.  I hopped out and decided to take a few pics before getting to my fishing destination. 

Close Up Dew shot

This picture I decided to stick my sunglasses in front of the lens as a sort of filter effect.

This is the hole where  I lost a nice sized brown on my last fishing excursion

I stopped here next on my way to try and get some sweet revenge on the biggin that got away.  By this time it was about 6:30a.m. and there wasn't a single sign of life.  Not a rise.  Nothing.  Oh wait I forgot there was a good amount of gnats out and about, looking for some yummy human flesh to bite.  Luckily I remembered my bug face net hat thingy and it seemed to at least keep me from getting bit a bunch more.  Unfortunately it made seeing a lot harder.  I fished the spot every which way without so much as a bite.  Bummer.  Looks like these guys are late risers around these parts.  Either that or just a little bit smarter from our last meeting with each other.  I decided to take some pics while letting the hole rest for a minute.  Here is a pic of a classic dewy spider web.  They were everywhere and looked like natures fine artwork.

 

 I tried a few different flies and after having no luck I decided to head off to my original destination.   I was hoping that some of the holes would be fishable and that some of the Brookies would be happy to see me.  I put on the gear and grabbed the rod.  Once I started hiking it looked like the grass may have grown a few feet since I was here about a week ago.  I knew it would be tough conditions, but I was willing to fling a few flies into some snags if that is what it would take.  The stream is tiny, but  is just to fun to give up on during the summer months.

Nice hole for the Brookies and Browns to hide.

Here is a pic of some neat grass I came across while wondering around.

Close Up

 After fishing a few holes and ending up with more snags in the weeds dangling in the water than fish caught, I decided to switch to a shorter leader and a single fly instead of using a trailer fly.  It ended up being a better choice due to the fact that snags came out a lot easier and the line tangled a lot less.  I remained patient and just took it all in.  Then around 8:30 the fish started to liven up.  I missed a bunch of hits in some of the bigger holes because of the lack of sleep that I was dealing with.  All I could do about it was manage a goofy grin on my face and try for the next one.  Here is a close up pic of one of the Brookies I caught.  Beautiful little creature.

Early Trout gets the fly.

 I noticed that the weeds and grass were full of life.  The hoppers are really starting to come to life and they are out in full effect.  Even though they are out and about they are definitely not as hoppy just yet.  Usually you can't take a step without at least one hopper hopping onto your face.  I know what fly I need to tie up when I get home later!  :)

Get a Room!!

Up and Away.

 As I continued to fish the temps continued to rise.  My waders continued to leak and I ended up enjoying the cold water that was in the bottom of my boot cooling my feet.  By this time my pants were almost completely soaked and I was wishing I just had shorts and wading shoes on.  Lesson learned.  I kept fishing hoping that the fish and the holes would continue to cooperate.  Some of holes were worse than last time because of the weeds getting knocked down into the water from the previous rain.  Oh well,  one of these days I will have to clean it up a little and just forget about spooking the fish.  It would definitely be worth it for my next trip there.  Here are a few more Brookies that were willing to come out and say hello.

Nothing better than releasing stress by releasing fish.

Healthy Little Youngin.

Really liked the fin on this one.  Like an underwater wind sail catching water currents instead of air currents.

 After reaching the top hole I turned and headed back towards my ride.  I came across this setup below and decided to take a few pics of the operation that the DNR has at the top of this stream.  If I remember right they take Brookies from this stream and use them for reproduction and to stock other local streams.  I remember as a young child taking a field trip here and seeing the DNR shock the fish and watching them float to the top.  Back then it was quite a site.  I didn't know what the heck they were up to.  This setup is in the middle of one of the natural springs that feed this creek.  Quite the set up. 

 I kept walking and couldn't help but think about the long walk back to the car was going to be a hot one.  The lack of sleep was really hitting me now, along with the sweat beading up on my head and back.  My waders were hotter than ever and were starting to really rub my feet wrong.  So I decided to do what seemed like the most sensible thing to do.  Waders off and I was on my way.  Oh how good the grass felt under my sore feet.  It had been a beautiful semi- productive day.  Once again I was happy that I went out fishing instead of lazing around the house tired out.  Next time I head out I may try to at least get a few hours of sleep :)  Although revenge was not mine today, it still exceeded my expectations in both beauty and fish caught.  Thank you mother earth for another fine day of life.  

The End..........or just the beginning.

Late night Brown from my home creek later the same night. 

Until Next time....  Tight Lines to all......!!!!!!!