MAKING LEMONADE- THE FLY FISHING VERSION

 

 

My parents settled in North West Ohio.  Good schools, close to Lake Erie, good standard of living, and located nowhere near any good trout fishing.  The Western Edge of Steelhead Alley is over an hour away, smallies of the Huron River about an hour, the Ausable River four hours.  Now once a kid gas grown up these are not huge drive times and don't tax allowances much.  Still nowhere close for a quick trip to the river. 

 

The Maumee River is world famous its Spring Walleye Run-  people fight for prime fishing spots to throw Carolina Rigged floating heads for these tasty treats.  You quickly learn how to throw your line so you don't tangle your line much with our fellow fisherman.  Parking spaces along the road are as much in demand as those on the water.  When you are driving up to the river looking for a place to fish and park you might be lucky enough to spot the camo wearing DNR looking for people who are snagging.   

 

Trout bum paradise, fly fisherman paradise hardly.  But for those willing to fish outside the box- they fish for smallies, walleye, carp, catfish and even gar: the lemonade of the fly fishing world. 

 

Especially for catfish yes catfish.  These fish pull hard, their trade mark rolling on the line leaves your tippet slimy and identifies the fish well before you can see throw the muddy rivers of the Maumee.  As the summer progresses they become easier to catch moving up the water column for minnows and bugs.  But most times especially during the Dog Day's of summer they are tight to the bottom.

 

Enter the Turkey Dinner.  The Turkey Dinner everything that makes Thanksgiving so good in one bite. A wiggling mess of movement.  Maybe a crawfish, maybe a bug, either way something good.  Use a loop knot to attach the fly to a long, heavy, flat (untapered) leader and whatever sinking tip is needed to get the fly down.  Fish it deep and slowly on a drift.  And wait for the catfish to hammer down on it when they bite on the fly. 

 

Ladies and Gentleman, make lemonade.  Fish hard, fish often. 

 

 

 



Monkey Balls

Sitting around a camp fire my brother Mark- just busted out with ''Ya know Sean Monkey Balls would be a great name for a fly pattern."  I damn near wet myself it would be a great name for a fly.  Irreverent names for flies just seems appropriate.  We spend hundreds of dollars, countless hours to catch a fish then release it...how seriously can we take ourselves.

It makes me remember a conversation that I had with my Grandma a grand lady who I inherited my fishing disease from.  My Dad and I had just got back from the Bahamas....to my Grandma's dismay with no fish.  She couldn't understand it returning to the dock without fish was a failure in her mind.  No serious names for flies when we release the fish and have you seen the size of a fish brain. 

Monkey Balls came from a need I had in my box.  Mid sized flashy baitfish flies are my bread and butter for bass and pike- also it needed to dive quickly to get into cover.  Monkey Balls gets the job done- the body is almost see through with great lateral lines from the flash and a shock of color.  Tying of the fly has been made so much easier thanks for Senyo's Predator Wrap.  Fish it deep twitch the rod and hold on

Four colors are available: chartreuse, yellow, olive and white.

Early season recon

It seems like only yesterday we were fishing in board shorts and sandals. The smallies were rowdy and the pike were killers. Then the subtle change to Fall happened. Predator fish trolled the waters for victims, picking them off as they wished. Anadromous fish came to get their freak on providing lots of opportunities for amazing eats on swung flies and nymphs. Now Winter has come in vengeance.

Those who have been living in this area for years- say the weather is truly colder than normal for this time of the year. AWESOME!! As a Midwestern who transplanted to the West to ski full time and then returned to the Midwest, it is totally cool to have such good skiing already. The snow is light, dry and covers the world in a grand blank canvas; begging for new tracks to be laid down. Rivers are gurgling with ice they are still giving up some fish. Its great to be fishing deep and cold then look up to see people grinning as they ski down pristine white snow.

Throwing on pack and skinning to some of my favorite fishing places is so much fun. I am always amazed at returning to my favorite fishing holes in different seasons. It is like seeing it in a whole new light. The Winter shows you the places on the river that flow almost year round thereby providing the best fishing opportunities year round. So I am throwing on my pack and skinning to my favorite rivers; the best ones out West provide a nice descent to back to the car. Maybe I will throw my fishing stuff in the pack, maybe just some strong Irish coffee either way the crowds will be light and the scenery great.

On the approach to the Falls. It was brilliant crisp winter day. The crusty upper layer of snow made for a quick, easy skin but made for a horrible descent.

 

 

Through these trees is great swinging water. This was as close as I could get without waders- the numerous little streams around it where not frozen over yet. There is one that I am standing on to get this shoot praying that my skis spread my weight enough to keep my dry.

 

I skied down to my car through a different valley and never knew this was around- I will have to go back in the Summer. Many of the tribs in this area hold lots of brookies.

A new day and yet more new water.  The colors are in full effect, there was a nice little rain and I had the water to myself.  I have heard that when fishing new water that you know little about it is not uncommon to not catch fish 7 out of 10 days.  A little depressing but those 3 days make it worth it.  The other days you have to big deep find pleasure in the small stuff and be happy in any fish you land. 

I know there are steelhead in the water some even tease me but over all they schooled me.  Swinging small swinging high swinging big nymphing small nymphing big a recipe of school kid rhythms at only landed a single brown.  But it was so perfect.  The fish was where it should be and hit with the utter lack of restraint that only a small fish can. 

It aint a big fish most people would not even take a picture let along post it.  But I had to work for the fish and everything else was just perfect.  So here is my small friend and I look forward to seeing him later in life when he is all big and mean.