The Barbless Flyer - Spokane Fly Fishers
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Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com April, 2020 The Barbless Flyer Our mission is to provide a family friendly organization for promoting the sport of fly fishing through education, application and conservation. Next Meeting: Unknown ( April is Cancelled, due to Corona Virus Pandemic) Prez Sez By Paul Olsen Yesterday the Washington state governor Inslee decreed that no public meetings with 50 people attending will be allowed to be held for a period time. Schools, restaurants, and many other businesses are having employees work from home or are closed for the foreseeable future. Some our members have told me that they are wanting to play it safe and not take any chances of contracting the corona virus and will not attend even small meetings. I have contacted our board members and we have decided that we have no choice but to cancel of our club’s meetings due to the danger of some our members contracting the corona virus. A fishing club meeting is simply not worth endangering any one’s life. Due to the large number of members who are likely to fall into the especially vulnerable category people who if they contracted this virus would be putting their lives in jeopardy. We simply can’t take any chances with this virus. I feel like the pilot of a hot air balloon where I am not sure where the wind is going to blow us. I am hoping that we can all land safely and that everyone Here’s what’s Inside... will have a safe journey. I feel confident that this hiatus will not be major (click on page number) blow to the long-term vitality of our club, but instead hopefully this brief pause in our year’s meetings and outings will be a prudent decision. Let us hope for this is for the best. Prez Sez.................................1 Show Your Pride.....................3 When in the (hopefully) near future we will hear favorable public health news Spring Fishing........................4 about dealing with this virus and the board will meet and discuss when we Fly of the Month......................7 feel can safely meet once again At that time I will send an email blast Conservation........................11 announcing resumption of our normal meetings and schools. We do not Conservation and Education have club outings announcements in this Barbless. At this point we are not Raffle....................................12 sure if they will be postponed or canceled. This is dynamic situation that we can not with any certainty promise anything other than to keep you updated Treasurer’s Report................13 as we have new information to share with you. SFF Forum and Blog............14 Advertisements.....................15 I want to thank everyone who worked at the recent club raffle. Claude SFF Information....................16 Kistler guided the raffle to success again. The crew of people who helped was great that included Dan and Carla Ferguson, Fred and Linda Howe, Joann Allison, Jon Bowne, Brian Soth, Dave Marshall, Craig Adams, Miguel Ferrera, and Rick Newman. Devon Greyerbiehl handled the sub sandwiches and fixings. Thanks to all who contributed their generous donations. We had 132 items and 85 people who purchased raffle tickets. Thank you for helping our club budget to meet its fund-raising goal for this event. It takes a team to make an event like that go as well as that one did that night. We had a good one. Be safe and stay healthy Paul
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com April, 2020 Book of the Month By Larry Ray Another Wonderful Donation! In what is becoming a trend, our library has received another wonderful donation. These donations have helped update our collection with newer volumes. One such is the second edition of Landon Mayer’s Sight Fishing for Trout. With a copyright of 2019, it is about as new as a donated volume can be. The reader would expect, given the recent issuance, that such a volume would display state-of- the-art photography and other artwork, as well as the newest in discussions of techniques and equipment. Sight Fishing… doesn’t disappoint. The color photography is wonderfully detailed and fascinating. There is a fair share of “fish porn,” tastefully done, to excite the reader without being offensive. In fact, almost all the fish shots are of a quality that allows the reader to enjoy the individual traits found in trout – spotting, various shapes and sizes of kypes, differences between individual fish in spawning garb and full fighting form. What these photos really do is reinforce the author’s message that proper sight fishing techniques, when applied, yield much finer catches. Indeed, if one can apply all the techniques described, I have no doubt that one’s catches would substantially improve in number and quality. The reader doesn’t get too far along before she/he realizes that this author is serious about his topic! I have not seen such an emphasis on stealth and camouflage since The Curtis Creek Manifesto. Photographs of anglers (even youngsters) bent at the waist, peering from behind rocks and other cover, reinforce the authors emphasis on stalking. Likewise, there is also emphasis on searching the water carefully… no, I mean really carefully… prior to approaching for the cast. The author, in the chapter on “The Buddy System,” recommends working as a team, with one angler locating and watching individually targeted fish from an elevated or sheltered position while his buddy casts and works the fly according to the fish’s movements, as called out by the spotter. Indeed, the author indicates a preference for this kind of fishing over fishing alone. As already stated, Mayer is nothing if not serious! As nice as the photography is, I found some of it to be a bit tricky. There are pictures of fish sighted from the bank or from an overlook in moving or rippled water. These photos are well done in that they are unfocused and one has to strain to find the fish in them, just as one would (or, at least I would) have to on the bank of a stream or lake. In fact, I am still looking for the fish in several of them! But, then, that is probably the idea behind these photos. Studying these pictures to locate the fish is part of the enjoyment of reading this volume. Sight Fishing for Trout is not limited to visual location and stalking. There are separate chapters on dry-fly fishing, nymphing, and streamer presentation, with a few of the author’s favorite recipes for each. There is a section on various types of casts. The portion describing rise forms might rival the observations in Vince Marinaro’s In the Ring of the Rise. In particular, the chapter entitled “Tools for the Hunt” reads something like a field manual for military commando operations! It contains fine discussion of the equipment (sunglasses, hooded apparel, in colors that match the background behind the angler) needed for the successful, stealthy approach and attack. (Did I really say attack? Well, the intensity of the author leads toward such verbiage…) (continued on next page) 2
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com April, 2020 One bit of serious advice: Do not proceed through this volume without reading the forwards. The forward, by John Randolph, to the first edition is repeated here. Even more importantly, the forward to this second edition, by Ed Engle, is particularly insightful and helps the reader understand the intensity of the author. As Engle notes, “…it’s the best way I know for you to speed up your learning curve when it comes to angling intricacies of spring creeks and tailwaters. You’ll still need to spend time on the water, but if quitting your day job isn’t an option, studying Sight Fishing for Trout is as close as you can get to adding extra days on the River.” This wonderful volume is now available through your SFF Library. Show Your Pride If you are a Spokane Fly Fisher Member you are a member of one of the top fly fishing clubs in the Northwest. You rub elbows with some of the most skilled fly fishers in the Northwest. You get the best fly fishing education, and no other club comes close to the level of monthly guest speakers that we host. It’s the best. You are the best! Put an iron on patch on your fishing shirt, jacket, or hat, and add a few logo stickers to your fishing box, your rod carrier, your fly tying case, your car, or your truck, or your beer glass. Buy these at the Membership Table at meetings. Its OK to show off! 3
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com March, 2020 Spring Fishing By Ken Moore Finally, spring is here and I’m ready to get out the door and I bet you are too. So where are you heading? The rivers are running high, the banks are blown out, and the water is so off-colored that you are certain there is no way a fish would see your presentation. We are blessed with 75 lakes within a 50-mile radius of Spokane, and I fully understand the pull to head to still water. But today, I am going to give away one of the best kept secrets in the Northwest: now is the time to fish the creeks, streams, and rivers that you run to in the height of the summer heat. Believe me when I say: one of the absolute best times of the year to fish is during the spring when these moving waters that are “blown out.” In the springtime when the water is high, the fish are not in the middle of the river (they rarely are — that article is in the works). They are right along the shoreline pretty much at your feet. In the springtime, you may have your best chance of the year to catch a truly large trout. Furthermore, in the springtime, I can pretty much guarantee you will be the only fisherman on the river. Everyone else is on the couch or, you guessed it, in the parking lot with you at the lake. Now, high water fishing is a different beast, but the basics are pretty much the same. First, let’s talk safety. The water is moving very fast and it is very cold, not the ideal time to go for a swim. Personally, I suggest not going over the knees. Most of the time, I am only in ankle deep water, if at all. I wear a self-inflating Personal Floatation Device (PFD) just in case I slip. I also carry the means to make a fire with me in my waders on the off chance I become separated from my fishing pack. If I step into the water, I deploy my wading staff, and a whistle is always on my hip or sling bag. Yep, those are my rules. You need to develop your own and stick to them. Understanding Water-Volume and Push: I personally believe that the key to understanding moving water is understanding water volume. Too much hype is given to structure for a good reason, but the common denominator is water volume. It is the most important factor in finding fish, especially large fish. When I look at water, I’m not concerned with the flow of the water. Instead, I’m always looking for the “push” of the water. Is the water moving consistently, or is it lifting, ducking, or moving sideways as it rolls along down the riverbank? The reason is fish have to swim or hold against the push of the water, and when the water is high, guess what — these fish are as lazy as a teenager when it is time to mow the grass. (Continued on next page) 4
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com March, 2020 Two types of water that you should avoid are lifting hydraulics and ripping hydraulics. (Water moving back up stream in a reverse hydraulic is a topic for another article so let’s agree to ignore that for now.) Many anglers look at the water and assume it’s dark and deep but fail to notice the hydraulics that are at play. If the bottom is smooth, devoid of small gravel, muck, and mud, and the water is ripping along parallel to the shoreline, then the odds of finding a fish fighting that current is pretty much zero. The other is lifting hydraulics. I see fly fisherman fishing a flushing or lifting hydraulic all the time, and I shake my head and move on. Fish lay close to the bottom because the water is slower, and often the depth decreases aerial predation. So, if the water hydraulic is lifting or gurgling like oil coming out of the ground in a Texas oil field, then you would be correct in guessing there probably aren’t many fish in that part of the river. So, lifting hydraulics have the volume but the push is in the wrong direction, in this case, towards the surface. Fish there no more; please. What you are looking for are buckets and small pools of quiet water. When I say small, you would be surprised at what can come out of a quiet pool no bigger than a football. I would like for you to try looking at the water in this volume and push manner. Quiet pools are your nirvana. Do not be surprised when you see how many fish can stack in that small quiet piece of water. Fishing Fast Moving Water: Trout typically hold in 18 to 36 inches of water with small gravel, silt, muck or a combination of the three. The reason they choose this bottom structure is the water is not moving fast enough to clean the bottom. So, look for a river bottom that displays this type of a softer bottom. This typically means that you will be fishing inside corners on your rivers. Softer, slower water volume allows the fish to rest and that means inside corners are your new best friend and your chances of finding a large number of trout. Hard, outside corners are high volume pushy water and even juvenile fish prefer slower water. A soft rule to consider is if the water is too hard for you to comfortably wade in, it is probably too fast for the fish to rest in. Casting in higher flow waters requires an adjustment. I find myself high sticking, dabbing and jigging my flies in soft water buckets or pools, be they heavy nymphs or streamers. I often use a strike indicator like thingambobbers or air-lock strike indicators. In faster water trout may not be willing to move laterally very far to eat. I mentally make a grid on the pocket of water that I am fishing and try to fish the whole pocket of water starting with what is closest to me and moving out. If the indicator pauses, hesitates or moves slightly SET the hook, hook sets are free, and trout rarely will submerge your whole indicator. The days of softly casting a dry fly 40 foot will come in the summer for now it is all about fishing tight lines, high sticking and getting your nymph or streamer presentation to the bottom quickly. There is an advantage to this type of jigging presentation style, fish are extremely predatory and in the spring time because everything moves faster the fish do not have the luxury of studying your presentation, they either decide to eat or let it pass, in the fast moving waters of spring they usually chose to eat or at least mouth your flies. (Continued on next page) 5
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com March, 2020 Colors of my flies do not change from what I fish during the summer months, I still use the adage if the sky is dark due to cloud cover, I fish darker flies, if the sky is bright, I fish brighter colored flies. Fish are very adept at finding food using their lateral lines and their eyesight. The idea of using fluorescent and chartreuse colors is appealing at the fly bin but I have not found these colors to give me any advantage in faster dirty spring water. I would argue that a weighted bead head nymph with a hot spot elicits more strikes than a nymph without a hot spot (a hot spot is a piece of colored dubbing tied in just behind the bead head and differs in color form the thorax and tail sections of a nymph). The good news is you don’t need to go out and buy new flies for spring high water fishing, what you do need to do is weight your rig to get the nymph to the bottom fast, this can either be done with tin, lead, or tungsten weights. Loon Outdoors, for one, sells tin weights and I use sizes 2SSG or SSG (3.2 g or 1.6 g) If you have not yet tried tungsten tack weight or twist on lead wrap this may be a good time to begin to explore something new. Sometimes I will utilize a sinking line I like a shorter 250 grain 18 foot head vs a 30 foot sinking line when I high stick with sinking lines. If I am using a floating line I may use a weighted VersiLeader (Each Rio VersiLeader is 10ft long, tapered for the best in performance and has a 24lb nylon core. A neat, bullet-proof welded loop at the butt end allows for fast rigging.) depending on the volume and push of water I am fishing and my rig setup. Bottom line is your looking for soft pockets of slow water that fish will hold in. Fish it vertically if you have to and be quick and liberal at setting the hook. Always keep safety forefront in your mind because everything in the spring moves faster. There is a cosmic duality between the calm of still water and the rush of spring runoff, two sets of opposing and yet complementing principles that are observed in nature. The lessons we learn from fly fishing are often applicable to life, if you haven’t tried something new in your chosen sport what is holding you back? The reward of landing trout with a new method will put a smile on your face. 6
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com March, 2020 Fly of the Month Rickard's Emerging Bugger Stillwater expert, Denny Rickards, desiring a complementary emerger pattern to his A.P. Emerger, came up with the Emerging Bugger in 2010. The Emerging Bugger pattern utilizes many of the colorations and materials of his popular Seal Buggers series yet he ties this pattern to a 2XL Nymphal hook and adds a hackle collar for the impression of an emerging nymph. It is a 50/50 mix of Angora Dubbing and Ice Dubbing. Rather than palmering a hackle through the body (as on the Seal Bugger), the hackle is wrapped just behind the head . The hook is slightly longer than his AP Emerger pattern, a 2xl nymph hook such as a TMC 5263 or Daiichi 1710. Denny fishes this pattern as an emerging nymph with either a Sink Tip or a Full Sinking line utilizing a pulsating upward retrieval. The pattern can also be fished as a streamer with a slow retrieve mimicking a baitfish. Denny uses many different color combinations of the body, tail and hackle. The major body colors are Olive, Black/Red, and Black. The darker colors work especially well under low light conditions. The lighter Olive colors work well late-morning and midday. Hackle colorations include: Burnt Orange and Burgundy. Tail colorations are: Burnt Orange, Burgundy, Olive, and Black. Materials: (To Order Materials, click the link) •Hook: Daiichi 1710 or TMC 5262, #8-10 •Thread: Danville Black 6/0 •Weight: .020 Leadfree Wire •Head: Danville Black Thread •Tail: Black Marabou, Two strands Holographic Flashabou •Body: Black&Red Seal/Peacock Ice Dubbing •Rib: Copper Wire •Hackle: Purple Grizzly Saddle Hackle Variations: (Materials list can be found at this link) (Tying Instructions on next pages) 7
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com March, 2020 Tying Instructions 1. Attach the .020 lead-free wire behind the eye and wrap 10-15 times on the shank. 2. Attach the thread to the shank behind the eye.. 3. Secure the lead wire with thread wraps. Bring the thread back to the bend of the hook. 4. Clip the fibers off a marabou plume stem to tie in a tail. The length should be the same as the shank length. Keep the number of tail fibers sparse about 15-20 fibers. Secure the marabou with 3-4 pinch wraps keeping the material on top of the shank. 5. Secure the butt ends of the marabou over the lead wraps with thread wraps. (Continued on next page) 8
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com March, 2020 6. Trim off the excess Marabou. Attach two strands of Flashabou to the top of the tail. The strands should go the length of the tail. 7. Attach a copper wire ribbing to the bottom of the shank below the lead wraps. Secure the wire ribbing with thread wraps to the tail tie-in position. 8. Mix up a dubbing blend of 50% J.Fair Simi Seal and 50% Ice Dubbing. For this pattern, we use Black/Red Simi Seal and Peacock Ice Dubbing. 9. Apply the dubbing to the thread in a clockwise rotation. Slide the dubbing up to the tail tie-in position for that a few fibers touch the shank. Then, wrap the dubbed thread 2 times to lock these fibers to the shank. 10. You can tighten or loosen the dubbing on the thread with further twisting. Wrap the dubbed thread forward about an eye width behind the eye and secure with thread wraps. (Continued on next page) 9
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com March, 2020 11. Wrap the ribbing forward about 5 turns. Secure with thread wraps and trim off the copper wire tag using a heavy wire scissor, not your thread scissor! Some will break the wire with a back and forth motion but this is medium guage and it doesn't break easily. Mash down the cut end against the shank. 12. Select a webby saddle hackle the same size as the hook. Attach the hackle just in front of the body by the base with thread wraps. The shiny side of the hackle should face forward so the fibers sweep back. 13. Build a small thread head and Whip Finish. 14. Brush the body with a piece of velcro or a dubbing brush. Tease the dubbing material so that it extends through the hackle fibers and tends to blend in. 15. Apply some head cement the thread head. The finished Emerging Bugger: Reproduced with permission from Steve Schalla’s Fly Fishing the Sierra 10
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com March, 2020 Conservation By: Claude Kistler Included is a recent Conservation success as reported by the Washington State Council of Trout Unlimited. Thanks to all for reaching out in support of this legislation. GREAT NEWS! Washington State fish habitat and water quality took a big leap forward yesterday with the passage of suction dredge reform legislation (you may have seen it called HB 1261), which now goes to Governor Inslee for his signature. This legislation will protect thousands of miles of critical habitat for salmon, steelhead, and bull trout from the harmful effects of suction dredge mining. This is an incredible win for Washington’s watersheds, and it has been a long time coming. This victory is thanks to YOU! Supporters like you sent messages backed in science calling for safeguards for Washington’s enormous salmon and orca recovery investments, and the importance of clean water and intact aquatic habitat. You demanded this commonsense approach because you knew it was the right thing to do for our waters. And our lawmakers in Olympia listened - the bill garnered broad, bi-partisan support. Please take a moment to reach out to your legislators that voted for this legislation and thank them for their support. Singular voices - when spoken in chorus like we did here - make a difference! YOU SPOKE, AND YOUR LEGISLATORS LISTENED. Every voice matters, and your voice made the difference on this important issue for our salmon, orca whales, and water quality in Washington State. With immense gratitude, The Team at Trout Unlimited Washington 11
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com March, 2020 Conservation and Education Raffle April 2020 – Claude Kistler There are so many thanks that should go around regarding the raffle this year. Thanks to the 52 donors who contributed 132 items, trips and services. Thanks to the 85 ticket buyers and raffle bidders. Thanks to the volunteers who set up the room, checked in items and shuttled them to the tables. A huge thanks to Linda Howe, Carla Ferguson, Brian Soth and Jon Bowne for their work at the membership, check- in, and pay table. Thanks to the table runners who delivered items and tickets to the front table for the drawings and of course to Dan Ferguson for handling the mic duties. Thanks to Joann Allison for her important record keeping of winners and to David Marshall for the AV system and data collection on various raffle items. A huge thanks to Devon Greyerbiehl for providing food for purchase, and a super shout out to Miguel Ferrera who was there with a steady hand when things were their most chaotic at item check-in. Lastly, thanks to all who stayed to clean up and put the room back into order. Please accept my apologies if I have forgotten anyone. Our gross total was $3,520 and that’s a good evening. As Treasurer Brian Soth said, “with lots of energy in the room and the winners seemed happy with what they won.” Thanks again to all who helped and participated. You clearly demonstrate the heart and soul of the Spokane Fly Fishers and our Conservation and Education projects will flourish because of your efforts. 12
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com March, 2020 Treasurer’s Report By Brian Soth, Treasurer The following report is submitted in a spirit of transparency. Any member is welcome to ask questions about our income, expenses and assets. (As a reminder, our current fiscal year runs from June 1, 2019 through May 31, 2020.) If you do have questions or comments, please email Treasurer Brian Soth at treasurer@spokaneflyfishers.com. Balances as of March 15, 2020: Checking $25,200 Money Market Fund $10,170 Inflows and Outflows, February 2020: Inflows $ 5,895 Outflows $ 2,024 Net Income $ 3,871 Inflows and Outflows, Fiscal Year to Date as of February 29, 2020: Inflows $ 13,352 Outflows $ 12,234 Net Income $ 1,118 13
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com April, 2020 SFF Forum and Blog Ready for the Opening of the Fishing Season! The SFF Forum and Blog now has 80 members, an all time high, and we expect several more in the coming months as the Fly School new members get into the fishing season as the weather warms up. There will be a special emphasis this year on members arranging their own outings or for folks using the Forum to find some fishing buddies to join them as they visit a local lake or river. For you new folks, please don't be shy and wait for someone else to make a request. Get on the Forum, go to the "Fishing Buddies" category, and post a note saying you are going to a lake or river and ask if anyone else would like to join you. If you don't know where to fish, post a note asking your question and I'm sure you'll get an answer or two that will be helpful. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sign up or Log in to the SFF Blog Forum at: https://spokaneflyfishersc.wixsite.com/forum If you are online reading this, click on the link above. You can access the site on your smart phone, your laptop, your tablet or iPad, or your desktop computer. If you are not yet a Blog/Forum member, be sure and click on the "sign up" icon at the top of the form, not the "log in" icon, at the bottom. Remember to save your password because you are the only person who will know what it is. If you forget your password, click on "Forgot Password". Doug Keene Blog/Forum Admin spokaneflyfishersclub@gmail.com 14
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com April, 2020 Advertisements Please support these business’ that support us throughout the year. 15
Spokane Fly Fishers LLC www.spokaneflyfishers.com April, 2020 SFF Information OFFICERS COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN President: Paul Olsen Programs: Stan Johnson Vice President: Stan Johnson Barbless Flyer Editor: Rolf Marsh Treasurer: Brian Soth Publications Comm.: TBD Secretary: Val Urbat Conservation: Claude Kistler Board Position 1: Randy Ishihara Outings: Chet and JoAnn Allison Board Position 2: David Marshall Education: Ken Moore Board Position 3: Devon Greyerbiehl Membership: Jon Bowne Past President: Doug Keene Fly Fishing School: Claude Kistler and Dan Sgt. At Arms: Rick Newman Ferguson (co-chair) Librarian: Larry Ray PHW Contact: George Foster FFI Liaison: Rick Newman Beg. Fly Tying: Mary Kovatch Int. Fly Tying: Dan Fergson Casting for Recovery: Mary Kovatch A/V Coordinator: David Marshall Time and Location of Monthly Meetings Place: St Francis of Assisi Church, 1104 W HEROY, Spokane Meetings are on the 2nd Wednesday of each month, except May (Club Picnic), June, July and August. Meetings start at 7 pm, preceded by a social hour starting at 6 pm. SFF Contact Info Change of eMail Address: membership@spokaneflyfishers.com Club Mailing Address: SFF Club, PO box 4141, Spokane, WA 92202 Club Web Site: https://www.spokaneflyfishers.com/links-club-document If you have any questions please contact: membership@spokaneflyfishers.com Spokane Fly Fishers May articles due: Next Meeting: Unknown Depends on Covid-19 St Francis of Assisi Church, 1104 W HEROY. 16
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