Good Sunday morning.  Check out this great video about a Simms day out on the water.

Getting the Best From Your Fly Rods

Fly rods are designed to utilize a certain weight line on them, but sometimes changing from a lower or higher line weight can change the rod’s output.  I own several of the older Scott G Series rods.  While I know that these rods will never compete with the lighter, faster rods that are coming out today, there is a certain feel about them.  I love fishing them, but often times find myself wondering what a different line would feel like on them.  Recently, I got a new 4wt. Rio Gold fly line for a Scott S4 Rod.  While Rio claims this is an all purpose fly line, what I have been told is that this line is a bit heaver than just a 4 wt.  For instance, my 4wt. Rio Gold is more like a 4.2 Wt. line.  When hearing this and looking at the tapers of the line, I figured that a 4.2 wt. line would not be the best choice for a slower rod like the G Series. If anything, I should go lighter, not heavier. Most of the weight of these tapers is at the front of these lines.  

For a new rod like the Sage One or Hardy Zenith, this line might be a bit light and these rods might require an even heavier line, such as the Rio Grande or SA GPX for their fast tapers.  These lines are a ½ size heavier than stated, so a 4wt. Rio Grande is actually like a 4.5 or 4.6 wt. line. 

So going back to my G Series rod, I took an 8’4” 4wt rod out for a spin with a 3 Wt. Rio Gold line.  Usually I use a standard Rio Classic or Rio Selective Trout line on these rods.  These lines are not offered by Rio any longer, but that is what I have for them.  They cast great with those lines as they are more of a “standard” line.  A 4wt. is a 4.0wt. line.  When I put the rod and line together, it was like a new rod!  By getting a slower rod like the 4 wt. G, and putting on a light line like the 3.2 Wt. Rio Gold on it, the rod was just a bit more responsive and quicker.  If you have ever tried to cast a fast rod with a standard line, it can almost feel lifeless.  If you up-line it, then the rod may actually wake up and start to breath.  In this case, by underlining it, it felt like the rod was “perkier”.  Even though it was still smooth as butter, it had a different feel.  Casting this same rod with a SA 4wt GPX line, the line and rod felt heavy and sluggish.  So I encourage you to take some of your rods out and mess around with a few different lines on them.  Borrow your buddies’ reels and see if a particular line works better on your rods.    They may find a line that works for them as well.  

Everywhere I look....

on my desk there are tied flies in bins and cups and there are half tied flies in bins and cups.  Somebody better get to tying to finish up some of the half tied stuff.  

SoCo Guides and Royal Gorge Anglers

I am proud to announce that I will be joining the guide staff of SoCo Guides, of Royal Gorge Anglers, based in Canon City, Co .  I am available to accept trips for the Arkansas River in Bighorn Sheep Canyon, outside of Canon City.  I will only be available to do wade trips and my days are limited to weekends, unless I know ahead of time the date of the trip and I can do weekdays.  

I love fishing the Arkansas River and feel it has a lot to offer any angler, beginner to advanced.  I'd like to invite you to book a trip using the button below as this will send you directly to the Flybook, a tool used to book trips.  

I will also continue my relationship with Anglers Covey Fly Shop in Colorado Springs guiding on the South Platte River through them.  

Wherever river you choose, I'd love to spend some time on the water sharing what I have learned and fooling some beautiful fish in a beautiful part of the world.  

Tight lines,

Juan

Arkansas River BWO

Arkansas River Brown

For more info on the Arkansas click here:  

http://www.royalgorgeanglers.com/arkansas-river-guided-fishing-trips

Colorado Wanderings

When Ben first contacted me about coming to Colorado, I jumped on the opportunity to take him to one of my favorite areas of the Arkansas River.  While we could have gone anywhere on the South Platte drainage and had a good time, especially the Dream Stream section for lake run fish, that wasn't the "Colorado" I wanted him to see.  The Arkansas in Bighorn Sheep Canyon is usually deserted for the most part, as most people stay on the various sections of the S. Platte.  That is ok with me as there are plenty of fish and bugs waking up on the river.  As we arrived, I explained our plan of the day, to fish a lower section of the river then move to another stretch later in the afternoon for a possible BWO hatch.  Our first stop was well worth it and if we only fished that section and left, the day would have been a success.  But, on we went for more.   The clouds rolled in and with them, came the emerging nymphs.  The Browns and Rainbows switched from stoneflies and caddis in the early morning to BWO nymphs in the afternoon.  A switch to a #20 Mercury RS2 was just what they wanted.  As the wind screamed down the canyon, so did a few adult BWOs.  We saw a few adults on the water and a few fish rose to them.  I couldn't resist.  I had to tie on a CDC Dun.  It worked.  They ate it without hesitation.    It was good.  It was fun and it was what I hoped Ben would be able to enjoy and remember.  We didn't see another person around us all day long and that is what I was hoping for.  I think Ben will be doing a little research on where he wants to fish next time he gets back to Colorado.  Maybe next time, we will go chase some of those hogs on the Dream Stream.

Ben's First few drifts

Resulted in a nice little brown.  Not a bad start.

Working the back channel.

Caddis and stoneflies were on the menu for the morning. 

As the clouds rolled in and the skies grew darker, the fish switched to BWO nymphs and emergers.

Lots of bugs were drifting downstream.  Match the naturals! 

See, I told you, Mercury RS2!  

Arizona Prince Nymph

More on the Mercury RS2

BWOs

Can you guess what I was up to today?  And can you guess what the bug and fly of choice was today?  

More to follow about my day spent with Ben @Arizona Wanderings on the Arkansas River.

Moving on Up.........

My buddies over at Royal Gorge Anglers are relocating their fly shop in Canon City and I wanted all of you to know about this.  They are having a Grand Opening on this Sunday, March 18th.  If you are in the area, take the day and travel down to Canon City and see what is going on.  I will not be there, but I was invited to do a tying demo but I had to pass.  I sure wish I could spend the day there, but I will be fishing with Ben Smith.  Ben is the blogger at Arizona Wanderings.  He and I will be fishing somewhere in the area and we hope to be able to say hi to Taylor, Bill and the crew if we get the chance.
Good gob RGA!  Check out more here to see all the events and specials lined up.

Click here for more info

Ghillies Fly Shop Tying Demo 03/10/12

I will be at Ghillies Fly Shop this Saturday from 10-12pm, sharing a few patterns that I enjoy fishing on the area waters. I will have all my fly boxes there so you can peek to see what is inside them.  Although this will be a tying demo, I will also share how and where I like to fish these patterns.  So stop by and cheek it out if you are in the area.  I'd sure like to see some new faces as well as old friends.

Upcoming Events

First of all, it's been crazy these last several weeks.  I am running at 120MPH and getting tired.  Why?  Well, there are a few things coming up that I have been working on.

First, on Friday night 03/02/12, I will have a tying class at Ghillies Fly Shop covering the BWO Lifecycle.  We will discuss and tie several patterns to make sure you have what you need when the hatch starts.  This will be from 6:30-8:30 pm.  Call the shop to sign-up.

On Saturday March 3rd, The Colorado Springs FLy Fishing Show is at Anglers Covey starting at 9:00am.  I will be at the  tying bench at 9am, so stop by and say hi.  There will be a lot going on through the day and there will be some really good deals that day.  Stop by and check it out.

On Saturday, March 10th, I will be back at Ghillies for a tying demo sharing some of my favorite patterns for the area and beyond.  Stop by to check it out.  The demo starts at 10:00am

On Saturday March 31st, I will be at the Peak Fly SHop here in Colorado Springs.  It will be my first visit there, so I hope I see some new faces.  The demo starts at 10:00am.

After I finish all of these things, I think I am going to retire from fly tying.  That is after I finish all my donation fly boxes!

Stay tuned for more info and I'll see you guys soon!

Little Bugs

I was finally able to get out today and headed to Cheesman Canyon.  The fish were there and some of them were even eating!  Fishing the Canyon isn't always easy, especially in the winter when the bugs are super small.  It always amazes how watching fish and fishing to them in unconventional ways can result in a few hook-ups.  I won't get into it here, just that it worked better than nymphing!  Bugs of the day were #24 midges of various colors, nothing in particular.

Bugs of choice today

#28 or so

#24 Top Secret Midge

#24 Top Secret Midge

Furimsky's Fluttering Caddis Tying Video

As requested, here is the video for the Fluttering Foam Caddis.  You can change out the color of the pattern by changing out the color of the foam.  I spent around 3 years trying to figure out how to tie this in this style.  Give it a try and see what you think.  I think you will like it.

The KF Emerger

Krystal Flash Emerger
This is the second posting of this video.  I feel that this is such a good pattern, why not share it again.
My buddy Greg Faught ties this pattern and showed it to me several years ago.  It has it's roots on the San Juan River, but has been productive everywhere I have fished it.  Give it a try, as it is effective and easy to tie.